3

"Okay, Natalie. Go and start getting ready for tonight" Aunt Christina sent me off.

"It's just 1 in the afternoon. We're leaving in what? 5 hours. Don't worry. I won't take so much time in getting dressed" I assure her.

"Karina. We all want you to look your best" Aunt Veronica said after analyzing the situation.

"Natalie! We're getting late" Natasha came and pulled me away.

We finally reach my room where Juli, Vinnie and Mary were already waiting for me.

"Now, go and take a shower" Natasha pushed me into the bathroom.

I forcefully take a shower and return to find them all geared up.

Juli applies a hint of nude eyeshadow, nude lipstick and mascara while I kept complaining about how much I hate makeup the whole time.

Vinnie ties my hair in a sleek ponytail while Natasha and Mary helped me get into the dress, despite telling them that I could get dressed myself.

"Don't you think this dress is too formal?" I asked, unsure about my dress.

"It's a formal dinner. You can't wear your casual clothes, can you?" Mary rolled her eyes before they all left to get dressed.

While I wait for them to get dressed, Tony walks into my room.

"Natalie. I need your help. It's not so important, I mean, tonight's dinner is more important but I need your help like, maybe tomorrow or the day after tomorrow" Tony said.

"What is it?" I inquired.

"Well, I wanted to get Tesha a gift but since this is the first time I'm getting her something without her consent, I don't think I can shop alone" He chuckled.

"Alright. We can go shopping the day after tomorrow since we'll have to attend the Sermon tomorrow" I explained.

"Sure. That'll be great" He clapped his hands together.

"Oh, Nat... are you really getting married?" Tony asked.

"Duh. It feels like a nightmare and you want to elaborate on it" I laughed.

"I mean, don't you think either Vinnie or I should get married instead?" He asked again.

"Yeah, that's true. I mean, you're 5 months older and Vinnie is a month older but I'm still getting married before you anyway" I sighed.

"Nat, don't worry. We're all here for you" He smiled.

"Okay! We're leaving! C'mon, Mrs. Maxfield. We gotta go!" Aaron shouted from the door.

"Don't use that on me. I'm still a Salvatore" I fumed.

When we all get to the vehicles we're supposed to ride in, Mom asks me, "Nat, is Tony going to drive you there or?"

"Mom, I'll drive. I mean, Grandma and Grandpa gifted me a Range Rover so I could drive myself, right?" I smiled since I hated being dependent on others.

"It's inappropriate for a lady to drive. Let a driver take you there. Chris, please call Jones. He must be waiting inside" Mom said.

In no time, Jones opens the door for me to get in.

I quietly get in the backseat and watch as he drives my car.

"Be careful alright? This car is a gift" I remind him.

"Don't worry, Miss. I'll drive very carefully" He assured me before we were on our way to the hotel that we were having dinner at.

After almost half an hour, We reach one of the best Salvatore hotels that my family owns.

When Jones opens the door, Tony comes and helps me out of the car.

"I thought we would be having dinner over the Maxfields" I whisper.

"No, Grandpa insisted on having the first family dinner at the Salvatores'. Even I don't know what he wants" Tony sighed.

"Honey, they're already here. Please be on your best behavior" Mom reminded me before we walked into the hotel, led by the hotel's manager.

There is a whole lot of people inside the hotel. Must be the Maxfields.

Grandpa walks ahead of us and gives a friendly hug to a man of his age.

"Richard, this is my granddaughter" Grandpa introduced me to him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Maxfield" I shaked his hand.

"No formalities, dear. I'm your Grandpa as well. Come here, little one" He pulled me into a warm hug.

"Diane. Come and see your granddaughter-in-law" He called somebody who I presume is his wife.

In a matter of seconds, this old woman, called Diane came. She was so elegantly dressed that I was shocked.

"Natalie. Come here, dear" She gave me a hug.

"You are so beautiful. I am so happy to have you in our family" She smiled.

"Grandma, I can't wait to be married into this family" I said, cheerfully.

Then, another couple with three young adults and a woman in her early 30s approach us.

"Natalie" The woman called me out.

"Oh, this is your mother-in-law, your father-in-law and their kids" Grandpa said.

"Hello, Mrs. Maxfield" I greeted her.

"Call me Mom. This is your Dad. And these are Enzo's younger siblings, Rose, Karen and Peter. And she's Enzo's older sister, Evelyn" She explained.

We exchanged smiles.

"Natalie, we're very sorry for not meeting you before this. Actually, we were planning on visiting you but since this dinner was already arranged, we thought it'd be better to meet you here" My future Dad explained.

"It's not a problem" I smiled.

"Lorenzo's not here yet. Please wait for a while. Let me introduce you to the other family members" Mrs. Maxfield a.k.a my future Mom took me to meet all of Lorenzo's cousins, aunts and uncles.

They all seem so nice.

I started to feel nervous because I would be meeting Lorenzo in a few minutes.

Rose and Karen comes over to me.

"Mom, we're borrowing her for a minute" Karen said before we went to meet the cousins.

"I've met them just now" I said as Karen began to name them one by one.

"Oh... but you've had no inner sources to explain who is what. Lemme help you with that" Karen said making me laugh.

"Natalie, have you met Enzo before?" Rose asked.

"No, I haven't... it'll be my first time to meet him tonight" I answered her.

"By the way, I'm 23 and Karen's 20 and Peter is 17" Rose explained.

"Ah, you're a year younger than me. But all three of you have to drop all formalities. Treat me like your own" I assure her.

By this time, all my cousins and siblings had gathered around us along with Enzo's cousins.

I sat in the middle while they kept bombarding questions and I answered them.

Just then, Karen shouts, "Enzo's here" when she hears his laughter in the other room.

"Enzo! Come in! Your wife is here!" Karen shouted and all his cousins and siblings started making tease shouts.

My stomach dropped. I was nervous as hell. I wanted to run away from everything but I knew that I couldn't. I had to face this day. I was born to face this moment.

As soon as he enters the room, the first words that comes out of my mouth is, "You?"

"What are you doing here?" He growled.