by Sam Mariano
A bottle of wine and a delicious lunch later, I’m so relaxed here with him I hate the thought of going back to the bakery. It’s such a beautiful day. A little on the hot side, but we have a nice shaded nook under a willow tree.
“I wish we could stay here and cuddle all day.”
Sal reaches over and tugs me into his side. “Wish granted.”
I smile up at him. “You’re not a genie.”
“Are you sure?”
He has made an awful lot of my dreams come true. “Hm, maybe you are.”
“I told Ethan we wanted to buy his house.”
“What did he say?”
“He’s cool with it.”
“And you?” He’s said he was fine with it before, but I still feel the need to watch his face as I ask again. “Are you okay with it?”
“I wouldn’t have given him a down payment already if I weren’t.”
“You did?” I ask, pushing up on my elbow.
He nods. “I already got the paperwork started.”
“Oh, my god. That’s awesome.” I push up to a sitting position, my eyes wide. He’s still lying there, hands laced behind his head, calm as can be. I poke him in the side for his composure. “Why are you so calm? We’re buying our first house.”
“I’ve already bought a house,” he points out.
“Yeah, but this is ours.” Now he sits up, too. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“We already talked about it. I knew it was what you wanted, so I went out and got it for you. What was there to talk about?”
“Well… I don’t know. It just seems like I should’ve done something. Are you sure you don’t want to go halfsies on the down payment? I have my own money. I do get paid for working at the bakery and I have virtually no living expenses.”
Sal rolls his eyes, vaguely amused. “Halfsies. I’m good, but thanks.”
“But I want it to be our house.”
“It will be our house. What’s mine is yours, babe.”
“Oh my god.” I settle back, curling my legs beneath me. “We need to go shopping. We’ll have to completely redo the living room and I want to get some kind of shelf or cabinet or something in the kitchen to display your Alice in Wonderland teacups.”
Laughing lightly, he says, “My teacups? I do not own teacups.”
“Maddie gave them to you.”
“To make me look stupid if I brought a girl home.”
“Well, I like them,” I state, settling the subject. “If we ever have a little girl, maybe we’ll name her Alice.”
“Alison. Nope, that’s Ethan’s daughter’s name. We already took over his house; we can’t steal the names of his children, too.”
“How about Alessandra?”
He smiles over at me. “Why don’t we wait until you’re pregnant to pick out baby names?”
“I like Alessandra,” I inform him.
“Fine. So do I. But we should still hold off.”
“Alessandra Castellanos. How about Alessandra Yvonne Castellanos? Your mom has to like me if I name our daughter after her.” I nod approvingly. “I like this plan.”
“I’m just glad we both understand my word is law around here.”
I grin, draping myself across his body and brushing a few tender kisses across his lips. “You’re the boss of my heart, does that count?”
Rolling his eyes lightly, he says, “I’m the boss of half this city; that should count for something.”
“Not my half,” I tell him, playfully smug.
Shaking his head, he says, “I should’ve taken a page from your brother’s book and picked out a nice little poverty-stricken waif who’d be impressed by me.”
“I’m aggressively impressed by you,” I inform him. “Want me to buy you a little something pretty to prove it?”
He gives me a dead look, but the twinkle in his eyes betrays his amusement. “Goddamn Morellis,” he mutters, sitting up.
Since he sat up, I don’t have him to serve as a pillow, so I lie down flat on my back and smile up at the clouds. “You love this particular Morelli, don’t even pretend otherwise.”
“You’re right, I do,” he agrees easily enough, opening the picnic basket and reaching inside. “You know what I’d love even more, though?”
I shake my head. “What’s that?”
He turns back around, sitting beside me on his knees. He gently places something on my stomach, and my eyes widen when I see it’s a small, square ring box.
“If you were a Castellanos.”
