My Second Marriage with the Mafia Kingpin

If it were Ashley behind the wheel, the others would most likely do the bare minimum to keep her out of trouble — but they’d make sure her license got revoked all the same.

Unfortunately, it was Lucian behind the wheel.

So, as if their lives depended on it, everyone worked frantically to ensure the authorities would not bother Lucian in any way. Fortunately, the worst he had done was clip someone’s side mirror, despite how dangerously fast he had driven.

"Wow, Lucian," Ashley clapped, even though this was hardly a moment that called for applause.

Her body was twisted toward the driver’s seat. "You’re really good at this!"

He gave a small nod and answered flatly, "Thank you."

"We’ll be there in time!" she giggled, checking the clock. "Ten minutes — not bad."

She clapped again, stretching her arms toward him. "Good job!"

Just as her mood was riding high, Lucian had to go and say something that brought it to a halt.

"About Emma..."

Her mood dipped instantly. She turned to him with a look of quiet judgment. Could he really not read the room? Couldn’t he see that she had been deliberately sidestepping the topic until she was ready?

Lucian weighed it, fighting the urge to drop it — partly because he didn’t enjoy admitting it himself.

"Lucian, since you clearly don’t get it, let me spell it out. That Emma — I don’t —"

"She’s my sister."

The rest of her words dissolved in her throat. Her mind went blank.

"...Ah?" She blinked. And blinked again, watching him steal a brief glance at her.

Since he had already said it, he pushed on before he could talk himself out of it. "I didn’t think you’d want to know, but it seemed important."

A quiet breath escaped him. "Sorry."

Ashley blinked several more times, her thoughts short-circuiting. She stared upward, mentally assembling a family tree.

She pictured Lucian’s face, then Primo’s beside it. Then she placed Emma’s face next to Primo’s — before shifting Primo underneath the two of them.

"Primo’s his son... and Primo’s mom is Emma... but Lucian is Emma’s brother... the math is not mathing."

This was not part of her first life.

Where had this piece of information been hiding all this time?

When her mind finally landed on a conclusion she had never once considered, Ashley whipped her head toward him. Lucian’s eyes were fixed firmly on the road. Her brows rose, eyes wide, waiting for more.

And he gave it.

"Biologically, I’m not Primo’s father."

She had already arrived at that conclusion, but hearing it confirmed still left her mind blank.

Two lifetimes, and I didn’t know this. I only knew them as father and son. And I was supposed to be the evil stepmother.

Ashley shook her head, mouth opening and closing as her thoughts slowly rebooted. There were so many questions swirling in her head — and then he said,

"Hold tight."

"Wai — wait!" she yelped, but he had already shifted gear, surging forward as he clocked the time. "Why on earth are you only telling me this now?!"

But the roar of the engine swallowed her words until they finally slowed, the school building coming into view — along with the traffic ahead.

By now, Ashley was already breathless, her mind racing just as fast as the car had been. She glared at him, checking the time. Four minutes before the meeting. The meeting was still at the top of her mind — but only just.

Because crowding in just behind it was the memory of what Emma had said about fixing their family. The words that had sent Ashley spiraling.

"You —" She ground her teeth, reached out, and slapped his shoulder.

Lucian flinched at the sharp smack, turning to look at her. He studied her expression and nodded slowly, something clicking.

"It was... after all, that important?"

"Of course it’s important!" she snapped, slapping his shoulder again. "Did you really think it wasn’t?"

Lucian flinched once more as her hand came down a second time.

"Sorry," he said quietly. "I mean it."

"Damn right you are!" She clicked her tongue, still glaring. "Gosh — you!"

Ashley pinched the bridge of her nose, thinking about how low she had felt all week. Had she known, she wouldn’t have spiraled the way she did.

But she hadn’t known because this man had decided it wasn’t important enough to mention.

That thought made her glare at him all over again. Lucian lowered his head.

"Gosh... I want to kick him at least once," she muttered, clicking her tongue — then snapped her eyes to the road ahead. The anger that had been drowning out everything else faded the moment she registered the traffic. "Hey, why aren’t we moving?"

"We are moving," he said quietly. "Just slowly."

Ashley turned to him, her expression flat. "How is there traffic here?"

Lucian swallowed slightly. Ashley had never dealt with the traffic near this school — he was the one who dropped Primo off in the mornings, and on the few occasions she had picked him up, she had used her bike.

In other words, she’d had no reason to know about it.

"Why did we even rush like that?" Ashley checked her watch again, biting her lip as she looked at the crawling traffic. "This is not good."

She turned to him just as he glanced at her. Their eyes met briefly before he nodded.

"I’ll pull over," he said, already doing it.

He eased to the side, and they both unbuckled, jumping out of the car. They looked at each other and then, without another word, broke into a sprint toward the school.

*

*

*

Meanwhile, Primo sat in the classroom, eyes fixed on the door.

"Mommy!" one of his classmates cheered as a couple appeared in the doorway.

Primo pressed his lips together and shifted his gaze to the rest of the room. Most parents had already arrived — some in pairs, some alone — and children were happily tugging at sleeves, announcing, "This is my mommy and daddy!" while the adults exchanged warm greetings.

He lowered his head and looked away from the door, watching his homeroom teacher make the rounds.

He knew Emma was coming; he had been told. But she wasn’t the one he was waiting for. Then again, Emma was his mother. Not the person he found himself hoping to see.

"Are all parents and guardians here?" The homeroom teacher scanned the room from the front, only to notice that the seat beside Primo was the only one still empty.

The other parents glanced over. A few checked the time.

The teacher smiled softly and made her way to him. "Primo, didn’t you say your mom was coming?"

Maybe not.

Primo held his teacher’s gaze without expression. Just as he reached for his paper to write that she might not be able to make it, a breathless voice cut through the room.

"Here!"

Everyone turned instinctively toward the door. When Primo turned too, his eyes went wide, and life flooded into them all at once.

"I’m — we’re here!" Ashley panted, gripping the door frame, Lucian catching his breath right behind her. "Primo — we’re Primo’s parents!"

She pointed to Lucian and then to herself. "Dad and Mom."

Lucian nodded, still catching his breath. When the two of them spotted Primo, Ashley’s face broke into a bright smile.

As for Primo, he bit the inside of his lip, glancing back and forth between them. He didn’t know why they were so out of breath — or why Lucian’s hair looked like the wind had styled it, and Ashley’s was half all over the place.

But his heart warmed all the same, and a quiet smile found its way onto his face. He looked up at his homeroom teacher and held up his paper.

[Parents here.]