Ruthless People (15 page)

“It’s very simple,” Olivia said fingering the tattoo on her wrist, looking my dress
up and down. If I weren’t in all white and about to enter the house of God, I would
have bashed her head in.

“Some people have to try harder than others. Others can make simple look elegant.”

“Agreed,” Evelyn said. Apparently, she and I had come to a new agreement.

“Did you give her the bracelet?” Coraline asked even though Evelyn was already walking
toward the desk to pick up the small box.

She opened it, and my eyes widened ever so slightly. The vintage bracelet, made of
all pearls and pendant with the letter
C
embedded in it. It had to be from the early 1900s, at least.

“Something old. All the Callahan woman wear it during their wedding. It was the gift
given to the wife of the first Boss.” She smiled and placed it on my wrist.

“Thank you,” I replied, and for the first time it hit me. I was getting married today.

“We should get going. Sedric is waiting,” Olivia said, frowning and clearly pissed
that the moment was happening between everyone but her. The bitch.

“Sedric?” I asked her and one met my gaze. “Why is Sedric waiting? Where is my father?”

LIAM

“So what happened on the boat, Lamb?” Neal asked me for the billionth time as we waited
in St. Peter’s Cathedral.

“Mind your own fucking business. And if you call me Lamb again, Neal, I will kill
you, then bury you under the church.”

He smirked. “You’re excited. You didn’t even describe how you would kill me. That
boat ride must have—”

Before he finished, I punched him in the fucking nose.

“For the love of motherfucking fuck!”

“Last chance brother or you’re going to piss me off,” I replied, fixing my tie.

“Liam, calm down before you get blood on your suit. I’m sure Melody wouldn’t mind,
but the press . . .” Declan sighed, throwing a cold beer at Neal who held it on his
nose.

Neal mumbled something under his breath and left.

“One day you two will have to work out your issues,” Declan said to me.

One day maybe, but not fucking today.

Saying nothing, I took a deep breath and walked out the door that lead to the front
of the Cathedral. Looking outside, I noticed my mother had made sure to invite every
last motherfucker with a net worth over a hundred million. They all looked like tourists,
excited to be on the guest list. My eyes met Vance’s, and I could feel the blood in
my veins begin to run hotter. He smirked, nodding at me as though he was fucking proud,
the bastard. Next to him sat Amory. The golden-locks-wannabe was all but sucking on
Natasha’s neck. It had seemed Deep Throat had switched ships. She winked at me, and
I wanted to puke.

“How is security?”

Declan snickered. “They would have a better chance getting to the president than any
one of us today.”

“If this doesn’t go off perfectly, shoot him for good measure.” I wanted to be the
one to take Vance’s life, but if it needed to be done today, then I didn’t care who
did it.

“Just worry about Melody and pray she doesn’t run away.”

“No, she wouldn’t run.” Running wasn’t in her nature. “She would come if only to kill
me.”

Before he could reply, music rang throughout the church and the door opened slowly
making my heart rate quicken. A vision in white stood beside my father with a bouquet
of blood-red roses in her hands. She didn’t bother with a veil to cover her face,
and for that, I was fucking glad. She was beautiful, deadly, stunning, and all mine.

When she reached me, she stopped and kissed my father on the cheek before taking my
hand. However, when I looked in her eyes I saw a twinge of sadness, and it pained
me to my core. I squeezed her hand, not to hurt her, but to tell her I saw and I didn’t
like it. I wanted her to be happy. I would let her pick anyone in the church and kill
them if it made her smile.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today in the face of not only God, but the world,
to join together Liam Alec Callahan and Melody Nicci Giovanni in holy matrimony.”

Everything he said after that faded when she squeezed my hand back.

She glanced up at me, and the lioness in her eyes wasn’t gone, but simply asleep.
Something was wrong, and I hated that I couldn’t figure it out.

“Liam Alec Callahan, do you take Melody Nicci Giovanni to be your wife, to have and
to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer,
in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish? Do you promise to be faithful to
her until death do you part?”

“I do, always,” I said without any hesitation, and she snickered at me, shaking her
head as I placed the wedding band on her finger.

“Melody Nicci Giovanni, do you take Liam Alec Callahan to be your husband, to have
and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer,
in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish? Do you promise to be faithful to
him until death do you part?”

“I do, always,” she replied, and I felt overflowing relief and joy as she slid my
ring into place.

“May these rings be blessed so he who gives it and she who wears it may abide in peace
and continue in love until life’s end,” he said as we stared at each other. “You may
now seal the promises you have made to each other with a kiss.”

In that moment it didn’t feel like our lips met. It was though our souls did.

Mel,
my Mel
, wiped the lipstick from my lips.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I now present to you the loving couple, Mr. and Mrs. Liam Callahan,”
the priest said while Mel rolled her eyes at me. Apparently, Mrs. Liam Callahan didn’t
sit well with her, but too fucking bad.

Everyone rose from his or her seat, clapping and cheering as we walked down the aisle
hand in hand. We stopped at the top of the stairs to take photos for every damn magazine
in the world, when my father leaned in beside me.

“I believed both of your emotions, so will the world,” he whispered with a smirk as
we smiled. “But was it true. Do you believe it? Did it take only Russian blood and
a boat ride?”

I said nothing before stepping into the Rolls Royce.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

Sighing, I leaned in and held the side of her face so she would have to look me in
the eye. “Wife, what is wrong?”

She stared before sighing as well. “Husband, my father refused to walk me down the
aisle. He’s gotten worse.”

With that she ripped her head from my hand and glared out the window. I felt like
a bloody moron. I was so focused on her, I didn’t even think about the person walking
her down the aisle. Melody Gio . . . Callahan had the ability to make me forget anyone
else existed when she was near.

