Luca follows my lead, his expression serene despite my mother’s obvious and sudden rudeness.
“How long have you two been dating?”
Luca grabs my hand and entwines our fingers, his downcast gaze a sign that he’ll let me take the lead.
“We only started dating very recently, but like Abuela said, it was inevitable. We realized we wanted to be together shortly after I quit my job.”
Mom starts to tap her foot, her face betraying her anger. “You. You’re engaged, aren’t you? What exactly is it that you’re trying to do? Are you trying to turn my daughter into your mistress?”
I should’ve realized this is what her concern would be. Perhaps it would’ve been better to admit we got married. That would put these worries at ease, but it’s too late to communicate that to Luca now, especially since I’ve already introduced him as my boyfriend.
Luca tenses and tightens his grip on my hand. “It wasn’t my choice or desire to get engaged, and that engagement has since been broken. Please rest assured. I will not be marrying that woman.”
Mom huffs and rolls her eyes. “How long are you going to string my daughter along with that story? It’s always the same tale, isn’t it? You’ll promise to leave your fiancée or wife, but you won’t. And if you do leave your fiancée, you’ll end up going back to her.”
I know Luca well enough to know when he’s getting angry, despite his carefully blank face. He glances at me for a moment, and I shoot him a reassuring smile.
“Mom, I’ve known Luca for eight years, and I promise you that he isn’t like that. His engagement really was broken. It just hasn’t been reported yet by the media.”
“I’m against this,” she tells me. “What are you thinking, Val? End this relationshipimmediately. This will impact your work and everything you’ve built. People will start to question whether you slept your way up, and in the end, he’ll want someone who has more to offer. He’s blinded by passion, but it’ll wear off, and he’ll abandon you. End itnow, before you lose everything you worked for. You never should have gone to work for that family at all. I knew something like this would happen. Do you really believe you can overcome the differences between you?You can’t. You should have known better, Valentina.”
I start to tremble, unsure how to refute her words. I knew this conversation wouldn’t be easy, but I didn’t expect her to act this way in front of Luca.
He wraps his arm around me and looks at my mother. “Ma’am,” he says, his tone polite. “First of all, I’d like to apologize for lying to you. The truth is that Imarriedyour daughter. She told you we were dating because she thought it would be difficult for you to accept us eloping, but it is what it is. Valentina is mywife. I agree that us being together would impact her work, and yes, the engagement that was forced upon me further complicates matters, but ultimately it comes down to one thing. I love your daughter, and I want to spend the rest of my life with her, no matter the trials we might face.”
Abuela gasps, and then she chuckles. “Good for you, mi niña,” she says, her eyes sparkling. “It has been eight years. There is no need to wait longer. It’s good that you got married.”
Luca grins at her in gratitude, but my mother stares at us in shock and dismay.
“How could you do this?” she asks me, her voice soft. I stare down at my lap, unsure what to say. “You will regret this, Valentina.”
Mom rises to her feet and grabs her walking stick, her face in obvious pain as she walks out of the room. I stare after her, my heart aching. How is it that once again, she left me feeling the same way she always does? Lonely and bitter.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Luca
Valentina is quiet as we walk into our house, clearly distraught by her mother’s behavior. The entire experience was unexpected, even for me. I didn’t think she’d be as antagonistic as she was, and I can’t help but wonder if she speaks to Valentina that way often.
“I’m sorry about my mother,” my wife says as she slips out of her heels, placing her shoes next to mine. “I’m not sure what I was expecting, but this is probably as well as it could’ve gone.”
She walks to the living room barefoot, and I follow her, oddly affected by her mellow mood. This was never meant to be more than a marriage of convenience, yet I hate the way she tries to hide her pain from me. I’ve never wanted to be someone women turn to for consolation, but that’s exactly what I want my wife to do.
“Your grandmother is incredibly sweet and really quite adorable.”
She puts her legs on the sofa and draws her knees to her chest, her arms wrapping around them. “She seems to be doing okay. I know it isn’t possible to cure her, but it’s such a relief to know that she has the care she needs. Just knowing thatthere’s no chance of her going missing again puts me at ease. I honestly can’t thank you enough, Luca. I never would’ve been able to afford top of the line care for her. The thought of her being mistreated, or her just being another patient that her overworked nurses don’t truly care about… I can’t take it.”
I turn to face her and lean back against the sofa. “You know what, Valentina? I thought it was especially adorable when she called meLucifer,” I murmur, knowing it’ll shift her thoughts into a different direction.
Valentina’s eyes widen, and the guilty look she throws me makes it hard to keep from smiling, but I manage it somehow.
“I think she also said something about me beingthe devil incarnate? Or did you call methe devil himself? What was it? Remind me.”
She clears her throat awkwardly, and I bite back a smile as I pull her toward me. She falls into me, and I lift her into my arms and reposition her until I’ve got her straddling me, the two of us facing each other. “Care to explain, wife?”
She looks away, looking flustered in an entirely different way than she did when we walked into the house. I thread a hand through her hair and force her to face me, my eyes dropping to her lips.
“Um,” she says. “Well, it’s a long story, really.”