“Sì.This is true.” He hung his head. “Does this mean that I have been unfaithful to Santina? I did not mention this to her.”
The six of us glanced at each other before we settled on Livio. I understood then why Scarlett felt maternal toward him. There was a lot he had missed out on during his life, things he never learned, and sometimes his ideals were not even close to reality.
“No,” I said. “You didn’t even know her then. What matters is the time after you met Santina. You understand that, Livio, don’t you?”
“I did not do anything wrong?”
“You’ll be a good husband, Livio,” I said. “What’s important is that you and Santina lean on each other. No matter what happens. Life is hard. It won’t be all roses and butterflies. Marriage is hard too, but worth it if you both are committed. It’s to be breathed like air, not just fantasized about. It’s not about you, or her, it’s about the marriage.”
“This is something similar that Father Zullo said to us.” Livio nodded, the thought comforting him in some way.
This was something the priest that married Scarlett and I had said to us too, and I wondered if he was giving out plagiarized counsel, or if that advice was just a universal rule.
“Bene,” Tito said. “You should both attend church regularly. It helps. You have us, as well. Both sides of the family to support you now.”
“Okay.” He swallowed hard, almost a gulp. “About tonight? I assume that Signora Fausti was a…?”
All eyes turned on me.
I gave one slow nod in answer.
All eyes turned back to Livio.
“You were the one to…?”
All eyes back to me.
“No one else would’ve even tried. No one but me since.”
The men all made agreeable noises toward this statement.
“What do I do? I do not want to fail Santina. I want her to—like it too.”
Romeo snorted at this and then he began to sing, “Let’s Do it Again,” while shutting his eyes tight, pumping his hips, and moaning low. He started to bite his bottom lip, rolling it between his lips. Everyone stared at him like one would a train wreck.
“Take notes, Livio,” Romeo said, his mouth twitching as his movements became harder. “If you do this, she will ask you to do it over and over.Garantita. Do not forget to slow your words, reallyrrrroll them.”
“He won’t have to,” Donato muttered under his breath. “He won’t be able to breathe right for the first hundred times.”
Me, Rocco, and Dario grinned knowingly. I never knew what it was like to lose my breath—no, everything—until I made love to Scarlett.
Tito slapped Romeo again. He shook his head, jolted out of his demonstration, then fixed his hair in case a piece came loose.
“We’ll pick this up at the reception,” I said, though the idea of giving him ideas made my skin crawl. No two women were the same, and it was more than logistics he was after. I felt bad for this kid though.Because your wife feels bad for him.Yeah, the usual.
I’d just get Romeo to do another demonstration.Problem solved.
“Talkbeing the operative word,” Dario gave Romeo a pointed look.
“Over cigars and whiskey,” Rocco said.
“You will not forget? All of you?”
We all gave him our word. We would meet him before the reception came to an end. Romeo promised a more in-depth demonstration. Tito shook his head and told him that when Father Zullo spritzed us with holy water, he was going to sizzle.
“I am sorry,” Livio said, shaking his head, regretful. He seemed ready to change the subject. I was thankful for it. “That I will be on my honeymoon when you go to Africa. I would have liked to be there to protect Scarlett on her trip.”
“Africa?” I glanced around the room. The only two who seemed out of the loop was Tito and me.
