Page 188 of Cara & Gian: The Guzzi Duet

“I don’t think he likes me very much.”

Gian tried to hide his frown. “It’s not you personally, Cara.”

“What is it?” His gaze dropped down to her rounded stomach, and Cara’s hands cupped the swell quickly. “Oh, well then.”

“He doesn’t know what to think of it all,” Gian explained.

Cara nodded once. “So it’s more you, that’s what you want to say. Not me, you.”

“In a way, sure. Except he can’t say shit to me because I’m the boss, brother or not. He’s in a shitty situation where his opinion is not welcome, but he still wants to give it. Not that any of that matters. Enough about this, Cara, tell me about my baby.”

The sweetest, prettiest smile bloomed on her features, lighting up her whole face. That was one of the things Gian missed seeing the very most. Even worse, he missed being the one to make Cara smile. He felt that he had given her far more reasons to frown.

“Halfway there now,” Cara said. “Twenty weeks this week. He’s very active, makes for interesting prenatal appointments when he keeps moving away from the wand as they’re trying to hear his heartbeat. I would let you feel, but he’s quiet right now. For once.”

Gian was sure his heartbeat had stopped for a split second. “He?”

Cara pulled a small roll of sonogram photos from her purse, and slid it across the table to Gian. “A boy. So far, a very healthy, active boy, Gian.”

He looked over the sonograms, taking in the shadowy profile of a baby in the middle of the picture. The tiny slope of a nose, and the roundness of his cheeks and lips were the most prominent features. Another photo showcased five small toes of a perfectly formed foot. The final image was a strange mixture of shapes that Gian didn’t understand at all.

“What’s this?” he asked.

Cara used the tip of her finger to outline the central image. “What do you think?”

His laughter rung out in the quiet visiting area, gaining the attention of several other inmates and their family. “Shit, really?”

“Yep.”

“Definitely a boy, then.”

“You couldn’t miss it if you tried, once it’s pointed out,” Cara said, shaking her head.

“Thank you for bringing this, Cara.”

“I have copies for me, too.”

“I know, but—”

“He’s your son, Gian, so why wouldn’t I bring this to show you? We might have unfinished business, but he’s brand new and he has no baggage. You know?”

“Yeah,” Gian agreed. “Come here.”

He hooked his finger at her, willing to take the scolding or whatever other issue that might pop up for what he was about to do. Cara, always trusting when it came to him, even when she didn’t have the first clue of his motives, leaned closer at the table, until he could cup her face and bring her in the rest of the way.

Gian kissed Cara quickly on her painted red lips, feeling her smile grow when he kissed her twice more in quick succession. “God, I love you. You know that, huh?”

Cara nodded. “I know, Gian. I just don’t understand why sometimes.”

“Because you’re you, Cara. And you’re mine.”

He figured that should be simple enough.

It was enough for him.

Having Cara close was not necessarily a good thing for Gian. Now that he had her there, he wanted to drag her into his lap, tangle his fingers into her hair, and hide away from the world that never left him alone. She was his peace, even if she couldn’t possibly know it.

Gian settled for resting his palm over the slight, hard swell of her stomach. “Two more months, Cara, and then we’ll have all the time in the world to deal with the unfinished business.”