Luc (Rossi Brothers)

by J. M. Stewart

  “Daddy?”

  He held his hand out to Alyssa. “It’s okay, sweetie. Maybe she can play another day.”

  Sam was right. Liz was crumbling. What would it do to her if she actually did lose this baby? Right or wrong, whether she wanted him there or not, he refused to let her do this alone.

  His cell phone buzzed in his pocket. Digging it out, Nic’s number flashed across the screen. He thumbed the “accept” button. “What’s up?”

  “You need to come home.”

  The somberness of his brother’s tone put every inch of him on full alert. “What’s the matter? Is Ella okay?”

  “It’s not Ella.” A moment of silence passed over the line. Finally, Nic drew a shuddering breath. “It’s Nonna …”

  Luc’s heart stuttered. “Nic, stop dragging it out. What’s wrong with Nonna?”

  “Just come home.”

  His blood ran cold. Home was only one place—Nonna’s house, on the south end of town. “I’ll be right there.”

  • • •

  Several hours later, Luc sat with Nic and the girls in the living room of his grandparents’ house where he and his siblings had come to live all those years ago. He’d always known this day would come but had assumed it wouldn’t be anytime soon. The news had sunk them both.

  Nic had come home to have lunch with the girls and found Nonna in her room. Apparently, she’d taken a nap and never woken up.

  Now, several hours later, the police had finally left, and the local funeral director who’d taken care of Nonno at his death had taken Nonna’s body. How long they sat there he didn’t know, but silence, heavy with mourning, hung over the room. Nic sat in the recliner, Ella in his lap, his bloodshot eyes filled with grief. Alyssa refused to leave Luc’s side, playing quietly with dolls on the couch beside him.

  Nic dropped his head back and stared at the ceiling. He looked older in that moment. Lines etched his face, evidence of the fatigue and the grief gripping them both. “She was fine this morning. She was talking about all this stuff, about living life to the fullest, living with no regrets. You know how she gets sometimes. I thought maybe she was missing Nonno again.”

  “Maybe she was.” Luc eyed the chair Nic sat in. How many times had he seen Nonna there, her crocheting in her lap while she watched Wheel of Fortune? It bugged him that he couldn’t remember the last time he’d told her how much he loved her. Or how grateful he was they’d had her and Nonno.

  His heart constricted. He’d confided in Nonna this morning when he dropped off Alyssa before work. He’d told her everything, about Liz and the pregnancy. As usual, she’d given him guidance free of judgment. Her advice over coffee had been to grab his relationship with Liz with both hands and not let go. “You only live once, tesoro. Never regret loving someone. Only regret not taking the chance.”

  Somewhere over the last hour, between the officials leaving with Nonna and the pain-filled silence that settled over the house, he’d come to a decision. Sam thought Liz had fallen for him, too, and right or wrong, whatever happened, he had to take the chance she was right.

  For Nonna. His grandmother had taught him the true meaning of love. She’d also taught him to never let anything stop him from achieving what he wanted.

  And he wanted Liz. She was the best damn thing to happen to him and Alyssa. If he let her go, treated her like he’d used her up and was done with her now, then he didn’t deserve her. Her pregnancy might as well be a sign, a shove in the right direction.

  Was it possible Sam was right that Liz felt more for him than she wanted to admit?

  Not that it mattered. He had to take this chance. If he didn’t, he’d regret it for the rest of his life. Knowing she was pregnant, that there was even a possibility she loved him, changed everything.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Monday morning, Liz opened her front door to find Luc on her porch. He stood leaning his right shoulder against the frame, a brown paper bag propped on his right hip. He wasn’t alone, either. Alyssa stood at his side, wearing the cutest little purple dress and her bangs pinned back with pink clips.

  She peered up at Liz and clapped. “Izzy!”

  Barely two seconds later, Bruce charged over the threshold and onto the porch. Doing a full body wag, he danced around Alyssa, licking any part of her he managed to catch. Alyssa’s hearty giggles filled the quiet morning air, piercing the otherwise silent neighborhood. Liz’s heart gave a painful thump. They hadn’t spent much time together, save all the mornings Liz had seen Alyssa and Luc at the park, but that smile was still a dose of warmth and sunshine straight to her heart.

