Chapter 11
I’m making my way down the stairs with some difficulty—the pain’s still there—a smile on my face, and I don’t notice who’s waiting at the bottom, eyeing me suspiciously.
“Mind telling me who that little smile is for?”
“Here to bug me first thing in the morning.”
“I need a favor, and who else would I ask but you?”
“Let’s go to my office.”
“And why are you limping like that—don’t tell me you already need crutches.”
“You’ve turned into quite the comedian since you got married, haven’t you?”
“I had no idea marriage could be this good—if I’d known, I would’ve gone after Emma sooner. But tell me, what happened to you?”
I tell him what happened the night before, and the jerk starts laughing as we walk into the office. I say:
“What happened to that insufferable Italian? I want my old friend back.”
“Well, my friend, I’m still the same at heart, but I really am happier. Emma and Matteo have made my life perfect. I had no idea I could love a child this much.”
“It really is something else, having a child. The love is different—it’s greater than any other feeling.”
“Mama told me you’ve even been baking cookies. I want to hear the whole story.”
“Ellie’s new nanny has been taking her to the kitchen to make cakes, cookies, all kinds of things—and being the good father I am, when she calls me, I help out too.”
“Right, this story doesn’t add up. From what I know, you hate cooking, and you’ve never set foot in the kitchen with Ellie and any of her nannies.”
“Because none of them did what the new one does.”
“I met her. She seems like a great person.”
“Yes, she’s wonderful with my daughter. An incredible girl.”
“I see. And you’re falling for her.”
“You must be out of your mind. No woman is going to take Luma’s place.”
“Are you sure? Because it doesn’t seem like it. The way you talk about Amélie is different—just like I used to talk about Emma to you.”
“Just tell me why you’re here, or I’ll have my security throw you out. I’m not in the mood for this crap today.”
We stayed there for hours, sorting out some work matters. A former employee had sued him, but Mattia has always been fair and pays his people well—there was no reason for the guy to do that.
But with all the documentation Mattia had, I gave him some guidance and recommended a lawyer from my firm, scheduling a meeting right away. Unfortunately, the employee is going to lose and might even have to pay damages.
As soon as my friend leaves—after inviting me to dinner at his restaurant and insisting I bring Amélie—I go back to my papers. Then I hear a knock at the door. I tell them to come in, and Amélie pokes her head through.
“Sorry to interrupt, but I’d like to take Ellie to the mall. She’s been asking me for a few days now.”
“No problem, go ahead. Mama has a credit card for household and Ellie’s expenses—get it from her, there’s no PIN. And take Marcus plus two more security guards.”
“Okay. Wouldn’t you like to come with us? You could spend some time with Ellie. What do you think?”
“I have some documents to review, and my leg still hurts a bit. We’ll save it for another day. You two go today.”
“All right, thank you. And… sorry again.”
She says, pointing to my leg. I just nod, and she leaves, closing the door behind her.
I stay there with my papers. I’ve already read and reread the same document about ten times.
Amy’s invitation keeps nagging at me, and the urge to go after them is overwhelming.
I start reading the same paper again, and finally, I give in.
I get up from my chair, go to my room, change clothes, and call my driver.
I arrive at the mall and start looking for them, finding them both at the playground. And incredibly, Amélie is on the ride with my daughter. She’s pretty small, sure, but I never expected to see her sitting inside a little train. She surprises me more every day.
I’m standing there, watching them from a distance, when the ride stops. My little girl gets off with her nanny, and as soon as she sees me, she comes running toward me, shouting:
“Daddy, you came to see me!”
I pick her up, kiss her cheek, and say:
“Yes, my love, Daddy came to hang out with you.”
“Auntie Li wode the twain with me, Daddy could wide too.”
Ellie has always had trouble with the letter “r” since she was little. The speech therapist said to wait until she’s older to correct it, but I decided to let her work it out in her own time.
“My love, Daddy doesn’t fit on those rides.”
“Daddy is weally big, like this.” And she opens her little arms wide, smiling.
“Yes, Daddy's too big, but we can do other things. How about ice cream? Or we could buy some clothes, or shoes, maybe a toy.”
“I want evewything, and the paik again too.”
“Let's get ice cream with Daddy, Ellie, then we'll come back here. Auntie Li can go on more rides with you,” Amélie says, approaching us. “I'm glad you came. I knew Ellie would love having you here.”
And the little minx gives me a gorgeous smile.
Yes, she was beautiful, delicate—at least she appeared to be—but anyone who really knew her understood she was the complete opposite.
She had fair skin, wavy light brown hair, dark brown eyes, and a cute little upturned nose.
I snap out of my reverie—that girl is taking up way too much of my thoughts, more than she should—and we head toward the ice cream shop.
We placed our orders and sat down. Soon our ice cream arrived, and Ellie got herself all messy eating hers.
But being the smart, prepared person she is, Amélie had brought a change of clothes for her.
We finished our ice cream, got Ellie all cleaned up, and headed to a toy store nearby.
My daughter was overwhelmed, not knowing what to pick.
I was about to tell her to choose everything, but Amélie cut me off immediately.
“Absolutely not. Children need limits. We adults have them, so they need to learn that from a young age.”
And she's right. I won't be here forever, and the world isn't as fair as we parents are, so I accept the nanny's suggestion. After much struggle, we choose just one toy. Then we pick up some new clothes since summer is coming soon, plus some shoes, and finally head home.
On the way home, everything we've experienced up to this moment runs through my mind.
Amélie arrived suddenly, without warning, and won everyone over.
I think about everything Mattia told me.
Luma hasn't been as much a part of my days as she used to be.
Of course I remember her, our moments together, and I treasure them dearly.
I just wonder what's happening to me—and that's something I can't answer.