How Deep is Your Love?

by Kathryn Shay

  “So, was it a fight?”

  “No, another kid shoved me.”

  “Who?”

  “I dunno. I’m new here.”

  She glanced at Dante. “I haven’t seen him before. Maybe he’s in Will’s class.”

  Now Sam raised his head. “He lifted his fat arm to hit me. Mr. Federico jumped in between us.”

  “That’s serious, hitting a teacher.”

  Dante said, “In all honesty, he didn’t mean to hit me.”

  She asked Sammy why the kid shoved him. A small lift of his shoulder was all the answer she got.

  “I heard language,” Dante put in. “Jerk and pervert.”

  “From who?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Sammy?”

  “It was nothin’.”

  “All right. Here’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to call your mother and make an appointment to see her, you and the other boy and his parent. But we have to find him first.”

  “Can’t you let this go?”

  “No, Sammy. I’m sorry. Your family situation has entered the school and we have to deal with it.” She looked over at Dante. “Can I see you out in the hall, please?”

  “Of course.” He stood and moved behind Sammy. He went to touch the boy’s shoulder, but Sammy lurched away. “We’re here for you, Sammy. I promise.” And he left the room.

  Madelyn leaned up against the tile on the wall. “You’ll have to be there for the meeting.”

  “Okay.”

  She pointed to his black eye. “Ordinarily, you’d go down to the nurse and check that out, but she’s gone for the day. See her in the morning. Or go to your own doctor, now.”

  “For a black eye?”

  “It’s a work-related accident.”

  “I’ll see her in the morning.”

  “And would you go tell Brie what happened? She’s waiting for me to call her back, and I won’t get to do that anytime soon.”

  “Sure I will.”

  “I’ll phone you later and let you know how it went with Sammy’s mother.”

  “Good luck with that.”

  “Thanks.”

  * * *

  Brie stood up from her desk to leave for the day and found Dante had come to the doorway. He filled the space with his broad shoulders and considerable muscles, but that wasn’t what she noticed first. “Dante, what happened?”

  “Got a minute?”

  “Of course. Come on in.”

  He took the seat Maddie had vacated.

  “Who gave you the black eye? I hope it wasn’t Sammy.”

  “No, it wasn’t. A fourth grader took a swing at him, and I jumped in just in time.”

  “Just in time for Sam, you mean. Your eye’s red and puffy.”

  “Never had a shiner before, Princess Gabriella?”

  “No. But I know you should have ice on it.”

  “I already did. But I used the last ice pack from Phys Ed.” He sighed wearily. “This is starting already with Sammy, Brie.”

  “It didn’t take long for the kids to find out.”

  “Yeah. It means there’ll be more trouble.”

  “Madelyn has some ideas, though, right?”

  “She asked me to tell you there’s a meeting with his teachers tomorrow at seven, and the faculty has to be alerted in the afternoon. She says she has a plan.”

  “Good.” She studied him. “You look tired.”

  “I’m coming off adrenaline.”

  Though she told herself the swelling in his eye was an excuse to do what she had in mind, in truth, something else pushed at her. Maybe it was because his perennial smile was missing, maybe it was the sad sound of his voice. His sensitivity toward Sammy touched a chord in her.

  “I have lots of ice packs in my fridge, Dante. From when my sister got hit by a baseball. If you don’t have plans, why don’t you come over and use them? I’ll even fix you dinner.”

  “Oh, thank God. I thought I was going to have to go to the shop. If my sisters see this while it’s still swollen, they’ll flip.”

  She saw him blink a couple of times. “Is your vision blurry?”

  “Um...”

  “That’s it. You shouldn’t drive, either.”

  Humor flickered in his face. “Much as I’d love to have you chauffeur me, I have to say I don’t think that’s necessary.”

  “Your eye’s swelling.”

  “Yeah, it is. I can feel it. Still...”

  “If Lucy or Tris had a black eye, would you let them drive?”

  “I guess not.”

