Made of Steel

2. The perfect wife

I'm a jerk, I know, but I can't behave otherwise. Stella took the gender man I used to be to the grave. Now all I have left are my children.

"Yes, sir", she shows her clearly annoyance in those two words and then slam the door before leaving.

I focus on business for the next few hours, although a bunch of ideas keep fluttering through my head.

They are growing and every time I see Ella look at her mother's, my chest squeezes. She still has a hard time interacting with new people. On the other hand, Fede has entered in a rebellious stage that begins to get me out of my boxes. A few months ago I gave up hiring babysitters, 'cause none lasts more than three weeks. Between my son's wickedness and my little girl's anxiety attacks, none can hold up no matter how much I pay them.

Eventually, I had to agree with my mother. They need someone to interact closely, who earns their trust, understands them, loves them and, incidentally, educates them better. And that cannot be provided by nannies or teachers no matter how good they are, but a mother figure.

Time is running out. I pay the best psychologists and problems continue. I need some order and stability within this chaos. Also, society has been waiting for my marriage for years. I have an image to give in public.

But where can I find a woman who has a hand with children, willing to meet social standards at least on the surface and smart enough not to have any illusions about me?

Carina seems to be the best option. My mother has expressed it with hints on more than one occasion and even the press has made speculation about it. However, she doesn't quite convince me. Something tells me the blonde will give me trouble later and my instincts never fail.

A phone call interrupts my musings. I pick up at flight when I see my house keeper's name.

'What is it, Vivi?", I ask a little anxious, since she doesn't usually call for nonsense.

"Sir, Federico has a very strong stomachache", she answers agitated -. I'm taking him to the ER.

My body's alarms go off at the speed of light as thousands of thoughts invade my mind.

'No, not him'

"Listen, Vivi", I try to calm her down at the same time I try to shut down my emotions. "Take him to the Palermo Hospital. I'll be there in about fifteen minutes."

I act with a cold head and give pertinent directions to my secretary, before heading to the hospital.

"What takes you so long?", I curse looking at the clock. More than twenty minutes have passed since the call.

"There is a lot of traffic, sir", my driver replies, "but we are about to arrive."

I don't even wait for security protocols, or even for the car to completely stop to shoot out of the ER.

"Daddy!", My little girl throws herself into my arms and I quickly pick her up. 'Fede is not going to die, right?".

"Of course not, Ella". I kiss her cheek while a nurse updated me on my oldest son's status, assuring me that it's nothing serious. Without wasting another minute, I sign the authorization for the operation.

I sit in the waiting room with my little girl on my lap, trying to calm my impatience with her small body's warmth. I don't want her to have another attack, the last one was hard to control.

Recently it has been difficult for me to find free time for my children. I've gotten too caught up in business, but otherwise I wouldn't be the most powerful man in Florence, the Steel Man, as I am often called.

"This would'not happened if you had a woman to take care of them", my mother complains. "We've tried it with babysitters, but it hasn't worked out.

"You haven't said anything new to me, Mom", I reply. "Stop bugging me, this is not the time for that."

"You need a wife, Adriano! My grandchildren need a mother! When will you realize?". She begins with the same song as every day. "Vivi can't cope with children. Until when will you delay the matter? I have shown you the best candidates in Florence, I have been insisting for months for you to make up your mind. I've talked about this millions of times". Alexa Di Lauro takes my hand and then caresses it in a motherly gesture. I know it's for my wellbeing, but I don't wanna make a hasty decision and Carina still doesn't convince me. “The mourning is over, son. It's time to move on."

"My son is in the middle of an operation, Mom. I snort in exasperation. Let's leave the matter for now. I have already agreed to your designs, I just need to find the right woman."

"Will I have a new mom, daddy?" Ella stops hiding her head under my chest to look at me with those eyes that torture me so much in dreams. She looks so much like her mother...

"Don't get your hopes up, darling", my mother intercedes with a snort."Your father is not serious, he only plays with us and with my patience", she adds the last words in a whisper so only I can hear her.

"But I want a mother, nona" *, the girl protests with pursed lips. She for the first time looks like she was four years old and not seven or eight. That only tells me that what happened to her brother has her scared.

"For now you have your beautiful grandma", My mother takes it to place her on her lap. She is as light as a feather. What am I beautiful?

"The most beautiful of all grannies", my daughter reaffirms as I roll my eyes.

If her maternal sneak grandmother listened to her, she would cry out to heaven.

The minutes pass as if they were hours. I remain seated without any expression on my face. I need to keep a cold head. However, impatience begins to exceed my limits. Then a blonde with an angelic face approaches us.

She lets see a smile and seems to light up the place with it.

"Is Fede okay?", My daughter surprises us all with her behavior, because she is too introverted and she does not talk to almost anyone, much less to strangers.

While the doctor speaks slowly and understandably to the youngest of the family, I am hypnotized contemplating the painting. The woman does not stop smiling and even caresses my daughter's cheek inconsistently and Ella seems very comfortable next to her and even shows her incomplete teeth.

'She is laughing'

'My daughter is laughing'

It seems they have known each other forever...

It's strange, disconcerting and at the same time, pleasant. A warm sensation begins to settle on my skin as desire begins to surge suddenly.

This is the first time something like this has happened. The first that I yearn to know a woman's name before taking her to bed. And most impressive, the first time Ella talks to a stranger without problems. She has a magnetism that catches.

I examine the doctor closely; She is beautiful, the doctor's uniform on her looks just like a brand suit on a super model and the golden hair strands along with the bright green eyes, they match perfectly. She is pretty, classy, ​​but not superficial like most of women in my social circle. She seems to be great with children because of the way my daughter behaves and if she is a doctor, she must have above average intelligence; enough to accept reality and adhere to the established terms.

The perfect wife...

The woman raises her head and automatically, our gazes collide, leaving both of us in awe. Now I have no doubts, nor should I continue looking for a candidate; I have made my choice and in just two words I show it:

"I found you".

***

* amore mio: "my love" translated into Italian language.

* nona: "grandmother" translated into Italian language.