“It’s okay. I’ll see them this weekend at the party.” So why are you crying? I had to pull her into my arms to escape from the tears in her eyes. I haven’t told her yet what that does to me, how it tears me up inside to see it. “We’ll leave tomorrow, or the day after once the storm is over.” Why does my heart feel sick?
It’s because I had to deny her something. Well shit! Her soft giggle as she pulled away pulled me out of wherever I’d just gone in my head. “No, it’s fine; we need to get back for school tomorrow. Thanks for offering anyway.” She kissed my lips and jumped up from the bed red as a cherry but very pleased with herself.
The goodbyes were just as tear-filled as the hellos, and by the time we boarded the jet, she was pretty much wilted. Her angst when the plane took off with the wind already picking up outside made her jump into my lap, and that’s where she stayed until it was time to land. “Wake up, sleepyhead, we’re here.”
Her tummy grumbled as the staff followed behind us with the hundreds of packages. Her aunts had taken her shopping the day before while her grandma had stayed behind, going through Adrienne’s things to give Gianna. “You’re hungry.” In my haste to get back to the hotel and pack so we could get out while it’s still safe, I forgot to feed her.
“I’m starved.” I looked at my watch, sure that my family had already eaten.
“I’ll take you to brunch at this place I know in town.”
“That sounds great, but let’s go home and unpack first. I want to ride in mom’s car.” Well crap! That doesn’t fit in with my plans for the week. I have a whole lineup in order and ready to go for the three people living in her house.
You’d think hearing what a great dad Felix used to be would give me some kind of empathy for him, but it hasn’t. In fact, quite the opposite. I’m still hoping for her sake that at some point in time, I find some redeeming qualities in him.
“Fine, we’ll take your mom’s car.” There was no storm here at home. The skies were clear, the air crisp, and I had her bundled up from head to toe to ward off the chill. As I thought, my family had already had breakfast, and lunch won’t be for another few hours.
The twins were knee-deep in last-minute party planning, so it was just her and I headed to the busiest place in the entire city at this time of day on the weekend. I hadn’t called ahead, but I wasn’t worried. The place is big enough that I’m sure they’d find space for us even with the line of out-of-town tourists that were bound to be there waiting.
“Have you been here before?”
“No, have you?” I smiled and opened the door for her, shaking my head at the host when he started to greet me. Since I turned eighteen, all Pop’s men started calling me boss, especially in places we own. She questioned the haste with which we were seated. “Don’t worry about it. No one ever uses this table.”
No, because it’s my grandmother’s three-hundred-year-old antique all the way from Catania, and only the family is allowed. “So, how come we’re using it?”
“I asked the host nicely.” Her bitch brow is getting better, but I’m still not talking.
We ordered waffles with strawberries and cream for her and French toast burnt for me. The host had forgotten to draw the privacy doors back in place, but it was fine seeing the other diners, listening to their merry chatter as she dug into her waffles with glee. The host came bustling in halfway through and whispered something urgent in my ear.
“What? Did she…?”
“No-no, the car’s okay, we stopped her in time, but she’s making a scene in the parking lot.” Gianna heard the word car and took off running for the exit with me hot on her heels. “Fuck!” I was afraid of this. This is what happens when you go off plan.
“You bitch, get away from my mother’s car.” Whoa, Gianna?
Okay, so a whole lot of things happened in quick succession, so my recollection might be out of sync, but this is what I remember. Gianna went running towards Becky, who looked like she was about to key the car; my men got there before she could. Victoria, who had been standing on the sidelines, stuck her foot out, then added a swift kick to the ribs while Gianna was going down.
I’m not sure how, but when I blinked again to compute what the fuck I’d just seen, I was standing in front of Victoria. I got as far as grabbing her around the neck before Gianna got ahold of me. One sharp flick to the right or left, and she’s done. Do it! That voice in my head was calm and precise.