"Ma'am. Ma'am, it's time to wake up," I heard, as I felt a light tapping on my shoulder.
"Ugh. Go away," I groaned, covering my head with the sheets.
"Ma'am, I've been trying to wake you up for an hour, and you keep saying to 'go away', but if you don't get up now, you won't be ready for breakfast at 6:30, and Mr. Bianchi will be terribly upset. And you don't want to see Mr. Bianchi terribly upset, ma'am." Gretchen pleaded.
"I don't care how upset Mr. Bianchi is. Now go away and don't come back," I growled.
"Very well ma'am," she sighed as she walked out of the door.
I quickly jumped and ran to lock my door, after she left, and then ran and jumped back in the bed. I hadn't gotten any sleep last night.
"Alessandra, get up. You're late for breakfast," Vincenzo sounded really irritated.
"How did you even get in here? I locked the door," I mumbled, as I grabbed my pillow and put it on top of my head.
"We have an adjoining door between our rooms, Alessandra," he sighed. "Now get up, and let Gretchen help you get ready and be down for breakfast in 20 minutes," he growled.
"No! Go away!" I said, frustratedly.
"Get up now, Alessandra," he ordered, starting to sound very angry.
"You are my husband, not my brothers or my father, so No!" I yelled, as I sat up to look him straight in the eye, like he likes.
"I am your husband, and you will obey me, little girl," he said, getting right in my face.
Good, I hope he gets a big whiff of morning breath, asshole. Normally, I'm not like this, I'm usually just a big pushover. So for me to be telling him off this like, it's a little much. But I didn't get much sleep last night, an hour at most. And I'm not interested in breakfast right now, I'm interested in sleep.
"Ugh! I don't want breakfast Mr. Bianchi. Please, leave me alone," I groaned, as I laid back down, and pulled the pillow over my face.
Suddenly the pillow and blankets were ripped off me, and Vincenzo picked me up with his arm wrapped around my stomach. He stormed out of the room, and down many hallways, until we reached a dining room, where is mother, father, and brothers were all sitting down eating. He sat me down in the seat to the right of the head of the table, and gave me a look that said not to get back up.
Just as he sat down at the head of the table, a maid brought out two plates, and sat one in front of each of us.
I just sat there staring at my plate, while everyone else was staring at me.
"Eat, Alessandra," Vincenzo growled.
"Good morning, sweetie. How did you sleep last night?" Natalia asked me.
"Good morning, Mrs. Bianchi. Not very well, but thank you for asking," I said, as I smiled sweetly at her.
"Oh dear, call me Natalia. And why didn't you sleep very well? Is it the bed? Do you need a new mattress set honey?" She looked genuine, but I knew she probably didn't care.
"No ma'am. The bed is perfect, the mattress is perfect. It's just not my bed, in my home," I sighed.
"It is your bed, in your new home. So I suggest you get used to it, and try to start getting some sleep. Or I will be dragging you out of bed every day," Vincenzo hissed.
"I was trying to get some sleep, and you drug me down here," I mumbled, rolling my eyes.
"Honey, why don't you eat breakfast, and then you can go back and lay down," Natalia smiled at me.
"No. No you're not going back to sleep. You're gonna get ready for the day," Vincenzo growled.
"Vince, why don't you let the girl take a nap? You heard her say she didn't sleep well last night," Natalia pleaded with her son.
All 3 of his brothers and his father started clearing their throats, while Vincenzo turned his steely gaze towards his mother. He had a fire in his eyes, that I'm not sure I've ever seen before. If this was a cartoon, I swear, there would be steam coming out of his eyes.
"Mother. Do not EVER get involved in what goes on between my wife and I. Is that clear?" He snarled at her.
Her eyes went wide, full of fear suddenly, and she immediately backed off.
"I'm so sorry, son. It won't happen again," she squeaked.
He just nodded his head, and then looked to me. "Eat your fucking breakfast, now," he growled.
I immediately obeyed, not wanting to face whatever wrath was behind those angry eyes. Everyone started to get up and leave the dining room, while Vincenzo and I sat there eating breakfast.
"I will not tolerate disobedience, wife," Vincenzo said in a low voice, glaring at me. "Do not make me have to punish you on your first day here. I'm trying to be patient with you, but your mouth, and your attitude will run my patience thin very quickly."
My eyes went wide, and my voice caught in my throat. What is he talking about, punish me? Does he mean like Emilio punishes Jessica?
Jessica is Emilio's wife, and when she pisses him off, he literally spanks her, like he did me, when I got in trouble. Gianni said that's how all Italian Mafia men punish their wives.
