Dearly Beloved (Siren Publishing Allure) Read Online Free Page B

being who had blown the whistle on Trapps and, two, how he was going to get his family to accept Tomio’s new wife. He sighed. Finding the snitch would be easier than trying to convince his wife to welcome Ebony into the fold. He, too, was a little upset when he found out that Tomio had secretly married, but not for the same reason as his wife. He’d always planned to have a big wedding for his eldest son. Now it wasn’t going to happen unless he could get his family on board with the idea. He also had to convince Tomio and Ebony to renew their vows in traditional Japanese fashion. But, first, he had to find out about Ebony’s family while trying to get to know her. Maybe he could invite them to dinner. He wouldn’t be surprised, though, if the young woman never wanted to step foot in the house again after the way she had been treated by Setsuko.
    Hajime tossed and turned on the futon while his wife slept peacefully beside him. He bet he could get his daughters-in-law to agree if he asked them nicely. Setsuko would never agree though. She was just too set in her ways. But he had to try since there was now a child to consider. The baby would be the next generation, and a possible leader of the Nakamura organization. Hajime hoped he would still be around to see this. But eighteen years was a long way off, and the police were starting to crack down on the yakuza, trying to put them out of business. Even if that would happen to them, Hajime was sure his family would survive because of his son’s careful financial planning. No one would be out on the street, and they would have a business to run to start their lives over again. As for him, he would just retire and live out the rest of his days with Setsuko and their family.
    Setsuko moved in her sleep. Hajime looked down at her. It was hard to believe that they had been married for thirty-two years. It seemed like just yesterday that their parents had arranged their marriage. Hajime still felt he got the better end of the deal. Setsuko had been young and pretty, and her father, Kunio, had been a powerful yakuza boss on his own side of town. And she made the finest wife from the very beginning because she had been trained properly by her mother. Setsuko had stuck by him through thick and thin, giving him four wonderful sons and running an efficient household. Even in her fifties, she still was very petite, but unfortunately, she still had set old-world ideas about what the world should be like. Setsuko wasn’t very good with change. An African-American daughter-in-law was a big change in Setsuko’s orderly life. He had faith that Setsuko would eventually accept the path Tomio had chosen. He knew his son better than anyone. He would not make a decision rashly, and he must have some reason behind selecting Ebony as a wife. Tomio was an important businessman who needed a strong woman at his side. Hajime hadn’t gotten a very good look at his new daughter-in-law, but he had seen the determined will power in her stance after being reprimanded by Setsuko. She earned brownie points for not striking Setsuko back as Haruka had done once. Kazuhiko had to be restrained that day, and there was no doubt in Hajime’s mind that his younger son would have beaten his wife to death for disrespecting his mother had his hands been freed.
    Haruka had eventually apologized to Setsuko, and that was the only reason she was still a part of the Nakamura family. His two youngest sons had not chosen well when it came to their mates. Both Haruka and Takara were pretty, but useless to the yakuza. He blamed their mothers for not teaching them how to be proper wives. Neither young woman could cook or keep house.
    Now Eiji’s wife, Gina, was a different story. She was pretty and smart, and knew her way around a kitchen. Setsuko had taken to her instantly, and they were bonded like mother and daughter. Gina literally ran the house now, freeing up Setsuko’s time to finally get the chance to enjoy life.