Chloe straightens again in her seat but keeps her hand in mine. “Nothing.”
“She said she loves our family.”
Gracie reaches over and touches Chloe’s shoulder. “We’re your family too.”
“Babe,” Vito says to Chloe, and the term doesn’t bother me at all. “You’re one of us now, even if you’re too good.”
“Too good?” Chloe laughs. “I’m not perfect.”
Gracie snorts. “You’re pretty damn close to Mother Teresa.”
“Am not.”
Vito leans forward, invested in this conversation. “Name one bad thing you’ve done in your life.”
Chloe squirms in her chair but doesn’t answer right away.
“See,” Gracie says, waving her hand at Chloe. “She’s a saint. I don’t know how Franco got her, but he did.”
“Magic cock,” I tell her.
“I stole a pack of gum when I was a kid.”
All eyes at the table turn toward Chloe.
“Babe, that’s normal kid shit. I wouldn’t call that bad,” I say to my girl, loving that she’s so completely innocent.
“Ever steal a car?” Vito asks Chloe.
“No,” she says with her eyebrows knitted together. “You?”
Vito shrugs with a guilty look on his face. “I plead the fifth.”
“Sweet Jesus,” Chloe mutters. “That’s so bad.”
Vito chuckles.
“Excuse me,” Benito says, sliding his chair back. “I better go check on our dinners before it gets too late.”
“I’m starving,” Gracie says, rubbing her stomach. “I thought the food would be on the table when we got here.”
“Is Benito ever in a hurry or on time?” I ask.
“Some things never change,” Lexi states with her chin resting on her knuckles as she keeps an eye on the kitchen were my brother disappeared.
“Especially when you’re talking about Benito,” Gracie mumbles against the rim of her wineglass.
“He’s a good guy,” Lexi says to Gracie. “He really is. I’ve known some really shitty ones, and your brother isn’t. He can be incredibly sweet and caring.”
“I love all my brothers,” Gracie replies. “They all have their flaws, but I wouldn’t change a thing about them.”
I wish I could bottle up this moment forever. Not what’s being said, but all of us being together. Time is fleeting and life is precious. I’ve spent most of my life not putting too much thought into my family and the people who surround me. But as time slowly ticks away, I know there will be fewer and fewer moments like this.
“Are you okay?” Chloe squeezes my hand.
I turn to her and smile. “I’m perfect. This is perfect.”
She leans over and offers me her lips. Without hesitation, I take them, kissing her roughly.
