AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I know my son. My sons,” she emphasized with a shrug that reminded me of Nicu. “Just like I know Nicu is in love with you. I’m not sure why he hasn’t already taken care of things and made it official, since he knows what is expected of him. I adore my son, but despite the difficulties he’s had, he sometimes acts no better than a spoiled little boy.” She nodded meaningfully. “I know, I know. He needs a bit more aging, like a good red wine.”
“He’s also the least eloquent,” piped up Tasa. “I’m pretty sure he’s fumbled something somewhere down the line. I love my brother more than you can imagine, but there’s no denying he can act like an idiot.”
Nicu’s mother shook her head. “If only they came to me more often…their lives would go much more smoothly, but they insist on learning on their own. Like this one,” she jutted her thumb toward her daughter.
“How much do you know exactly?” I inquired warily. This was essential to how I approached speaking with her, although I doubted she’d reveal everything. This woman was wily, there was no doubt on that count, and I was a near-stranger to her. She had no reason to trust me.
Folding her arms over her ample chest, Tasa parroted my question. “Yes, Mama, how much do you know exactly?”
“I know more than you think, whatever that is. But I’ll humor you and tell you some of what I know. I know he met you when he was engaged to Cat. I know he fought Cristo not once, but twice, over you. I know that he loves you,” she rattled off casually.
She didn’t know everything, such as the proposal, which came as a relief. Yet she knew a hell of a lot more than I’d expected. Surprisingly, she didn’t seem fazed by any of it. Of course, considering the world she lived in, I’m sure it would take quite a bit to surprise her.
She wasn’t hostile toward me after admitting what she knew about Nicu and me. I figured I had nothing to lose by being straightforward with her. Who knew? She might even be able to give me some advice on how to deal with her knuckleheaded son.
“He actually proposed…well, kind of. He technically asked me to marry him, but he seemed more concerned about how the timing would work out for Alex than about actually marrying me,” I disclosed. “It wasn’t only the way he went about it.” I gestured out to the procession of cars in front and back of us. “It’s all of this. This…this world of yours.”
“Our world is not easy; I won’t lie to you. After leaving my home and starting anew here, I lost my husband in a brutal manner. He was the love of my life, despite his many faults. With him gone, my children had no father. One lesson I’ve learned is that something worthwhile is rarely easy. If it starts out easy, it’s usually an illusion, because life always throws you a curveball. No one is spared.”
She laid her hand gently over mine. “Above all else, we Romanians are pragmatic, so I’m not surprised to hear he was less than romantic when he proposed to you.” My eyes cut to hers. “Losing his father so young, Nicu learned early on that the foundation can be torn from under you in an instant. At that time especially, we only had one another to depend on. It magnified a lesson pivotal to our way of life: that family is everything. If you’re looking for a picture-perfect love or an ideal family, then we are not for you. But if you are willing to open your heart to people who will do anything, including die for you, then you’ve hit the jackpot.”
I thought back to the last conversation I’d had with my father, of his belief that my mother was waiting for him to be freed from prison and be reunited with her. I didn’t know if it was true, since Mother never spoke of him to me, but I knew the dream sustained him. The conversation where he’d divulged that nugget of information was the first time we’d spoken of Mother in years. We tended to keep things secreted away and bottled up until it exploded in our faces.
In contrast to our reserved family, I had no doubt where I stood with Nicu. There was something unbelievably gratifying about that. Nicu had a few glaring faults, but he never hid how he felt about me. He was always completely honest, and his love was constant and dependable.
Yes, the way he’d asked me to marry him was truly awful, and yes, some of the mafie traditions drove me batshit crazy, but his mother was right. There was no denying the love and commitment they had for one another. And not just when they came together like they had for this wedding. It was a daily thing. When I visited the Popescus, people were constantly in and out of each other’s homes. In the mafie world, their lives were interconnected.
It was only five blocks to the reception, and as the car turned the corner, I saw the awning of the restaurant. The driver pulled up to the entrance and a suited man opened the door. Before stepping out, Nicu’s mother turned to me and laid a soothing hand on mine. “All you have to do is ask, you know. If you want something from him, let him know. He’ll do everything in his power to make it happen.”
Her words lingered with me as she was whisked away into the restaurant.
Tasa turned to me before following her mother and said, “She’s right, you know. Normally, women get a tattoo of the family they marry into, but when Nicu was inducted and came back with the Lupu tat, I threw a fit. He was my twin, and I wanted that tat as well. I was grieving, but I was also acting like a brat.
“He might’ve only been thirteen, but he marched into Alex’s office and convinced him to let me get the tat. I remember the determination on his face when he’d faced his newly crowned ?ef. He said, ‘She’s my sister and my twin. She’s lost her father, just like me, and I’ll do whatever it takes to make her whole.’”
My heart cracked at the love in those seemingly simple words. I could totally see a young, gangly Nicu standing up to his older brother for his sister’s sake. He’d do anything to make her stop crying.
Her fingers pulled open the neckline of her dress, and she showed me the wolf head baring its teeth.
“I’m the only person who wears this tat without being inducted or married. If you give him a chance, he’ll do anything for you,” she promised, and then she stepped out of the car.
Slowly, I dragged myself across the banquette of the leather back seat. A gloved hand reached in to help me out. I took it as I gathered the skirt of my gown and exited the car. I think I had my answer.
