by Zavi James
I rolled my eyes as the three of us made our way along winding corridors to get checked in for my appointment. Franco took up his post by the wall while Dante and I went to the reception desk.
“Mia Griffin. I have an appointment with Dr Vega,” I told the receptionist, and she handed me some forms over the desk. “I take it Luc decided against turning up,” I commented at Dante, scribbling in my details where they were required.
Dante let out a heavy sigh. “He thinks you wouldn’t want him here. Thinks you think he isn’t fit enough to be a father.”
My pen slipped, sending a black inky line across the page. The receptionist shot me a quick look, but my focus was on Dante. “That’s not true!” My voice was a little louder than would be considered appropriate for the setting.
Dante’s eyes flicked over to Franco who watched us carefully before he looked back to me. “Keep your shit together, Mia,” he told me, nudging the forms on the desk. I began to fill them in again as he spoke, “You both need to talk. We’re away this weekend but when we get back, I’m taking you to see him. And I think it’ll be a good idea for you to move back in with me.”
“You think Gabe’s going to let me walk away that easily?”
“He can’t exactly hold you hostage.”
“He’s doing everything he can to get me to agree to his ludicrous plan. Do you think it was my choice to turn up to church?”
“You did look a little out of place.”
Scrawling my signature across the bottom of the forms, I passed them back to the receptionist before taking a seat with Dante. Our conversation had been dropped thanks to Franco’s presence, but my mind had started to turn over Dante’s words. The lack of communication between myself and Luc had led to a whole host of misunderstandings. We needed to talk, no matter how angry we were; we needed to clear the air and figure out what happened next. I needed to tell him the truth.
“Miss Mia Griffin?”
“Do you want me to come with you?” Dante asked, rising from the chair at the same time I did.
Every appointment I’d attended, Carmen had been by my side. And when she hadn’t been available because of birth and family commitments, Gio had taken her place but had never come into the doctor’s office with me. Something about having a man that wasn’t Luc in the doctor’s office with me, discussing his child, didn’t sit right.
“I’ll be okay,” I said, giving his arm a gentle squeeze. “Won’t be long.”
Dante sat back down, and I left the room to hear him say, “Our surrogate. Isn’t she just wonderful to give us the chance of having a child together?” I would have paid good money to see Franco’s face.
“Miss Griffin. Please, take a seat. Alone?” Dr Vega asked, surveying me over his glasses that sat half way down his nose.
With a tight-lipped smile, I nodded. “Just me.”
“Alright then. Let’s take a look.” Dr Vega made his way through the list of standard questions, confirming everything from my last doctor. Weighed and measured, samples handed over for analysis, we finally arrived at the part of the appointment that always made me apprehensive. I held my breath as the wand was run over the swell of my bare stomach. My focus was fixed on the screen, watching as the grainy image of my son appeared. The pounding of his heartbeat filled the room and, as always, I found myself in awe of the little life inside of me. The closer we inched toward the due date, the more certain I became in my decision to keep the baby.
“Everything looks to be ticking along nicely,” Dr Vega told me as we concluded the appointment. “Any issues, questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to call and make an appointment. We’re almost at the finish line, Miss Griffin.”
“Thank you.” I beamed at him before leaving the office. I stuck my head around the door of the waiting room where Franco still stood by the wall and Dante flipped through a magazine boasting pregnancy tips on the cover. “All done.”
Dante looked up and grinned. “Everything alright?”
“Perfect,” I said, waving the small image of the scan.
He jumped up and a woman from the other end of the room wished them luck and Franco scowled at the sentiment. Dante pinched the scan photo from my fingers as we walked down the hallways again, turning it slightly left and right and assessing the image. “Mia…” He squinted at the photo. He barely paid attention as he walked, and we squeezed past a gorgeous blonde woman coming out of one of the offices that lined the corridor. My heart sank when I realised who she was, and the shock was mirrored on her features. We rounded the corner, my arm on Dante’s elbow guiding him around the bend until Amber was lost from my line of sight. “That’s a chunky head you need to push out of you,” Dante finished his thought.
