Chapter 10 Angelo
ANGELO
“I wasn’t sure I’d ever see this day,” a voice says from behind me, and I turn to find Michelle.
She’s not alone. She’s holding hands with a man I’ve never seen, but there’s a genuine smile on her face. A light I’ve never seen before.
“Michelle,” I say, wrapping my arms around her even with the man at her side. “It’s so nice to see you.”
Michelle and I have been friends forever. I remember the first time I saw her, hair pulled up and twisted into rolls at the side of her head like Princess Leia. She and Daphne were trouble, wreaking havoc on the neighborhood and the boys who paid them even the smallest bit of attention.
“I’m so happy for you,” she whispers in my ear as she flattens her hands on my back.
I pull away, placing my hands on her arms. “Cali seems to be agreeing with you.”
There’s no awkwardness between us. There could never be anything more between us, but I loved her just the same. We were never meant to be together. Her wild child ways wouldn’t keep her bound to this place, to me, or my children.
“It’s all Enrique’s fault.” She laughs as she steps back, sliding her arm around the man’s back. “This is Angelo, one of my oldest and dearest friends.”
Enrique holds out his hand to me and smiles. “It’s nice to meet you. Michelle has told me so much about your family.”
“Don’t believe a word of it,” I tease, shaking Enrique’s hand.
I move my eyes to the right, and I see Tilly watching us. I wave her over, wanting her to meet Michelle because last time she was in town, Tilly got the wrong idea and our relationship almost fell apart.
Tilly walks over slowly. Hesitant in each step as she moves her eyes between Michelle and me. Tilly’s not a jealous person, but that doesn’t mean there’s not a small part of her that doesn’t like the idea of Michelle and me in the same room, even if we are celebrating our wedding.
Michelle reaches for Tilly, pulling her into a tight embrace. “It’s so wonderful to meet you, Tilly. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about you from Daphne.”
Tilly seems a little shocked, staring at me with wide eyes as Michelle hugs her.
“You’re so beautiful,” Michelle says. “I’m so happy for the two of you. I knew someone would heal that broken heart of his.”
Okay. So, this is a little awkward, but nothing I can’t handle. I rub the back of my neck, trying to figure out if I should pull Tilly away and rescue her from Michelle’s embrace.
Before I have a chance to separate them, Michelle backs away and grabs on to Enrique’s hand again. “This is Enrique…”
“Oh. My. God. Enrique Sandoval?” Tilly’s eyes widen.
I stare at her in total confusion. How the fuck does Tilly know Michelle’s man? Especially since he’s from California.
Enrique dips his head, giving her a dashing smile. “In the flesh,” he murmurs, and part of me hates him for some odd reason.
“Baby.” Tilly nudges me. “You know who he is?”
I shrug. “Enrique Sandoval,” I repeat, but not with the same enthusiasm she had moments ago because I have no fucking clue who he is.
“He’s only the hottest telenovela star on the planet.”
Enrique smirks and waves her off, but I can tell he’s eating up Tilly’s compliment. “I’m no one, really.”
“Stop.” Tilly swats his arm. “I’m obsessed with your show.”
I glance at my new bride, wondering when she watches his show because the television’s barely on at home.
“I watch while I prep in the morning,” she says to me. “They’re just so deliciously sinful.”
Note to self—watch an episode and see what has Tilly in a tizzy, because standing here, looking at the guy in front of me, I don’t see it. He’s handsome but nowhere near celebrity status.
“Thanks for watching.” He smiles again, his teeth looking ridiculously white against his tanned skin.
“Enrique Sandoval is at my wedding,” Tilly says to herself and is almost shaking with excitement. “Where did you meet this handsome devil?”
Michelle peers up at Enrique with so much love, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen her so head over heels for someone.
She never looked at me the way she looks at him. Maybe it was our past and the fact that we knew each other for so many years. We were familiar and easy in ways that didn’t bring the great love I was looking for and found in Tilly.
Michelle laughs and grips Enrique’s arm. “I was broken down, changing the tire on my shit-ass truck, when Enrique stopped to help.”
“I couldn’t leave a beautiful woman to do a man’s job.” He brushes the hair away from her eyes. “Especially one with such a perfect ass.”
I try not to gag. The guy is full-on cheese, but I know Michelle’s in love with him. I’m happy for her. Beyond happy. She deserves some joy in her life, especially after the shitty childhood she had and losing her mother not too long ago.
“So, I guess you’re not coming back?” I ask, wondering if our lifelong friend has any chance of returning to Chicago.
Michelle shakes her head. “No. We’re getting married this winter, and since Enrique’s work is in Florida, we’re going to be moving there permanently.”
“I’m so happy for you,” I tell her and mean every word of it.
Whatever happened between Michelle and me is in the past, and although we fooled around a little, we were never more than friends. We were never meant to be more than that anyway.
“Maybe you can come with Daphne to our wedding,” Michelle says.
“Enrique Sandoval’s wedding?” Tilly’s eyes are so damn big at this point, and she’s totally star-struck.
“The entire cast will be there too,” Michelle tells her, selling her on a trip to California.
“We’ll be there.” Tilly nods before I have a chance to decline the informal invitation.
“Baby.” I wrap my arm around my wife’s waist, pulling her flush against me. “We’re being called to the dance floor.”
Maybe I lied. I am a little jealous, after all. I don’t like the way this guy has my girl all gaga over him, even if it’s more about his fictional, on-screen persona than the man himself.
“It was nice to meet you,” Tilly says over her shoulder as I move her toward the dance floor.
I lean over as I pass Michelle and whisper, “It’s nice to see you happy.”
She smiles, waving at us. “We’ll see you in California,” she calls out.
“Can you believe that?”
“What?” I ask my wife, guiding her through the sea of people.
“We have a celebrity at our wedding.” She glances up at me, expecting me to be overly excited.
I put on my best game face. “Very exciting,” I lie. “You know what’s even more exciting than that?”
She turns to face me as we come to a stop in the center of the dance floor. “What?”
I wrap my arms around her waist and hold her tightly. “You’re Mrs. Angelo Gallo.”
I’m such a lucky son of a bitch. Not only have I had one great love in my life, but now I have a second even deeper one. Someone who lights my fire and softens me in all the right ways, reminding me of all the good in the world.
For too long, I dwelled on the bad shit. Focused on the way I was wronged by God. Now, my life is full. The laughter has returned to my house and my heart. The darkness that seemed to follow me has been replaced by light and joy. Tilly did that.
If we both hadn’t been so broken, we might have never found each other. Where would I be if she hadn’t opened her cupcake shop next to the bar? Would our paths have crossed otherwise? Probably not. Life has a funny way of working itself out.
“I am.” She smiles and snakes her arms around my neck, toying with the ends of my hair.
“You know the only thing that could be better than this?”
“What?”
I slide my hand around to her stomach. “To see your belly full with our baby inside.”
Her eyes widen, bigger than when she met Enrique. “What?”
“I want another baby, Tilly. I want our baby.”
Having a piece of Marissa with me always has been my saving grace. I love my kids more than anything in the world, and there’s nothing that would give me greater joy than having a small piece of Tilly and me as a legacy when we’re no longer here.”
“Can we practice for a while?” she asks, brushing her lips against mine.
“We can practice all you want, baby.” I chuckle softly against her mouth.
“Please welcome to the dance floor, Mr. and Mrs. Angelo Gallo,” the announcer says, and the wedding guests clap loudly, followed by a few people hollering through the room.
I tighten my hold on my wife, swaying to our song and knowing life can’t get much better than this.