Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi
Chapter 556 -

*Natalia*

Spending the night with Tallon was exactly what I needed. I felt so much more secure when I woke up in his arms the next morning. We had already been through so much in order to be together, there was nothing Bianca could do that would break us apart.

Tallon seemed to be in a better mood, too. We spent the morning lazing around and flirting, which was honestly the best way to spend any day in my opinion. I had taken a long, hot shower this afternoon and now I was lounging in bed and touching up my nails. The acrid smell of the polish was nostalgic in a way. It had been a long time since I'd bothered doing my own nails.

It was rare for us not to have anything planned for the day, and it was nice for a change.

Tomorrow I was going to the dress shop to try on some more dresses and, hopefully, choose my perfect gown. I had an idea of what style I wanted, but that was just the beginning. I still had to choose an actual dress, plus a veil, shoes, and jewelry....

I sighed. There was just so much to think about. It was overwhelming. This was something that I couldn't ask Tallon to help me with, either. It was bad luck for him to see me in my dress before the wedding. I knew that seemed like a silly superstition, but I wasn't about to tempt fate.

I was going to have to trust the staff at the bridal shop and my own taste to make the right choice.

"Alessandro has invited us to dinner," Tallon said suddenly.

I looked up from my nails in surprise. Tallon was looking at his phone with a thoughtful expression. There was something odd about his tone that I couldn't place.

"That could be nice," I said.

"He wants to introduce us to his new girlfriend," he added.

That explained his tone. He was surprised. I didn't think that Alessandro had been in a steady relationship in all of the time I had known Tallon. It must have been serious if he was introducing her to the rest of the family. "That's great," I said.

Tallon nodded, but he didn't say anything.

He was quiet for the next few hours, even as we were getting dressed and driving to the restaurant to meet up with Alessandro. I know that his relationship with his brother has been tense at times in the past, but I didn't think that's what was going on right now.

It was much more likely that he was worried about Alessandro. If he was introducing his girlfriend to the rest of the family, it could be a very stressful time for him. There were so many personalities and conflicting priorities to deal with and, as I knew well, it could take a lot of work to win everyone over.

I hadn't even seen this woman yet, but I was determined to greet her in the warmest way I could. I wanted her to know that as intimidating as the family could be, it was worth the effort to join it.

I held Tallon's arm as we entered the restaurant. Alessandro was standing at the hostess's stand and speaking to a woman in a black dress. They must have just beaten us here if he was still getting a table, I thought.

There was a tall, stunning woman standing beside Alessandro in a very flattering red dress. Her hair was perfectly styled and her makeup looked like it had been done professionally. Her perfectly put-together look made me feel a little self- conscious of my slightly smudged nails.

She looked a little nervous as she glanced around the room. I didn't blame her. She was meeting a very important person in her boyfriend's life, and that was always nerve-wracking. I knew that adding in the fact that Tallon was the head of the family would only enhance the feeling of unease. When her eyes fell on him, she shook off the uneasy expression and smiled kindly at us.

She said something quietly and Alessandro turned to face us. He smiled and nodded his head in acknowledgment.

Tallon walked directly to Alessandro and I went along with him. We reached him just as the hostess was walking away, to lead him to the table. The brothers greeted each other briefly, then we all went to our table and took our seats. The restaurant was busy already, even though it was early in the evening. I could tell by the decor that it was an expensive spot, but I was getting used to that from Tallon and his family.

Alessandro ordered a bottle of wine for the table before the hostess hurried off, and then he turned his attention to us.

"It's good to see you," Tallon said. "It's been a while."

"Life gets busy," Alessandro said sheepishly.

There was a moment where the two of them just stared at each other in tense silence, and then Alessandro broke into a wide grin and laughed. Tallon did the same, and all of the tension in the room dissipated. "This is my Mia," Alessandro said happily. He reached out and took the beautiful woman's hand.

She smiled shyly at us.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," she said. "Alessandro has told me so much about you."

"And you still agreed to meet us?" I joked.

She laughed. "Well I figured I might as well get it over with," she said.

