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Luca came to stand beside me, hands in the pockets of his chinos, the buttons of his golf neck shirt classically undone. Even in casual wear, I felt decidedly underdressed in my blue jeans and Converse.
“Just nod and smile,” he said then, looking over at me. “There will be too many names and faces to remember on the first try.”
“I’ll be fine,” I assured him. “Names and faces are my thing.”
“And my mother—”
His words of warning were cut short by a gaggle of women who came storming out of the villa all at once. Women of varying heights and builds but all with his same tanned skin and dark hair. All of them breathtakingly beautiful.
Within seconds Luca was engulfed by the horde, shrill exclamations and jangling embraces thanks to the chorus of bangles and bracelets they all wore. At my count in the chaotic welcome, he had six sisters who were crazy about him, apparently. It looked as though their hugs and red-lipped kisses would never end, until Leo showed up at my side.
“Hi!” he piped up with a toothy grin.
The scene enfolded like it was written for an old-school comedy, and first one sister’s head shot up, scanning the area to find the source of the little voice. Her eyes landed on Leo, and she gave an ear-piercing shriek. She ran over to him and swept the kid up in her arms, causing the rest of the sisters to follow suit. Unlike his father, Leo lapped up the doting attention as they ruffled his hair and painted his face with kisses.
Luca was out of breath as he swiped his stained cheeks with the back of his hand to no avail. I bit back a laugh as he groaned to the heavens when he realized he was stuck with it.
“Is that any way to show up on my doorstep?”
The revelry stopped dead, and the small crowd parted like the red sea for the matriarch who slowly made her way toward Luca. She was an elegant, beautiful woman, but the scowl she wore hardened her features. I shifted my weight awkwardly and looked to Luca for assurance, but his eyes were trained on his mother, and they didn’t budge.
“My doorstep, you mean,” he said. “You’re welcome, by the way.”
“We’re not starting things like this.” One of his sisters pushed between them, her arms outstretched.
They all looked similar in age, but judging by the command in her voice, I was ready to bet she was one of the eldest.
She looked at her mother, then Luca, and said, “We are here to celebrate Sofia’s big day. Nothing else. Got it?”
Surprisingly, his mother was the first to give in with a stiff nod, and I felt Luca relax after that.
“Tell your nanny to bring the bags,” she said, hooking her arm into his. “Your grandmother wants to see you.”
They all looked my way and me, like a complete fool, glanced over my shoulder to see the nanny she was talking about. After a second, I realized she’d been referring to me, and a flustered heat crept onto my cheeks.
“Scarlett’s not my nanny,” I heard Leo say as he walked up the path to the villa, hand in hand with one of his aunts.
They’d all just left me there with the bags, Luca included. But not without turning around to shoot me an apologetic looking smirk.
“I’ll help you, Miss James,” the driver said, picking up two of the bags. “These are the heaviest, anyway. You’ll be fine.”
I grabbed the remaining bags and stomped up the path behind the driver, already feeling like the trip was a bust before it even began.
Chapter 21
Luca
“IseeSofiaendedup using my people.” I motioned to the extravagant lighting and decor in the backyard.
Gabriella stifled a laugh as she stuffed another shrimp canapé into her mouth. “She didn’t have a choice,” she said between bites. “Mamma made her.”
“Ah, that makes sense.” I grabbed two glasses of champagne from a passing waiter and handed one to my sister before taking a long sip.
“Are you two ever going to work things out?” she asked.
I gave her the most innocent look and said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
She rolled her eyes at me. “Sure you don’t. All I’m saying is, having this tension between you and Mamma makes things like this really hard to get through.”
