“We love fiercely, and we also get annoyed easily. Some holidays are nice, and some are filled with tension because we’ve remembered something someone said ten years ago, and we’ve decided we’re still holding a grudge. Then by the time dessert comes out, we’re in a full-blown fight which usually leads to tears, and then we eat dessert. The next morning, you wake up and the family chat is full of gossip about who said what about whom.”
I grin, looking up at her. “Sounds nice.”
“Oh, it’s delightful. You haven’t even met the extended family. That’s when the real fun starts.”
“What are we talking about?” Lavinia comes into the kitchen and stands on the other side of the counter, her eyes shifting back and forth between her mother and me.
“Nothing, just stuff,” Melanie says.
“Okay, well.” Lavinia looks like she doesn’t believe us but doesn’t prod further. “I got the Christmas decorations out of the garage.”
“Aiden could have done that.”
They go back and forth about the Christmas decorations as I finish packing up the leftovers. Once all the containers are stacked on the counter, I find the disinfectant and start wiping down everything.
“You don’t have to do that, baby,” Lavinia says. I look up to see her and Melanie watching me with curious little smiles on their faces.
“It’s a force of habit,” I explain. “I’m used to cleaning down everything before bed.”
“Lavinia is the same way,” Melanie says. “She’s probably the only kid who enjoyed doing chores in the kitchen.”
“It’s peaceful.” Lavinia and I say at the same time and grin at each other.
Melanie looks back and forth between us. “Vin, why don’t you show Roman the deck?”
I wash my hands and follow Lavinia out onto the deck. It’s nice and quiet out here, with a firepit and Adirondack chairs set around it in a circle. String lights hang over the top, brightening the place. Lavinia huddles closer to me and I wrap my arms around her to keep her warm. The small lake in the background hasn’t completely frozen over yet, but it will oncethe temperatures start to drop more. We used to skate out here as kids.
“Your mom thinks I was a sweet boy,” I say.
Lavinia squeezes me tighter. “I’m so sorry. I wish I’d been there when you found out such horrible news.”
I huff a laugh. I love the way her mind works, so sweet and so sharp at the same time. I want to abandon our little game of skirting around the boundaries and kiss her, right here and now. I won’t, though. I want her to give in, to stop thinking that this is temporary and it’s going to disappear.
“I have something for you,” I whisper.
Pushing away from me slightly, Lavinia looks up. “What is it?”
Reaching into my pocket, I wrap my fingers around the box and slowly pull it out. Lavinia gasps, taking a step back from me, her wide eyes zeroed in on my hand. “Roman, what did you do?”
I don’t answer. Instead, I open the box and let her see the rings inside. Lavinia covers her mouth with her hands. “Oh my god.”
“It’s a sapphire, not a diamond,” I say. I remove the rings from the box and reach for her hand.
“Roman, you didn’t have to do this. It’s a lot.”
Gently, I remove the thin gold band she’s currently wearing and slide the platinum wedding band on, followed by the ring. It looks perfect on her hand. Some possessive part of me thrills at seeing my ring on her finger, and that’s why it was necessary.
She’s my wife, she’ll wear my ring.
Lavinia is still staring down at the ring, bringing up her other hand to touch it. Did I push it too far? I wish she’d look up at me so I can read her eyes.
“If you don’t like it, we can change it.”
“No, it’s beautiful. I can’t stop looking at it,” she whispers. There are pink undertones in the sapphire, the main reason why I picked this ring. It’s her favorite color.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m just…” Finally, she looks up at me, and she’s not upset like I expected. There’s some emotion in her eyes I can’t decipher. “When I asked you to help me leave my wedding venue, I never expected it’d lead us here. I’m trying to wrap my head around it.”