I snatched the image out of his hands and was about to yell at him when Franco spoke, “I don’t envy you.” Franco didn’t hide the fact he wasn’t my biggest fan and I was surprised he’d made any comment.
“Count yourself lucky,” I said to him, casting a quick glance to see if Amber had followed us. Old habits die hard, although she had probably been thrilled when I left without a word.
“Imagine, Mia, in a few months you’re going to be holding that baby.” Dante looked gleeful at the thought. “Exciting times! Don’t you think, Lurch?”
My surly security’s expression returned to its usual blank state as he deadpanned, “Thrilling.”
I rolled my eyes as we stepped back out into the crisp September afternoon. The warmth of the sun was cut by the chill of the wind that swept the first autumn leaves up around our feet. I pulled Dante into a hug and squeezed him tight.
“What’s that for?” he asked.
“Thank you for coming with me today.”
“Ah, what type of uncle would I be if I didn’t look after you both?”
As we pulled apart, the glint of the sun reflecting off something made me squint. There, pulled up on the opposite side of the street, was an all too familiar black Maserati, window rolled down and occupant staring directly at us. My stomach flipped as I locked eyes with Luc before the window cut our eye contact and he hastily pulled away. I took a few uncertain steps forwards, watching as the car turned the corner.
“D,” I called.
“I saw,” he replied, coming up beside me.
“He turned up.”
“He turned up,” Dante echoed.
I could feel Franco behind me before he spoke. “We should get back. Gabe will want to know you’re home.” Gabe would want to know that Luc had shown his face. Something that wouldn’t bode well with his plan if Luc was contemplating accepting me and the baby.
“Go,” Dante said, leaning in to kiss my cheek. “I’ll go see him,” he assured me before we parted ways.
Chapter Twenty
Mia
I’m working on it.
Dante’s reply to me that evening when I asked if he’d spoken to Luc. I stared at the screen, mulling over what to reply when Carmen’s name flashed across it and I answered her call. “Carmen, hi,” I greeted her.
“Here I was thinking you’d forgotten about me,” she responded.
“Of course not,” I replied, settling down on a chair in Gabe’s backyard. It was late and the sun was slowly starting to sink away. Franco stood in the yard, throwing a stick for Cerb who ran off to retrieve it. “It’s been a little manic this end.”
“So, I’ve heard. How’s life with Gabriel and how do you feel carrying his child?” The amusement was evident in her voice.
My jaw dropped. “How did you hear that rumor?”
“Gossip travels faster than the speed of light.”
“I’m not sure that’s a proven scientific fact,” I muttered as a sinking sensation settled in the pit of my stomach. I should have known the whispers had a wider reach than just our town. My reputation was questionable no matter where I went. It irritated me that people knew my name, and had made judgements before they had even met me.
“Anyway,” Carmen continued, not worried about my tattere
d reputation. “I called to see if you received the invitation. I did tell you to call me once you’d seen it.”
“What?”
“On the bottom of the invite. I said to call me.”
“What invite, Carmen?” My friend was three paces ahead of me while I tried to catch up.
“For the boys’ christening this weekend. I would have asked you sooner but technically you weren’t meant to be here. It’s taken me this long to convince Emil to let you be their Godmother and I wanted to make sure that you weren’t going to let us down.”
“Stop,” I said to her, pinching the bridge of my nose. She needed to take a breath and I needed a moment to unpack all the information she’d just unleashed. “Christening?”
“Santiago and Javier’s, yes.”
“When?”
“This Sunday, Mia.” Carmen was growing impatient. “It was all on the invitation along with my request for you to be their Godmother.”
My brain wrestled with what to tackle first. “I didn’t receive an invite.”
