“Because Ahana doesn’t live with her anymore.”
He gave me a weird look. “She moved out a long time ago.”
“Doesn’t matter. Vitale should move back home.”
My husband turned around, but I knew he was rolling his eyes. “Your brother doesn’t share his wife. Not even with his mother.”
“My brother is an obsessed, jealous prick.”
“True,” Luigi agreed without a second’s pause.
I frowned behind his back. He also looked out for me. So I hadn’t really meant it.
“Maybe Daria should visit more often.”
Luigi looked up from the pot on the stove he was sniffing. “Maybe you should tell her that?”
“No.” I shook my head adamantly. “Lorenzo is the real obsessed, jealous prick.”
He cocked his head and ran a thoughtful thumb along his jaw. “Not Vitale?”
“He’s my brother. I have no affinity with Lorenzo.”
“Good.” His eyes gleamed with jealousy, and a thrill ran through my body at that. “I agree with you.”
“Why is Mamma sad?” He dipped his hand into the pot, took out a chunk of chicken, and popped it into his mouth. It was a good thing I didn’t marry him for his manners because he had none. I shoved him away from the stove and grabbed a plate to serve him. “It must be because Lia’s been acting out.”
“Among other things.” I paused, spoon hovering above the half-filled plate. His eyes were on mine. Giving me an answer I didn’t want to hear. But I also kind of did.
“What else is there?”
“She’s missing her eldest daughter,piccolo porcospino.”
The spoon vibrated in my hand, but I forced it to dip and bring the sauce to the plate. It took too much energy from me. I couldn’t do it.Could I?
“You think?” My mind was so full of hesitation that I was surprised I’d gotten the words past my vocal cords.
“I know.”
When I brought my gaze up to his, he was a blurry vision.
It was a lot to handle. The Orietta I knew almost two years ago would have channelled it into a ball of rage. But not the Orietta I was now. That was when it finally hit me. It wasn’t panic anymore because of everything between us. It was because I missed her, and I didn’t know how to get past it after all this time. But the more time I let pass, the worse it would become. I couldn’t let that happen. Not this time. Not ever.
I wanted to tell him I was going to do it. I think I was. My hands itched to pick up the phone and make that call. But I had to explain my thoughts to the man in front of me first. I owed it to him for all the time he’d spent going through everything with me. For all the times I’d gotten ready and not gone or picked up the phone and not called.
But he was already there before me. “Do you want me to stay?”
This man, who’d silently stood next to me, letting me fight my battles while supporting me at the same time. Except this battle, I wanted to go in on my own because it wasn’t a battle anymore. I shook my head.
Warm hands squeezed mine, and my phone was set in front of me. His footsteps faded away softly when he walked out of the room, and I flopped onto the floor, cradling the ice-cold phone. This was it. This time, I was really going to do it.
My fingers rattled like the last autumn leaves in a winter storm, but somehow, I managed to punch the number I’d wished to call for so many months.
She didn’t even give me the luxury of listening to the endless ringing. Didn’t give my heart time to settle into a rhythm. One ring was all it took before her voice was filling my lungs. “Orietta?”
I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.
“La mia figlia.” Her words were full of the confirmation I needed. It filled my insides like warm honey. I was warm and cold. Full and empty. It was a lot. It was too much. I didn’t know how to handle it. I still hadn’t learned yet. Except this time, I wouldn’t push her away.
