“You could have told me anyway.”
“You didn’t tell me your birthday either,” I tease. “I had to find out on my own. And you would’ve discovered mine today, when they ambushed us at lunch with cake, noise... and far too much food.”
I don’t bother saying they shouldn’t do anything. With my family, every excuse becomes a celebration.
She smiles knowingly.
“Was that why you changed your plans and decided to leave tomorrow instead of today?”
“Do you really have to ask?” she replies, lips curving into a smile.
I kiss her forehead, the bridge of her nose. Then her mouth, taking my time. “Is it Nonna’s recipe?” I ask.
She nods. “I asked Anna to leave the ingredients here before we got back so I could make it before you woke up. I was going to bring it to you in bed.”
That alone feels like a gift.
“When did she teach you?” I ask. “We’ve hardly been apart since Edinburgh.”
“She overheard my conversation with your cousins. I kept asking myself what to give a man who already has everything.”
I take her by the waist and pull her flush to my body. “NowI do,” I say, making sure she understands exactly what I mean.
She doesn’t look away when I guide her hand to my chest. “Go on,” I murmur.
“Nonna said there was nothing you’d love more than your favorite cake... made by me.”
A smile tugs at my mouth. Nonna has always known me better than I know myself.
“So she let me take pictures of her recipe notebook,” she adds. “I used an app to translate it—”
“She showed you the notebook? And you took pictures?”
She blinks. “Yes...?”
A laugh breaks free, surprising both of us. Then I kiss her, thoroughly this time, until she’s laughing into my mouth.
“Nonna doesn’t letanyonenear those notebooks,” I say. “Not her sons, her daughters, or her grandchildren. Just her sister, Zia Teresa—because a good number of those recipes were their mother’s.”
Smiling, she says, “I’ll thank her again.”
Welcome to the family, Cecilia.
She turns, lights the candles, and holds the plate out to me. She sings Happy Birthday in English. Then says,“Tanti auguri, Alexander.”[LXIII]
Closing my eyes,I wish only that the woman before me is happy, now and always. That life is kind to her. And that she never stops choosing me.
When I open them, she’s smiling.
I serve her the first slice, and she thanks me with a kiss.
Taking the first forkful, I taste the dense, sweet crumb. It’s the best thing I’ve eaten in months.
I lift her into my arms and she laughs, wrapping her legs around my waist. I carry her back to bed... to thank her properly.And I know that after today, October 23rd will never feel the same again.
It won’t just matter because it’s the day I was born... it will always be about the woman who went out of her way to celebrate it with me.
Cecily