"Where did you two meet?" I asked.

"Florence," Alessandro said. "I was on holiday and was lucky enough to meet the most beautiful local there."

"That sounds incredibly romantic," I said.

Mia nodded in agreement. "It was lovely."

Alessandro said something to Tallon, but I was focused on Mia. She had a dreamy look on her face as she leaned forward slightly and said, "You're getting married soon, right?"

"Yes," I said excitedly. "I've been working hard on wedding planning. You don't realize how much work goes into a wedding until you're thrown into it."

"I'm sure that it's very stressful," she said. "I have a cousin who runs a bridal shop, an aunt who runs a boutique that does wedding parties, and a friend in a salon who does weddings, so I've heard some wild stories."

"Oh god, I haven't even thought about hiring someone to do my hair or makeup yet," I gasped. I wondered how something that important had slipped my mind.

She smiled kindly. "There's still plenty of time to figure that out. You need your dress picked out first, the rest is done to compliment that."

"That makes sense," I said. "I haven't picked a dress yet, but I'm going to look tomorrow."

"That sounds like so much fun," she said in an excited tone.

"Yeah," I sighed, wishing Alina wasn't so busy. "I just wish I wasn't going alone."

"What do you mean?" she asked in confusion.

"My friend is too busy to go with me tomorrow. It stinks because I really feel like I'm in over my head, and I would love a second opinion to help me make the decision, you know?"

"I'll come with you," she offered.

"No, I couldn't impose. I'm sure you've already got plans-"

"I really want to come with you," she insisted. "It's such an important part of the process, and you shouldn't have to do it alone. If you're okay with me tagging along, I would love to come dress shopping with you."

She sounded so sincere, and there was a hopeful look in her eyes as she waited for me to decide. I didn't want her to feel obligated to come with me since we'd just met, but it seemed like she really wanted to come along. I smiled and decided it would be fun. "That sounds great," I said. "Thank you so much. I'll feel much better having someone with me just in case anything weird happens." "Weird?" she asked. "Like what?"

I sighed. Mia was so easy to talk to, and the thing with Bianca could have very well come up while we were shopping if I was right about her following me around. I figured I might as well give her fair warning. "There's this weird ex of Tallon's that keeps popping up the last few days. I ran into her at the bridal expo, and she was at the bakery when we went for our cake tasting. It's probably a coincidence, but it feels weird to me." "Gross," she said softly. "That would make me so uncomfortable. Even if it is a coincidence, that would be just so awkward."

"It really is," I said. "So just in case I run into her again tomorrow, it will be nice to have someone else with me."

Mia's expression shifted to one of determination. "Just let her say something off in front of me," she said.

Alessandro laughed. "You don't want to get on Mia's bad side," he said. "I've seen her reduce a woman to tears with a sentence. She's sweet as an angel as long as you're kind, but treat her rudely and she'll put you in your place." Tallon looked at Mia thoughtfully and smiled. "She sounds perfect for you," he said. "You need someone who can keep you in line."

"I want to argue, but you're right," Alessandro said.

A waiter arrived at the table with our wine and drew our attention to him. I realized with some embarrassment that I hadn't even glanced at the menu yet, and I saw Mia scramble to open her menu at the same time that I did. It made me smile. I could see myself becoming good friends with Mia.

It would be nice to have someone else to talk to about the unique challenges of being a member of the family. If Mia and Alessandro were going to be together for a long time, and it seemed that they would, then maybe I could help her to acclimate to this weird new life.

I needed more female friends to talk to and go out with, so the idea of having another woman to do things with was thrilling.

I felt a lot more confident about dress shopping tomorrow, too. The fact that Mia had some experience with wedding planning, even if it was just from stories she'd heard from her family and friends, was reassuring. It may not have been direct, but it was more experience than I had.

Besides, Mia was gorgeous and glamorous. If I could trust anyone to steer me in the right direction when it came to choosing a dress, then it would be her.

My nerves about tomorrow were replaced by excitement. Not only was I going to replace the dress that I would marry Tallon in, but I might just make another good friend along the way.