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“Is he ok?”
“Yeah, a little agitated and a little lonely, I think. Maximus loves kids and I guess he’d like to spend more time with Romina too.”
She gulped the glass of water down to the last drop and then looked up at the moon without blinking. I couldn’t do anything but admire her. I’d forgotten how beautiful she was under moonlight. Her skin glowed like it was dipped in diamonds and her eyes turned into dark emeralds, reflecting the night sky. Her long brown hair floated in the wind just like the sea waves hitting the shore behind her. How could I forget? She’d looked like this the night she agreed to be my wife.
“She was born on September 6th, but don’t worry if you forget her birthday. She will remind you a week in advance. She is allergic to pineapple and bees. I mean it Roman, if a bee stings her, you need to give her an EpiPen right away.” I nodded solemnly, not knowing where she was going with this. “Dairy upsets her stomach aches if she has too much, so try to use almond milk for everything except cereals. You need to take her to check-ups with the pediatrician every year and when Remy tries to talk you out of eating her vegetables you need to trick her. Sometimes I put ketchup on them, or I promise her a cookie. She sleepwalks, but not very often; it hasn’t happened in months. The doctor we saw said it’s not something to worry about, but it could get worse and she should start seeing a sleep therapist if it happens more than four times in a month. If you see her sleepwalking, don’t wake her up because she gets really scared, so just talk to her slowly and tell her to go back to bed. Her favorite movie is Home Alone and she will make you watch it a million times. She’s afraid of storms so you’ll have to cuddle her when it thunders and…and…” She couldn’t finish because she was shaken by a sob.
“Woman, why are you crying?” She just let out another sad-sounding moan and it ripped my heart out. Next second, I was by her side, wrapping her in a hug. “Salva, what’s wrong?”
“She’s my baby girl, Roman. I need you to take good care of her. You need to swear, Roman, that you’ll never put her in danger.”
“Salvatrice, it’s me. I bought the building in Morning Heights we used to live in a couple years ago because someone in the city council told me they wanna demolish it, and I couldn’t bear to let that happen to something that was ours. You think I wouldn’t extend the same protection to my child? No one will ever hurt her. I know you think that I run with a murderous crew back in New York but that’s just bullshit. I can’t look into your eyes and tell you that I don’t know violence, but I swear to you that Romina will never face danger. Ever.”
“I just worry for her.”
“Then listen to me carefully because I won’t ever repeat what I’m telling you now, not unless we have the same last name. I am the consigliere to the head of the Nucci crime family, Gino Nucci. I knew I’d have this role as his right hand ever since we were in diapers. That’s why I went to law school; I also represent him legally. I know all his businesses, every single one. All the shit the Nucci’s ever did. I’ve represented a lot of them in court, including Gino, but I deal more with the administrative side. I wish I could tell you that my hands are clean, but it’s not true. I’ve seen a shit-ton of violence, amore, and I know how to use it to get what I want. Does that make me a bad man? Maybe, but I will always be good to you. Famiglia is the only thing that matters at the end of the day, and you and Romina are mine.”
“I should hate you…for what you are, for what your friends are.”
“They’re not just friends, Salva. They are family too. Romina is connected to the Nucci family, and I know you don’t love the idea…” She snorted in my ear. “Baby, I don’t know who killed your parents, but it wasn’t one of my people. That’s all you need to know. Now, please calm down, because it fucking kills me when you cry.”
“You need to promise you’ll remember everything I told you, especially about Remy’s allergies…”
“Salvatrice, I’m not going to kidnap your daughter for fuck’s sake. You’ll be right there with her.”
“I…” She looked at me and I swear I saw her heart breaking through her eyes. “Yeah, but if I’m not around, Roman…”
“I promise you, I’ll remember every word. No pineapple, no dairy, no bees, and Home Alone on repeat. I can handle that.”
“Good.” She wiped away her tears and put some distance between our bodies, but I was reluctant to let go. Salva was not a person to crumble easily. She was my little warrior, so whatever was inside her beautiful head was hitting her hard. “When do you think the papers will be ready for me to sign? So we can go and change her birth certificate?”
“I haven’t started drafting them yet, but I can have everything ready in a couple of days once we settle on the terms.”
“Just do them and include whatever you want. I trust you’ll have Remy’s best interest in mind.” That was a change of heart from this morning when she suggested I was free to walk away. “Please don’t give me any money for the past five years. I don’t…I kept my baby away from her father, that’s not something that deserves rewarding. Set an account in her name if you want, I don’t know… and I guess a few thousand dollars will cover her ballet and schooling.”
I chuckled under my breath.
“Salva, I have a net worth that goes a little beyond a few thousand dollars.” A few millions beyond. “As my daughter, Romina is entitled to that, and so are you. You are the mother of my child, amore. We will figure everything out, don’t worry. You didn’t need to give up your sleep to tell me how to raise her, because I intend to raise her with you.”
“There’s another reason I came.” The air around us changed like someone flipped a switch. Suddenly the smell of the flowers was sweeter and the sounds of the night got lost in the background. “I want you, Roman. Tonight. Just tonight, let’s pretend the last six years didn’t happen.”
