ARRANGED LOVE EPISODE 4

ARRANGED LOVE EPISODE 4

I could see that it was morning under my eyelids. I wiggled in the bed but, something was prevented me from moving around. I lied very still to let my sense of touch could feel things for me. I felt something around my wa-ist.

What is that?

Sleepily, I opened my eyes to see that I was in Adrian’s arm. How did this happen?! I looked up at Adrian’s face. He looked very peaceful sleeping. What am I saying?! My face started to heat up from our closeness. I need to get out of bed.

Slowly and carefully, I took his arm off my wa-ist so that I didn’t disturb his sleep. His arm was heavy. {He must work out a lot.} After two minutes, I managed to move his arm off my wa-ist and carefully get off the bed. I pulled the blanket over him so that he didn’t get cold.

Already, I was performing my duties as his wife.

I walked into the closet and sift through the the outfits. I picked a white camisole, maroon button sweater with a v-neckline, blue ski-ny jeans, and brown shoes. I gathered the outfit with my undergarments and walked into the bathroom to take a quick shower.

I made sure to scrub and wash my hair very well. After the shower, I dried my hair thoroughly and brushed my teeth. Hope I didn’t wake him. “Feel fresh,” I said to myself after brushing my teeth. Quickly, I wore my outfit. Surprisingly, the outfit fitted to my figure.

I wore my glasses and opened the door to see that Adrian was still in bed. He must have been very tired . Worry started to pop in my head. I surpresed the feeling and walked out of the room to make my way to the dining room.

In the dining room, Pietro and Maria were having their breakfast. The table was set with breakfast items. I walked over to the table. “Good morning,” I said to them and sat in my seat. They gave me a smile.

“Good morning. How did you sleep?” Maria asked me. “Fine,” I said to her and got myself some yogurt and fresh fruit. I never liked to eat a heavy breakfast in the morning. “Adrian still sleeping?” Pietro asked me.

“Yes sir,” I said to him. “There is no need for formality dear. We are family now,” he reminded me. That’s right . I gave him a nod and ate my breakfast. I saw a server standing nearby. I waved him over to me. He gave me a smile and walked up to me.

“Good morning. What can I get you ma’am?” he asked me. Ma’am? That makes me sound a bit old. “I would like some hot milk please,” I said to him. He walked away to get my milk. Once my milk came to the table, Adrian walked into the dining room looking very fresh and clean.

That’s quick.

“Good morning,” he said to us. His grandparents gave him a smile. “Good morning. Did you stay up working?” Maria asked him. “Yes,” he answered his mother as he took his seat next to me. Your typing kept me awake.

I took a sip of my milk. Maria grew a frown on her face. “You didn’t think to be with your wife than to work?” she asked with some disappointment. As Adrian got himself a panino (Italian word for panini), a server walked up to Adrian.

Adrian looked up at the server. “Espresso,” he simply said to him. “Yes sir,” the server said and walked away to the kitchen. Adrian turned is attention to his mother who was waiting of an answer. “I’m a busy man mother. You know how it is,” he said to her.

Pietro set his cup down on the table and gave his grandson a serious face. “Adrian. You are married now. You need to think about your wife first before your work,” he told him in a stern tone. “Yes sir,” Adrian said to his grandfather. At the corner of my eyes, I saw him turn his head to me.

I didn’t mind him working yesterday. He seemed to always have something in his mind. I didn’t want to be in his way. I rather have him work than to take care of me. I had been caring for myself since I became a teenager. As his wife, I should be supportive of him.

I managed to finish my breakfast and drank the remainder of my hot milk. “When do you plan on leaving?” his mother asked him. I set my cup at the table and looked at him. He finished his espresso and looked at his watch.

“I was thinking in an hour,” he told her. One hour until I really begin my new life in a different city . “Well, you two should go to your room and get ready,” Maria suggested to us. We got up from our seats and walked up the stairs to our room.

Like yesterday, it was a quiet walk. He had his hand on my lower small back and guided me back to our room. His touched felt warm but, it sent shivers up my spine. Once in our room, Adrian closed the door. I kept my gaze at the bed. For some reason, I haven’t been able to look at him straight in the eyes since our wedding. Nervousness was probably the reason.

I should probably pack.

