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After that there was a lot of kissing, saluting, and loud talking. Booze started to flow around, and it was all going great. I took the chair next to my mother and kissed her cheek.
“You look great tonight, Mammina. Are you ready for your trip?”
“No, because your father won’t tell me where we’re going. I don’t even know what to pack.”
“Let the old man pamper you Mom, this is a big anniversary.”
“Yeah, twenty-five years. I can’t believe we’ve been married for so long.”
“Time flies.”
“Not only that, Enzo, but even now, I wake up every day and love your father just like the day we got married. This is what you need to look for in life, baby.”
“Mom, I’m not there yet.” I laughed and poured us two glasses of white wine. “Since you won’t be here on your actual anniversary, let me toast you now. To you, Mrs. Nucci. Chin-chin.”
“Thank you honey. I’m not trying to fool myself and think Catherinelle won’t throw us a big party when we come back.”
“Ha! She’s been planning it for a year.”
“Great.” My mom didn’t love to be in the spotlight that much, but being married to Don Gino Nucci didn’t leave her with much of a choice.
Finally, Popov walked in the restaurant with his daughter right behind him, but I saw right through them, my eyes glued to Ludmila. I’d never seen anything more beautiful. She had a dress on in a shade of blue I’d never seen before, just like her eyes. Her wrists and neck were covered in gold and diamonds, making her sparkle like a damn star in the night sky. Tonight, she decided to let her rich blonde hair rain down on her shoulders. Gorgeous.
Popov went to shake hands with my dad and Katja came straight to me like a bullet hitting its target. I got up on my feet when I saw her coming and she threw her hands around my neck.
“Hey, you.” She said with a voice sweet like honey. Shit. I thought we talked about this last night, but it seemed like she was still going with her plan of letting Popov think there was something between us. It pissed me off that she was trying to pull me into her game when I’d told her I was not ok with it, especially with Ludmila a few feet away.
“Hello, Katja.”
“Ah, your handkerchief matches my dress. How cute.” Only then did I look down to see she was also wearing red.
“Yeah.”
She touched my face for a second then turned to my mother smiling.
“Hello, Mrs. Nucci. It’s so nice to see you again.”
“It’s nice to see you too, Katja. You look very excited.”
“Yes, I knew that Enzo would be here tonight and he’s so pleasant to be around. I think I have you to thank for that. You raised him well.”
“See, Gino,” Alexei barked from the other side of the table, “I told you our kids would be good together.”
Motherfucker. Katja was really testing me with her little game.
“Enzo,” She said still smiling, “would you mind moving a chair over so I could sit next to your mother?”
“Sure.”
My seat was right in front of Ludmila’s, and her eyes kept shifting from Katja to me. Shit. I didn’t pay attention on what Katja was saying to my mother, but right when Ludmila was fixing me with her iced irises, Katja reached to me and put a hand on my leg. What the fuck was she doing? I wanted to push her hand away, but I didn’t want to embarrass her in front of my family. On the other side of the table, Ludmila stayed still like a statue, with her back perfectly straight, wearing a polite, but empty smile.
Alexei started talking again which could only make it worse.
“Enzo, I hope you treat my daughter well.”
“Sure.” My voice was dry like dust.
“She’s a prize not many men can dream of, just like her mother. Ah, her mother was the perfect woman. I knew the day I lost her that I would never find someone as perfect.” Ludmila didn’t reacted, but I felt my body tensing up. How dare he disregard her like that? She was this passionate angel – a Russian queen – and this sick fucking motherfucker with hair on his fingers and a beer belly should have been praising her.
