by Toni Aleo
“You okay?” he asked, glancing up at the arrival board which stated his family’s plane was on the ground.
“No, but I don’t have much choice.” She flashed a quick grin.
“Don’t worry. My mom and sisters are going to love you and my dad eventually will too.”
“Let’s hope.” Angel squeezed his hand and he noted it was damp.
“Take a breath, babe. I’m right here.” He leaned over and grazed her cheek with his lips.
“Let’s promise right now we never do this to our kids when they’re dating and falling in love.”
“Deal.” His eyes lit up suddenly and he waved. “Mama! Baba!” He tugged her along as he approached his parents, hugging and kissing everyone as he introduced Angel to them.
Angel smiled and shook hands accordingly. His father gave her a barely perceptible nod and Dmitri wanted to shake him, but he merely stayed close to Angel as they headed towards baggage claim. His mother and sisters chattered non-stop about the gifts they’d brought and baking they wanted to do while his father brought up the rear, hands clenched behind his back as they walked.
“So, what are you studying?” Dmitri’s younger sister, Tina, asked Angel as they waited.
“Art and art history.”
“Both?”
“Yes. I’d like to teach art but if I can’t, then maybe a museum curator.”
“How cool. Do you draw?”
Angel nodded. “I draw, paint, sculpt and even make jewelry. I went to a special high school for the arts…”
“That’s so cool,” Dmitri’s older sister, Ginnie, cut in. “I can’t draw to save my life. Do you have your work on display anywhere?”
Angel shook her head ruefully. “We lost everything when my parents died. They repossessed the house and Bella and I barely managed to get out with a suitcase each.”
“Who is Bella?” his mother asked her.
“My nine-year-old sister.”
“Where is she?” Tina asked, wide-eyed.
“I gave her up for adoption because I couldn’t take care of her.”
“Why didn’t you get a job?” Dmitri’s father spoke for the first time.
Angel turned slowly, her eyes meeting his. “I had two, but I couldn’t pay the mortgage, my car payment, gas, insurance, groceries… I hadn’t even finished high school yet. I managed to graduate but we lost the house right after that. I couldn’t afford a babysitter and eventually I lost my jobs because I couldn’t leave her alone.”
“You were very brave,” Vassoula said gently. “It was noble to give her up. This family, that adopted her, this is where we are spending Christmas?”
Angel nodded. “Brock and Ashleigh are wonderful. They have Bella and a baby of their own now, Devon. This will be his first Christmas.”
“This is Dmitri’s teammate, this Brock?” Antoni asked, his face inscrutable.
Dmitri nodded. “Yes. He’s also a good friend.”
The suitcases had begun to arrive and Dmitri moved to help Ginnie’s husband, Marlon, gather them all.
“How many did they bring?” he muttered under his breath.
“Too many,” Marlon laughed, his dark eyes gleaming.
“I think we’ve got everything,” Dmitri called out, looking around.
“We must wait,” Antoni said, glancing back. “We have one more coming.”
“One more what?” Vassoula asked, narrowing her eyes.
“One more member of the family.” He stuffed his hands in his pockets, looking back towards the security area.
“Baba, what’s going on?” Dmitri had a feeling his father was up to something.
“You invited the family for Christmas, but you forgot someone.”
“Who?” Dmitri didn’t like this at all.
“Your intended.”
Chapter Seven
“Mama! Baba!” A lilting female voice called out to them.
Dmitri knew that voice and whirled around, furious. “What the—”
“Antoni, what have you done?” His mother’s voice was a hiss of frustration.
“Dmitri!” Penny ran towards him, arms outstretched.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he growled, stepping away from her.
“Baba.” Tina’s eyes were wide.
“Dmitri?” Angel was staring at him, no doubt surmising who the surprise family member was.
“Baba, what the hell is going on?” Dmitri rarely raised his voice to his father, but he was furious.
“He invited me for Christmas,” Penny was smiling. “I mean, I’m your fiancée.”
“My ex-fiancée,” Dmitri ground out through gritted teeth. He reached for Angel, pulling her close. “This is my fiancée.”
“We’re having a baby.” Penny raised her chin.
Angel was looking from one to the other, biting her lip.
“Seriously?” Dmitri shook his head. “This is how you’re going to try to get me back? It’s not going to work.”
“Dmitri, she’s carrying your son.” Antoni finally spoke.
“Good for her. I’ll send a check when and if the DNA test shows it’s mine.”
“This is not how I raised you.”
Dmitri didn’t respond, merely taking Angel’s hand with one of his and pulling his mother’s suitcase with the other. “We’ve got room in the cars for seven people and the suitcases. Hope you called for a shuttle, Penny.”
“She comes with us,” Antoni said.
“Maybe she can go with you, but she’s not coming with me or Angel.” Dmitri was so mad he saw red and black spots floating in his field of vision. “Do what you want, Dad.” His father hated when he called him Dad but Dmitri didn’t care. He was too mad to worry about anything but getting Angel out of here. This had been a dick move, even for his father.
“Dmitri, wait.” Ginnie and Marlon hurried after him. “We’ll go with Angel, but you need to handle this.”
