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“Okay,” I say, knowing how terrible I am with names. If Frank had bothered to get to know me before he forced me into this pretend marriage, he might have known I wasn’t the girl for him.
Along with Frank and me, everyone heads to a dining hall on one side of the church. The scent of Italian herbs hangs heavy in the air, and I spy heaps of pasta and a variety of sauces to top the pasta with. There’s also a magnificent wedding cake that stands alone on a table.
“Wow.”
Frank sighs. It’s a happy sound. “You like?”
“I love.” It’s been forever since I’ve had homemade Italian food. Mom used to make it all the time, but I never bothered to learn her recipes. I wish I had made that a priority before she passed.
One of the most important things I learned from my parents’ tragic passing is that you never know how much time you’ll have with a person. If I had it to do over again, I would have spent so much more time with the people who brought me into this world.
A single long table has been set up in the middle of the room, and there are two chairs at its head. Frank leads me to a chair and pulls it out for me. I didn’t think he was at all the gentlemanly type.
Without saying anything, I sit down, and he sits in the chair next to me. Young girls move about, some pouring red wine and others filling plates with food. Frank and I receive our food and drink first.
My plate holds way too much for me to eat, but I smile at the girl who gives it to me. “Why, thank you so much. My name is Lisa. What’s yours?”
“I’m Delilah. It’s nice to meet you, Aunt Lisa.”
“You’re Frank’s niece, then? One of Sheila and Enzo’s children?”
“No, I’m Betty and Roberto’s daughter. Their youngest,” she says. “Don’t worry. I know our family is huge, but you’ll learn all our names before you know it. And if you have trouble remembering anyone, you can always ask me.”
She’s a little angel. “That’s so sweet of you. I’m positive I’ll have to take you up on your offer.”
“Oh, you will. There are a lot of family members here, but this isn’t all of them by far.” She gives me a sweet smile and then leaves to serve food to the others.
“She’s adorable,” I say to myself.
But Frank thinks I was talking to him.
“Thank you,” he says.
When I look at him, I find him smiling at me. He’s so freaking hot that I can’t even think straight. “You’re welcome.”
Taking my hand, he lifts it to his lips and kisses the top of it.
“I try to be. But the truth is that the two females I’ve chatted with have been very nice to me.”
“You thinking about sticking around then?” he asks with a raised eyebrow.
I wasn’t aware that I had a choice in the matter. But I leave those words unspoken. “I would very much like to stick around.”
I know how crazy that sounds, but it’s pretty much true.
Frank has a huge family, and there must be a lot of love between them, or they wouldn’t have all come to pay tribute to a sham marriage like this one.
I catch sight of Sheila and Enzo, who take the two seats at the opposite end of the table. I haven’t been to many weddings, but I always thought the newly married couple took center stage. However, it seems that Enzo and his wife are being honored, too, for some reason.
Frank leans in to whisper in my ear. “I can see your wheels spinning. My brother is the Don of this family. He’s always honored at any occasion. Be sure to thank him the next time you speak to him.”
“Thank him for being our esteemed guest?” I ask because I have no other idea why I would be thanking him.
“Well, for that,” he says and grips the back of my neck a little too hard, “and for allowing you to be a part of this family.”
I’m not really a part of this family, legally speaking, but I can tell that he wants to hear none of that, so I just agree. “Of course. I’ll be sure to thank him for the honor of being your bride and joining the Vietti family.”
“Good. I like the way you’re fitting in. If I didn’t know any better, I would say you were born for this.” His lips barely graze my cheek, but it gets the butterflies in my stomach going again.