I never even imagined, Vincenzo laying a hand on me. I mean sure, my brothers told me he could punish me when I was young, but he never did. What the fuck is happening here?
"What do you mean p-punish?" I gulped.
"I mean, exactly what you think I mean. If you do not change this attitude and disobedience immediately, I will not hesitate to put my belt to your ass," he barked, making me wince a little.
"Now, I want you to go in the kitchen, and find Gretchen. Go to your room, and let her help you get ready for the day. Then have her bring you to my office. Understand?"
"Y-Yes," I nodded, as I slowly stood up and grabbed my plate to take it to the kitchen.
"No, leave that there. The maids will get it," he said in a low angry tone.
I didn't even argue, I just put the plate back down, and quickly made my way to the kitchen.
"Hey Gretchen," I said, as I walked into the kitchen. "Um... Vincenzo wants you to help me get ready. Do you mind?" I asked shyly.
"Of course not ma'am. That's what I'm here for," she chirped. Was she always this chipper so early in the morning. Ugh.
"Uh thanks," I said, as I followed her out of the kitchen, towards my room.
I took a nice hot shower, while Gretchen waited for me in my room. Once I came out, she had made my bed, cleaned Chloe's litter box, and fed her with fresh water.
"Thanks Gretchen, but you didn't have to do all that. I really can clean up after myself," I smiled at her, feeling more refreshed after my shower.
"Oh no ma'am. Please don't do that. I would be unemployed if you didn't need someone to clean up after you."
"Oh okay. Well I wouldn't want you to lose your job," I said, as I looked on the bed to see an outfit she had laid out.
It was new and still had the tags on it, but it was nothing like my style. It looked like something Natalia would wear. An old lady sweater with black slacks, and some plain old black flats.
"What's this?" I said pointing at the outfit.
"Oh, that's an outfit that Mr. Bianchi has on your approved outfits list," she looked at me nervously.
"Approved outfits list? Are you serious?" I gaped at her.
"Yes ma'am," she said, shyly.
"Well this is just great. I'm not wearing that old lady outfit," I groaned, as I stormed back to my closet to look for some of my own clothes.
"Ma'am, Ma'am. Please, I don't think this is a very good idea. Mr. Bianchi will not be happy," she pleaded with me, as she followed me into my closet.
"You don't understand, Gretchen. He's taken everything else away from me. Everything! I will not wear clothes on some approved list," I growled, as I put on my favorite pair of skinny jeans, and a grey Nike hoodie. Then I threw on a pair of doc martens, and walked back into my room.
"Do you wanna do my hair or not, Gretchen? Don't worry about me, if he punishes me, it won't be the first time, and I'm sure it won't be the last time. He's not gonna keep pushing me around," I tried to reason with her that I would be okay, either way.
"But ma'am. Please, you don't understand. He will actually spank you with a belt," she continued to plead with me.
"Gretchen, let me ask you this. Will you get punished if I act up? Does the way I dress or act, in anyway affect your job, or you personally?" I asked in a serious tone, as I sat down at the vanity for her to start my hair.
"Well, no. No ma'am," she said, looking at me confused.
"I mean, when I didn't get up this morning and come down to breakfast, did Vincenzo punish you or fuss at you in anyway?" I asked again, making sure she understood what I meant.
"No ma'am. He didn't say anything to me at all. He just stormed out of the room to go find you," she sighed.
"Okay, then you don't need to worry about me and my punishments. Believe me, my brothers spanked me every time I got out of line, when I lived at home. I can handle it. I appreciate you worrying about me and all, but I'm not gonna let him continue to try to force me to dress and act like the perfect wife," I calmly told her.
"I understand ma'am. I just know how brutal Mr. Tommasso is with Mrs. Natalia, and I don't want you to have to go through that. He won't show you any mercy ma'am. Please just think about that, is all I'm saying," she tried one more time.
"Okay, I will think about it, I promise. Now do you want to do my hair now? It's gonna look all yucky if it dries by itself," I said, smiling at her, trying to reassure her that I would be okay.
"Yes ma'am," she sighed. "How would you like your hair done today?"
"Well, I'm really into braids. Can you just do something really cute with a braid?" I asked, hoping her skills were better than mine.
"Yes! I love doing the Elsa braid. You know from Frozen?" She was excited now.
"Yes, I would love that, Gretchen."
Once she finished my hair, I did a once over in the floor length mirror, and was pleased with the sight. Now, I just have to get to the store to buy some makeup. My brothers wouldn't let me wear makeup, but now that I'm a grown woman, I guess I can wear it.
