Chapter 33
CHANTEL
“Where are we going?” I ask.
Cristian squeezes my hand in his. “We have visitors.”
“Okay,” I draw out the word, a little concerned when I realize we’re heading to the courtyard.
There’s a distinct separation between guests who are greeted in the courtyard versus guests who are welcomed into the Vitale home. That distinction usually boils down to trust.
My mind reels with possibilities, but when we round the corner and I see Kenzie with Andreas beside her, it starts to make sense.
I’m so happy she’s here, I don’t even care that Cristian and Andreas are both casting suspicious glances at each other.
“Oh my god.” Kenzie flings her arms around me. “It feels like forever since I’ve seen you.”
“I know.” I laugh. “This is a nice surprise.”
She pulls back to look at me, some of her excitement dimming. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” I assure her. “Despite the circumstances, I’m doing really well.”
“I still can’t believe Elias was the stalker,” she says. “It’s so insane I’m having trouble wrapping my head around it.”
“Me too.”
“Ciao, ciao!” Nonna appears, wheeling a serving cart to the table. “I brought you a little something to eat.”
“Thank you, Nonna,” Cristian answers gruffly. “You didn’t need to do that.”
“Nonsense.” She waves him off. “Mangiate!”
Her “little something” turns out to be cornetti, cake, pizzelles, a fruit platter, three different types of salad, and some random meatballs—just in case anyone’s still hungry.
Kenzie watches with wide eyes as Nonna finishes the spread with a variety of tea, coffee, and juice before she pats Cristian on the chest.
“Business is always better with something sweet.”
He thanks her again, and she wheels the cart off just as quickly as she appeared.
“I love her already.” Kenzie laughs. “Where can I adopt one?”
I want to tell her that she’d be more than welcome here, but it’s a conversation I’ve been too afraid to have with Cristian. Kenzie may not be Greek, but Andreas is, so she’s basically one of them.
This divide runs both ways, and it always has.
Growing up, I heard nothing but animosity toward the Italians. And while Ares might be more relaxed about it now, there was a time he wouldn’t even allow the Vitales to set foot on their property. So this may be as good as it ever gets.
After a moment of awkward silence, we all take our seats, and Kenzie doesn’t miss how gingerly I sit down.
“Hard workout?” she asks.
“Something like that.” I smooth an imaginary wrinkle from my skirt.
Cristian smirks, and Andreas takes a sudden interest in the table as Kenzie tries her best not to laugh.
“Well, I guess that’s one way to break the ice,” she says. “Don’t worry, I had a hard workout this morning too.”
Andreas actually blushes, and it dissolves some of the tension.
Nonna mentioned business, so it’s a safe assumption he’s here to talk about Elias. But neither of the men seems to know where to start.
“I think Nonna was onto something about food first.” I grab my plate and dish up.
Everyone else joins in, and since Cristian and Andreas are both quiet, I ask Kenzie about the latest happenings at the club. She tells me all the rampant theories for my absence and the latest drama, and we have a good laugh about it.
“Everyone really misses you,” she says. “But me most of all.”
“I know,” I answer softly. “I miss you too. But this won’t last forever. When things are safe, I can meet you in the city.”
“She can visit you here too.” Cristian drapes his arm over the back of my chair, grazing my shoulder with his fingers.
“Really?” I glance over at him.
“Yes,” he murmurs. “You aren’t a guest here, gattina.”
It doesn’t escape me that he didn’t extend the invitation to Andreas, but Kenzie doesn’t seem to mind. She looks like she’s about to melt into the floor as she glances between Cristian and me, and I know she’s dying to ask me a million questions.
She’ll definitely be blowing up my phone later.
“Are you planning on coming back to work?” she asks hopefully.
“Actually, that’s something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about…”
“You’re leaving me, aren’t you?” She sighs dramatically.
“We’ve had a good run,” I tell her. “It’s not you, it’s me.”
“After all the years I’ve given you,” she huffs. “The audacity.”
I smile, relieved that she’s handling this surprisingly well.
“I can’t be too upset.” She glances at Andreas. “I’m leaving in a month anyway, so I can start planning our wedding.”
“Oh my god, Kenzie.” I blink at her, stunned. “Really?”
“Yep.” She flashes me the ring I didn’t notice she was wearing. “He did good, right?”
“He did so good.” I nod approvingly. “I couldn’t be happier for you.”
She tells us the story about his proposal, not leaving out a single detail, and I love every minute of it.
Kenzie deserves to have everything she wants, and I think Andreas will do right by her. The man can barely stop himself from looking at her every few seconds, like she’s his anchor in this world.
When I glance at Cristian and find him watching me, I understand that feeling. Because he’s become my anchor too.
The conversation continues, eventually drifting back to the topic of Elias.