  Luc watched her calmly. She hadn’t a damn clue what to say to him, because she’d spent the weekend trying not to come apart at the seams. Finally, he stepped over the threshold and towered over her, his gaze daring her to deny him entrance.

  “I meant what I said. You’re not doing this alone. I’m a part of this. For better or for worse, I’m all in. Now, if you don’t mind, I made you a promise once to teach you to cook.” He didn’t give her time to respond but slid past her and headed down the hallway, she assumed toward the kitchen.

  Alyssa threw her arms around Liz’s legs, hugged her tightly, and then skipped off after her father.

  Leaving Liz to stare, stunned, after both of them. In the park two days ago, she was rude to him. His whole knight in shining armor routine had done her heart in, melting every last wall she’d surrounded herself with when Daniel died. That morning, she’d wanted nothing more than to push him back out of her life. It was easier than facing where she’d found herself.

  She rubbed a hand over her stomach. She wanted this baby. With everything she had she wanted this baby. She didn’t think she had the strength to lose this one, too.

  And here was Luc, barging his way back into her life, determined to support her through something he knew would be painful for her. But when she miscarried this baby like all the rest, their relationship would end with it. Maybe it didn’t make sense to anybody else, but she couldn’t bear to lose him twice.

  She moved on numb legs down the hallway to the kitchen entrance. Luc and Alyssa moved about the space like they’d done it every morning for years. Luc had set the bag of groceries on the center island. Alyssa stood on a chair beside him, laying the stuff he handed her onto the counter.

  He looked right in her kitchen, him and his beautiful daughter. Liz couldn’t ignore the longing settling inside. She’d missed him. Losing him had become an empty ache inside of her.

  She stepped farther into the kitchen, coming to a stop several feet behind him. “What are you doing, Luc?”

  He set a carton of eggs on the counter and tossed a tender smile over his shoulder. “Not giving up on you.”

  Of all things for him to say, he had to go for the jugular. Did he know what those words did to her? How they weakened her every last resolve?

  His smile fell, an emotion that reminded her too much of grief creeping into his eyes. He closed the distance between them. His warm, spicy scent wrapped around her, and she couldn’t resist inhaling. Warm cookies. He smelled like warm cookies, a scent that reminded her of home and echoed the same emotion throbbing deep in her heart.

  “I understand you’re scared right now. It’s not lost on me where you’re at. I meant what I said in the park the other day. This baby’s half mine, and I’m going to be here with you every step of the way. Whatever that means. I’ll say that as many times as I need to.” He kissed her cheek, his lips lingering on her skin, and moved back to the counter. He smiled at Alyssa, who’d taken a seat in the chair and was feeding Bruce sliced carrots out of a small plastic baggie. “Come on, sweetheart, let’s show Lizzie how to make ’sketti.”

  He opened the top of a bag of all-purpose flour and measured out two cups worth, spilling it carefully onto the counter.

  “Mound the flour on the counter, two cups, then make a well in the center.” He kept his gaze on his task, describing his movements as he did them, as if he knew s
he watched. After making a well in the flour, he pulled two eggs from the carton and cracked them, one-handed, into the center. Finally, he picked up a fork and looked back at her. “Come on. You can mix it. I’ll show you.”

  Torn among indecision and need and grief and pain, all she could do was stare. The man confounded her. She was trying to push him back out of her life, and he was making her homemade pasta?

  He turned to Alyssa beside him and jerked his head in Liz’s direction. “Go get her.”

  Alyssa giggled and nodded, then hopped off the chair like she had a secret, took Liz’s hand, and tugged her to the counter. There, she climbed onto the chair before looking back at Liz and holding out her hand again.

  Liz’s heart melted into a puddle at her feet. How did she say no to that face?

  An undeniable surge of emotion swamped her all at once. Tears fell, a waterfall she couldn’t stop from slipping down her cheeks. She’d expected sadness, but instead joy and reprieve and an overwhelming love flooded her.

