I rolled my eyes as we stepped back out into the crisp September afternoon. The warmth of the sun was cut by the chill of the wind that swept the first autumn leaves up around our feet. I pulled Dante into a hug and squeezed him tight.
“What’s that for?” he asked.
“Thank you for coming with me today.”
“Ah, what type of uncle would I be if I didn’t look after you both?”
As we pulled apart, the glint of the sun reflecting off something made me squint. There, pulled up on the opposite side of the street, was an all too familiar black Maserati, window rolled down and occupant staring directly at us. My stomach flipped as I locked eyes with Luc before the window cut our eye contact and he hastily pulled away. I took a few uncertain steps forwards, watching as the car turned the corner.
“D,” I called.
“I saw,” he replied, coming up beside me.
“He turned up.”
“He turned up,” Dante echoed.
I could feel Franco behind me before he spoke. “We should get back. Gabe will want to know you’re home.” Gabe would want to know that Luc had shown his face. Something that wouldn’t bode well with his plan if Luc was contemplating accepting me and the baby.
“Go,” Dante said, leaning in to kiss my cheek. “I’ll go see him,” he assured me before we parted ways.
Chapter Twenty
Mia
I’m working on it.
Dante’s reply to me that evening when I asked if he’d spoken to Luc. I stared at the screen, mulling over what to reply when Carmen’s name flashed across it and I answered her call. “Carmen, hi,” I greeted her.
“Here I was thinking you’d forgotten about me,” she responded.
“Of course not,” I replied, settling down on a chair in Gabe’s backyard. It was late and the sun was slowly starting to sink away. Franco stood in the yard, throwing a stick for Cerb who ran off to retrieve it. “It’s been a little manic this end.”
“So, I’ve heard. How’s life with Gabriel and how do you feel carrying his child?” The amusement was evident in her voice.
My jaw dropped. “How did you hear that rumor?”
“Gossip travels faster than the speed of light.”
“I’m not sure that’s a proven scientific fact,” I muttered as a sinking sensation settled in the pit of my stomach. I should have known the whispers had a wider reach than just our town. My reputation was questionable no matter where I went. It irritated me that people knew my name, and had made judgements before they had even met me.
“Anyway,” Carmen continued, not worried about my tattered reputation. “I called to see if you received the invitation. I did tell you to call me once you’d seen it.”
“What?”
“On the bottom of the invite. I said to call me.”
“What invite, Carmen?” My friend was three paces ahead of me while I tried to catch up.
“For the boys’ christening this weekend. I would have asked you sooner but technically you weren’t meant to be here. It’s taken me this long to convince Emil to let you be their Godmother and I wanted to make sure that you weren’t going to let us down.”
“Stop,” I said to her, pinching the bridge of my nose. She needed to take a breath and I needed a moment to unpack all the information she’d just unleashed. “Christening?”
“Santiago and Javier’s, yes.”
“When?”
“This Sunday, Mia.” Carmen was growing impatient. “It was all on the invitation along with my request for you to be their Godmother.”
