Our trip to Maine went by in a blur. I knew Luca wasn't thrilled about going to my reunion, but we ended up having a good time, and then we spent the rest of our getaway relaxing. And by relaxing I mean barely leaving the bedroom, and bit of sightseeing mixed in. It was fun to be there again after all these years, and I got to show Luca some of my old stomping grounds. We even went by the house my mom and Josh lived in, where he first came to visit and we caught crabs in the back with Noah. It was crazy to think about how long ago that was now. Before we left, we even drove by the cemetery and I took a bouquet to Josh's grave. It wasn't up to our usual vacation standards, but it was still nice for just the two of us to get away.
Things had been busy the last few years now that the kids were growing up. It felt like we were all moving in a million directions, but Luca was always adamant about craving out time just for us. He was starting to pull back more and more from the mafia and I would be lying if I said that didn't excite me a little. He had devoted so much of himself to the family over the years, and I knew we were both looking forward to the day he could step away for good. The fate of the family was still up in the air, but I think Luca was still holding out hope Leo would be interested in taking it over. Our children knew what Luca did, but we shielded them from the darker sides of it all as best we could, especially after Lucy had been taken. It was a shock to both of our systems and, somehow, Luca agreed not to involve any of the kids until they were at least eighteen. We agreed that at that point, they would be free to make their own decisions about their involvement, but that they couldn't be around it until that point came.
Leo would be eighteen next year and I could tell Luca was chomping at the bit to introduce him to it. It pained me to admit, but I could already tell Leo would be an incredible leader—just like his father. He was strong and had such a commanding but endearing personality. I knew Luca saw the potential too, but he didn't voice it because he didn't want to upset me. It wouldn't be my first choice, but if any of our children wanted to continue on their father's legacy, I would respect that. I had years to come to terms with the fact that at least the boys probably would, and deep down, I knew how proud it made Luca. It terrified me to think of my boys in that position, just like it always had with Luca, but I also understood the appeal of it. I had much different feelings about the mafia than I did when I first met him, and couldn't have imagined my life without it. My relationship with the mafia would always be very bittersweet.
Luca pulled the car into the driveway and reached over, setting his hand on my thigh. "You seem like you're a million miles away right now." He gave me a curious look.
I smiled wanly. "I'm just thinking."
"Care to elaborate?" Luca arched his eyebrow at me.
"Nothing important." I shook my head.
Twenty years together had made Luca an absolute expert in reading me, but he didn't press me on the issue.
"Do you want me to go pick up something for dinner?" He asked, getting out of the car and grabbing our bags.
"That's okay. We'll be going out Tuesday with Layla, so I'll cook something tonight." I said, opening up the door and walking into the kitchen.
Luca frowned, setting our stuff down on the counter. "We're going out? I thought she was coming here."
I shrugged. "She changed her mind. I told her we'd meet her halfway, so they didn't have to drive a far."
Luca groaned, rolling his eyes. "How the fuck and I supposed to intimate the kid if we're in a public setting?"
"Uh, babe..." I giggled. "I think that's her reasoning. And just so we're clear, you're not bringing a gun to the restaurant either."
Luca threw his arms in the air. "What good is it to have guns if I can't have them out when I meet my daughter's boyfriend for the first time?"
"I'm not even going to grace that with a response, Luca. You're not bringing it, end of discussion." I smirked, folding my arms over my chest.
"Mom's not letting you bring a gun to dinner?" Leo chuckled, coming into the kitchen flanked by Cole.
"No." Luca let out a sharp laugh. "She thinks I will intimidate your sister's boyfriend."
"No one is intimidating anyone, okay?" Charlotte arched her eyebrows. "That goes for the two of you, also. If anyone is anything but nice and welcoming to him, there's going to be serious trouble."
"Yes, ma'am." Cole smirked, fake saluting me.
"I'll be nice, too, mom." Leo echoed, putting his arm around my shoulder. He was already almost eight inches taller than me. Where had my little boys gone?
I turned to Luca, waiting for him to agree.
Luca sighed dramatically. "Fine. I'll play along, but one wrong move and the kid is toast."
I rolled my eyes, laughing. That was about as close as an agreement as I was going to get.
"How was your trip?" Cole asked. "Did you guys have a good time?"
"We did. It was nice to see some old friends and visit some places your dad and I went to when we were first dating." I said, grabbing some things out of the fridge so I could start cooking.
"How was your weekend? Did you stay out of trouble?" Luca asked.
"Of course we did." Leo scoffed. "Nonni brought lasagna over on Saturday and we played a bunch of video games."
"Did you get all of your homework done?" I asked.
Neither of them answered, just glanced back and forth between each other.
"Why don't you get on that now?" Luca said, grabbing a cherry tomato from the salad ingredients and popping it in his mouth.
