Chapter 10 #2
“Tricia, I’m glad you came today. I look forward to seeing you often. Elle and I are hosting Sunday dinner. I hope you’ll be there.”
I freeze, looking up at Joaquin in panic. His expression darkens, and his fear is practically palpable. I swallow before answering, not looking at Enrique or Elle—though I’m tempted to look at her.
“I’m supposed to go over to Gabriele and Sinead’s for the Mancinellis’ Sunday dinner. I’ll cancel, but I don’t know what to say.”
Joaquin grimaces. “You won’t have to say anything. Carmine’s likely already tattled to his entire family.”
My eyes widen. I’d hoped Sera would’ve kept her husband from saying anything to his family. But if Carmine told Salvatore or Massimo—the don and consigliere—then my father already knows. His silence isn’t ignorance. It’s the calm before the storm.
“Do you really think he told anyone? Sera doesn’t keep anything from him, but she wouldn’t confirm it.”
“Tre, no one at that dinner table misunderstood what’s between us. Carmine was giving me sh—a hard time while you, Sera, and Toria were in the kitchen.”
I like how he won’t swear in front of his aunt and me. I appreciate the deference to us and his uncle. I like it during sex, and I wouldn’t care if it were in front of our generation. But his respect for his family reminds me why there’s no one better for me than Joaquin.
How the fuck do you know that after one night talking, one awkward as fuck dinner, a shitty quasi-date, a rescue from a bar fight, and having sex twice?
More like having sex half a dozen times.
Because I just do.
I knew Carmine was giving him shit because my friends and I walked in just as the men were going back and forth about Joaquin’s and Carmine’s balls. I remember Carmine said Joaquin had blue balls, and he implied Sera had Carmine’s.
“Tre, we’re prepared for it.”
It.
The fallout.
I’d almost forgotten about my parents and the disaster awaiting us.
Joaquin hugs Enrique while I hug Elle, then we switch.
Hugging Enrique isn’t like hugging my dad or even my uncles.
But it’s not awkward. It’s reassuring. We say our goodbyes before joining Luciana, who’s standing with Javier and Madeline.
Jorge and Anneliese are talking to a couple and Pablo and Florencia.
Catalina and Matías are with Margherita, Pablo’s mother.
They’re talking to two other couples. I know Pablo’s dad, Luis, is traveling right now.
Luciana, Javier, and Madeline pause their conversation, and the rest of the family has a sixth sense. They turn toward us. The “outsiders”—nonfamily men and women—fade away. They intuit this is a family-only conversation.
Luciana’s grinning at her son. She looks like she’s barely more than twenty when she smiles like this. There’s mischief in her gaze.
“Ya era hora.”
Era ora. About time.
That wasn’t hard to figure out since it’s so similar to Italian.
I feel the blush rising in my cheeks.
“Mamá.”
Joaquin hisses the word, and I see his perpetually suntanned cheeks tinged with red. At least I’m not mortified alone.
“?Qué?” What?
She’s utterly unrepentant as she teases her son.
She turns her gleeful smile on me, and she’s not just youthful but breathtaking.
The Diaz genes run strong in this family.
I can tell Tres J’s—I learned that’s what Joaquin, Javier, and Jorge are called—inherited some features from their father, but they look too much like all the other members of the Diaz family to ever doubt the connection.
It’s no surprise Joaquin—hell, all Tres J’s—are so attractive with a mother who looks like Luciana.
Her smile’s infectious. Where Enrique was reserved when he approached us, Luciana has no qualms pulling me in for a hug. I don’t expect it to feel nearly as good as Elle’s hugs. But it does. She’s more diplomatic when she speaks to me, keeping her voice to a whisper.
“He cares for you, mu?eca. Be patient with him, please. He’s new to this.”
New to being in a relationship? To having a partner? To caring about a woman?
All of it.
I nod against her shoulder. We step apart, and I miss the hug. It shocks me. All of this fucking shocks me. The unconditional acceptance from his family. It’s unlike anything I imagined. Unlike anything I’ve seen before.
“We’re taking off.”
Joaquin declares our plans, and no one bats an eye at it. The party’s still going strong, so it’s early for us to leave. But we get a round of hugs before we find Alejandro and Toria to say our thanks and goodbyes. My friend waggles her eyebrows at me, and Alejandro smirks at Joaquin.