  “So it’s settled. Come on, I’ll show you my pad, Dante Federico.”

  * * *

  Dante accepted the ice pack and sat down at Brie’s kitchen table. He admired the rustic dusty brown wood and sturdy construction. “Thanks.”

  “Twenty minutes on.”

  “Yes, ma’am. You’re used to bossing your sisters around, aren’t you?”

  “Uh-huh. Unless Francesca or Calla are there. Then I’m relegated to third place.”

  “Two more sisters?”

  “Yes. The cop and the Doctors without Borders one.”

  Back at the refrigerator, she took out more ice and filled glasses. He noticed how shapely her butt was in that skirt. How her long legs were tanned and toned. Then she poured coffee into the glasses, gave him a cold drink and took a seat across from him. When she crossed those legs, he had to look away. And sipped his drink. “Wow, this is great. What kind is it?”

  “Dark roast. You can only get it in Casarina. Mamá ships it to us.” She gestured out the wide double doors at the backyard. “It’s so hot, I thought this would hit the spot.” When the ice bag slipped, she frowned. “Keep that up there.”

  “So, tell me about the sister who got hit by a baseball and why you have these in the freezer. I take it that it’s Evvie and Mike.”

  “Yeah.” Brie’s face lit as she described the incident. “Who would have guessed the end result would be an engagement?”

  “Love finds a way.” He rolled his eyes. “My mother would say that’s a cliché.”

  “Hmm. Opposites attract is another. They’re very different, though. We were calling him Prince Charming.”

  “Ha! This time a pun.”

  “Look at you with the literary terms.”

  “Again, Mom would be proud. The Jag’s a lot of things, but I wouldn’t go as far as calling him a prince.”

  “If you could see him around her, you’d agree with the tag.”

  They chatted about different things, then after twenty minutes, he removed the pack. “Is it better?”

  “Let me see up close.” He was adjacent to her so she stood and bent over.

  Her breasts came even with his face, and she still smelled feminine after working all day. The outline of her bra through the blue T-shirt she wore made his mouth go dry. She had no idea what was happening, but hell, he was a man, so he let her linger as long as she liked—and breathed her in. He almost didn’t follow what she said next, because the blood was pounding in his head. “No blood in your eye. But the skin beneath is turning colors already.”

  She started to step back, but he didn’t want her to go, so he put his hands on her arms. Her skin was as soft as a duck’s down. She didn’t startle or jerk back at his touch, just stared down at him. Her teeth came out over her bottom lip. He swallowed hard. Man, was he tempted to draw her onto his lap and kiss her.

  But sanity seemed to claim her and she moved back to her own chair.

  He coughed to clear his throat.

  She fiddled with her hair.

  The moment passed.

  Standing again, but farther away this time, she announced, “I need to start dinner.”

  “I can help.”

  “No, you’re to stretch out on the couch in the living room. Rest. Doze. Turn the TV on if you want.”

  “Brie, I don’t—”

  She plopped her hands on her hips. “It’s not negotiable. And besides, mister
, you don’t have a car to escape.”

  “All right.” He stood and sauntered into the next room. In truth, he was tired, and his eye hurt some. But as he stretched out on the couch, his thoughts turned to what had happened a few minutes ago. He’d been telling himself he didn’t want anything more than friendship from her, but in those few seconds, he did. Again, he knew that this probably wasn’t a good idea.

  * * *

  Trying not to think of the expression in Dante’s eyes when she’d leaned over him, how he smelled like man and sweat, what his callused hands felt like on her arms, Brie flaked canned tuna over lettuce. She added cut tomatoes, artichokes, olives—she popped a black one in her mouth-cut roasted red peppers and wedges of provolone cheese. She covered one of the two plates she’d made up with foil and set the other in the fridge. Tackling the meatball sandwiches next, she had two of the four assembled when Mari came through the back door.

  “Hi, Brie.” She kissed her sister’s cheek. “Got your text. I told you you don’t have to cook for us. It’s the third time this week.”