“After we do our time at the reception, if you want, we could sneak out and go see
him.”

She looked at me, and her eyes narrowed. “Is this you trying to be sweet? Because
I’m fine and would prefer to deal with
asshole
Callahan. You know, the son of a bitch I fought in my basement who thought his balls
were bigger than they actually are?”

And there was the lioness again.

“I’m putting in effort, maybe you should fucking try it, Melody. I’m planning on going
to war with the entire world. I don’t need one with the woman sleeping beside me.”

Neither of us spoke after that, she knew just how to fucking kill the mood.

Not looking at me she took my hand into hers and squeezing it before letting go. “I’ve
never been . . . nice. I’m not used to being anything other than a Giovanni. Affection
and tenderness are not our strong suits. So I do not know how to reciprocate that.
Bitch
is standard mode for me, and I will work on it.”

“I don’t mind you being a bitch to anyone else, as long as it is not me,” I whispered,
taking her hand and kissing it quickly. Part of me was starting to enjoy her ripping
out other people’s hearts. It was her thing, and she was good at it.

She laughed, and I enjoyed the sound. “You do know that we have known each other for
only seventy-two hours.”

“Holy fuck, I feel like I’ve known you for decades.” If not longer.

“Really?” she asked. “What is my favorite color?”

Fuck.

MELODY

When we got to the reception, which was being held outside at Callahan Manor, there
were more photographers, who Evelyn allowed to take photos from a distance. My face
felt as though it would break from all the forced smiling.

“Call them off, or I’m calling snipers,” I said to Liam.

He leaned down to kiss my cheek. “I would, gladly, but my mother and father want good
press.”

I glared at him, pinching his arm until he pulled me away from the cameras and headed
toward the sea of guests. There were more damn photos and fake congratulations there,
until I saw Vance and Amory making their way through all the drinking and celebrating
in the courtyard. Our guests danced underneath the steams of lights, blissfully unaware
that two of the most deadly men in the country were about to collide with another
deadly pair.

Both Vance and Amory were as slick as eels with their dark eyes and oily skin. Amory
stood at the same stunted height as his father, even though Vance was rather stout
and Amory was sickly thin. They shared many of the same traits—blond hair, though
Vance’s was graying, a strong chin, and small ears.

“Remember, the Valero do not know I took over for my father,” I whispered, making
sure it seemed as though I was nothing more than an excited bride. Behind Liam, I
saw Neal and Declan step closer to us. Monte and Fedel were near the entrance focused
on me. With a glance, Fedel let me know Antonio and three other snipers were in the
windows of the manor, waiting.

“Oh, and you should know, Vance tried to arrange a marriage with Amory and me, years
ago.” His eyes widened before narrowing into dangerous slits of green.

“Mr. and Mrs. Callahan!” Vance said as he reached us. “Congratulations. I must say
this was a huge surprise. Melody what a fine young woman you have become, hasn’t she
Amory?”

“I’m sorry, do I know you?” I asked innocently, squeezing Liam’s hand. He needed to
step up and be calm. Amory looked at me with pure lust, however, making me want to
cut his eyes out, and doing nothing to help Liam calm down.

He sneered, shaking Vance’s hand, which had been extended for me. “This is Vance Valero,
love. The owner of the company that keeps stealing many of our
products
.”

Vance glared dangerously, as did Amory before he smiled at me. “I do not wish to bore
your beautiful little head with such youthful fiction. Your father and I were quite
close. I was hoping to speak with him, however, he seems to be absent from this joyful
occasion.”

I tried not gag. “Liam and I wanted to get married. My father spoke of some new huge
business venture in Austria that he needed to get a jumpstart on. I will let him know
you spoke of him.”

Amory’s eyes widened before he grinned and reached out for my hand, but Liam took
it instead. “I’m sorry gentlemen, but my wife and I must be making the rounds. Please
enjoy yourselves.”

“Yes, please do,” I added, smiling as though I was naïve to the tension between them.
“Evelyn has worked so hard on this day. We are lucky to afford such a lifestyle. One
day you could be sitting on the top of the world, then the next it could be sitting
on you, my father says.”

“Your father has always been wise.” Amory winked at me before glaring at Liam. “But
we are all human and make mistakes.”

Fuck you, you no good motherfucking asshole.

When we walked away, Liam pulled us onto the dance floor under the purple and red
fabric draping.

“What the fuck is going on in Austria? I know that is the last place your father is.”

“Calm the fuck down. Nothing is in Austria, but Amory doesn’t know that. He is a leech,
and I have no doubt he will be on the next plane tonight trying to steal from us.”
Plus, if we divided him and Vance, it would be easier to break them.

His hands wandered down my spine. “You want them to think you don’t know anything.”

“It’s easier to kill a deer if they think you are a rabbit rather than a wolf. Amory
was so busy staring at my breasts, he couldn’t even speak.”

“I noticed. I should just kill the motherfucker now and save myself the annoyance.
He is lucky I didn’t rip his eyes out, and believe me I would have.”

The darkness in his voice made me shiver in pleasure. I allowed him to spin me before
bringing me in close. “You need to clear your mind and take a deep breath. We were
able to flip Ryan Ross. He reports directly to Monte now, then to me. It’s how I knew
Vance knew about the plane. He wants to do something bigger. He wants us to relax
before he attacks. But mostly, he wants to hurt you.”

“And how the fuck is Vance going to hurt me?”

“Me,” I answered. “He will want to use Amory as a way to gain intel. Amory will probably
flirt with me and try to gain my trust. It wouldn’t be the first time he went after
a married woman.”