I knock the box right off my stomach in my excitement to sit up, but as Sal goes to retrieve it for me, I snap it up greedily. My eyes dart to his face, to his smile, then to the box. I crack it open and inside rests the loveliest rose gold diamond ring, cushion cut with a halo around the main diamond. All the times I’ve drooled over engagement rings in magazines, I’ve never seen one as lovely as this, because this one is from Sal.
I can’t quite find words, and my fingers surprise me with their unsteadiness as I pluck the ring out of the box.
“Francesca Morelli, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
I grin so hard my face hurts and hug-tackle him. “Of course I will.”
His strong arms wrap me tighter, letting up only when I pull back to kiss him.
“Remember a few minutes ago when I told you how happy you make me? Way to completely outdo yourself.”
Dropping a kiss right on the tip of my nose, he shrugs and says, “I already knew we were going to spend the rest of our lives together, I figured I should make it official and lock you down.”
Nodding solemnly, I tell him, “Good thinking. You did buy us a house, and you probably didn’t want us to live in sin.”
Now he rolls his eyes. “I couldn’t care less, but inexplicably your brother—who is definitely going to Hell, and is one of the most godless men I’ve ever met—took issue with it.”
I can’t help laughing. “Did he really? Is that why he won’t let me move in?” I gasp. “Does Mateo know you’re proposing?”
Sal nods. “I got his permission first. I figured you didn’t have a dad to ask, and he just seems like the most logical next choice.”
“Aww.” I have to kiss him again. “I love that you wanted to ask permission for my hand. You’re so dreamy.”
He rolls his eyes, but with a huge grin splitting his face. “Is that the wine talking?”
I shake my head. “Nope. That’s all me. I hate to say it, but you blow my fantasy commoner right out of the water.”
“That guy had no edge,” he says, feigning cockiness. Nodding at the ring box, he adds, “You gonna put that thing on, or what?”
I took it out of the box, but I have yet to slide it on my finger. My hands have stopped shaking, but I can’t resist the urge and I hold it out to him. “You do it.”
My heart flutters as he takes the dainty, beautiful ring between his fingers. I hold my left hand out, fingers spread, and as he slides the band onto my finger, my grin grows inch-by-inch. I feel like the Cheshire Cat when he slides it past my knuckle and it finds its forever home.
“I’m never taking it off,” I inform him, staring at it.
“That’s the idea,” he teases.
Sighing, I rip my gaze from the ring and look at the face of this wonderful man. He’s given me so much, given so much for me, and now he’s giving me forever.
Chapter Forty
Francesca
I really didn’t have to go back to the bakery. Apparently Sal contacted Mia—through Vince—to see if she could close up the bakery today before he even showed up to surprise me with the picnic lunch.
After the picnic at the park, he takes me to our new house. We avoid the living room since it still needs to be renovated, but we make good use of the bedroom and then after an accidental nap, Sal follows me through the house while I make a mental list of the things we’ll need to buy. I confess to hating his couch, so he agrees we’ll buy a new one to go in the new living room.
Since I’m not closing up at work, and because we have to share our good news, I decide to go home for dinner. I wanted to stop by the bakery to show off my new ring since Mia was covering for me, but we ran out of time. I shoot her a text and ask if she and Vince can come to the house for dinner tonight. Vince isn’t into the idea, but Mia assures me they’ll be there.
I also learn that apparently I’m getting married really soon. I always imagined I’d pick my own wedding date if I ever got married, but Sal informs me Mateo has already decided we’re getting married in three months. I don’t even know how we’ll pull off a wedding in three months, and it seems like way too soon after both our fathers dying to have a big, celebratory event like that, but if Sal is okay with it, I won’t argue.
Since we’re crunched for time, though, there’s a lot to arrange. We discuss it while we’re out. Sal isn’t much for the details, but given the circumstances, we agree on a smaller wedding. The guest list will be a headache either way. We’ll keep the bridal party small. He said he’ll have his brother, Mark, and a friend I haven’t met stand with him, so I only have to come up with a maid of honor and two bridesmaids. It’s not like I actually have friends outside the family. He tells me—somehow with a straight face—that I should have Meg and Mia stand with me.