I was about to walk to the closet until I heard Adrian’s voice. “You don’t need to pack anything. You can go on a shopping spree when we get home,” he told me. Home. The word sounded so foreign to me.

To me, home was San Francisco. San Francisco was my home. San Francisco was where I was raised since I was a baby. When Adrian said ‘home’, many emotions flowed through me. Mostly, I felt very confused.

For the rest of the hour, I sat on the bed thinking of the life before marriage. Adrian was working through the computer. Soon, my life in San Francisco will close. My new life in New York was about to begin.

knock…knock….

I came out my thoughts and looked at the door. The door opened to reveal Maria. “It’s time,” she told us. I took a shaky breath and stood up from the bed. Adrian got up from his desk and grabbed his briefcase.

He walked over to me and guided me out of the room and to the front doors. Pietro was there waiting for us. At the bottom of the stairs, a maid came to us with our jacket. I could tell that the jacket was bought for me.

Adrian took the jacket and helped me even though I didn’t need any help. After wearing our jackets, Maria gave us a hug. “Take care,” she said to us. After Maria’s hug, we faced Pietro. Adrian and Pietro shook hands.

I bent down and gave Pietro a hug. “I wish you well,” I said to him. I felt him pat my back. “Thank you dear,” I heard him say to me. I pulled away from him and gave him a big smile. Even though I didn’t like the arrangement that he made with my grandfather, I liked him in general. I started to see him as a grandfather figure.

We walked out of the door and down the stairs. A car was waiting for us at the bottom. Adrian opened the door for me. “Thank you,” I said to him. He didn’t respond back. I got into the car and put my seatbelt on.

Adrian closed the door and walked around the other side to his seat. The driver turned engine on. I looked out the window to see Pietro and Maria who waved at us. Soon, the car started to drive away from the mansion and through the streets of San Francisco.

I watched the houses go by the car. Different memories were played in my mind.

“We are here.”

I blinked and looked around to see that we were at San Francisco International Airport. The door opened for me. I got out of the car and waited for Adrian to get to me. Once he got to me, he placed his hand on my small back and guided me through the airport.

Luckily, nobody seemed to notice him. I guess nobody still know his true appearance. We walked through the gates and walked up to a jet. The Jet had the Minetti name on it. He has his own private jet!

The plane was a descent size for a few people to fly on. I looked down at my wedding ring. I shouldn’t have been to surprised about the plane. The Minettis were wealthy people. When I thought about it, I was a Minetti now.

Adrian walked up the narrow stairs up of the plane while I followed behind closely. Once at the top, we walked in,side to see two flight attendants. One was a man and the other was a woman. They looked very professional with their uniforms.

“Hello Mr. Minetti,” they said and bowed to him in unison. I watched the female flight attendant walk up to him. She was really a beautiful person. She had striking brunette hair and green eyes. Her uniformed fit her perfectly that showed her curves.

“Let me take your jacket for you sir,” she said to him. Adrian gave her a nod and took his jacket off. The female flight attendant took the his coat gladly with a big smile on her face. In my heart, I felt a pinch of jealously from her facial expression. I wondered if she knew of my presence…or who I was to him.

The male flight attendant walked over to me with a smile. I could tell that he was built underneath his uniform. He had dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. To me, he didn’t look too bad compared to Adrian.

“May I take your coat ma’am?” he asked me. “Yes. Thank you,” I said to him and took off my jacket. He took my jacket from my hands. I looked at Adrian to see him walk towards a seat. I quickly followed behind him.

He gestured me to sit near the window. I sat down in my seat and wore my seat belt. He sat on the other side and put his seat belt on. He couldn’t sit next to me since there was no seat next to me. We had to sit apart.

“Hello Mr. Minetti. This is your captain Steven Spizale with first officer Jordan Michael. We will be taking flight momentarily. At this time please put on your seatbelt. Again, we will take flight shortly,” I heard from the intercom.

I heard the engines roar from outside. I looked out the window to see that the plane was moving towards the runway. Here we go. The plane started to go down the runway increasing speed. Soon, we were rising to cruising altitude.

I looked out the window to see my home of 18 years. Even though I would be back, it felt like I was leaving my home for good to start a new life in New York. Also, I would be creating New York City as my new home.

Bye California.

Ping…..

