The weeks had gone by quickly and before Contessina knew it, she was standing before Ezio on the steps of the Santa Maria del Fiore taking vows. There was a strange feeling that crept up when she saw Ezio in his dark green wedding doublet, something she had never really felt before when she laid eyes on him before. He had worn his hair down with half of it tied back unlike usual. He looked different, mature, and ready for the next step in his life. All the while she was not so ready.
It took everything she had to steady her nerves as Lorenzo walked her down the isle towards her betrothed. Her dress was perfect; Maria had done a wonderful job in making sure the embroidery was magnificent. The pearl necklace that Claudia hung around Contessina's neck as a token of love for her new little sister. Contessina was a sight to behold in her plainness. Her blond hair hung down her back all the way to her hips while white jasmine adorned her silky strands.
Ezio could hardly believe his eyes at the woman in front of him. Gone was the girl who pretended to be Queen Boudicca and in front of him was someone else entirely. Before she had even entered the building, he had looked for Cristina, hoping she would be there to watch. She had not shown. Most of the Pazzi supporters did not show, even though they had been invited merely as a curtesy. However, Contessina did not seem to mind the missing people in the cathedral. He had not expected to be married at the age of seventeen, but he did like the idea of it now that he knew just what he was getting.
He may have called her the most foolish girl he had ever met and she was because she had no idea what was in front of her. He knew what was in front of him, even though his bleeding heart still pined for Cristina. The trouble was, he was pretty sure he was starting to love Contessina just as much as he loved Cristina. The love he had for the brunette Vespucci girl was wild, untamed, and even passionate, but Contessina? She was the opposite. She was steadfast, strong, grounded, and the fire within her smoldered rather than burned everything down. They were two completely different women. Comparing them was like comparing a horse to a donkey. Both were equines, but a donkey was less refined and harder to train, while a horse was beautiful, graceful, and less stubborn.
As Ezio stood there at the alter, he looked into Contessina's blue eyes and gave her a nod of reassurance. He was just as nervous as she was, if not more so, but he was better at hiding it. Everything was going to be different now. Their friendship was going to change from platonic to intimate in the matter of hours, yet he could not pressure himself to take that final leap to intimate. His father had told him that would come in time, if she wanted. Ezio was not worried about the marriage bed, he knew that while it was expected of them, it was not mandatory the first night.
Contessina felt as though she were in a dream when the rings were brought forward by Lorenzo's little daughter, Lucrezia, who was only six years old. The little girl was a replica of her mother, Clarice, but she had Lorenzo's temperament. Contessina barely remembered saying the vows or the feeling of Ezio's hands on hers as he slid the gold ring on her finger. She did remember putting his ring on, but after that it was all a blur and it was an hour later she came to at the wedding banquet.
She sat there next to Ezio with a small smile on her face and a cup of wine in her hand as all her guests came by to congratulate her on her marriage. Some of the guests even left gifts for her. The gifts were not much, just small tokens and a few Florine. When she looked over to her new husband, she saw that he was trying to enjoy himself as much as possible, but there was that look in his eyes. The same look he gave her when he was discontent inside, but was trying his best to hide it. Ezio could not fake anything, not from her.
"My Contessina." Her mother came behind her putting her arms around the bride's shoulders and hugging her tight. "I am proud of you." Was all Ginevra said before kissing her daughter on the cheek and leaving her sitting there.
"Are you happy, Cousin?" She didn't say anything when Giuliano sat in the chair next to her looking over to where Ezio was holding a conversation with Sandro.
"I don't know yet. I suppose this is better than being unhappy with a complete stranger." She told him. "Only, I feel as if we are complete strangers now."
"You've known him since you were a child, but now he seems like a stranger to you?" Giuliano laughed as he leaned back in the chair. "I suppose that makes sense, but its nothing a little more wine can't help." He picked up the pitcher of win in front of him an poured it in her cup. "There are ways to make the night go easier for you, all you need do is ask any of the ladies here and they will tell you."
"You act as though I will not enjoy it." She honestly could not fathom why she was talking about this with Giuliano of all people, but she supposed he was right. He did know a great deal about the virgin bed from a male perspective.
"He is your friend and you are inexperienced. I know he has experience with women because I've seen him in the brothel before, usually between two French ladies with gorgeous...Well, he is experienced, what can I say?" Giuliano shrugged trying to liven the conversation. "The point is, Contessina, as your favorite cousin I have a duty to tell you it is your night. You should be comfortable, not left feeling awkward." He winked to get his message across. While Contessina was slightly unnerved about the conversation, she did appreciate his support in whatever she decided to do. "Now, I am going to go over there and talk to that gorgeous young woman." He said, burping and pointing to the red haired beauty in the corner. "Wish me luck." He kissed her on the forehead and got up to woo the red head. She barely got any peace after that.
"Do you always look this meloncholy?" Federico was next to come and sit with her while his brother was engaged in conversation; now with Uberto Alberti. "Cheer up, Contessina, being an Auditore isn't that bad."
"It is not that." She said with a sigh. "All of this is too much."
"A month isn't enough time to adjust to the idea of being married against your wishes then?" The eldest Auditore brother said with a small smile and a knowing glint in his eyes. "My brother thinks he can hide it from me, but he feels the same as you. I think the only difference is that you were not in love with another before. Ezio is stubborn and he will not let go of Cristina that easily, but give him time. Perhaps he will give you everything you need once he learns to let go of her." Federico chuckled. "He has no idea what he has in front of him."
"Thank you for the kind words, Federico." She said putting a smile on her face, but it was not a true smile and he knew it. He still acknowledged her willingness to try and be happy.
