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He doesn’t seem to comprehend, and looking down, neither does Carina.
“Carina,” I say, dropping to one knee as I reach inside my jacket pocket for the box. “It’s been a short time, but I’m sure. Simply put, sweetheart, will you marry me?”
Carina stares at me for a long moment, then down at the ring. I know she must recognize it. The style is exactly the same as the necklace – part of a matching set that my great-grandfather gave my great-grandmother a long time ago.
“Yes,” she says, tears welling in her eyes as her hand springs to her mouth. “Oh, God, Tommy, yes!
I grin as she begins to cry with happiness. I jump to my feet and sweep her off hers, and into my arms. I spin her around, and when I set her down, I almost forget that anyone else in the room exists.
Except that one person does, and I can’t forget about him. The most important person in Carina’s life until now.
Donovan is staring at us with a misty-eyed expression, trying unsuccessfully to hold a frown. At last, he sighs. “I can’t say I’m fully on board with this,” he says, looking at Carina until he turns to aim his next words at me. “But if you make my little girl happy, there’s not much I can find fault with. You’d just better make sure you take care of her.”
“I will,” I tell him, a vow from the depths of my heart that will never break. “I will keep her in safety and in luxury. Whatever she wants or needs, she will have. And you – I will protect you, and your business. You won’t want for anything else. The money you were going to repay me – keep it, and invest it.”
Donovan nods slowly, and I look back to Carina. Now that he’s on our side, there’s only one person that matters. My future wife.
I just know we’re going to be the happiest married couple in the world.
“So, when do you want to set the date?” I ask.
“As soon as possible, please?” Carina says, her voice choked with emotion as her smile lights up the room.EpilogueTommy“I’m back!”
There’s nothing that can soothe away the stress of a business meeting with a rival family other than coming home and finding my own waiting for me.
As soon as I enter the house and shout those words across the entrance hall, like magic, people appear. Enzo, my second in command who now runs most of the day-to-day business, appears from the sitting room to hand me a sheaf of papers.
“Today’s reports, boss.”
“Thank you, Enzo. I’ll take a look at them later.”
He nods and disappears, knowing when he’s been dismissed. Across the other side of the hall, above me and starting to come down, are the people I really want to see. Carina looks just as beautiful and radiant as I always knew she would with our daughter in her arms, the baby twisting around to look at me with an excited smile.
“Look, Donna!” Carina says, bouncing her up and down on her hip. “Daddy’s home!”
Donna burbles happily and reaches out her hands, opening and closing her fists to tell us what she wants. As I meet my wife at the bottom of the staircase, I lift Donna into my arms, kissing first her forehead and then Carina’s mouth.
“Oh, boss lady,” Enzo says, reappearing with that magic touch he seems to have developed. “I have some reports for you, too.”
Carina tilts her head at the nickname the men have given to her, ever since she took on the work as official accountant for our business – both the legal side and the illegal one. She takes the papers from Enzo and tucks them under her arm, combining them with mine so I can hold Donna more easily. “Thank you, Enny,” she says. “I’ll take these upstairs, darlings. You go on through. The chef should be ready with dinner soon.”
I nod and move through the house. The whole place seems livelier these days than it ever has in years. The dining table is set, and all of the chairs but three are full. It was Carina’s idea that we all eat together on Friday evenings, not just our biological family but the family that works with us too, whoever doesn’t need to be on duty. It’s brought us all closer, and I know exactly who I have to thank for that.
I get Donna set up in her high chair, making sure that she’s strapped in securely, and sit back in my own seat at the head of the table. Carina soon joins me at my right, as the chef serves up a hearty Italian meal.
Conversation, good food, wine, and family. These are the precious treasures that we fill our lives with. I nod around the table, though I feel a little distracted today. I can’t wait for the men to leave for their own homes, to finish our weekly ritual. I want to be with my wife, my child.