“No, I don’t.” Dmitri turned, his eyes blazing. “I hooked up with her one last time, back in September, to find out for sure if I was over her and I am. If we made a baby, I’ll do right by the baby, but not her. I realized I’d fallen in love with Angel and finding out she was pregnant was the excuse I needed to admit my feelings for her. There is no going back for Penny and I, baby or no baby.”
“Dmitri.” His mother’s soft but firm voice gave him pause and he set his jaw as he turned to her.
“You can’t leave your father here. I know you’re upset with him, but we must talk.”
“No, he planned this to separate Angel and I, so she would drive off with the girls and I’d be stuck with him and Penny. It’s not going to happen. Here.” He dug a hundred-dollar-bill out of his wallet and handed it to her. “Tell them to get taxis but I’m not playing this game.”
“Dmitri.” Angel finally spoke, her voice much calmer than he’d been expecting.
“I’m sorry, honey.”
“Go deal with your father,” she said gently. “I’ll take your sisters and brother-in-law to the hotel and wait for you at Brock and Ashleigh’s. It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not.” He was shaking his head but she stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his.
“It is. Really. I’m fine. Go. Take care of whatever you need to do.”
“Honey, I don’t want to lose you…”
“I’m going home, that’s all. I’ll be waiting for you.” She put his hand on her stomach. “We’ll be waiting for you.”
Dmitri didn’t say a word as he loaded the bags into the back of his SUV. His mother was quiet and his father seemed almost smug as Dmitri silently fumed. Luckily, Penny had the presence of mind to keep her mouth shut, following behind them without saying a word.
By the time they were on the way to the hotel he’d booked them at, Dmitri was positive he was going to have a stroke because his blood pressure had to be through the stratosphere.
“I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing,” he said, looking at Penny through
the rearview mirror, “but it’s not going to work.”
“But your dad said—” she began.
“Skase.” Be quiet. Antoni’s growl had the desired effect.
“Oh, no, please, tell me what my dad said.” It didn’t seem possible, but Dmitri was even more furious knowing his father had orchestrated this.
“She’s pregnant,” his father responded immediately. “You have to do right by her.”
“She wasn’t faithful to me,” he said slowly. “She lied, cheated and embarrassed our family but because she’s Greek, that’s okay. Sorry, Baba, but I’m not a kid anymore. I can make my own decisions and I decided back in September that there’s nothing left between Penny and I.”
“Except a baby,” she muttered.
“I was careful,” Dmitri shot back. “I know we didn’t have an accident so forgive me if I don’t trust that it’s mine.”
“You’re a jerk,” she said angrily, folding her arms across her chest. “This is why I cheated on you.”
The silence in the car was palpable but Dmitri just chuckled. “There you go, Baba—that’s the type of woman you want me to marry? No thanks.”
No one said anything else the rest of the way to the hotel and they were still quiet as they unpacked the bags and had a bell hop take them up to the room.
“Is she staying with you?” Dmitri asked his father. “Because I’m not getting her a room and she’s sure as hell not staying with me.”
“Dad!” Penny looked distressed now, fixing Antoni with a look of frustration.
“Come,” he said shortly. “There’s a couch in the suite.”
“I’ll pick you up for dinner at six,” Dmitri said. “And she’s not invited.”
Without another word, he kissed his mother on the cheek, got back in his SUV and headed towards Brock and Ashleigh’s.
Tina and Ginnie had been so sweet and apologetic, Angel didn’t have time to process Penny’s announcement until she got home. Dmitri arrived a few minutes later and they sat on the couch for a while, his arms wrapped around her, as she struggled through a dozen different emotions.
“I’m sorry,” he said for what seemed like the hundredth time.
“I knew you’d seen her but I didn’t realize you’d actually had sex with her,” she admitted sadly.
“You and I hadn’t gotten serious yet.” He looked into her eyes with as much sincerity as she’d ever seen from him. “I had to know, honey. I had to make sure I was completely over her before you and I got more involved and we’d never discussed being exclusive before that. I know it sounds crazy, but I was falling for you so hard and so fast, I wanted to make sure I was ready to give you all of me.”
She blinked away tears. “I want to be mad at you but I just don’t have it in me when you say stuff like that.”
“God, I’ve fucked up every which way but loose and you’re in the middle, but I promise I’ll make this up to you.”
“I guess I’m more confused than anything else,” she said finally.
“About what?”
“Marlon is African-American. How come your father accepted him but he’s so against me?”
“Marlon was in the military when they met. She gave my parents an ultimatum, saying he’d stay in the military and she’d follow him around the world if they didn’t accept him into the family. If they did, he’d get out in two years and they’d settle in New York, popping out grandbabies and helping with the diner. My father is nothing if not practical. Plus, as you saw, Marlon is amazing and adores my sister. Believe me, I would’ve been all over him if he was a jerk, no matter what color he was. I’m protective of the girls, even if that makes me a stereotypical Greek.”
“Is Tina single?”
“Sort of? They dated all through college but he’s kind of a jerk and now that they’ve graduated I think she’s putting distance between them, which makes me happy. I can’t stand him and I’ve let her know that multiple times. Aside from that, he’s also not Greek, so I think my dad is hanging on to me for dear life.”