"If you ever need me to talk sense into my brother, all you need to do is say so." He grabbed her hand and kissed the back of it. "We are family now, Contessina. Don't forget that." Federico stood up leaving her alone once more.
When all was said and done, the time came for the marraige bed. It was near three in the morning when everyone had finally settled down enough to see both Ezio and Contessina to the Palazzo Auditore. A procession throught the streets of Firenze guided by the light of torches as the couple were walked to their resting place for the night. For Contessina, who was being pulled along by the other women, it was an ethereal moment. She could not say she was excited about the whole ordeal,yet the anticipation was there.
"Away with all of you." Maria Auditore said as they came to the doors of their home. She waved the crowd away as Ezio pulled Contessina inside the house and to the parlor. "Now. That is over." Ezio's mother said as she entered the room. "Ezio, Contessina, you both know what must happen now."
"Si, Madre." Ezio said with an uncomfortable tone in his voice before grabbing the blond's hand to pull her to his, or rather, their bedroom. Once inside he shut the door and locked it before taking off his doublet and getting comfortable. "I do not know if that was the most awkward thing I have ever done, or if I am..." He stopped what he was doing to see Contessina crying. "Oh no." He walked over to her and gathered her in his arms. He had been so caught up in his own emotions about everything that he did not really stop to think about how Contessina had been thrown into something she really did not want. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He held her close as she sobbed.
After she had stopped crying they sat on the edge of his bed not really knowing what to say or what to do from there. Ezio had never had any reservations about being with a woman before, well he had before he knew what a brothel was, but since then that was no the case. Women threw themselves at him sometimes, but this was Contessina. Someone he would never dream of hurting or using in that manner. He had known her for such a long time that she was...a soul mate perhaps?
"Can you help me out of this dress?" She asked him standing up and turning her back to him. She was making herself vulnerable to him in order to see if he would actually do something, but she knew Ezio well enough to know that he would not try anything.
The young man said nothing as he stood up to untie the laces at the back of her dress; something he had done many times with different women, but this time it was different. His fingers pulled on the gold cords at the base of her spine to undo the cream silk that covered her pale skin. To say his blood did not heat was a lie because he was more than willing to fullfil the marraige bed, yet the thought of hurting his best friend made him settle down. Unless she was willing, he would not touch her. Ezio's fingers accidentally touched her soft skin making his blood run hot again and he had to stop as soon as he untied the laces.
"I can get it from here." Contessina could not let him see the blush that was adorning her face from the contact of his fingers on her skin. He had held her hand many times before, but this accidental touch was in a place he had never really touched her before. She shrugged out of the dress and placed it on the chair in the corner leaving her only in her shift. The worst part was that the shift was more see through than a normal cotton shift. This was to entice the groom to stake his claim and consumate the marriage. "Can you turn around, Ezio?" She said covering herself and looking over her shoulder at him.
"Of course." Except he wanted to take a peek. Instead of facing the bed, he moved to the window hoping to be able to get a glance of her in the light of the candles. He heard her walk over to the bed and remove the blanket so she could get in to cover herself, but he was able to turn his head enough to hazzard a look.
What Ezio saw was more than he expected. Contessina had always been a beautiful girl and he never really noticed how shapely she was under the dresses she wore. The style of dresses worn always left men to their imaginations while leaving the head the only part of a woman to be admired. Contessina's body, what he could see of it in that glance, was curvy. She had more curve to her slender frame than most women. She was beautiful everwhere it seemed. Of course this was all lust talking. What man could not admire the natural beauty of any woman? Certainly not he. Constraint was not his strength when it came to scantly clad females in his presence.
"You may turn around now." Contessina's voice interrupted Ezio's thoughts and he turned around fully to see her in the bed with the covers up to her chin. He could tell this was going to be a very long night. He removed his boots before making his way over to the bed and laying on top of the covers. "You are going to get cold if you do not cover yourself." He heard her say as he put an arm under his head.
"I'll be fine Contessina, you should get some sleep." It would be dawn soon and even though they were not expected to leave the room at any point in the day, sleep did not come easy for either of them. Ezio felt as though he could not pass the invisible line in the center of the bed. Would it just be better to get it over with?
Even when the sun came up, niether Ezio or Contessina had slept. They were too afraid to cross the boundry they had set up between them and while Contessina tried hard to get comfortable, she could not. Was it going to be like this for the forseeable future? She hoped not. She hoped that they could become comfortable enough with each other to let their guards down. Right now, it was near impossible. She laid there with the blankets gripped in her hands while she stared at the ceiling. Ezio seemed to be doing the same, only he had moved to clasp his hands together over his chest.
Thoughts ran rapid through her head as she spared a glance to her new husband. Ezio had his eyes closed, yet he was fidgiting. He was no more asleep than she was. Contessina thought about what Giuliano said to her over and over again. Perhaps her cousin was right. She turned over on her side to face Ezio and reached out to put a hand on his arm. When she did, he opened his eyes and looked at her.
"What is it?" He gave her a worried look but when he saw her eyes fill with some emotion he had never seen before, he understood.
"I want to try." She said as he grabbed her hand.
"Are you sure?" He asked her and she nodded. "Alright." He took her hand and brought it to his lips. He knew she was a virgin, still he knew that no matter what, he could not hurt her.
"Does it hurt?" She asked him with knitted eyebrows as he began to kiss her skin. "When...you know." He stopped and smiled to her.
"For some, yes." He continued making his way up her arm. "All you have to do is say stop." He could not begin to tell her how much he cherished her.