Sofia's POV
When we got to my house, my family was already at home, and when they saw me enter with Marco, my brothers did not like it one bit.
"Isn't it the Mafia guy?" Seth asked, glaring at Marco with what could only be described as 'serial killer' eyes.
"Yeah, Sofia, what are you doing with him?" Sean added, eyeing Marco suspiciously. Just as I was about to think of something to say, Marco beat me to it.
"Yes, I am Marco 'The Beast' Valenti, the first son of—" Marco started to say, but he was immediately cut off by an angry Sam.
"Do we look like we care?!" Sam snapped, his face red with rage. "What are you doing with our SISTER?!"
"Sam, please calm down," I said, trying to diffuse the tension. "The thing is, we made a deal."
"A deal?" Sam's voice was filled with disbelief. "What kind of deal?"
I hesitated. I couldn't exactly tell them the whole truth. "I can't tell you," I replied, my voice shaking slightly. "It's complicated."
But before anyone could say anything else, my mom suddenly collapsed onto the floor, her body crumpling like a ragdoll.
"Mom!" I cried out, rushing to her side. My brothers immediately sprang into action, their anger forgotten as they worked together to help her.
"Sofia, what happened?!" Seth demanded, his voice panicked as he tried to revive her.
"She just... fell," I said, my voice trembling with fear. "You need to take her to the hospital. Please, go now!"
Without hesitation, they rushed her to the car and left, leaving me alone with Marco.
I stood there, heart pounding in my chest. I had no idea what was happening. Why did my mom collapse out of nowhere? Was it just stress, or was something else going on?
An hour passed. Then two. I began to panic. What if Marco's family had gotten to them? What if they took my mom and left me here? My mind spiraled with dark thoughts, and I couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen.
I was about to call my brothers when Marco walked up behind me, his presence suddenly looming over me. He placed a hand gently on my shoulder, leaning down to whisper in my ear.
"Worrying is not a good look for you as my fiancée," he said softly, his voice low and calm.
I shook my head, my thoughts still racing. "You won't understand," I replied, trying to pull away from him. "I can't just sit here and wait. My family—"
"Listen," Marco interrupted, his tone firm but not unkind. "I understand more than you think. But getting worked up isn't going to help. You need to trust me."
I turned to look at him, feeling a strange mix of fear and anger rising in my chest. "Trust you? How am I supposed to trust you when I have no idea what's going on? You keep saying it's for my own good, but I don't feel safe!"
Marco's eyes softened, though his jaw tightened. He took a step closer, his voice low. "I'm not your enemy, Sofia. I'm trying to protect you. I'm here because you need me right now, whether you believe it or not."
I didn't know what to say to that. Part of me wanted to scream at him, demand answers, but another part of me—the part that had seen the fear in my brothers' eyes when they left—knew that I was in too deep to back out now.
"I don't know what to do," I whispered, almost to myself.
Marco paused, then cupped my face gently in his hands. "You don't have to do anything, Sofia. Not right now. Just let me take care of it, okay?"
I nodded slowly, feeling a wave of exhaustion wash over me. I didn't want to feel like this, trapped in this mess, but I didn't have a choice. Not anymore. "Okay," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "I'll trust you… for now."
Marco gave me a small, reassuring smile, but I could see the wariness in his eyes. He knew I was still scared. We both were.
But for now, there was nothing else I could do.