Chapter 5 Liana #2
"You should live with us. In our home." I'm warming to this now. "You shouldn't be alone. You're family. Family should be together."
"Child—"
"I insist." I reach over and take her hand. It's small, wrinkled, strong. "I would love to take care of you. To spend time with you. To make sure you're not alone."
Nonna is staring at me like I've grown a second head.
Across the room, Santino has stopped mid-conversation. He's looking at us. He can't hear what we're saying, but he can see us holding hands.
He looks concerned.
"You barely know me," Nonna says slowly. "Why would you offer such a thing?"
"Because you're his grandmother. Because you deserve to be surrounded by family. Because it's the right thing to do." I squeeze her hand gently. "Please say yes. I would be honored to have you with us."
The old woman studies my face for a long moment. "You're serious."
"Completely."
"Santino knows about this?"
"Not yet. But I'm sure he'll be thrilled." I stand, still holding her hand. "Let's tell him now!"
"Child, wait—"
But I'm already walking over to Santino, pulling a confused and slightly alarmed Nonna with me. The room goes quiet as everyone notices us approaching Santino.
"Santo!" I make up a nickname on the spur of the moment. "I have wonderful news!"
He looks at me. At Nonna. At our joined hands. "What news?"
"I've invited Nonna to come live with us after we're married!"
Complete silence.
Santino's face goes blank. Just completely blank. Like his brain has stopped processing information.
His mother's eyes go wide. His father leans forward in his chair.
"Isn't that wonderful?" I continue. "She shouldn't be alone in the guest house. She should be with family! With us!"
"Liana—" Santino starts.
"I know, I know, you're probably so happy you didn't think of it yourself." I beam at him. "But that's okay! I thought of it! And Nonna and I have been talking, and she's so lovely, and I just think it would be perfect."
"Liana." His voice is strained. "Can I talk to you for a moment? In private?"
"Of course!" I turn to Nonna. "We'll be right back!"
He practically drags me into the hallway. The moment we're alone, he turns on me.
"What are you doing?"
"What do you mean?" I blink innocently. "I'm helping. I love her. She’s great and reminds me of my grandmother who passed away."
"Helping." He runs a hand through his hair. "You just invited my ninety-two-year-old grandmother to live with us."
"Yes! Isn't it great?"
"No. It's not great." He's trying to keep his voice down. "Liana, newlyweds don't live with their grandmothers."
"Why not? If she needs care—"
"She has care. She has a caretaker. She has her own house."
"But she's alone at night. That's sad."
"She's fine. She's been alone for years."
"And that's terrible!" I put my hand on his arm. "Santo, she's your grandmother. Don't you want her to be comfortable? Cared for? Loved?"
"Of course I do, but—"
"Then what's the problem?" I tilt my head. "Unless you don't want her living with us?"
It's a trap. A beautiful trap.
If he says no, he looks like a terrible grandson. If he says yes, he gets his grandmother as a roommate.
He lets out a long sigh. "It's not that simple."
"It seems simple to me." I smile. "You love your grandmother. I love old people. We have plenty of space. It's perfect." In reality, I wouldn’t mind at all if she moved in, if our marriage was real. Which it won’t be.
"Liana—"
"Unless..." I let my smile fade. "Unless you don't think I'm capable of taking care of her?"
"That's not what I—"
"Because I volunteer at a senior center. I took care of my own grandmother for years. I know what I'm doing."
"I'm sure you do, but—"
"What's the problem?" I look up at him with wide, innocent eyes. "Why don't you want your grandmother to live with us?"
He has no good answer.
Behind us, I hear footsteps. His mother appears in the hallway. "Santino? Is everything alright?"
"Fine," he manages. "Everything's fine."
Giovanna looks between us. "Liana, that was a very generous offer. For Nonna."
"Oh, it's not generous at all!" I turn to her. "It's just what family does, right? Take care of each other?"
I can see her struggling. She wants to say no. Wants to tell me this is inappropriate. But how can she? How can she argue against taking care of family?
"It's very thoughtful," she says carefully. "But perhaps you and Santino should discuss this further. It's a big decision. And she’s very happy where she is."
"Of course!" I link my arm through Santino's. "We'll definitely talk about it. But I'm sure he'll agree. Right, Santo?"
He looks at me. And for a moment, I see something in his eyes. Suspicion. Like he's trying to figure out if I'm really this clueless or if something else is happening.
But then it's gone, replaced by resignation.
"We'll discuss it," he says.
"Perfect!" I kiss his cheek. "I'm so glad we're on the same page about family values."
We return to the sitting room. Nonna is back in her chair, looking amused. When we walk over, she peers up at me.
"You're either very kind or very clever," she says, trying not to smile.
"Can't I be both?"
"Perhaps." Her eyes gleam as if the two of us have a secret. "Time will tell."
The rest of the evening passes in a blur. I'm charming. I'm enthusiastic. I ask everyone about their lives, their families, their hopes.
I'm exhausting.
I can see it in their faces. They're trying to like me. Trying to see what Santino sees in me. But they're also confused and overwhelmed. They’re wondering if this might not be a good idea after all.
When it's finally time to leave, Giovanna walks us to the door. "Thank you for coming, Liana."
"Thank you for having me! Your family is wonderful. I can't wait to be part of it."
She smiles, but it doesn't reach her eyes. "We'll see you soon."
In the car, Santino is silent. Completely silent.
I let it sit for a while, then ask, "Did I do something wrong?"
"No." His voice is tight. "You did exactly what you wanted to do."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing." He pulls out onto the main road. "Just... Liana. About my grandmother."
"Oh, I meant what I said! I really do want her to live with us."
"We can't—" He stops. Takes a breath. "We'll talk about this later."
"Okay!" I smile in the darkness. "But I really think it's a wonderful idea. I could start getting her room ready for her at your place. We will be living there, right? You know, there are a lot of details we haven’t talked about. We need to get on it. Time is ticking by."
He doesn't respond. The rest of the drive is silent. When we pull up to my house, he walks me to the door. Again. Even though I can tell he doesn't want to.
"Goodnight, Liana."
"Goodnight, Santo." I kiss his cheek. "Thank you for introducing me to your family. They're lovely. Especially Nonna. I can't wait to see her again. I think she likes me too."
"I'm sure."
I head inside, and the moment the door closes, I lean against it and grin.
Gia appears from the living room. "Well?"
"I offered to have his ninety-two-year-old grandmother move in with us after we're married."
Gia's mouth falls open. "You didn't."
"I did. In front of his entire family. And he can't say no without looking like a terrible grandson.
So now he's stuck either agreeing to live with Nonna or explaining to his whole family why he won't take care of her. She’s really sweet, too. I would take her in a heartbeat. She shouldn’t be staying overnight by herself. "
"That's evil."
"That's strategy." I push off the door and head for the stairs. "Day Three, Gia. And he's already realizing this is going to be harder than he thought."
In my room, I change out of the too-bright dress and into pajamas. My phone buzzes. A text from Santino.
Santino: We need to talk about my grandmother.
I smile and type back.
Me: Of course! I have so many ideas for her room. Should we do yellow or blue? Or maybe lavender? Old people love lavender! Oh wait, is that why they smell like lavender? Have you ever noticed that?
His response takes five minutes.
Santino: Goodnight, Liana.
No heart. No kiss. Just goodnight.
I set down my phone and stare at the ceiling.
Three days down. Thirty-seven long days to go.
And Santino Marcello is starting to crack already