Seeing Luca with the children tonight filled me with a bittersweet joy.
My children deserve their father. They deserve the love he clearly wants to give them.
I push myself up from the couch and move down the hallway to check on them.
Rocco has kicked off his blanket, as usual. I gently tuck it back around him.
Elio sleeps with his arms flung wide, taking up more space than his small body should. I move to Adalina’s room.
She sleeps clutching her stuffed rabbit. In the dim light, they look so innocent, so untouched by the complicated world they've been born into.
I stand in their doorway a moment longer, desperately clinging to this quiet, normal moment that suddenly feels fragile.
Like any moment, they'll be pulled from my arms for forever.
The next morning, I feel like I'm sleepwalking through our routine. The kids chatter excitedly about Luca being their father as I help them with breakfast and backpacks.
Each mention of his name fills me with guilt for what I’ve done and terror for what could happen.
"Will Daddy pick us up from school today?" Adalina asks, her eyes bright with hope.
I force a smile. "Not today, sweetie. But he’ll visit tonight. And you’ll stay with him on Friday."
After dropping them off at school, I drive to Dom's dreading what I need to share with him.
What will he say?
Dom has been our protector, our safety net.
How will he react knowing I've been hiding this truth from everyone, including him?
Roberto shows me in without question, leading me to Dom's study where he's reviewing papers.
He looks up, his expression shifting immediately when he sees my face.
"What's happened?" he asks, setting his pen down.
I sink into the chair across from him. “I need to reveal something to you. A secret I’ve held for years.”
His expression darkens. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
There’s no sense in beating around the bush. “Luca Monti is the triplets’ father.”
He blinks, like he doesn’t understand what I’m saying. Realization slowly dawns. “That means you fucked him seven years ago?”
I take issue with his characterization. “We fell in love, Dom. It happens, you know?” I think Dom might be missing the affection gene.
Sure, he takes care of me and the kids.
I think he cares for us in his own way, but I’ve never seen anything that looks like love from him.
“How is it that no one knew?”
I sigh and sit back for a long conversation. “We didn’t want our families to get involved. At first it was a fun fling. Later, it was more, but by then, it was too late. When everything happened with my father, I bought the story that Luca had betrayed him.Luca was sent to Italy, and I knew your father still wanted revenge. I didn’t want myself or the children to be a vehicle for it. So, I didn’t say anything.”
Dom’s face darkens with anger. "And Luca didn’t protect you? Do right by you?”
"He didn't know about the kids. He had no idea they were his until yesterday. Only my father knew, and I begged him to keep it a secret. He was trying to figure out a way to send me to Luca when he died. When he was murdered, Dom, I knew the kids and I weren’t safe.”
