Sweet Temptation by Cora Reilly

I gritted my teeth. “All right. That’s reasonable.”
“I’d like you to meet her before so we can discuss the details for the feast.
It’ll be a lot of work to set up a grand wedding on such short notice.”
“You insist on a big celebration?”
“Yes. Giulia is our only daughter, and my wife wants to organize something
special for her. With our son, she couldn’t really plan as much as she wanted.
Not to mention considering our status, it’ll be an important social gathering,
Cassio.”
“I can’t be involved in the planning. I have enough on my plate as it is, so
your wife would have to do everything.”
“That won’t be a problem. Let’s discuss the details when you come over,
shall we? When can you make it?”
Sybil planned to spend the weekend at my house to keep an eye on the kids.
“In two days, but I can’t stay long.”
“Perfect. You made the right decision, Cassio. Giulia is wonderful.”
Dad was acting strange during dinner. He kept staring at me as if he was on the
verge of saying something but never did. Mom looked like she’d gotten an
invitation to an exclusive Chanel summer sale.
When I was done with dinner, I waited for Dad to excuse me. I wanted to
finish the painting I began this morning. Now that I was finished with high
school, I’d been using my free time to improve my painting skills.
He cleared his throat. “We need to talk to you.”
“Okay,” I said slowly. The last time Dad began a conversation like that, he’d
told me that my fiancé had been killed during a Bratva attack. It hadn’t hit me
like it should have, considering our planned future, but I’d only met him once
and that had been many years ago. Mom had been the only one who’d cried
bitter tears, mainly because his death meant I was left without a fiancé at
seventeen. That was a scandal in the making.
“We’ve found you a new husband.”