“Which doesn’t bode well for me.”
“I’m going to make things right,” he whispered. “I don’t know how yet, but I promise I’ll make it right.”
“Do you believe Penny’s baby’s yours?”
“No, but it’ll be months before I can prove it.”
Angel sighed.
Chapter Eight
Christmas Eve was cool and sunny, a beautiful day to combat Angel’s dour mood. She helped Ashleigh and Brock prepare for the party on autopilot, though there wasn’t that much to do. They’d had the food catered, Brock had taken care of the alcohol and Jolinda kept Bella and Devon occupied so they weren’t underfoot.
“You okay?” Ashleigh asked her as they puttered around the kitchen waiting for Dmitri and his family to arrive.
“Last night was a nightmare, so I’m sick to my stomach just thinking about spending another night with them.”
“It’s going to be okay,” Ashleigh whispered. “I called in reinforcements.”
“What does that mean?”
“Rachel, Vlad, Toli, Tessa and the kids are all coming over.”
“Oh my God.”
“It’ll be a big, fun distraction. If Dmitri’s dad is a jerk, there’ll be plenty of other people for you to hang out with and he’ll be lost in the shuffle.”
“I love you,” Angel whispered, hugging her.
“I love you too. Now go answer the door.”
Angel felt better until she opened the door and found Penny standing with the Papadakis family. Dmitri’s face was dark with barely contained anger and she didn’t know what to say or do, so she welcomed everyone and did her best to play hostess even though she felt like an idiot. The first chance she got she disappeared into the kitchen, pretending to be busy arranging hors d’oeuvres on a plate. How was this happening? Dmitri was doing the best he could, and she felt bad for him, but what about her? How was this fair? His ex-girlfriend was also pregnant, ostensibly by him, and his family wanted him to marry her. She was trying to be brave and trust him, but it was one of the hardest things she’d ever had to endure.
“You have a nice family,” Penny said, leaning against the counter.
Angel glanced up. “Thank you.”
“My family sucks.”
“I’m sorry.” Angel wasn’t sure what else to say.
“They threw me out when they found out I was pregnant. I have nowhere to go.”
Angel met the other woman’s eyes with a frown. “Am I supposed to feel bad or something? That’s not my fault. You cheated on Dmitri, and that’s why he doesn’t love you anymore. Everything happening is your own doing.”
“You don’t understand.”
“I’m sure I don’t, but it’s still not my fault.”
“You have every opportunity,” she whispered. “If Dmitri doesn’t marry me, I don’t know what’s going to happen to us.”
“He’ll pay for anything the baby needs. You’ll need to get a job but—”
“I live in New York City. There’s no job a pregnant woman without a professional degree can get that will support a child on her own.”
“Financially you’ll have Dmitri.”
“It won’t be enough and you don’t understand how awful it will be without my family.”
Angel’s eyes widened. “You think I don’t understand? Both my parents were killed when I was eighteen, leaving me with no money and a seven-year-old little sister to take care of. We wound up homeless, so yes, I know exactly what it’s like to not have a family.”
Penny pursed her lips, something just shy of anger flashing across her face before she schooled her features and nodded. “I imagine that was terrible.”
“It was.” Angel faced her and simply waited. There had to be a point to this conversation.
“You have to let me have him,” Penny said finally. “You have your new family to help you—I’ll have no one if Dmitri doesn’t marry me. Once we’re married and the baby
comes, we can get divorced and you can have him back. My parents can’t blame me if he leaves… please.”
Angel opened her mouth but closed it again because she couldn’t come up with a response that wasn’t snarky or downright mean.
“Hey.” Dmitri walked into the kitchen and eyed Penny suspiciously. “What are you girls talking about?”
“Nothing.” Penny gave him a little shrug and hurried out of the room.
“Angel?” Dmitri turned to her and she told him about their conversation.
“It doesn’t change anything for me, but she was telling the truth about her family. They’re serious assholes. All three of her sisters married the first guys they could to get out of that house. Penny’s the youngest and was waiting for me to finish with hockey because she doesn’t want to leave New York. I think my father put it in her head that hockey was a phase so she believed I would do it for a few years and go home like most Greek kids do.”
“Why do I feel guilty?” she asked softly.
“Because you’re too nice.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “But don’t. She did this to herself. Now come on, let’s go out there and enjoy the holiday.”
“Don’t you feel weird with her here?” she demanded.
“That’s why my father did it, to upset us, so no, I won’t give him the pleasure. We’ll carry on like she’s an old friend of the family. At least until Christmas is over. Then she and I are going to have a long talk about boundaries—like going behind my back to my father and using him to conspire against me.”
Though Antoni kept his distance from Angel, Vassoula did her best to keep the peace while also spending time with her.
“Your sister is the most angelic little girl,” she told her.
“Not always,” Angel laughed, “but yes, she’s a good kid, especially considering what we’ve been through.”
“You were very young to become her guardian.”
“I hope I’m a better parent to my own child than I was to her,” Angel admitted.
“You were young, with no one to help you, no money, nothing. You had everything against you. This time you will have your new family, Dmitri… and us.”