  This was it. The moment she’d waited for was standing in front of her. How had she not seen this until now? Her chance to finally move on, to start over, stood in her kitchen in the form of a man who eradicated every defense she had, who insisted on being there for her whether she wanted him or not, and his beautiful daughter.

  Alyssa’s open, inviting smile, her tiny hand reaching out, was the last brick in the wall, shattering around her feet. The girl’s innocent acceptance of Liz’s place in her father’s life somehow filled that silent, aching place inside of her. For every baby she’d ever lost, this sweet smile healed the gaping wound.

  Luc turned, opened his mouth, only to shut it again. He wiped his hands on a clean towel, and cupped her face in the warmth of his palms. The pads of his thumbs swept across her cheeks, wiping away the wetness. “What’s the matter?”

  The words bubbled up and out on a desperate need to finally set them free.

  “I love you.” She let out a quiet, insane laugh, and covered her mouth.

  She must look like a loon, but the bliss swelling inside her continued to spill out, effervescent and bright and so beautiful she couldn’t help herself. Saying those words out loud set her free, as if someone had cut the cord holding her back.

  Brave now in the knowledge, she took Luc’s face in her hands. “I love you. My world feels like it’s falling apart around me all over again, and here the two of you are. You’re a rock to cling to in the middle of a raging river, Luc.”

  Luc’s gaze filled with tenderness, those chocolate eyes shining with love as he kissed her again, this one lingering but soft. “Sono inamorata di te.”

  The words left his lips on a tender whisper. Her heart fluttered in response. “What’s that mean?”

  “I’m in love with you.” Luc leaned his forehead against hers, whispering into the space between them. “Completely.”

  Beside them, Alyssa giggled and threw herself against their legs, hugging them both.

  Liz let out a watery laugh, then bent to scoop the girl into her arms. She hugged Alyssa for a moment, luxuriating in the way Alyssa’s little arms tightened around her in turn, before pulling back. She pressed her nose to Alyssa’s. “I love you, too, baby girl. So much.”

  Alyssa nodded shyly, tucked her thumb in her mouth, and laid her head on Liz’s shoulder.

  “I think it’s unanimous.” Luc smiled and put his arms around the both of them, pulling Liz close. Alyssa caught between them, he leaned forward and kissed Liz again, one hand settling on her still-flat stomach. “Don’t count him out just yet.”

  “Him?”

  Luc grinned, so young and so gorgeous. “I want a boy.”

  Liz laughed and kissed him this time. “We aim to please.” She softened her voice, gratitude overwhelming her. “Thank you. Your faith chases away the fear and gives me hope.”

  “Believe it, babe. He’s part of me, and we Rossis don’t give up so easily.” He reset his forehead against hers. His gaze seared into her, intense and probing. “I know you’re not ready yet, but just so you know, at some point in the future, I’m going to marry you.”

  “I might even say yes.”

  Epilogue

  Seven months later

  Luc grinned at her from his spot near the end of the bed, where he peered around the doctors and nurses huddled between her propped legs. His face glowed as bright as a Fourth of July firework. “I can see the head.”

  Another wave of intense pressure and pain rolled across her swollen belly. Liz squeezed her eyes shut, a soft groan escaping her.

  The nurse beside her squeezed her hand.

  “This is it, honey. You can do it. One more good push, and you’ll be able to hold your baby. Deep breath in … Now hold it and push.”

  Liz did as she was told, bearing down on her pelvic floor muscles as hard as she could. Beside her, the nurse counted out loud. She’d only reached five when everything gave way with a final rush of liquid. Seconds later, the baby’s first cries pierced the room.

  Thank God for small miracles.

  She relaxed back in the bed, panting and exhausted, and glanced between her legs. “Boy or girl?”

  She and Luc had agreed they wanted to be surprised.

  The doctor smiled as he laid the baby on her stomach, loosely wrapped in a white receiving blanket. “You have a son.”

  Luc had gotten his wish.

  “Congratulations.” The nurse vigorously rubbed the baby, wiping him clean. Her son’s irritated squalling filled the room, and the doctor clamped the umbilical cord.

