The Woman with the Ring (Costa Family)

“You’ve been watching the apartment with night vision?”

“No. This was the first time I got into this area of The Bronx. His little guards are everywhere. And we look a lot alike. There was no way they wouldn’t know who I was and that I didn’t belong. But the kid that is usually watching the street was being hassled by the cops, so I was able to sneak in. Then got caught by that stupidly good looking asshole.”

“Which one? They are all infuriatingly attractive.”

“Viggi? Vicci? I don’t know. Something ridiculous like that.”

“Vissi,” I supplied. “He’s really not so bad.”

“If I have bruises on my arm, I have to pay him a visit.”

“You did not threaten them,” I grumbled, eyes closing, looking for a little patience.

“Only to cut off his fingers and potentially pour hot grease over his nether regions.”

“Oh, is that all?” I asked, deadpan, getting a smile out of her.

“You do seem… okay,” she said. “Aside from the crying.”

“I missed you. I miss everyone,” I admitted. “I think I was just overwhelmed.”

“Honestly, I’m kind of shocked he let me see you. I just figured I might catch sight of you, or you might hear me, and know we love you and are impatiently waiting for you to be able to contact us.”

“I think you caught him in a relatively good mood,” I told her.

“If that was a good mood, then I really am worried about you.”

“Don’t be,” I demanded, topping off my cool coffee. “Really, don’t. I’m okay. I mean I miss you guys so much I can barely breathe at times. But they’re not hurting me or being super restrictive or anything. It’s just…”

“Lonely,” Mira piped in.

“Yeah.”

“You’d think you would appreciate the break from the relentless texts from everyone and Mom’s calls telling you that she gave your number to her hairdresser’s son. Who is gay, mind you. It was the first thing he told me when he called out of familial obligation.”

“Well, at least she can say one of her kids is married now,” I said, shaking my head.

“Hey, she’s not happy about it, Bells. She wanted you to settle down, but not like this.”

“You know, it could be worse. I mean, I don’t know how to put this. But like… I could have ended up married to someone I loved and who I thought loved me, then found out he was disrespecting me by screwing everything that walked while I was home raising his kids.”

“I mean, but Primo…”

“Is actually surprisingly a traditionalist about marriage. He doesn’t believe in cheating.”

“Even if you aren’t sleeping with him?” Mira asked, dubious.

“Even then, he claims.”

“Interesting. But are you going to?” she asked.

“Sleep with him?” I clarified.

“Yeah.”

“Some day, I am going to have to,” I told her. “I want kids.”

“I mean, I can think of worse guys to share a bed with. Plus, that man has the most BDE I’ve ever seen.”

“BDE?”

“Big-dick-energy,” Mira told me.

“Oh, ah, yeah, I guess.” I mean, he totally had a big dick, but I didn’t want to tell her how I knew that. “How is everyone?” I asked, wanting to steer the conversation away from Primo and our future sex life. “Emilio?” I asked, wincing.

“Emilio is treating the whole situation like it is his fault,” Mira told me. “He’s been in a bit of a dark place lately, to be honest.”

It was hard to picture Emilio in a dark place. He was usually the lightest of all of us, never taking life—or even work—too seriously. I guess the older brother in a large family had to learn to adopt an easy-going demeanor to survive the chaos his younger siblings brought along with them.

“It’s not his fault. Tell him I said that. I will tell him when I get to see him too, but you tell him now.”

“I will, but you know how the Costa men are.”

Stubborn.

Our other brother, Anthony, had relentlessly chased a spot in the Family at only eighteen years old when Lorenzo took over for his father after his death. Despite all of us begging him to take some time, to live his life, maybe to go to college for that experience. He was dead-set on a life in the Family. And that was exactly what he got.

“And Mom?”

“Mom is flip-flopping between forced optimism and low moods. I think she will feel better when she hears I got to speak to you, and can confirm that you aren’t being abused in any way. The thing I don’t get is, if you are being treated okay, why aren’t you allowed to contact us?”

“Well, you know the famous Costa men’s stubbornness?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, imagine that ten-fold for the Esposito men.” Mira made a disgusted sound that had me smiling. “Exactly. I guess he’s worried that I might try to stage a plan to run. But I agreed to this. And even if it takes some adjustment, I am happy to be able to be a part of ending all the feuding between the families.”