“Impossible. I made sure to send it to Gabriel’s address, priority mail. I couldn’t rely on Dante to remember to hand it over. The man can barely be classified as an adult. I’m not sure how you all put up with him.”
Priority mail didn’t ensure that the postal service could get their act together. I’d trust Dante over them any day of the week. The invite was probably languishing somewhere in a stuffy mail room, yet to start its journey.
“You know I don’t believe in God, right?” I reminded her, watching Franco try to wrestle the stick from Cerb’s mouth without much success.
Carmen hissed out a breath between her teeth. “We won’t mention that to Father Baker.”
“You want me to lie in church?”
“It probably won’t be the worst offense on the rap sheet,” she mused. “You’re not about to tell me no, are you? Luc will have the religious guidance down, so you don’t need to worry about any of that. Just agree as a matter of formality.”
“Luc?” My mouth went dry.
“Yes. We asked him to be the boys’ Godfather months ago. Emil wouldn’t let anyone else have a look in.”
I leaned back in the chair and closed my eyes. “Carmen, I don’t think that’s the best plan. Luc and I aren’t exactly on talking terms yet.” I had hoped that we’d be able to make some headway the next time we spoke. No matter how difficult it was, I was determined to tell him the truth and clear the air, but Carmen’s event was not the setting for all that to happen. “I’m not sure having both of us together at the christening would give you the day you want.”
“You’re both adults, Mia. I expect you to behave as such.” Carmen’s tone made me feel like I was a child being scolded by my mother. “You’ve managed not to kill each other, so that’s some progress.” If any other person had said that, it would have been taken with a pinch of salt, but here it was genuine progress.
“Do I have a choice?” I asked her eventually.
“Absolutely not. You owe me.”
“You know I’ve acquired a shadow, right?” Even though Franco maintained some distance most of the time, it still felt suffocating having someone watch my every move with such intensity.
“I thought as much when I heard you’d moved in with a Moretti. I’ll account for him. Who is it? Paulo? He’s a sweet boy.”
“Franco.”
“Oh. Well, at least he won’t say much.”
I snorted. “As long as I’m not going to be turned away at the door for bringing an uninvited guest.”
“Of course not,” she said. “And it would be pointless turning him away. It’s his job to keep an eye on you, so he’ll find a way no matter what I say.”
“I don’t know how you do it, Carmen. Don’t you ever want a break from Gio? Don’t you get fed up of being watched?”
“Sometimes,” she said quietly. “And then I remind myself that it’s for my own good. To keep me safe.”
“Franco’s not been assigned to keep me safe,” I sighed. “He’s here to make sure I don’t run again and to keep an eye and report back to Gabe on every single move.”
As the sentence leaves my lips something started to eat away at me. Gabe had been dictating my moves to fit with his and when he couldn’t do that, he’d been watching me like a hawk. If Carmen had sent the invite to this house, then there was every chance that it had been kept from me.
“Carmen, I need to go. I’ll speak to you soon,” I told her, getting up from my seat.
“I’ll see you Sunday?” she asked, her mind focused on the christening.
“I wouldn’t miss it.” Even if I hadn’t planned on attending, even if I was leaving myself open to more judgement and a messy run in with Luc, I wasn’t about to sit back and let them continue to plan my life around me while I was a complacent bystander.
Cutting the call, I walked back into the house. Gabe had retired to his study after dinner claiming he had work to do. I would bet good money that he was still in there. There was no courtesy of a knock when I reached the room, instead, I let my anger propel me through the door. Gabe looked up from the laptop, lock of blonde hair falling across his forehead. “Mia, can I help you with something?”
“Where is it?”
“You’ll need to clarify,” he said, closing the lid of the laptop. Whatever he was working on could apparently wait.
“The invite,” I spat out. It frustrated me, the way he leaned back in his chair in the same manner his father would. “I just spoke to Carmen and she said—”
“Sorry, Gabe.” Franco burst into the room, red in the face. Cerb had served as a perfect distraction for my head start. “We’ll let you get back to work.” He turned to me, looking livid. “Move.”
