“Shit,” Ivan curses as he watches me cry, looking frantically over his shoulder back at the gas station. “Should I go inside? Should I get you like, candy? Maybe they have ice cream…” I can’t help the laugh that stumbles out of my mouth. “What?” Ivan sighs and shakes his head at me, freaked out an
Ivan grins, shaking his head like he can’t help it. “Why are you giving him that terrible name, Fay? Name him something good, like…Sparky. Or Firenze, if you’re trying to be Italian.” “Nah,” I say, turning to grin at Ivan. “I think there’s a better chance of Kent letting me keep him if he knows it’
I wipe away my tears and give Daniel a big smile as the gate swings shut behind us and he skids to a stop in front of me, throwing his arms around me and holding me tight for a long moment. “Oh my god,” he whispers, his voice shaking. “Are you – are you all right!?” “I’m fine, Daniel,” I say bac
He nods once to me, moving on from it, and reaches out to stroke the little puppy’s head. “And who is this? Did your kidnapper give you a parting gift?” “Nah, this I accidentally stole from a farmer,” I say, laughing a little at the ridiculousness of my day. “Dad, meet Lil Kent.” My dad laughs a
Kent’s whole body shakes as he holds me tight against him, and I hear him breathe a little moan of relief as he presses his fingers hard against my body, as if checking to make sure that I’m here, that I’m real. “Fay.” My name tumbles desperately out of his mouth as he pulls me even tighter for a
“Fay,” Kent growls, taking a step towards me, “you are days from having a child, we are not raising a puppy and a newborn at the same time –“ “We damn well are,” I say, lifting my chin and staring up at him. “I am not sending Lil Kent back to the farm –“ Behind me, Daniel bursts into laughter wh
My mouth falls open as I look between Kent and Jerome – processing their lack of shock, and the way Jerome hangs his head, and the bruise across his cheek – And suddenly the puzzle pieces snap together. “Wait,” I say, sitting up straight and pulling suddenly away from my dad. “Are you – are you
I look up at him and he runs his knuckles down the length of my cheek. “Come on,” he whispers, nodding his head a little to our bedroom. “Let’s take a minute, Fay. You need it.” “Okay,” I say, giving a shaky nod. But before we can take a step I whip my attention to Daniel. “You,” I say, pointing a
My dad greets him with such genuine joy and excitement that it makes my heart swell with joy. They talk for a few minutes about Dominic’s day before dad gives him a little nudge back towards the gate where Kent and I are waiting. Dominic gives dad a kiss before running ahead again. My dad waves to
“Papa!” Dominic shouts, startling me out of my reverie as he drops my hand and darts down the road. I look up, a huge smile breaking out on my face again as I see Kent on the sidewalk just ahead. His back is to us as he speaks companionably with the butcher, a heavy bag of his purchases already hung
As I walk down the street towards the little Italian kindergarten, the whispers start around me, as they always do. I listen to all of them, a big German Shepherd padding quietly at my heels. “Is that her?” “Yes, that’s the one – I heard she was her husband’s mistress before he married her – tha
Both Kent and I laugh, but Don Bianci – across the baptismal font from us – snaps his eyes up, perhaps not liking the joke as much as we do. But I just ignore it, because dad’s right, frankly – and it’s too happy a day to care. After the final blessing everyone applauds Dominic – he likes that, bl
“Well, it didn’t seem to affect your first very badly,” Ivan says with a shrug, peering around Kent to where Daniel is laughing with an arm around Jerome’s shoulders. “So…maybe keep it up.” I smirk, squeezing Ivan’s hand once more before standing and moving to Kent’s side, tucking myself against h
“Hey, gorgeous,” Ivan says, his mouth turned up in a smirk as I cross the churchyard, beaming at him. “Look who’s talking,” I say, laughing and reaching for him when I come close enough. Ivan wraps me in a hug, dropping a kiss to my cheek as I hold Dominic a bit to the side so he doesn’t get squis
He laughs, smiling at me genuinely. “Do I make you nervous?” he asks, blunt. I laugh, unable to help it. “Has no one bothered to tell you, in all these years, that you’re a little terrifying, Don Bianci?” He grins and shakes his head at me. “Well, considering what you accomplished, young lady, I
Two months later, we’re all gathered together again. And it is only with frustration that I see Gio and Janeen standing so close together that their arms nearly brush, even though they’re still not together. I roll my eyes, dismissing the problem for a moment as I move my eyes down to Dominic and
It's an incredible night. Kent didn’t lie, not at all, about the food either. I’m shocked by the mountains of dishes that continue to follow each other, one after another, long into the night. After a few hours of it I just mournfully watch the waiters go by because I couldn’t eat another bite if I