GABRIEL As expected, the twins were still up rehashing the night's events when I walked into their room after leaving Pop. "Hey, big brother, what's up?" Nice try! "What's with the uninvited guests?" "It was Sheila's idea, ask her. You know how impatient she is." Anna was quick to explain. "Impatient about what?" "Nothing, look, they're going to be at the party in a few weeks; everyone just thought it would be a nice icebreaker for Gia to meet them tonight, so by the night of the party, they'd be like old friends." Who the fuck is everyone? I keep forgetting that I've taught my sisters everything I know, but I get the feeling they're using that shit on me. "Are you two running game on me?" "Never, who would dare? You'd just beat us at it anyway." Uh-huh. "Do me a favor, don't do anything where she's concerned without running it by me first." They both rushed to agree, but that wasn't good enough. If it were, we wouldn't be here. "Eh, look at me, both of you." I waited
GABRIEL Lance hounded me the whole night until I was ready to kick him out of my room. But then he let slip that the twins had already gabbed, so what was the point? I couldn't even be mad or seek retribution; after all, I'm the one who taught them when they were about six or seven that he was to be trusted. In the end, he came to his own conclusions, which apparently all led to him being right, and I was just steps away from getting hitched. I finally told him I was tired and took back one of my pillows to cover my head to escape him. I think he was still lecturing me when I finally drifted off. In the morning, we went downstairs to a madhouse. There were boxes of food covering the kitchen counter, the girls were talking a mile a minute with excitement, and even Gianna looked like there was some life in her. I was still too unsure of myself to face her, so I focused on the extravagance of food and the culprit responsible. "Pop, what did you do now again?" He looked over from h
GABRIEL "How do you know where I went? You keeping tabs on me?" "Lance." He rolled his eyes and looked around the room, stalling for time, no doubt. "How'd you know that clown was at the door?" "Okay-okay, the girls forgot to tell him not to show up here after your talk with them last night. They only remembered when the doorbell rang and signaled me to follow you." That was enough of an explanation for me since I never doubt his word. Doubt not the man you choose to be your friend. I didn't ask him anything more because if there was something important, he would've told me. Instead, we left to go join the others. I was a bit torn after that little dustup about leaving her, but there was something I needed to do. Only Pop was downstairs waiting when we made it back. "Where's everyone?" "Women, they're still getting dressed. I think they're making a fuss over Gia." "A fuss over Gianna, what do you mean?" "Calm down; they're just getting her dressed." I didn't know if I
The Beginning *** The old man moved speedily through the darkened cobblestone streets, his body casting faint shadows against the walls and pavement. A tattered coat stretched across his shoulders and barely held back the cold as he clutched at the lapels with arthritic fingers. He knew he should've left the tavern for home hours ago, but the talk tonight had been such that gave a man new hope. Something that was rare and hard to come by in this time of uprisings and unrest. The enemy had done their best to destroy his little piece of heaven in the Sicilian hills. All that was left were burnt-out buildings that didn't hold up under the mortar attacks and a few that had refused to give up but were yet badly shaken. He'd been one of the lucky few who hadn't lost his home, though it wasn't much these days. And if things kept up this way, he might have to leave the only home he'd ever known soon anyway. That's why tonight had been so refreshing. The news had warmed his heart, a
Sofia *** The wind was brisk as I made my way through the warm drizzle that had started just as I'd left the residence. I kept a watchful eye as I walked, ever conscious of my surroundings. The place was still new to me and so different from home. I felt a slight pang when I remembered my home. The fact that I will never see it again made the memory bittersweet. I clutched the piece of paper close to my chest as I recited the list on silently moving lips. English was still relatively new to me, and some of the syntax was still hard for me to grasp. But my memory was sharp as a tack, sometimes too sharp. I placed my hand on my tummy that was just now starting to grow as fear rose up inside me. Things may be different here than in my village, but a young unwed mother faced the same challenges no matter where she was in the world. And for one such as myself, with not even family or friend about, it was doubly hard. At the supermarket that was not too far from the house, I open
Draco *** I watched her leave the room from beneath lowered lashes and felt that new frustration that's been riding me for days. I wonder what secrets she's hiding behind those amazing doe eyes of hers? What bugs me even more is why she has such an effect on me. It's not like she's some raving beauty, not that she's not gorgeous, she's more than a little bit pretty, but the world is full of such women. Why then does this slip of a girl make me think of things that no one else before her ever has? Why are my eyes always drawn to her whenever we're in the same room together? Almost like a compulsion, even when I fight it I lose. I watch her all the time now, there's something…I can't quite put my finger on it, but there's something about her that's more than meets the eye. It could be that old world quality that makes her stand out from all the other females I know, but somehow I think it's more. I'd seen her hurrying back through the rain when I happened to look out m
Draco *** I wasn't into that sneaking around shit. At twenty-two I was a grown man who'd never had to do that shit even as a kid. But this was a delicate situation. Just because I felt something didn't mean I was about to jump in with both feet. There was too much at stake for that shit to happen. In the end there was only one thing to do. "Come on." I took her through the kitchen and up the back stairs to my wing. Nobody dared come anywhere near here before noon. That was more than enough time for her to sneak back downstairs. "I won't sleep with you." She got stubborn right outside my door and dug her heels in. "Didn't ask you to." I kept going with her hand in mine. "The bath's through there, go take a shower, I'll go find you something to eat." She looked at the bathroom door and back at me. "You can lock the door Red, I don't attack virgins." She lost all the color in her face. I was across the room in a flash. "What is it?" She recoiled like I'd slapped her and her body
Draco *** I thought for sure after she scared the shit out of me by fainting that I would drop it, but as soon as I saw the white of her eyes I was on it again. "Where is the father?" I wasn't sure what to feel when tears started seeping from the corners of her eyes before she turned her face away from me. Was she crying because they were apart, was she crying because he'd left her after finding out about the baby? What? "Where?" I turned her face back to mine and the look in her eyes almost broke my heart. I felt a lump in my throat and a riot started in my gut. What was it about this girl that made me want to bundle her up and tuck her away somewhere safe? "There is no father." She wouldn't look at me after saying this, but I was still no wiser as to what the fuck, so I couldn't leave it there, I needed to know. Something in me was unreasonably pissed that she'd let someone else give her a child. Which was the most fucked up thing ever since we obviously hadn't known each o