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“If you wish.” She waved her hand at him and then stepped through the door, between Jack and Gio. “Come along, girls.”

Even as she spoke, Aunt Serena’s gaze was on me. I could feel it, but I didn’t meet it. I was too busy staring at Ivy.

In the short time she’d been in Aunt Serena’s hands, her haircut had been evened out, she was dressed in a green dress that was a little too big for her but far more flattering than the gray one she’d arrived in, and she now wore a touch of lipstick and rouge.

She was gorgeous.

And somehow she was going to be my wife.

My hands itched to touch her and assure myself that she was real. Also to ensure anyone who saw us knew that she was off limits.

Mine.

The possessiveness that welled up inside me was surprising in its intensity. I stared down at her as she approached, her expression worried. She was nibbling her lower lip.

Both Gio and Jack were looking at me. Aunt Serena was starting to frown, and Clara was already frowning with her arms crossed over her chest. Hailey looked at me with wide eyes and made a little rolling motion with her hand, mouthing the words ‘say something.’

Right.

“You look better.”

Aunt Serena sighed. Gio dropped his head into his hands while Jack just shook his back and forth, rolling his eyes upward. Clara smirked. Hailey glared.

Ivy just looked up at me, expressionless.

I cleared my throat.

“I mean, you look gorgeous.” I lifted my fingers to the tips of her hair, where it brushed her chin. “Your hair looks a lot better. And I like the green.”

“Thank you.” Her words were measured. Careful. Like she wasn’t sure what to think of me right now. I guessed I couldn’t blame her for that. I had sprung the marriage thing on her out of nowhere.

“Good enough,” Aunt Serena muttered under her breath, before raising her voice. “Alright, come along now. The conservatory needs a lot of work.” That last comment was directed at Ivy, who stepped forward to join Aunt Serena at her side.

I trailed just behind them. Jack and Hailey had taken the lead, and I could see them bending their heads together to talk while Aunt Serena told Ivy about the long-neglected conservatory. Aunt Serena’s mother had loved plants, but unfortunately Aunt Serena had been born with what she called a ‘black thumb.’ She’d tried to keep it up for her mother’s sake, and she’d hired a few gardeners to try and keep it maintained for her, but most of them didn’t last long. They objected to my uncle’s occasional ‘special fertilizer’ deliveries.

Neither Hailey nor Clara had taken much interest in it.

If Ivy wanted to see it, maybe she could help. I knew that would make Aunt Serena happy if she did, which would be helpful toward making sure the family accepted Ivy.

Ivy

The conservatory was huge, far larger than I’d expected. This whole house was even bigger than it looked from the street, which was a shock in and of itself, because it had looked plenty big from the front. Somehow it just went on and on, all the way to the back where the massive glass-enclosed room was.

And inside it, was an entire jungle of half-alive and dying plants.

I wanted to whimper just looking at them.

“As you can see, it needs work,” Mrs. DiNardo said, sweeping her hand out to encompass the room as a whole. She sighed and then straightened up, raising her voice. “Carlo, come here. Carlo is currently in charge of the conservatory, but to be honest, he’s the best of a group who are not well suited to the role, including myself.”

A man with a slight resemblance to Tomas, Gio, and Jack came down the pathway at a brisk pace. He was wearing a perfectly tailored suit with a pair of glasses perched on his nose, and looked more like he belonged in a bank than a garden. There wasn’t a speck of dirt on him.

I pressed my lips together. A man who couldn’t even get dirt on him had no business being in charge here.

“Aunt Serena.” Carlo smiled, his gaze flicking to me.

Even though I couldn’t see him, I was aware of a large presence behind me, coming in close and looming over me from behind. Tomas. I could practically feel his glare, which had Carlo quickly refocusing his attention on Mrs. DiNardo.

“Carlo, this is Ivy, she’s going to be marrying Tomas tomorrow,” Mrs. DiNardo said, living up to her name when Carlo jerked in obvious surprise. He looked over at me and Tomas again and then away just as quickly. “She will also be taking charge over the conservatory.”