“No,” I shot back. “I need to speak to Gabe, so get out.” Franco looked ready to berate me for my insolence, but I was just as prepared to fight back. In the hierarchy, Franco answered to Gabe, but he was assigned to me and that put me marginally above him in standings.
“Franco,” Gabe said before the argument could begin. “Leave us.”
He took a deep breath through his nose and left the room, slamming the door behind him. I was certain Franco hoped Gabe would get rid of me and restore some peace in their lives.
“Invite?” Gabe asked again, pulling my attention to him.
“Invite, Gabe. To the Diaz christening. I know you have it and I want it,” I told him, walking up to the desk.
He watched me with a glint in his eye and I saw the corner of his mouth tug into a smirk. “There she is. There’s that sharpness that you’ve been hiding. I was wondering if motherhood had softened you.” I bit the insides of my cheeks hard enough to taste the tang of blood. “You’ve been so docile, Mia. Not at all how I remembered you. Not how Luc spoke about you. This,” he said gesturing to me. “This is the woman I’ve been waiting for.”
“Well, she’s right here. Now give me what I want.”
He got up from his seat and came around the desk to join me. “Have you thought any more on my offer?”
I could have screamed. I could have launched myself at him and felt the satisfaction of letting my nails dig into his flesh and cause him pain, but I did neither of those things. Both of those reactions wouldn’t get me what I wanted.
“I’ve been thinking a lot, Gabriel. If this is how it would be, you making every decision and hiding things from me, then I have no interest in tying myself to you for the rest of my life.”
There was a twitch of his eye, a ripple in an otherwise calm façade. “I told you, you’d want for nothing. You’d have my protection.” He knew how desperate I was to keep my life after I’d walked away from them. “What else do you want?”
“I don’t want to play pretend,” I told him carefully. “You can’t promise me power and then not give me any. I want the invitation that was addressed to me.”
“Unfortunately, it no longer exists,” he told me, folding his arms across his chest.
�
��Fine.” I was struggling to meet his calmness with my own. “I’m attending the christening on Sunday.”
“No, you won’t,” he told me. “We have church to attend and the brunch at my parents.”
“You’re acting like I’ve agreed when I haven’t,” I reminded him. I was about to play a risky game and doubt almost made me falter but I kept going strong. “I am attending that christening because if I don’t, I will make sure Sunday will have everyone questioning why you’ve chosen to keep me close.”
That got to him. The tension sat clearly in his jaw and shoulders. Gabe may have made the first move but I was learning how to play, and I was learning quick. “Franco will go with you,” he told me.
“Franco will come with me,” I agreed, not pushing my luck any further.
“And I want an answer when you return, Mia. No more thinking it over. You either agree, or you fend for yourself. I’m growing tired of you living off my generosity.”
Generosity was not what I would call it. “You’ll have my answer when I get back.”
Gabe walked back around the table and sat down again, lifting the lid of his laptop to resume work. “Think carefully, Mia. We could make a powerful team.”
Chapter Twenty One
Lucas
It was a bright September afternoon when everyone arrived at St. Peter’s cathedral for the Diaz christening. The sun was high in the sky and guests were gathered outside, dressed in their Sunday best as ordered by Carmen. This was sure to be the event of the year. A shame for Marcus De Salvo and Eliza Parisi, who were due to get married next month. They’d never be able to outdo Carmen’s handiwork.
“And they call us vultures,” Dante said, clapping a hand on my shoulder and pointing out a small group of people with professional cameras, with lenses large enough you’d think they’d topple over from the weight. My lip curled up in disgust. Paparazzi were part and parcel of Carmen’s life. Although they appreciated her privacy most of the time, they weren’t going to miss out on a big life event like this, which meant we all had to be on our best behavior.