I heard a sound. It was to indicate that we could take our seatbelt off. I didn’t take my seatbelt off. I looked over at Adrian to see that he gotten his laptop out and started to work.

He always busy. Not surprising.

I decided to not disturb him. The flight attendants got out of their seats and started to do their duties. The male flight attendant walked up to me. “Would you like anything to eat or drink ma’am?” he asked me.

“Water would be nice,” I said to him. He gave me a smile and a nod before he walked away. The female flight attendant walked over to Adrian. “Would you like anything sir?” she asked him. Adrian looked up and gave her a smile.

“Wine would be nice,” he told him. “Yes. Of course,” she said to him with an alluring voice. It sounded as if she was trying to flirt or sed-ce him. I could see that Adrian liked the way she talked to him. His eyes showed it.

I put my head down. He’s practically having an affair already! The male flight attendant walked over to me with my water. “Here you go,” he said to me. I gave him a small smile. “Thank you,” I said to him.

I took a sip of water and looked out the window.

Through out the flight, Adrian was doing his work as the female flight attendant flirt with him. The male flight attendant asked me occasionally if I needed anything but, I told him that I was fine. Also, he tried to have a conversations with me. From the questions that he had been asking me, I didn’t want to be anywhere near him.

His questions were way to personal. At the corner of my eyes, I could see Adrian glaring at him but, he didn’t do anything else. He kept his attention on his laptop and the female flight attendant who was enjoying his company.

I guessed that he didn’t know that I was married to Adrian. I didn’t think that anyone knew yet.

Few hours later………

Ping…….

“Mr. Minetti. This is your captain speaking. Please put your seat in an upright position. We will be landing at JFK International Airport shortly. Thank you for flying with us and hope you have a very good day.”

I watched the plane land onto the runway. As the plane started to glide to the airport, I saw New York City’s buildings in the distance. Looking at the time, it was in the afternoon. I better get used to the time zone.

The plane was able to land smoothly. I didn’t feel any turbulence on the way down. Once the plane stopped completely, Adrian got up from his seat. “Get my jacket please,” Adrian said to the female flight attendant.

She gave him a big smile and walked away behind the curtains. The male flight attendant disappeared behind the curtains as well. After a minute, they came back with our jackets. I watched the female flight attendant help Adrian with his jacket.

Simply, I took my jacket and wore it with ease without any help. At the corner of my eyes, I could see her button his suit jacket and got too close to him that there was no space between them. “I hope you had a great flight,” I heard her say to him in a sed-ctive manner.

Adrian gave a smirk to her and leaned down to k-ss her on the cheeks then whispered something in her ear that made her smile. The male flight attendant gave me a smile. “I hope to see you again,” he said to me.

I hope I don’t see you again.

I gave him a small nod and followed closely behind Adrian.

 

We walked out of the plane to see a black car waiting for us. I followed Adrian down the stairs and to the car. Nice car. The driver opened the car door for me. “Thank you,” I said to him and slid in,side the car. The driver closed the door and opened the other door for Adrian.

Once Adrian got in his seat, he opened his laptop and started to work again. He must be a workaholic. I let him work while I looked out the car window. Soon, the driver drove us out of the airport and into the main streets of Queens, New York City.

I had never been to New York City. The city was huge that you felt like an ant in an ant farm…from what I had heard. I really didn’t have many expectations of the city. I have seen pictures the city in magazines and books. The city looked beautiful at night.

Queens looked very nice. I saw many row houses that lined the streets of Queens. Soon, we had to go through the Queens-Midtown Tunnel. The tunnel goes under the East River of New York and one of the few ways to get to Manhattan

Once we were out of the tunnel, I could see the different skyscrapers in the distance. Before we could get there, we had to pay the toll. The driver drove up to the terminal and paid for the toll. No words were exchanged.

As we drove down the streets, I could see the difference in architecture down the different streets. After a while, the buildings got bigger and taller in size. Soon, I knew that we were getting close to the heart of Manhattan.

Many people were outside walking in the streets minding their own business. They looked like busy people who are in a hurry and in a rush to their destination. They didn’t really remind me of the people in San Francisco. In San Francisco, you were laid back and take time to get to your destination.

Soon, we stopped in front of a tall and large apartment building next to the Empire State Building. “We are here sir,” the driver said to him. Adrian closed his laptop and packed it in his brief case. He got out of the car and offered his hand to me.

