Thirty minutes later when we come back up the stairs, Bella and Ricky run off to their individual rooms to get changed for the day and I use my foot to tap on Giana’s door, balancing a content Caterina on one arm and a second cup of coffee in the other. Giana turns to me with a smile, looking like
The room is silent for a long moment. So long that when I look up at Giana, I’m horribly worried that I’ve said something really offensive – that I’ve gone too far. But when I see the tears starting in her eyes, her red face, I realize that she just has no idea what to say. “Why are you being so
“What?” I sputter, my eyes flashing between them as Christian turns to me and Lucy goes rigid in her place on the floor, her eyes going wide. “What the hell is going on here!?” Christian’s hand softly drifts away from its place on Lucy’s head. “Iris,” Christian says, turning towards me seriously
“No, Christian!” I snap up into his face. “I’m not going to –“ “Iris!” he shouts – and the way he does steals all the words from my mouth. For the second time in as many minutes, I just stare at him, perfectly still, shocked. Christian heaves a heavy sigh, dragging a hand down the length of his
“Drink up, you sissy!” Giana laughs, sipping at the straw of her way-too-strong bloody mary. I just cough, looking askance at mine. “G, this is like 90% vodka, 5% tomato juice, and the rest is horseradish. Honestly, it’s basically clear.” “I am freshly a widow, Iris,” Giana says, even as she lau
“Oh, grow a fucking backbone, Iris,” Giana snaps, whipping towards me to glare at me. “After what he did to you this morning? You’re still scared to do something that’s going to make your ‘sweetheart’ husband angry?” My eyes go wide as I realize that Giana didn’t push me on what happened this morn
The room is tense for a moment before Elio releases a booming laugh. I cringe away from that too – because it’s clearly fake. Too loud, too brash – just meant to break the tension in the room. We all turn towards him, Christian’s threat still alive in the tense lines of his body. “Oh, you two ne
I stand up straight, a little spooked at what’s going to come next. “Do you think you could brew a pot?” Slowly, a little smile comes to my mouth. And I nod to him, pleased to be included, pleased to have something to do, pleased to help. Pleased that he knows that I need something to do with my
A small smile creeps on Leo’s lips. “Yeah, okay,” he says, relaxing back against our chair. “Our secret.” I grin at my baby, leaning in to give him a kiss on the cheek, because my boy can’t resist a secret.“What’s all this?”I turn to see Christian standing at the open door, peering into the dining
The danger. It’s…it’s far too poignant.My heart breaking, I open a private browsing tab on the web browser and quickly search for Craigslist in both this city and Athens, Greece. As I do my memory goes back to a conversation I had with Frankie, when he told me that this is the best way he knows for
I stand frozen, staring down at the letter as it sits on the little hall desk, my breath coming in fluttery little gasps.The words are very simple.There are vineyards in Greece as well. I’ll take you there.I read it again and again as my heart pounds in my chest, each beat echoing with a mix of h
“You don’t know anything about my life,” I whisper, my voice barely audible, turning my eyes back down to the dishes. “I had no choice.”“You think you’re the only one who suffered?” Lucy whispers. “You think I wanted to be in this position? We were friends once, Iris. We were good to each other. Bu
“Mommyyyy,” Leo says, looking anxiously towards the kitchen door, shifting from foot to floor. “Hurry up! Aunt Bianca says we have to go!”I laugh, glancing down at my little boy, who looks so adorable in the private school uniform he wears to Kindergarten – crisp white shirt, navy blazer, his dark
But…was it? Was it me, missing Chris? Wanting to have yet another piece of him, even if I long denied wanting any ties to my past life?I look down, my heart heavy, not truly understanding what I think or what I feel.“I mean it, Iris,” Chris says, his voice steady and cool. “I’ll be a father to her
My heart sinks as I look Christian in the eyes – because beyond all hope, I had been praying that he hadn’t noticed that Leo is his son. But how could I have been so naïve? Leo looks just like him - dark hair, striking grey-blue eyes. The resemblance is unmistakable. I feel a wave of guilt crashing
“Yes,” he answers, a growl in his voice. “That should suit just fine.”I laugh at the irony in this and shake my head, looking away. “So now you want me to come back, to pretend as if nothing ever happened? You expect me to just accept this, the way things are now?”Christian opens his mouth to resp
Disappointment floods my chest, a sense of disbelief washing over me. “You think I would trust you again after everything? After how you treated me? You expect me to just come back and forget?”His eyes narrow, disappointment etched into his features. “You were faithless. I thought you’d be loyal. I