The Mobster's Princess

Epilogue

Rafael watched as Rose was setting the table for their Friday night dinner parties. She took over his mother's tradition, inviting his family over for dinner. It had been six months since their mother passed away and it seemed that everyone in their family moved on in their own way.

Rafael took the plates from his wife and set the table, "Oh, we need one more. Seb managed to convince Chloe to come over for dinner."

Rose's eyes gleamed with amusement as she handed him another plate, "So she isn't giving him a hard time anymore?"

"She is still being tough on him." Rafael told her, "But I guess curiosity got the better of her. She wanted to attend at least one of our dinner parties to see what it's all about."

"I suppose dinner at her house is more formal."

Rafael grabbed a few wine glasses from the cupboard, his wife getting the remaining ones while she followed him to the dining room.

"From what Seb told me Chloe usually eats by herself."

Rose glanced at him, "So no more late nights out?"

He remembered how they met Chloe all those months ago. She had been partying it up at one of their clubs which made Marcus lose his patience with her. The guy more or less told them to take care of her which they did. Now Chloe was somewhat a part of their lives. Her pride got hurt since his brother chose his family duties over her so now she was giving Sebastiano a hard time. Chloe was indeed that kind of girl. He didn't comment on it though, he let Sebastiano figure this one out.

"Guess she grew tired of it."

Rose pointed at him, "Or she knows what she wants, but she is making Seb work hard for it so she knows he won't push her aside again."

Rafael scoffed, "She's playing mind games then."

Rose nodded, "Probably."

He sighed, "Then shall I speak up for the both of them so we can get this over with."

Rose didn't look opposed to it, "It's getting sad to watch."

He would set them both straight. He understood that Chloe wanted to feel secure before she committed to a long-term relationship, but it was getting ridiculous at this point. They would forever dance around each other if no one firmly stood their ground. He knew Chloe well enough to feel comfortable to speak up. He knew she wouldn't like it that he'd do it in front of their family, but she would come to realize that their family had no secrets from each other. They always found out about things one way or another. Sometimes it was annoying as hell, but they learned to deal with it. Having no secrets between them made their environment a lot safer, not to mention causing the atmosphere to be a lot more positive.

"Why don't you get ready while I make tea and coffee?"

Rose glanced down at her clothes, "Yeah, I'll do that." She walked up to him, placed her hand on his arm for support and kissed him, "Thanks."

He watched her skip away, shaking his head at how excited she looked. Rose enjoyed having his family over, she loved the banter between siblings and the sound of laughter filling the room. He understood why she wanted to start their own family. She was the kind of girl who loved the family life. She wanted his family around, always. She even scolded him whenever he made his siblings leave his apartment so he could have some alone time. Away from those loud brothers and sister he loved so much.

He was putting the kettle on then started on brewing some coffee when he heard Aria announce herself loudly. He never did ask for those keys back. Again due to his wife's meddling. She did have a point though, they should have a place they felt safe at whenever they felt down or just needed some company.