"Okay. Thank you very much, I really like it. Now, if you could take me to Vincenzo's office, that would be great."
"And you're sure that you don't wanna change clothes before you go in there ma'am?" She asked, nervously looking down at her feet.
"I'm sure. Thank you for worrying. Now, lets go see my husband," I smiled, linking arms with my new friend, as she led me out of my bedroom.
"That's his office," she said, pointing to the door, looking at me sympathetically, as if she knew I was walking into the lions den.
"Hey, don't worry about me. I'm gonna be okay, I promise," I whispered, as I knocked on the door.
"Come in," came Vincenzo's voice on the other side of the door.
I slowly opened the door, and walked in, pulling Gretchen with me, just in case. He wouldn't punish me in front of an audience, surely.
"Gretchen, did you not lay out an approved outfit for Mrs. Bianchi this morning?" Vincenzo glared at the poor defenseless maid.
"She absolutely did. In fact, she begged me to wear the outfit she put out for me. I however, refused to be caught dead in that old lady outfit. There's nothing wrong with my own clothes, Vincenzo. I don't need any of those new clothes you bought. I won't wear them," I said, defiantly, as his jaw clenched and then began to twitch.
"Gretchen, I want you to go to Mrs. Bianchi's closet, and take all of her clothes that don't have tags on them, and I want them all donated to the good will. Leave her underwear, pajamas, and school uniforms untouched. Do I make myself clear?" He growled, as he stared at me with that same angry look he had towards his mother this morning.
"Yes sir," Gretchen reluctantly nodded, and bowed her head, as she turned to leave.
"What!? No! You can't do that Vincenzo! Those are my clothes! You can't just get rid of them! This is bullshit," I yelled at him, giving him my best angry face. I was so beyond angry, I couldn't even think clearly.
"Gretchen, I'll bring her to her room, once we're done here. Just wait there, she will probably need you after I'm finished with her," he growled. She just nodded her head, and quickly left the room.
I tried to follow her out the door, but it instantly slammed in my face, and Vincenzo turned the lock. He did not look happy with me, at all.
"I've tried being patient with you. I wanted you to feel comfortable in your new home. But you just can't be obedient, you have no respect for me. The only option you have left me with is to teach you a lesson, Alessandra," he growled.
"No. That's not your only option," I growled back. "You could treat me like an adult, and let me decide when I want to get up in the mornings, at least on the weekends. You could let me wear my own fucking clothes. You have no respect for me, Vincenzo."
Suddenly, he grabbed my face in one hand, and pulled me to him. He was leaning down in my face, and I felt suffocated by the closeness. I tried to back away, but he just squeezed my face tighter.
"From now on, every time you curse, I'm gonna pop your mouth, and you won't like it. I'm so done with your attitude, I will fix it, if it's the last thing I do. You will do as your told, young lady," he said in a low scary tone.
Once he let me go, I just sat down on one of the couches in his office, and slouched down, defeated. I had tears just begging to fall, and it was taking everything in me, not to let them.
"I hate it here. I wanna go home," I mumbled, looking down at my hands.
He grabbed a chair, turned it to face me on the couch, and sat down with a deep sigh.
"I'm very sorry that you hate it here, but this IS your new home, sweetheart. You're going to have to fall in line, and learn to be an obedient wife. It's not like this is all something new to you, Alessandra. Emilio picked out your clothes, you did what your brothers told you to do, and if you didn't, you were punished. You've never been allowed to curse. Why did you think it would change when you came here?" He said, now in a very calm voice.
"Because I'm an adult now. Shouldn't I have some say over my life?" I pleaded, hoping for some understanding from him.
"Alessandra... You are 18 years old. Yes, you are legally an adult, but you're still a teenager. You're still a child in many ways. Your brothers raised you well, they did the best they could. You have a good heart, and you are a good person. But after your accident, they became far too lenient with you. You developed a smart ass mouth, and a horrible attitude," he sighed, as he reached for my hand, and squeezed it gently.
"You have to realize that the way you behave, the attitude you have, the mouth on you, and the way you dress. It all reflects on me, whether it be a good reflection, or a bad one. And I can't have my business associates, that come by here, see my wife, doing whatever she wants and wearing whatever she wants. It will look like I have gone soft. And people will take advantage of anything they see as a weakness. So, I will tell you this one more time only, anymore of the behavior you have been giving me this morning, and I will absolutely punish you," he said, sternly.