  “I wanted to. Besides, the days you weren’t in class and were at the new house, you brought supper for me, or had me eat with you.”

  “I guess.” She sniffed. “What is it?”

  “Simple.”

  Mari peeked under the plates covered with foil. “Hmm, meatball sandwiches and antipasto.”

  “With your favorite sardines and anchovies.”

  “I’ll be in heaven.”

  “Want some wine?”

  “No, I have to get some things done. Lilliana’s with me and we’re doing her room today. I—”

  “Well, hello there.” The deep timbre of a voice came from the archway between the kitchen and the living room. Dante lazed against the wall, his hair sleep-tousled, his face relaxed. Though his eye was still swollen, her lower body reacted to the sexy sight of him.

  “Hello,” Mari said, watching him curiously.

  “Hi. I, um, caught a nap on Brie’s couch.”

  “Did you?”

  “This is Dante Federico.”

  Mari’s brows rose.

  “Dante, my sister Mariella.”

  “I see the resemblance between you and Lexy.”

  “Not our blond beauty here, though. She’s in a class of her own.”

  “Can’t argue with that.”

  Mari frowned. “What happened to your eye?” She giggled. “I hope Brie didn’t do it.”

  “Long story. You sister’s not the culprit. She’s nursing me back to health.”

  “Huh. I came to pick up supper. I’ve got to get back to my daughter. Nice to meet you, Dante. See you, hon.”

  When Mari left, Brie crossed to the fridge and got another ice pack. “Sit and put it on. What would you like to drink before we eat?”

  “Beer if you have one.”

  “I do. It’ll go with dinner.”

  He glanced outside. “Can we have it out there?”

  “Sure. It’s shaded now.”

  They took cold bottles out to the patio. Hot air hit them in the face, but once they sat under the umbrella table, the temperature cooled. She noticed the corners of Dante’s mouth turn up.

  “What?”

  “You like blue.” He gestured to padded chairs in teal blue, the umbrellas made of the same fabric and a few striped loungers on the tiled area.

  “I do.”

  “Matches your eyes.”

  She nodded.

  He gestured to the area. “It’s beautiful back here.”

  “I had it redone after...”

  He waited, then said, “After?”

  “This is where the abduction happened. I was sitting on a lounge chair. Not one of those. Eddie came through that gate and I was glad to see him. Until he put a chloroform cloth over my mouth and nose.”

  “How awful.” He reached out and grasped her hand, squeezed it. His fingers were strong, his palm rough. And they felt wonderful. “I heard why he participated, Brie.”

  “Yeah. In the end, it’s understandable. I’d have done anything to protect my mother, too.”

  He didn’t take his hand back. “Was the whole thing easier because of that?”

  “His part. Not after he grabbed me.”

  “Would you like to talk about what happened after?” His voice was grave, expecting of bad news.

  “Vittorio didn’t rape me. He manhandled me a bit, knocked me around. The worst thing was I was so scared of what he might do the whole time he had me.”

  “Rightfully so. Men like that are scum.”

  She gave him a weak smile. “Talk to me about something else. Not this. Not Sammy. Something pleasant.”

  Sliding his hand away, he fished into his pocket, slipped out his phone and called up something on it. “This’ll make you smile.”

  Brie took the cell. Two kids who resembled him, one pretty, one rugged, gazed out at the camera. “Your niece and nephew?”

  “Anna and Jack.”

  She studied it further. “The oldest is in a baseball uniform. Is she the one you go to games with?”

  “Yeah. Jack’s interested in art mostly.”

  “Children need to choose their own paths.”

  “I agree.”

  She sat back, put the bottle to her lips and drank. When she finished, she caught him staring at her mouth. “Do you want kids, Dante?”

  “Yep. The whole shebang—a kind, and, of course, sexy wife,” here he winked at her, “a modest home, a meaningful job. I have two out of three, though I’d like to not live in an apartment by then.” He cocked his head. “What about you? Kiddies?”