When we make it outside, Joaquin pulls me in for a kiss, his arm around me again. He only let go when we hugged the others. It’s a light kiss that feels so familiar. The kind you’d expect a couple that’s been together for a while to exchange.
“What does mu?eca mean?”
“Little doll. Is that what Mamá called you while she made my blood pressure take off?”
“Yes.” I pat his chest comfortingly, amused at his distress over his mother whispering to me.
“She calls the other women who married into the family that. She’s happy we’re together.”
He leans down and kisses me again, making my toes curl. It’s over too soon, but we know there are guards watching us. He pulls me back to the present when he speaks.
“I drove today. Did you?”
“No. Toria sent a driver to pick me up since I came over to help set up. I thought I’d have a few mimosas, so I didn’t want to drive. I didn’t feel well enough to handle anything sour. Just as well if I’m…” I trail off since it doesn’t need saying aloud.
“Do you want to walk to the pharmacy and then come back for my car? Or is there somewhere on the way to your place?”
“I suppose we’re less likely to run into anyone you know if we go to the pharmacy closer to my place. The employees wouldn’t know you there.”
“I appreciate your concern for gossip. I’m not embarrassed to buy a pregnancy test with you. While we can’t keep people from talking about our family, most are wise enough to keep the murmurs to a minimum.”
“An unwed member of the Diaz family buying a pregnancy test would spread faster than fleas on a dog’s back.”
Joaquin grimaces and nods. “Whatever you want, chiquita.”
Joaquin’s arm draped around my shoulder as we sit together on my sofa is the only thing keeping me from pacing my living room.
I watch the timer on my phone tick down from five minutes.
We chose a pharmacy near my apartment and spent ten minutes evaluating all our choices.
Who knew there were so many types of sticks to pee on to tell you “yes” or “no.”
I’ve been picking at my left thumb’s cuticle for the past three and a half minutes. I’m going to make it bleed if I do this for the next minute and a half. Joaquin wraps his hand around mine, effectively stopping my self-mutilation. Thank goodness because it stings like a motherfucker.
“Tre, why don’t you turn your phone over until it buzzes?”
“No. I need to know how long we have, even if it’s making me anxious. Not knowing will only make it worse.”
He scoops me onto his lap and wraps his arms around me.
I nestle against him and close my eyes. He kisses my forehead over and over as he strokes my arm.
I lift my chin to kiss his neck before closing my eyes again.
His cologne fills my nostrils, calming me further.
I’d love nothing more than to snag one of his shirts to sleep in.
I’d be out like a light every night if I had it. Better than lavender or chamomile.
My phone buzzes and vibrates, but I don’t want to sit up.
Joaquin saves me from having to when he tightens his left arm around me and reaches for the coffee table with his other.
He turns off the phone and sets it on the sofa beside me.
Unfortunately, it’s inevitable that I have to get up since the test is sitting on my bathroom counter.
“Do you want me to wait here?”
I shake my head. “I need you to come with me.”
I meet his gaze, and I see his relief. He doesn’t want to be left out. We head to my half bathroom, but when we get to the doorway, I pause.
“Wait until I’ve picked it up and am standing next to you. Then turn on the light. I don’t want to see the result before you.”
I don’t know why that’s so fucking important to me. Maybe I don’t want to be alone in the knowledge for even a second.
“Thank you.”
I peer up at him, and I sense he wants to know at the same time too. I think…it would hurt his feelings if I knew before him. It takes me a moment to work through that revelation.
I step into the bathroom, knowing roughly where the end of the counter is from the dim light behind Joaquin. I find the stick and turn toward him.
“I have it.”
He flicks the light on, and we stare at the results. Neither of us says anything for a moment before looking at each other in the mirror.
“I’ll support whatever you want to do, Tre.”
“I—I—don’t know yet.”
It’s the truth as we both look down at the results in the mirror.
Joaquin wraps his arms around me from behind, and we stand in silence.
It’s not awkward. Just the opposite. It’s as though he’s transferring his strength to me via osmosis.
After at least two minutes, I inhale and pull away.
We head back into the living room where we sit together.