I just gulped and nodded my head. At least he's not going to punish me today. I've lost all the fight I had in me for today. But I will live to fight another day. I'm not done arguing my point with him. But I see it's a lost cause right now.
"Now," he sighed, as he leaned back in his chair. "We have something's to discuss about your new life."
Great. Now what? Is he gonna give me a list of rules, like Emilio did when I first moved in with my brothers?
I just nodded for him to continue. Here we go.
"I will let you sleep a little later on the weekends from now on, but I still want you in the dining room by 8:00 on Saturdays and Sunday's. You and I will have breakfast together every morning, because after that, you most likely won't see me for the rest of the day. I will try to make it for dinner, but I usually won't be able to. Now, on the weekdays when you have school, you will need to be down for breakfast by 6:30, as you have to leave for school by 7:15. It's a 45 minute ride from here to New Haven Hills. Are we clear so far?" He asked, raising a brow at me.
"Yes," I nodded, remembering to look him in the eye.
"Good. Now Paolo will drive you to school and pick you up every day. I know you have choir on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but on Mondays and Wednesdays, Mrs. Cafaro will be here after school for your tutoring session." He continued.
"About that, I was wondering if I could buy a car. I mean, I could buy it myself, well Emilio can use my money to buy it. So I could drive myself to school?" I said, as sweetly as possible.
"Absolutely not. You will not be driving yourself anywhere. Alessandra, I have enemies everywhere, and if you go out unprotected without a guard. Well let's just say, you could be kidnapped for ransom, you could simply be killed to get back at me for something. No, you won't be driving yourself around at all." He said, sternly.
"This place is like a nightmare, Vincenzo. Why do I have to suffer because you created enemies?" I shouted, frustratedly.
"Lower your voice," he said, calmly.
I just nodded my head, taking deep breaths to calm myself down. I was already in trouble with him, I didn't need to risk making it worse.
"I wish that you wouldn't make me ride in the limo to school. Isn't there a smaller, less obvious car, that Paolo could drive me in? Or maybe even Fausto? I'm already close with him, I thought he was my guard?" I questioned with sincerity in my tone.
"Yes, Fausto is your guard, he always will be. But Paolo is your personal driver, he takes you where you need to go. Unless, you're going somewhere with me, and then you will, obviously, ride with me. Fausto will ride to school with you, as well. And I will make you a deal, I will have Paolo drive you in a smaller car, if you will always wait for one of them to open the door before you get out. Can you do that?"
"Sure, I can do that," I nodded my head.
"Great. Now one more thing. As for the door to that joins our rooms. I don't want to ever find that door locked. You can always lock the door to the hallway, but not the one between our rooms. I need to know that if you're ever in distress or need me, that I can get to you as quickly as possible. If I even once, find that door locked, I will take it off the hinges. And then you can listen to me snore all night." He chuckled at the end, like it was funny or something.
"I'll never lock that door," I sighed.
"Good. Now, do you have any questions for me?" He looked at me, curiously.
"Can I go to see my brothers this afternoon?" I said, in a sweet voice, hoping to get a positive answer.
"No, not after the way you have behaved this morning. I'm not gonna reward a bad attitude, Alessandra. Maybe, you can go next weekend. If you can manage to get through this week without getting in trouble." He said, flatly.
"Ugh, can't you just spank me then? I want to go to my brothers, please," I pleaded.
"You don't get to choose your punishment, sweetheart. Maybe the best thing I can do is take away your privilege to see your family, and then you'll behave properly," he said, chuckling again.
"Man! This is so not fair!" I groaned.
"Life is not fair, sweetheart. The sooner you learn that, the better off you will be," he shrugged, as he leaned forward and squeezed my hand again.
"Okay, so are we done here?" I sighed, once again defeated.
"Yes we are. Come on, I'll walk you to your room," he said, as he stood up, and reached for my hand to pull me up.
I was surprised when he didn't let go of my hand the whole way to my room.
"Can I ride my horse today?" I asked, as we stood in front of my door.
"Yeah, I guess that's fine. Take Gretchen and Fausto with you. They will show you how to get to the stables. And don't ever go out there without Fausto. Understood?" He said, looking down at me.
"Yes I understand," I sighed, trying not to roll my eyes.
"Good. Now be a good girl, and I will try to make it to dinner this evening. I expect you to be changed into an approved outfit," he said, as he leaned down, and placed a gentle kiss on my forehead.
"O-okay," I stuttered, surprised by his first act of affection.
"Good. I'll see you later, honey," he gave me a small smile, as he walked off down the hall.
I just stood there, stunned for a good while. He showed me affection. Where did that come from?
I still hate it here.