I was a bit hesitant but, I took his hand. He helped me out of the car and placed his hand on my small back to guide me up the small set of stairs. We walked in,side the building to hear nothing. The place was very quiet.

We walked down different hallways until we found an elevator that didn’t seem to match the building itself. Once in the elevator, Adrian pressed the button for the top floor. I watched a small screen above the buttons.

[Key Card Please]

Huh?

Adrian took a card out of his pocket and ins**ted the card in the scanner. The elevator processed the data in his card.

Beep…beep…ping!

[Recognize Adrian Minetti]

The elevator started to lift us to our destination that was on the top floor. I watched the screen that showed us how fast and the time that we would reach the top. I could say that the elevator was going really fast.

Through the lift, we didn’t say a word to each other. Adrian seemed preoccupied with something. I could tell from his eyes. His eyes were distant. I wondered what he was thinking. Always, I concluded that it had to do with work.

After three minutes, I felt the elevator slow down. The screen showed that we were at the top floor. Once the elevator settled down, the doors open to a large bright room. I didn’t think that my new home would be very big and spacious.

The windows were huge that the made up a wall on one side of the room. I had to say that the apartment had a good view of New York City. The big windows brought much sunlight into the room. I could see roofs of different buildings in the distance.

I took a step forward to have a better look of the place. I saw a huge swimming pool outside. The view from my new home was very beautiful. Surprisingly, the place was very quiet even though the city was noisy outside.

At least I would sleep well tonight.

I turned my head to see stairs that led to the second floor. Wonder what’s up there.

“Okay. Let me lay down the rules.”

I turned around to look at him. He looked very serious. “First, do not bother me when I am working. I’m a busy man. Second, do not ever come into my office. Third, do not talk unless you are spoken to or answer a question. When you are talking to me, look at my face. Lastly, leave me alone. The last thing I need is someone to ruin my reputation,” he said to me.

I somewhat expected this much from him. We may be husband and wife, but we weren’t married couple emotionally and mentally. We had no feelings for each other. The last thing he said hurt me a little bit. In a way, I already messed his life up.

He walked towards the stairs. “Follow me,” he said as he walked up the stairs. I followed him up the stairs and down a hallway. We passed by many different rooms. If he is not going to give me a tour, then I guess I’ll have to look around myself .

Soon, we stopped in front of a room that was next to a bigger room. He opened the door to reveal a room that was filled with my stuff from my home in San Francisco. “This is your room. My room is next door. Remember, don’t bother me,” he said to me. I gave him a nod.

He looked at his watch to see the time. “I’m going to go in my office,” he said to me and walked away. I closed the door behind me and sat on the bed. Here I was in New York. In a city that was very foreign to me. My new life was already a disaster.

I took a deep breath. You can get through this Vera. You don’t need to tell you what to do . I took another deep breath and got to unpacking my stuff. While I unpacked my stuff, I fell upon my old photo album.

I walked to the bed with the album in my hands and opened to the first page. Already, I could feel the tears forming in my eyes. The first page revealed my baby picture when I was at the hospital. I was wrapped in a pink blanket and a pink hat.

In the picture, my grandmother held me with a gentle smile. My grandfather had a smile on his face and looked over my grandmother in order to see me. My parents weren’t in the picture at all. Underneath the picture, there were words.

Valeria Laurenti

August 29

12:08 am

5 pounds and 7 ounces

I turned the page to see pictures of my grandparents caring for me. Of course, I didn’t have pictures of my parents and my brother with me. My parents never wanted to be near me. It made sense for me to have pictures of my grandparents and I.

I flipped through the pages. Each page showed my years from youth to now. Each page, I could see the changes of myself. Each page gave me flashbacks of that moment. Each page reminded me the emotions that were felt at the time.

In my eyes and mind, I was watching my life go by like a old film. I watched myself grow up with two loving grandparents who saw a little girl with no support and love from her parent. I kept flipping through the pages of the photo album.

Soon, I got to the last page. The last page had my graduation picture. I saw that there was an envelope.

Huh? What is that? I took the envelope and opened it to see a letter in,side. Curiously, I opened the letter.

