“Yes, why?”
“Well, if there’s one thing I’ve learned from Enzo”—she enunciated Papà’s name with a sneer—“it’s that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.”
I grinned. “Is that how you wooed Papà? By cooking for him?”
She added more salt to her pot and dragged out an exasperated exhale. “Partially. But my point is, I think you should bring Hunter a peace offering. Men never say no to food. It’s one of their vices.”
I supposed that wasn’t a bad idea. Hunter did enjoy the blueberry muffins I baked for him to pair with his black coffee every Monday morning. And though he wasn’t answering his phone, I doubted he’d deny me if I was at his door with a tray of my famous lasagna and all the humility I possessed. “I’ll take your word for it.”
“Good. Cook him something nice and bring it to his place pronto. You’ll have him eating out of the palm of your hand in no time,” she said. “And once you make up, for God’s sake, invite that boy over for dinner. I want to get to know my future son-in-law properly.”
I actually laughed at her absurdness. “Baby steps, Mamma. I’m not even sure yet if he’ll forgive me. Marriage isn’t even on the table right now.”
I didn’t have the heart to tell her that Hunter and I would only ever be friends. Nothing more…Right?
“When I was your age, I was already married and a mom of one.”
“Yeah, that’s because you and Papà forgot to use a—”
“Gabriela Regina Bellafiore!” she barked. “You will not finish that sentence!”
I only laughed harder. It was the truth. Nonna confirmed it herself one night after one too many glasses of wine. She alsosaid that I was the biggest blessing in their lives, so I never felt bad about being ‘unplanned.’ “Okay, okay, fine!”
She harrumphed, smacking a spatula against my rump chidingly. “I’m just excited for you. It’s been years since you’ve dated anyone and I want you to experience some joy. I can tell Hunter makes you happy. You always smile brighter whenever you come back from seeing him. Why not explore this a little more?”
“I…I don’t know, Mamma.”
“Let me ask you this: do you like him?”
That was a no-brainer. “Yes. Very much. He’s perfect. Like all of my book boyfriends wrapped into one.”
“There you go,” she said smugly. “If you take a chance on him, Gabby, I don’t think you’ll regret it. I have a good feeling about this one.”
I swallowed toughly. “I’ll think about it.”
I wouldn’t. My mind was made.
Even though there was a small voice in the back of my mind telling me that I was kidding with myself if I thought we could remain platonic andjust friends.
Mamma huffed. “And if he ends up being like Franco—which I doubt—then don’t worry. Know that Enzo will deal with him.”
Papà approved of Hunter as my friend, but accepting him as more would be a stretch. No man was good enough for his little girl. He hadn’t even liked Franco. The only reason why I was able to date him was because Mamma reminded Papà that there was no stopping young love and that I deserved to be with whomever I wanted. In hindsight, dating Franco was the worst mistake ever. But at least my papà wasn’t the kind of overbearing where I wasn’t allowed to do anything without his permission.
He exerted control where necessary but was lenient when it came to me making my own life choices. Even if they weren’t always the greatest. But that’s how you learned, right?
“Thank you for giving me your advice.” I rose on my tippytoes to kiss her cheek.
She hugged me. “Anytime, cara mia.”
The fragrant aroma of tomatoes, spices, and herbs wafted in the air as we spent the next few minutes preparing our pasta. Just as we were about to start plating dinner, the front door banged open and then slammed closed.
Mamma and I jolted with surprise.
Enzo Bellafiore strolled into the house like a high court second-in-command returning from battle, an angry expression fixated on his face as his thudding footsteps closed in on us.
Something was cataclysmically wrong. I stayed mum, watching him slip into the kitchen with the faint smell of gunpowder clinging to his dishevelled black suit.
Mamma chose to poke the bear. “Well, well, well. If it isn’t the guard dog entering through the doggy door like he owns this place. Didn’t you see the mat in the front? It says ‘Everyone is welcome, except for annoying ex-husbands.’”