  “Same. The guy will come along someday.”

  He held her gaze. She thought back to when he’d touched her forearms, looked at her like...

  “Brie?”

  “I guess I drifted. Ready for supper?”

  “Yeah.” But there was disappointment in his voice. Briefly, she wondered if he felt the loss of the closeness that she did.

  Chapter 5

  “Thanks for coming in before I meet with the mothers of the kids involved in the incident yesterday with Sammy Simpson.” Madelyn looked exhausted this morning, but why wouldn’t she?

  Dante scanned the assembled teachers and counselors gathered in the office. Brie’s face was drawn with worry. The music and art teachers seemed sad, the counselors clearly upset. Was there any way to help Sammy?

  “So, what can we do?” Madelyn said rhetorically. “First off, exactly what Dante did yesterday—stop any fight that occurs. That goes for Sam or with any other students.”

  Dante grinned. “Yeah, but don’t get a black eye.”

  “Hopefully not. So we stop it. But we all know that’s not the end of kids behaving cruelly.”

  “I went on the computer last night.” This from Brie. “I couldn’t find anything about how schools, particularly elementary schools, protect kids like Sammy.”

  “I tried this morning, too.” Dante smiled over at her. “But we can’t wait until it happens again. Don’t we need to be proactive?”

  “One idea I had,” the counselor put in, “was to do some lessons on being kind to each other. I think this should be done in every student’s subject area classroom, so we don’t bombard them with more than they can handle. But we’ve got to find a creative way to present the material. We can’t single Sammy out.”

  “He’ll know anyway.” The art teacher turned to Brie. “Maybe you can get him out of the room when you talk about this.”

  “I suppose that’s an idea. But I wish we could present what we come up with in a way that it doesn’t single him out. Or at least is disguised well enough.”

  “There’s other bullying in the school, too,” Madelyn put in.

  “There is?” the music teacher asked.

  “Yeah. To kids who don’t wear the right clothes.” This from the counselor.

  “To overweight kids,” Brie put in.

  “Even at our low-income school, the poorest kids ge
t picked on because they’re poor.” Dante was disgusted at this.

  “We’re planning our annual anti-bullying campaign later in the fall. I can’t move it because I’ve got speakers coming in.” She faced Brie. “But instinct tells me do something now. Again, Brie, you’re going to bear the brunt of this.”

  “I’ll find a way.”

  When they left the office, Madelyn kept Dante back to ask how he was. When he walked out, Brie stood next to the doorway, which surprised him. “You waited?”

  “I wanted to see up close how your eye is.”

  An excuse, but he liked it, because he wanted to see her, too. “It’s better.”

  “You got to school all right?”

  “Yeah, Lucia dropped me off. She had a million questions about why I didn’t have my car.”

  “What did she say about the bullying?”

  “Nothing. The interrogation was about you.”

  “Oh, Lord.”

  “No worries. I handled her.”

  Sort of. Lucia had read him the riot act. You’re not going to start going out with a princess, are you? I’ll bet she’s spoiled as hell. You need an ordinary woman, Dante. Let me fix you up with... He’d stopped her there, but his face got flushed when she point-blank asked him about his feelings for Brie and started in again. Damn it, Dante. I’m telling Mom and Tris. This isn’t a good idea.

  Brie stopped in the hallway where their paths separated. He didn’t want to let her go so he lingered.

  “I’ve been meaning to ask you, when’s Alexandra coming in with the books?” She’d promised them to the whole school.

  “Next week. She—” Brie eyes widened and she grasped his forearm. “That’s it, Dante. I know how to present the anti-bullying lesson with Sammy there.”

  “How?”

  “By having Pickles and his buddies come in and do it.”

  * * *

  Brie was restless at the end of the day on Thursday afternoon. And she was afraid she knew why. She’d been thinking about Dante. She only caught a glimpse of him once today. She’d kind of hidden in her room the rest of the time so as not to bump into him. Unfortunately, the plan didn’t control her thoughts.