Rocco and Elio frown.
“Smarts?” Adalina says so softly I’m not sure Luca heard her.
But he smiles at her. “Exactly.”
“I’m smart, huh, Mommy?” Rocco says.
“All three of you are smart.”
Adalina leans in closer, her elbows resting on the table, observing him with an intensity that surprises me for a child her age.
Then again, I remember being drawn to him in the same way when we were kids.
Of course, we were only friends up until he came home from college, and that summer, something shifted.
At first, we figured it was sexual only and decided to indulge it. I was a virgin who wanted to know what sex was like.
But it wasn’t long before it was more.
Until I thought for sure we’d spend our lives together.
And then my father was arrested… and well, the rest, as they say, is history.
"Do you speak Italian?" Elio asks. "’Cause you lived in Italy?”
"I do. I speak it all the time there. At home, I stick with English.”
"Can you teach us?" Adalina surprises me with her question. She’s usually mute around strangers.
I suppose Luca isn’t a stranger as they’ve seen him at La Corona events, but they’ve never interacted with him.
It makes me wonder why he’s here now, bringing cookies and teaching the kids to dunk.
“Sure.” He thinks for a moment. “In Italy, we have one word we use for both hello and goodbye with our friends. We say ‘Ciao’.”
"Chow?" Rocco attempts, and I smile at his earnestness.
"Almost. We draw it out a little bit.Ciao.” Luca enunciates slowly. “For example, if I saw your mom, I might say,Ciao, bella.”
My heart stops.
The world stops.
I’m back at the park where I’m secretly meeting with Luca.
He approaches me. “Ciao, bella.” Hello, beautiful.
“Her name is Elena,” Rocco says.
“Yes, butbellameans beautiful.”
Rocco scrunches his nose. I try not to be offended.
"Ciao, bellaMommy," Adalina says.
"Bravissima!" Luca claps, and she flushes with joy.
"What's that mean?" Elio asks.