  Luc moved to her side, his proud grin nearly splitting his face in half. His expression echoed hers—one of absolute joy—before he stroked a hand over the baby’s head. Their son had a full head of thick, dark hair exactly like his father. “Would you look at him? God, he’s perfect.”

  The doctor smiled again, handing Luc a pair of scissors, handle first. “Would you like to do the honors, Dad?”

  Luc took the scissors and carefully snipped the umbilical cord where directed, then handed the instrument back and moved up beside her. He kissed her softly, once, twice, so tender his face blurred through her tears.

  The man flat out amazed her. Two weeks after he and Alyssa stormed her house and refused to give up on her, the four of them moved in together. It had been a spur-of-the-moment decision for her. Another something she’d never have done when Daniel was alive. Luc had taught her to live for the moment, to never be afraid to grab love by its ears, if only because he’d been so damn patient with her.

  Every day since, he’d kept his word. He was there through every part of her pregnancy, every doctor’s visit, every birthing class. The worry had consumed her. The hardest thing she’d ever done was wait, day-to-day, watching her stomach grow, counting every kick and squirm, hoping and praying the baby made it to term.

  Luc had been patience personified. He and her doctor’s entire office deserved medals. Every worry, every time she couldn’t feel the baby kick, she’d been on the phone, and among them all, they’d always calmed her fears.

  Three years ago, she didn’t think it was possible to love someone the way she’d loved Daniel. Yet here she was. She couldn’t say she loved Luc more. Their love was definitely different because Luc was different. He was intense and passionate, and he made her feel alive. At the end of every night, she fell asleep in his arms, clutching him tightly, because she was so damned glad to have him, and because letting go was unthinkable. She didn’t know how to tell him what he meant to her.

  “I never would have gotten through these last months without you.” She touched his cheek. “Ti amo.”

  He whispered his half of the conversation as he pressed a tender kiss to her lips. “Il mio cuore è tua.”

  These words she recognized. My heart is yours. He whispered them in her ear every time he held her close.

  His gaze seared into hers, then he bent to kiss their son’s head again. “I’m so amazed by him.”

  “He’s
beautiful.” She pulled down the shoulder of her hospital gown and set the baby to her breast. Mouth wide open, he rooted around for a moment before latching on and sucking lazily at his first meal.

  An hour later, the doctors and nurses had cleared out, finally leaving her and Luc alone with the baby. Luc hadn’t left her side. He lay beside her in the small bed, eyes closed, one arm laying over her belly, tucked around the baby, who dozed on her chest. The sight of them amazed her. This was her family.

  A knock sounded on the door, and Sam poked her head into the room, blue eyes lit up. “Can we come in?”

  Liz nodded, waving her in. “Come meet your nephew.”

  Sam pushed the door open fully to reveal all five of them—Sam and Joe, Nic and both girls. Liz laughed, watching them all traipse in. Luc had called Nic ten minutes ago to relay the good news. Clearly, he’d spread it around.

  Alyssa and Ella skipped into the room ahead of the adults. Alyssa took one look at Liz, let out a little squeal and a giggle, and ran to the bed.

  Liz smiled and held a hand out to the girl she now called her daughter. “Would you like to meet your new baby brother, sweetheart?”

  She nodded shyly, then peered up at Luc and held out her arms. He slid from the bed and scooped her up, setting her beside Liz. Alyssa leaned her head against Liz’s shoulder, reaching out with a gentle hand to caress the baby’s head.

  Nic scooped Ella off the floor as he came to a stop beside the bed, letting her see the baby as well. He offered Liz a gentle smile and kissed her cheek. “Congrats. He’s beautiful.”

  When Sam came to a stop at her side, Liz smiled through once-again watery eyes, and gripped her hand, squeezing hard. “Thank you.”

  Sam sniffled and snatched a tissue from the nightstand, blotting at her tear-filled eyes. “Oh, you’re going to make me cry. I love you, babe. I’m so happy you’re finally happy.” Sam bent down and gave her a hug before pulling back and turning to the baby. “Have you decided on a name for this little guy?”