“Why don’t you have Mateo be your best man instead and I’ll have Mia be my maid of honor so I can make them walk down the aisle together?” I fire back.
Rolling his eyes, he shoots me down.
I was half-joking, but I decide I really will ask Mia to by my maid of honor. Apparently you can buy cards for that, so I haul Sal to a card shop I find through quickly searching on my phone.
By the time we show up at the mansion for pre-dinner drinks, I’m on cloud nine.
Mia and Meg are in the study with the guys when we show up. So is Elise, but she’s serving drinks. I don’t know why she’s still doing maid duty—she’s in a dress for dinner tonight, but I’ve seen her back in her uniform twice since I got back home. I would think maybe she and Adrian didn’t work out, but that’s clearly not the case. As if to prove that point, once she gets Sal a drink, she goes over and sits on the arm of Adrian’s chair, reaching over and grabbing his free hand, twining their fingers together. He looks over at her as adoring as ever, then he puts his drink down on the side table and grabs her by the nape of the neck, tugging her close for a kiss. Elise slides right off the arm and into his lap, wrapping her arm around his neck and molding her body to his.
I’ve never known Adrian to engage in PDA, so clearly they’re doing just fine.
Meanwhile, Vince and Mia have done exactly the opposite. Ordinarily Mia is openly affectionate and likes to sit on his lap when she’s in here, but now she sits alone on the couch along the wall, behind the wing chairs, playing on her phone. Mateo is perched at the front of his desk, so Meg has stolen his seat behind the desk.
A few glances are aimed at us when we walk in, and I realize I’m positively bursting with my news. Without preamble, I grin and hold up my left hand for the whole room to see.
“We’re engaged!” I announce.
Mia is the first to gasp, and the only one to jump up from her seat and run over to inspect my ring. I nod approvingly. This is why she’s going to be my maid of honor and future sister-in-law.
“Oh, my god, it’s so beautiful,” she says, inspecting the ring and flashing Sal an approving grin. “Good job, Castellanos.”
I couldn’t agree more. While she’s right here, and because she’s the most excited for me, I go ahead and grab the little white envelope out of my purse and hand it to her.
“What’s this?” she asks, raising her eyebrows.
“Open it.”
Ever obedient, she tears into the envelope, pulls out the card I picked out for her, and reads it aloud. “Mia, will you be my maid of honor?” Surprise flashes across her pretty features, but she immediately says, “Wow, really? Definitely! Thank you so much for asking.”
Since I’m not asking Meg to be in the bridal party, I go ahead and say, “We’re having a really small bridal party. Like, really small.” I pull a second card out and walk over to Mateo. “I have one for Isabella, too. I thought she could be my flower girl.”
I hand him the envelope and he nods, reaching behind him to drop it on the desk. “Yeah, I’m sure she’ll love that.”
“Definitely; she loves dressing up,” Meg agrees, dragging the envelope closer to her and meeting my gaze. “We’ll give it to her before bedtime stories tonight.”
I manage to bite back the “no one asked you” that desperately wants to explode out of me and smile faintly, turning my gaze back to Mateo. I falter, though. I want to ask him to walk me down the aisle, but not in front of all these people. So instead I just hold out my pretty engagement ring for him to see.
Humoring me, he briefly inspects it and nods his approval. “Very nice.”
“I love it,” I tell him, holding out my hand to look at it again, tilting it left and right to watch the light reflect off the diamonds. “Is Cherie in the kitchen? I have a bridesmaid card to give her.”
Mateo shakes his head. “The new maid is helping Maria tonight, Cherie should be home.”
“The new maid is so timid,” I remark, thinking of the new redhead.
“Yeah, I don’t know if she’s staying.”
“Maybe you can ask her to be in your bridal party,” Meg jokes.
