Page 5 of Bound to His Oath

"Nicolas, darling."

I visibly cringed when a buxom blonde walked up to me and wrapped her arms around me. Not only did I not like being touched by people I didn't know, but, after what happened in the shower, I didn't want to be touched by anyone.

"Genevieve." I placed a light kiss on her cheek and then got a firm hold of her shoulders and pushed her back a little. "You look beautiful tonight."

It was the polite thing to say and people were watching, especially my parents. If I said one wrong word to her, my mother would be livid. If I could just keep her from touching me, I'd be fine.

Genevieve wrapped her hands around my arm. "I have some people I'd like you to meet."

Whatever.

She led me over to a small group of men standing off to one side of the room. I swallowed when I got a good look at the dark haired man staring so intently at me. There was something in his eyes that made me incredibly wary.

"Nicolas, this is Vinnie Borelli and his husband Nicky."

I clenched my hand to keep it from trembling and then reached out to shake the man's hand. "It's nice to meet you, sir."

"I've heard a lot about you, Nicolas," Vinnie stated.

Yeah, I had nothing to say to that.

"Gena's best friend Marisa is married to my cousin Vito," Vinnie said. "Do you know Marisa?"

I shook my head. It wasn't like I got out that often anyway. I knew very few people.

Vinnie lifted a dark eyebrow. "You might know her better as Mari Sabatino."

I gasped as that name slammed through me like a tidal wave, sucking all the air out of my lungs. "Sabatino?"

"I see you do remember her."

I swallowed tightly, glancing at Gena. She was just smiling up at me, her hand still wrapped around my arm. "Mari is your best friend?"

"Yep," Gena replied. "We've been best friends since we were teenagers. We went to the same boarding school together."

I wanted to ask so many questions, but not a single word came to my lips. I could barely think of his name, let alone speak it.

"Vinnie is an old family friend," Gena explained. "When Marisa married into the Borelli family, we met and got to talking. After Marisa explained a few things, Vinnie agreed to help us."

"Help you with what?" I asked, feeling totally lost.

Gena just grinned before nodding at Vinnie. "There are a few other people I want to introduce my fiancé to. We'll see you later, huh?"

Vinnie glanced at his watch. "About twenty minutes."

"Twenty minutes for what?" I asked as Gena lead me away. I was still feeling very confused. I also wanted to go back to Vinnie and ask him to get me in touch with Marisa. I had to know how her brother was doing.

It was vital.

I could barely hold the smile on my face as Gena introduced me to person after person. I had no idea who these people were, and I didn't really care. I did know that if I didn't make nice, my mother would be pissed. I could feel her watching me from across the room, dissecting my every move.

"I need to visit the little lady's room," Gena stated. "Nicolas, would you be a dear and escort me?"

"Yes, of course," I replied automatically.

When she led me across the room to where her father was standing with my parents, I rethought that automatic statement. I wasn't happy being shown off as a shiny puppy to all of Gena's friends and associates, but it was better than facing my parents.

"Dinner is almost ready, Daddy. You might want to get everyone started for the dining room," Gena said when we reached them. "Nicolas is going to escort me to the little lady's room and then we'll join you."

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