Leo and Cole did as Luca said and I got started on dinner.
My mom dropped Lucy off and she very enthusiastically told us about her weekend getting to take care of and ride the horses at my mom's and Mike's place. She loved going there, and was actually turning into a really incredible rider. At one point, Luca and I had talked about getting her a horse of her own, but we both wanted to be sure this stuck before we made a purchase like that. We could keep it at my mom's, but a good horse was still a big investment.
Once dinner was done, we all ate together in the dining room. Layla was the only missing piece. Luca and the kids all teased each other and told stories about the weekend, and I just sat back in awe. Sometimes it really was like Luca was one of them, like I had five children, but I loved the bonds he shared with them. Each one was so unique, and he had an incredible way of making all of children feel special. If I could, I'd marry him all over again.
Luca made the boys clean up dinner and then helped Lucy with her math homework. I got to work on laundry for the week and made sure everything was organized. Sunday nights were usually reserved for getting ready for the rest of the week, since our schedules were so busy. It seemed there was always a game or practice or performance to get to, and right now, Leo was the only one driving.
Cole had his license, but he didn't have a car yet. Luca was determined that our children know the value of hard work, so they all had to come up with half of the money for their first car. It had been no problem with Layla and Leo, but Cole didn't seem to care in the slightest. It would have helped me out if he had his own car, but Luca was adamant about not giving in. It was a constant battle in our house lately.
The kids went to bed and, by the time we were shutting everything off for the night, I was absolutely exhausted. Luca and I had done a lot of "relaxing" this weekend, but it hadn't involved much sleep. I was already in bed and nearly asleep when he climbed in next to me, swinging his arm over my body.
"I love you." He whispered gently against my ear. He had his glasses on, which only made him that much sexier. If I wasn't already exhausted and sore from the weekend's escapades, I'd be all over him right now.
"I love you too, babe." I smiled. "What time do you have to go in tomorrow?"
"I have a meeting at nine. With Axel." He said.
Now he had my attention. "Axel? Your cousin?" I hadn't seen him in ages, and usually, when he came around, it wasn't good.
"Yeah." Luca nodded. "He's in town. I told you that, didn't I?"
"Uh, no. I think I would have remembered that." I propped myself up a little. "What does he want?"
"Easy babe." Luca chuckled. "He's just coming by to visit, I think. Nothing to worry about."
Except I was worried. I always worried when Axel was concerned. He was Luca's family, but he was also a loose canon. He made his living being deceitful, and I never knew exactly what he was after. I laid back down, not entirely convinced.
"Stop worrying, Charlotte." Luca narrowed his eyes at me. "I know you, and I can see your mind racing. It's just a visit."
I smiled, resting my head on his shoulder. "Okay, if you say so."
"I do." He hesitated for a second, staring at his phone. "You don't think Layla is actually serious about this kid, do you?"
I bit my lip to stifle my grin. It was adorable how concerned he was. Layla had had boyfriends before, but this was the first one she had been out for more than a few months. She was pretty flippant when it came to dating and had her sights set on her dance career more than anything. "Luca, I have no idea. I know about as much about him as you do."
"Yeah right. Girls always tell their moms more about this kind of thing."
"Not with you and Layla." I reminded him. "She actually told you about him first, remember?"
Layla and I shared our own special bond, but the relationship she and Luca had was incredible. She idolized him, and he felt similarly to her, as if she could do no wrong. Of course, she and I had had several talks about her boyfriend and I knew many details he probably didn't, but Luca had been the one she wanted to tell first.
"I guess you're right." He sighed, but I could tell there was more on his mind. "It just kind of hit me that she's an adult now. What if this is the kid she wants to marry? What if we're meeting our future son-in-law?"
"Okay, slow down there, papa bear." I smiled, putting my hand to his face. He was clearly distraught. "Don't get so far ahead of yourself. But if it turns out that he is the one for her, then we know he's going to be a good guy, right? We know he'll have a good head on his shoulders and he'll respect her and support her dreams. Because that's what we raised her to look for. To find a man who would treat her the way your treat me, right?"
"I guess so." He sighed.
I had to humor him. Watching her grow up was tough, and I couldn't imagine what it was like for him with his first baby girl. It was pretty damn cute, though.
"Look, why don't you just try to take this slowly? She's not getting married anytime soon, and who even knows if this kid will last through Christmas? You know how she is..."
"As always, Mrs. Catalano, you're completely right." He rolled over, giving me his full attention. "But I am still reserving the right to scare the living shit out of him if he even thinks about treating her wrong, whether you like it or not."
"Hey, I just said you couldn't intimidate him for no reason." I smirked. "If he does anything to hurt her, all bets are off. I'll even help you bury the body."
"That's my girl."