I look at her. She’s smiling pleasantly enough, but it was definitely a dig. I understand she apparently has position in my family (for now), but it’s not like we hang out. “If we had a full year to plan the wedding, I would have a larger bridal party. Your fiancé wants it done in three months, so it’s two bridesmaids. Sal’s sister automatically gets one spot, so I have one left. I’ve known you for like a month. I’ve known Cherie all her life.”
Mateo’s eyebrows rise slightly and Sal puts a hand on my waist, whether to rein me in or lend support, I’m not sure.
Meg shrugs, sitting back in Mateo’s chair in a way that feels pointed. “That’s okay; I’m not really the bridesmaid type anyway. I’m glad Mia’s your maid of honor, too; she’s going to be mine when Mateo and I get married, so you can be her learning experience.”
I want to rip her face off. She says all of this calm and cool, good-naturedly even, and it just makes me so mad I could spit. “You’re going to make Mia be your maid of—”
Sal’s hand moves from my waist to my shoulder as he interrupts. “I bet Mia’s perfectly capable of being in two weddings, aren’t you, Mia?”
“Yep,” Mia says, nodding empathically, clearly wanting to avert communal discomfort. “Totally capable of being a maid of honor twice.”
That is so not the point. I’m obviously opposed to Meg and Mateo even having a wedding, but that Meg would even ask Mia to be in it is so calculating that anger wells up within me. That is bullshit. Even if Mia didn’t have any fond feelings for Mateo, she damn sure shouldn’t be in his wedding.
Sal’s hand on my shoulder lightly squeezes. “Why don’t we go find this Cherie person?”
Since my stomach is rocking with impotent anger, I let Sal lead me out of the study without another word. I want to yell at Meg, but mostly I want to yell at Mateo. I don’t for a second believe Meg’s completely unaware of Mia’s feelings, but even if she doesn’t know the real history, Mateo does. What the hell is he thinking?
Once we’re out of the study, my beloved future husband gets to receive my anger.
“Can you believe that?”
“That Mateo just stands there while you and his fiancée sharpen your claws? Kinda.”
“That the maid asked Mia to be her maid of honor. She literally asked Mia to stand beside her and watch Mateo marry her. She is evil. She’s pure evil.”
“Have you considered that maybe the woman who is pregnant by and engaged to Mateo just doesn’t know that’s an inappropriate ask? You said Mia lied for him, so she doesn’t know the truth,
and since, again, Meg is engaged to and pregnant by Mateo, she probably thinks Mia is over whatever she actually thinks happened between them.”
“I’m so angry I want to cry,” I inform him. “He’s making the biggest mistake of his life.”
“It’s his mistake to make,” Sal points out, giving my shoulder a supportive rub, even if he thinks I’m being crazy and unreasonable. He’s going to be such a good husband.
“Who’s going to look out for him if I’m not living here anymore?”
“Adrian?”
I roll my eyes. “Please. Adrian’s no better. He could’ve told Elise he liked her years ago, but he kept quiet and let Mateo torture him. We’re all fucked up, but at least Adrian and I have managed to pull it together and find love. Mateo is just making bigger and bigger messes.”
“I would argue that since he’s engaged, he probably managed to find love, too.”
“Fake love. Imposter love. Surface love.”
“She didn’t even seem scared off last night when it looked like Mateo might lose all this. She offered to be a waitress. If she’s so awful, don’t you think Mateo losing his fortune would make her cut and run?”
My head falls back dramatically and I sigh. “Why do you have to defend the maid?”
“You know me; I’m all about people not being cheating assbags.”
“I don’t want him to cheat; I want him to leave the dumb maid and be with the one who will love him even when he’s impossible to love.”
“The dumb, pregnant maid. You’re so mean,” he says lightly.
“I swear, I’m just going to wash my hands of his love life and let him deal with all his own messes.”
Sal nods, eyebrows rising. “Good idea. I bet he’d like that.”
“Easy for you to say. You weren’t around when Beth happened. It’s hell on all of us. Mateo needs someone who will never leave him so that never happens again, not someone like Meg.”