King of Wrath: An Arranged Marriage Romance

Vivian’s parents inform her that since she has yet to find a suitable husband for herself at age 28, her father has arranged a match for her. Vivian knows that she must accept the match; if she does not, her parents will disown her, since marriages of convenience (for business or social connections) are important for their social circles. Her parents mention the man’s eligibility, and when Vivian makes a joke asking if she can know the man’s name or just his net worth, she discovers that the man himself has arrived and heard her joke, considered crass in their circles. The man is Dante Russo, the most eligible bachelor in high society. From an Italian family, he has a slight Italian accent and is unconventionally handsome. During their introduction, Vivian realizes that he finds her wanting, and she decides that they just might kill one another.

Dante makes his displeasure about the engagement known over dinner by being rude and disengaged. He rebuffs Francis’s attempts to plan the wedding for six months hence, hoping to delay as long as possible so that he can find a way to get out of the arrangement. Francis has blackmailed him into the marriage, and Dante plans to find incriminating photos that Francis is keeping and destroy them. He excuses himself rudely and goes to Francis’s study; knowing that he won’t find the photos there, he instead smokes one of Francis’s cigars. Vivian finds him and scolds him for his rudeness. Dante feels attracted to her, but he hates her for her role as a pawn in her father’s game. He silently recalls Francis’s threat that if Dante does not marry Vivian, his brother will die.

Dante confronts his brother, Luca, whom he had summoned to New York with the blackmail photos from Francis. They reveal that Luca engaged in a sexual affair with Maria Romano, the niece of Gabriele Romano, a mafia don in Italy. Based on Gabriele’s reputation and previous handling of men who touched his female family members without permission, Dante knows that Gabriele would kill Luca if he discovered the truth. This is what Francis threatened: to send the photos directly to the don if Dante did not agree to marry Vivian.

Luca claims that he and Maria are in love and that he did not know her identity until after the affair began. Dante reminds him of what could happen to him and to the family if they are discovered and forbids Luca from speaking to Maria. Dante understands that if the family comes under the mafia’s power, they will not be able to leave its grasp. He orders Luca to work in one of the family businesses with no special privileges, and he cuts Luca’s allowance in half.

Dante blows off steam later at his club, boxing with his friend Kai who works at Mode de Vie magazine. Kai’s magazine connections have provided him with information about Dante’s engagement before the official announcement, and he earnestly asks Dante not to treat Vivian badly.

Vivian vents about her new fiancé to her friends, Sloane (owner of a boutique PR firm) and Isabella (a writer and bartender). She struggles to explain why she has agreed to the arranged marriage; despite her parents’ treatment of her, she feels indebted to them and does not want to experience the isolation of being cut off from her family.

Vivian has yet to hear from Dante anything about her move into his home except for his address, despite the fact that she is to move in the following week. Sloane suggests that Vivian crash Dante’s annual private exhibition showcasing his art collection so that she can confront Dante and get the information she needs.

Against her better judgment, Vivian takes Sloane’s advice and shows up at the party. The hostess refuses access, but Kai arrives shortly after Vivian and plays along, telling the hostess that Vivian’s invitation was lost; he takes Vivian in as his guest under the pretense of not bothering Dante.

When Dante sees Vivian, he is angry–he does not want her at the event. She is more vocal than at their previous meeting, criticizing his manners and going toe-to-toe with him. He is clearly impressed by her and notes that she is different in both behavior and appearance from when he first met her, when she was dressed according to her parents’ standards. When he accuses her of wanting to win approval from others, she demands that he send all the information she needs for her move to her by noon the following day, threatening to make him look bad by showing up on his doorstep and revealing to the public how badly he tends to his personal life. She walks away knowing that she has earned points of respect but also knowing that Dante will retaliate in some way.

Dante, still feeling impressed by Vivian’s behavior at the party, sends her the necessary details right at noon the next day. She arrives the following week and he shows her to her bedroom, laying out rules for their public personae and telling her not to expect any romance or care at home. His housekeeper, Greta, who raised Dante and Luca, accuses him of being too harsh. He allows her far more leeway for such critique than he would anyone else, but he draws the line when she continues. She has clearly developed an immediate fondness for Vivian, and Dante feels as if Vivian is already causing chaos in his carefully ordered life.

As Vivian enters her new room, she receives a text from Heath, her college best friend and ex-boyfriend. She recalls believing that they would marry and her disappointment when her parents refused to give their approval of the relationship. Heath clearly is not aware of her engagement, telling her of the success of his company and hinting that perhaps they can try again now that he has achieved more success. She knows that her parents would never agree to it, as they want a match with someone with more connections to validate their social status, since they are nouveau riche. She recalls with pain the day that her father threatened to disown her if she continued on with Heath and the day she chose her family over love.

At dinner, after a tour of the home, Vivian tries to be civil with Dante. When he refuses to engage with her, she confronts him, asking again why he has agreed to the marriage. He refuses to answer, informs her of his month-long upcoming trip, and accuses her of being so tied to her parents’ approval that she would likely marry him even if he was away for the full year of their engagement. He challenges her to call her parents and call off the engagement and seems disappointed when she does not. Vivian feels ashamed of having been confronted with the ugliest part of herself.

Dante, returned from his month-long business trip, finds that Vivian has already begun making changes to his home, including spending $100,000 on flowers, shoes, and other items as petty revenge for how he treated her before leaving. He hates the fact that she is ruining the careful order he had cultivated in his home.

They are taking engagement photos when the photographer asks them for a final photo kissing. Vivian tries to avoid it by claiming that they do not like PDA, but Dante kisses her to keep their cover as a loving couple. He finds himself falling into the kiss before the photographer recalls them to the moment.

Afterward, Dante buys them breakfast at a street cart, surprising Vivian. They bond somewhat over their love for some cheap but quality foods, against the wishes of their families. They also talk about their careers and familial expectations. Dante feels as if he has a moment of peace for the first time since his grandfather’s death. He informs Vivian that, since his parents want to meet her, he and Vivian will be going to Bali, where they’re currently staying, for Thanksgiving. She is irritated, telling Dante that she can’t take off an entire week from her job with such short notice, reminding him that he is her fiancé, not her boss. He ruins their temporary peace and Vivian’s burgeoning view of him as somewhat human when he tells her that he may as well be her boss if he is bankrolling her flowers and shoes. She storms away as the food cart vendor gives Dante a disapproving look, and at home, Dante finds a check made out to him for the $100,000 that Vivian spent.

As she has for many years, Vivian visits a Saturday market to find inspiration for her events. Isabella joins her, noting Vivian’s distraction. Vivian struggles not to think about her kiss with Dante, and she is stretched thin between work and preparations for becoming Mrs. Russo. Isabella is the first to notice Heath standing behind Vivian.

Heath, in town for a meeting, decided to stop by the market since he knew that Vivian used to go every week. They have coffee after Isabella leaves, and Heath questions Vivian about her engagement. Reading between the lines, he realizes that it is an arranged marriage, and he challenges her to stop doing what her parents want, not realizing that she does not want to lose her family. Surprising herself, Vivian says Dante is not “that bad,” recalling his moments of humanity as they ate their food truck breakfast. As Heath leaves, Vivian feels glad that Dante is not interested in her life, since she suspects that he would not like Heath interfering in Dante’s relationship, even if Dante does not want to be with Vivian. She suspects that Heath might be in danger if Dante knew.