Dear Vera,

By the time you are reading this, you would have started a new life with Adrian. I know that I should have told you about the marriage when you were younger. I wanted you to have a better life than we…your grandmother and I could give you.

We took you away from your parents because we saw the things that we didn’t like about your parents. They didn’t treat you as part of the family. We wanted you to grow up in a loving home so we took you and raised you as our own.

To be honest, I forgotten about the marriage plan until I saw Pietro on your graduation day. In my mind, I thought that it would be great for you to be married to Adrian because the family could provide you things that we couldn’t afford.

I hope that you can forgive me and your grandmother. You are our precious granddaughter and I would have wanted you to have a better life than your parents and brother. I hope the marriage would bring you happiness and remove the trauma and pain from your early childhood.

We will always love you. Take good care of yourself. Stay strong.

Love Grandfather.

After reading the letter, I held the letter to my chest and wept. Oh Grandfather…I miss you so much…

Now I had a better understanding about his thoughts on the marriage and his motive for being me into his home.

After a few minutes, I wiped my tears. I didn’t realized that it was dark outside. I took the letter and placed it in the photo album. I thought that it would be safe to put it in the album so that it didn’t get lost.

I took the album and placed it in my closet. Once I finished putting my clothes away, it was already 6:30 pm. I should get dinner ready. I walked out of the room to see that the lights were dim but, it was bright enough to see.

Slowly, I walked down the hallway and down the stairs to see the living room was lit bright. Outside the window, the scene was beautiful. The city was alive with lights. It was good enough for a movie shot or a postcard.

I continued my way to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator to see no fresh food. Everything looked store bought. “I really need to go shopping for better food,” I said out loud. I closed the refrigerator and looked in the cabinets.

The cabinets held plates that looked very expensive. There was nothing to eat. Maybe I should order something . I closed the last cabinet. “May I help you?” I turned around to see a man in a suit. He had brown hair that was gelled back, grey eyes, and cleaned shaved.

Who is he?

“Oh. I didn’t know that my husband had a…butler?” I didn’t know what to say. The man gave me a smile. “Oh. You must be Mr. Minetti’s new wife. I’m Lorenzo Raouli. I am his assistant at his business,” he introduced himself to me.

“It’s nice to meet you,” I said to him. He gave me a nod. “Your husband sent me to see how you were doing. I didn’t see you in your room,” he said to me. I thought he wasn’t interested in me. After all, he is a jerk.

“I came in the kitchen to see if there is anything to eat since it’s dinner time. Does he cook for himself? I looked everywhere to see that he doesn’t have anything fresh,” I said to him. I could tell that he was trying to hold his laughter.

“He is busy for that but, he does know how to cook. It’s just that he rarely cooks at home,” he said to me. “That would explain the empty cabinets and fridge. I guess I’ll need to go to the market tomorrow,” I said to him.

Lorenzo walked over to me and presented me with two different cards. “Mr. Minetti wanted me to give you your credit card that is connected to his bank account and a key card for the apartment,” he said to me. He reached into his pocket and gave me a smart phone.

“This phone had all the contacts that you need,” he said. I took the phone in my hands. “Thank you Lorenzo,” I thanked him and gave him a smile. “You are very welcome. Please, if you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask,” he said to me.

I gave him a nod. He gave me one last smile and walked away. I looked down at the key card, credit card, and the phone in my hands. They had my name on them….my married name. This is your start of a new life.

I took a deep breath and looked at the credit card. I should go to the bank tomorrow about my bank account in California. “But for now…I need to find something to eat.” Does Adrian want anything ? I made my way to Adrian’s office.

On the way, I saw Lorenzo who was walking towards me with a file in his hand. He gave me a smile. “Hello Ms. Minetti. How may I help you?” he asked me. “I was wondering if Adrian wanted something specific for dinner,” I said to him.

“Oh. Mr. Minetti had already ordered food from a French Restaurant. He made sure to get you something. I’m heading to the restaurant to pick up the food right now,” he said to me. “Oh…that’s nice of him,” I said to him.

He gave me a smile and looked at his watch. “Indeed. Well…I need to get going now. Please excuse me,” he said and walked passed me. I watched him walk down the hallway.

He seems like a nice guy…much better than Adrian.

I made my way back into my room and sat at the windowsill.

My new life started here.