Both men seem slightly more relaxed as Cristian asks Andreas questions about where Elias spends his time. He also wants to know about his hobbies, associates, and where he might camp while he’s hiding out.
Andreas answers the questions gruffly, but honestly, as far as I can tell.
I’m sure it’s strange for him to cross into enemy territory and provide information about one of their own, but he seems willing to help.
He even divulges that Elias would often meet with Tiffany, which is how he suspects the notes were being delivered to my dressing table.
Cristian says that makes sense, considering they never saw Elias on the cameras backstage.
Everything is going well until I spear a piece of pineapple onto my fork and bite into it. As I start to chew, something about it feels off. More than off, I realize, as it becomes sickly sweet in my mouth and the smell suddenly overwhelms me.
I love pineapple. I’ve always loved pineapple. But this isn’t the first food my body has rejected recently.
I discard the half-chewed fruit into my napkin as discreetly as I can manage while my mouth waters and my stomach churns.
“Sorry, I just have to use the restroom.” I rise from my seat, excusing myself quickly.
Playing it cool until I round the corner, I run to the nearest bathroom and hurl myself over the toilet—just in time to throw up my entire breakfast.
“Oh, God,” I whimper.
“Don’t tell me my brother already got you pregnant.” Mariella sighs from the door behind me.
I close my eyes and groan in response. I’ve been trying not to think about it, but the signs are all there.
Truthfully, I don’t know how to handle any of it, but I guess the first step is acknowledging it.
“I guess Rafe wasn’t kidding when he said the Vitale men are potent,” I grumble.
“You want to do a test real quick?” Mariella asks.
I blink up at her and nod, because I have to get cleaned up anyway, and I guess there’s no time like the present to face reality.
Mariella takes me to her wing, and once I’m finished with the test, she offers me a new toothbrush and some toothpaste.
I brush and rinse my mouth while we wait, and it doesn’t take long for the truth to reveal itself.
“Definitely pregnant,” Mariella says.
We both stare at the test, and after a long minute of silence, she glances over at me.
“How are you feeling about it?”
“Shocked,” I admit. “But I shouldn’t be. It’s not like we didn’t know this was going to happen.”
“It might take some time to sink in,” she tells me. “But I’m happy for you. You’re going to be an incredible mother, Chantel.”
“Thank you.” I tear up, blotting at my eyes with a tissue. “Can I expect these waterworks to happen all the time now?”
“It’s a possibility.” She laughs. “I also recommend eating small, frequent meals. Hunger can make the nausea worse.”
“Okay.” I blow out a breath.
I’m growing an entire human inside me, and now that it’s confirmed, I’m not sure I’m even qualified. Do they actually just let anyone become a mother? I feel like there’s some kind of test I should pass, and I’m wholly unprepared.
“Take things one step at a time,” Mariella suggests, recognizing my overwhelm. “Today, all you need to do is relax. I’ll make some ginger tea for you.”
“Thank you.” I offer her a smile. “But can we make it to go? I need to get back to the courtyard.”
“How are things going out there?” she asks as we head to her kitchen and she puts on the kettle.
“Actually not that bad. No blood spilled, so that’s a win.”
Mariella nods as she fills the mug with water and dunks the tea bag. “You can pop over for an ultrasound this week if you want.”
“You can do that here?”
“Angelo went a little overboard when Abella was pregnant the first time,” she muses. “He spared no expense setting up a medical suite, just in case we needed it.”
“Well, that’s a relief, since I can’t leave the island right now,” I tell her. “I’d love to do one here.”
“I’ll send you my schedule this week, and you can stop over whenever I’m home.”
I thank her and take the mug, leaving her wing in a bit of a daze. I’m afraid it’s going to be written all over my face when Cristian sees me, but I just need to focus on one step at a time, like Mariella said.
For now, I walk down the corridor and out to the courtyard. Step two is sitting down and acting totally, completely normal as everyone glances at me.
“Sorry,” I murmur into my cup. “I wanted a different kind of tea.”
Cristian settles his hand on my back, watching me with those eyes that never miss a thing. I’m certain he can tell something is off, but he doesn’t ask about it in front of our company.
“We should probably get going anyhow,” Kenzie says. “I have to work tonight, but I’ll need a nap after all this food.”
I nod, and we all walk out together. Cristian and I see them off as I tell Kenzie I’ll call her later.
“You better,” she whispers as she gives me a hug. “I have so many questions.”
I laugh as Andreas ushers her into the car, clearly relieved to be getting the hell out of here. But all in all, I think it went pretty well.
“You doing okay?” Cristian peers down at me as he pulls me closer.
“So good.” I nod robotically.
Yep, that was totally convincing.
Amusement flashes in his eyes as he threads his fingers through mine and leads me into the house.
“You look like you could use a nap too,” he says.
“Actually…that sounds perfect.”