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“Santino! I have raised you better than that!” Cecilia laughed, shaking her head.
I sat up, pulling Sani up too, and Giovanni ruffled his hair. “Mamma is right, Sani. Always protect your women!”
Those words sparked something inside me. Maybe it was just hearing that caveman instinct in him, but my god, I swear I just melted a little.
“Like papi protected mamma?”
The room fell silent and thick with tension as Giovanni’s eyes widened and Cecilia froze. I didn’t move a muscle and it felt like ages before anyone spoke. To my surprise, it was Giovanni who did first.
“Yes Sani. Papi protected mamma and we must be thankful every day that he did.”
Cecilia stood up quickly and walked away into the kitchen with her back to us as she tried to busy herself looking in the fridge. Giovanni met my eyes and I saw his concern in them. He stood from his kneeling position on the floor and walked over to his mother.
“Right you two! Let's go on the hunt for some family board games! I bet there are some hidden around here somewhere,” I said in a cheerful tone, and the children jumped up from the sofa unaware of the sudden sadness that had filled the room. I had no idea how their father had been killed apart from what Cecilia had mentioned at dinner and I would never pry. I know what it is like when people ask you about difficult things and I would not be that person. But clearly, this family was still dealing with the trauma of that event.
After dinner, which came as another surprise because Giovanni cooked it himself, we all settled down in the living area to play some family games. Cecilia had insisted that I join her in sharing a bottle of wine and I had to admit... I was having a lot of fun. I had never really had this growing up. The whole family games and silliness. My father died when I was too young to remember the times we shared and then it was always just mum and I until Neil and Henry came along. And those family times were not joyful, to say the least. It normally consisted of Neil and mum watching TV in silence in the front room and me trying to avoid being alone with Henry at all costs.
After playing Pictionary and Charades, we were now onto Twister. Raya’s choice. It was only Raya, Giovanni and I left in the game. Cecilia spun the arrow once more for Raya’s go and when it landed on the left-hand green, she was falling on her bottom within seconds. We all cheered as she crawled off the mat, leaving only Giovanni or me to take the crown. And I was not going down without a fight.
“Scared?” he teased as his mother spun the arrow again.
“Why would I be? This is my game. I am extremely flexible,” I whispered and watched his eyes dilate with desire.
“Right hand blue,” Cecilia shouted, and I took this moment while he was distracted to lean over his torso and put my hand on the blue dot. Our faces were inches apart and his breathing suddenly became shallow as we locked eyes. We were in quite a compromising position with me practically straddling his body, which was sprawled out touching different corners of the mat.
“Oh damn. This spinner is jammed,” I heard Cecilia say as my heart started drumming in my chest. Giovanni’s eyes left mine and stared longingly at my lips as he licked his own. I could feel the room growing smaller around me. The walls caving in on us as the pressure and tension grew. “Ah, here we go. Gio, right foot yellow.”
He didn’t move for a moment as though he hadn’t heard the instruction. “Right foot yellow,” I repeated, my voice coming out in a broken husk.
Suddenly, he spun over the top of me and knocked us down, his body caging mine beneath him as we both fell to the floor. I could feel his heart pounding in his chest as his huge body pressed against mine and I am pretty sure that that wasn't his gun in his trousers. We stared into each other’s eyes and I was lost.
“Yay! Liv won!” Raya shouted as Sani suddenly dove on top of Giovanni’s back, adding to the crippling weight on top of me. Breaking the spell, Giovanni quickly climbed off me, taking Sani with him.
“Right. Bedtime bambinis! Say good night,” Cecilia stood up and said sternly as they both whined in protest. “We have a whole weekend of this so don’t give me those bottom lips,” she ordered.
I stood up quickly and brushed myself down before getting ready to put the kids to bed.
“It’s okay Olivia. I will put them to bed tonight. You enjoy your evening,” Cecilia smiled at me as she took her children’s hands.
My eyes widened in panic at being left alone with Giovanni. “No really, that's what I am here for. I don’t mind.”
“Nonsense. I want to. I am tired anyway. You finish that bottle of wine for me, will you?” She didn’t give me time to argue as she marched up the stairs with the kids.
I turned slowly and saw Giovanni leaning against the fireplace, staring at me intensely. He held out my glass of unfinished wine and smiled.
Breaking Down Barriers
Giovanni
Now there was no doubt in my mind, my mamma was cheering me on from the sidelines. She would never have offered to put the kids to bed if she hadn’t wanted to leave Olivia alone with me. For the first time, I thought I saw a flicker of nerves cross Olivia’s normally so composed and confident expression, but she raised her chin higher and strolled towards me, taking her wine glass.
She practically downed the remainder of her drink before picking up the half-drunk bottle of mamma’s favourite white wine to pour herself another. If I didn’t know any better, I would say she was in a rush to drink and get away from me.
“Let me do that for you,” I stepped behind her and took the bottle from her hand, causing her to look a little taken aback by the gesture before she glared.
“I am more than capable of pouring myself a drink, Giovanni.” I loved hearing my name leave her lips. It was my favourite sound in the world after her laugh.
“But not capable of accepting chivalry, it seems,” I smirked as I poured the wine into her glass.
