"Not as much as you, clearly." He indicates the almost empty bottle of wine next to me. I had grabbed it from the center of the table and decided to hold onto it. It may be the season of sharing, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to miss the opportunity to try to drown out the confusion in my head with alcohol.
I knock back the rest of the wine in the glass, then place it back on the table.
"Probably not a good idea to get drunk either," he cautions.
"Least I can do, considering I have been relegated to trying to sneak in meetings with my own fiancée."
Luca chuckles. "Never thought I’d see the day when you’d be beaten at your own game. And what makes it even worse is she’s a woman of eighty."
"Not sure what she is punishing me for or why she is so insistent that everything be done according to tradition. I swear, she’s probably just trying to make it as difficult for me as possible to get a good night’s sleep."
"You could, of course, come out with us tonight to the nightclub."
I scowl. "Why is this the first I’m hearing about it?"
"Figured you’d want to spend time with your woman like Michael here, but since you do not," he smirks, "might as well cut your losses and come with us, huh?"
Two of the staff clear our dinner plates, then a clinking sound reaches us. Seb and I look up to find Nonna tapping her glass with a knife. "May I have your attention, please?"
The noise dies down and everyone glances at her, "I am so happy to see my family all together for the holidays. I know, it's been a challenge for you boys to get your heads around why I wanted this event to take place, but I’m so pleased that all of you could make it."
"Of course, Nonna," Michael murmurs. "You are the oldest in our family, so your word is law."
Nonna chuckles. "It's generous of you to say so, Don Sovrano," she tilts her head, "but I'll accept the compliment."
"Not just an empty compliment." I raise my glass. "We'll always prioritize your wishes before anything else."
"Why thank you, Christiano." She smiles at me. "I know, at heart, you boys are committed to this family, that you'll prioritize the good of your brothers before anything else. It's what makes our family strong and able to combat any challenge from any outsider." She glances around the table. "I don't know if I'll be here to see another Christmas, so—"
A ripple runs around the table. I open my mouth to protest, and she raises a hand. "I know, I know. God willing, I'll be here for much longer than that, but at my age, you take each day as your last day, so..." She places her glass and knife on the table. "I wanted to make this post-Christmas celebration special."
As if on cue, Cassandra walks in, pushing a trolley laden with gifts. She pauses next to Nonna.
"Thought you said you didn't want us to have any gift-giving this year, Nonna?" Michael interjects.
"I changed my mind." Nonna raises her shoulder, "I think I’m allowed at my age, eh?"
"Bull-fucking-shit," I whisper to Luca. "She planned this all along."
"Of course, she did," Luca says from the corner of his mouth. "But he'll let Nonna get away with it."
Cass walks around the table and places a gift in front of each one of us. Then she pushes the trolley to the side and takes her seat at the table.
Nonna raises her hand. "Open your gifts, please."
I glance down at my gift, then at Aurora, who looks up at me. Our gazes clash. Her champagne eyes sparkle in this light. Her features are flushed; her hair gleams with a healthy shine. She looks relaxed and so damn beautiful. A hot sensation stabs at my chest. She holds my gaze a second longer before turning away. She reaches for her gift, unwraps it, and holds up a bracelet. The light bounces off the simple but elegant design.
"Nonna," she gasps, "it's beautiful."
"And so is this." Karma holds up a chain with a teardrop black diamond as the pendant.
"Both are family heirlooms," Nonna smiles, "and they'll look much better when they are worn than being kept in the family safe."
"Oh, my god," Theresa breathes. She stares at a box with something like reverence. "These are very expensive tulip bulbs." She looks at Nonna with tears in her eyes. "I never thought I'd be able to afford them." She jumps to her feet and runs around to hug Nonna, who looks taken aback. She pats Theresa on her shoulder.
"There, there, use them to grow your florist business."
"I will." Pressing a kiss to Nonna's cheek, Theresa all but skips back to her seat.