“It was ordered last night by a Mr. Wright to be delivered at seven a.m. sharp to room 489 for a Miss DeLuca.” The man’s thick accent slowed the words down as I let the information sink in.Alexander had ordered us breakfast.
“O-okay,” I said, holding out my hands for the tray.
The man shook his head. “Allow me, Miss.”
I moved out of the way, and he walked into the suite, setting up the food on the table and placing out the plates. My mouth watered at the array of breakfast foods. Steaming pancakes, waffles, plain eggs, and an omelet. Coffee and tea options, and a juice for Gia. He really did think of everything.
“Thank you so much,” I said to the butler as he left.
“Mama,” a groggy Gianna called from the other room. I peered in through the cracked door and dark room, only the dim light of the bathroom giving me some light onto my daughter.
“Hey, Bug, guess what we have?” I said, walking over and picking her up. She yawned and rubbed her half-awake eyes.
“What?” she asked.
“Breakfast pancakes!” I cheered. She wiggles out of my arms and onto the ground, dragging her bunny plushie with her, pink unicorn pajamas blurring into the other room in one blink.
“This is amazing,” she announced loudly. I followed after her to find her already sitting in front of the seat with the pancakes, looking at me expectantly. I giggled at her, all bright eyes, blonde curls smashed and going in every direction.
“Go ahead,” I said, and she dug in. I poured myself coffee and pulled over the omelet and waffles for myself. Taking out my phone, I snap a photo of her and send it to Alexander with one sentence:
Lucia
You did good.
By the time we were out the door, Gia and I had perfectly coordinated denim jackets on. Gia was clad in a matching black sweat set to fight off the chill of the day. We were introduced to a driver as we exited. Anna had coordinated a private driver just for us so we could come and go as we pleased, or if Gia needed a break from the chaos. The sun was peeking through the clouds, the chill in the air making my nerves skitter and stir. I hoped there would be no rain for qualifying today—for both my brother and Alexander’s sakes. Rain always made races tricky, but according to what I overheard yesterday from the race engineers, no rain was forecasted for race day, only today for qualifying. Which promised a chaotic day of racing.
My hand found its way to my necklace, a small butterfly charm Matteo had given me after he won his first race. It was his rookie year, the big paychecks were beginning to roll in and he bought everyone in the family something nice to celebrate. The simple but gorgeous golden butterfly necklace had become somewhat of a talisman for me. I found myself sliding it through my fingers to combat any stints of anxiety that would hit me. Below it was my heart locket, a cursiveGon the front for the one who had my heart. My mini sunshine girl, my Gianna Rose.
Once we arrived at the gates, Gia was bursting with excitement to see her Zio Matteo and Alexander. The security at the front gate smiled widely and waved hello to us as we scanned our badges into the paddock. Upon crossing said barrier, the excitement of the day began to unfold. Anna found us rather quickly, and explained how the day would go, what time Q1 would begin, and how it would progress to the final formation for the day of racing. The drivers were doing some promotional things for the morning, so we made our way to the Moretti lounge. Nicola appeared as we walked through the door, basically jumping up and down, a shit-eating grin plastered on her face.
“I have a surprise!” she sang and ran up to Gia with a big smile. “Hi, cutie girl!” She crouched down and held her arms open. Gia giggled and ran into them, then immediately after gave Monty her attention, who wagged his little tail in response.
“Okay, so follow me.” She waved her arms all big over herself, making Gia giggle again and run up to her, tugging on her arm. Nicola paused to look down at my daughter, who was holding out her hand, silently asking to hold Nicola’s. Nicola looked back at me, her eyes slightly bewildered and excited. I gave her a reassuring smile. Nicola didn’t have much experience with children, but it did not stop her from making Gia feel loved and included. Gia on the other hand was quick to love anyone who gave her attention. She was a lovebug. I picked up my pace, falling into step with the two of them.
“I think she likes me!” Nicola whispered to me.
“She totally likes you. So, does Monty go with you everywhere?” I ask.
“Basically. He’s actually my dad’s. My mom thought it would be a good idea for him to have an animal as he slows down from the day-to-day operations, but I am kinda obsessed with Monty, so when we started the season, I asked if he could hang with me too. Other times, he’s with my dad. Monty is very, very spoiled.” She scratched his ears, earning an adorable little eyes-closed snuggle from the dog.
“I think he was meant for track life,” I said, reaching out and petting him, too, as Nicola held him in her arms. She had a Moretti-branded dog leash for him and a crimson red collar around his neck. He was the cutest thing to ever exist.
We walked past a sea of red: crew members, team members, all donned Moretti red. Nicola pushed open double doors to reveal a small room, a couch, a table and chairs, and to my great surprise, a corner of toddler toys. A princess tent with sparkles and a wand leaning against it. Gia stood mouth agape for one whole second before letting out a screech and sprinting into the princess tent. I stared in awe, watching her, then looking to Nicola.
“You did this?” I asked, not knowing how I got so lucky to meet this woman.
“I had a little help, and did some recon with two certain boys to make sure Gia would love it.” She shrugged and sent me a smile.
I shook my head, beaming a smile that could not be contained.
“I figured you both might need a place to decompress during the weekends, so I simply used my power to secure a room for you at every lounge set up for the rest of the year. Nepotism really works for me.”
I let out a laugh. “Really glad you forced your friendship on me, this is going to work out.”
“Damn right,” she replied before grimacing. “I mean, darn.” I waved a dismissive hand and we sat down on the large couch, which had cozy blankets and very cute throw pillows. Yup, this was all Nicola, and not the work of a single man. I loved it.
“I can’t believe you did this in a day.”
