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“So, what’s everyone up to? Your dad still working?”
“Yeah, busy as ever.” I wrapped my fingers around the stem of the wine glass and leaned back against the padded back of the seat. “Working with Matt, of course. They’ve got a couple of guys working with them and they partner with—” I cut myself off. I’d just been about to say Jake and his older brother Gabe, but I wasn’t sure if that was a sore subject, since Jake was the one who nearly lost his life in the car accident that had caused Dante to leave Esperance.
“Partner with…?” he prodded, when I didn’t go on.
“A local landscaping company.”Much safer.“Dad and Matt do the home renovations and send work the landscapers’ way, and vice versa.”
“Sounds great.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“Did Matt end up marrying that sour-faced bitch?”
I burst out laughing. “Sour-faced biatch” was the perfect way to describe my brother’s ex-wife. “Clarice? That he did.” My smile faded as I recalled the pain Clarice had put him through. “It lasted about five years, I think, before it got too much for him. She was pure poison, cheating on him all the time, trying to take all his money. All sorts of bullshit.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Thank you. He’s okay now, though. He just got engaged to a beautiful girl who loves him to pieces, so Clarice did him a huge favor in the end.”
“That’s good. And Elissa? Claire?”
“Making me a four-time aunt. El has twin girls and a baby boy, and Claire’s partner Jen is pregnant.”
“Your parents must be over the moon about that.”
“Yeah, they are. They love their grandkids. It’s adorable. They’re always babysitting. Honestly, that part’s a bit much for me, but I’ll be in my own place soon and be able to sleep in at the weekend again.”
Dante frowned. “You’re living at home?”
Way to sound like a loser, Lucy. “Yeah.” Taking a sip of wine, I didn’t look at Dante for a long moment. I wasn’t quite sure what to say, because explaining that I’d moved back from San Francisco after my world fell apart and I’d spent the last few months trying to get my head back on straight was too much. The fact that I still didn’t really feel I had succeeded in that made it even harder. Raising my eyes to Dante’s, I saw a question there, but also sympathy.Keep it simple.“I’ve just moved back from San Francisco because I’m fairly recently divorced,” I explained flatly.
“I’m sorry.”
“Thanks.” Immensely relieved when he let that drop, I asked, “What about you? Your family all good?”
“Good enough, I guess. Mom’s in Raleigh. She’s got a cleaning job.”
“That’s good.” There was an odd tone to his voice I couldn’t make out. His mom always struck me as a quiet, subdued sort of woman. I couldn’t remember ever seeing Dante’s dad. I wasn’t sure how to respond to it, so I moved the subject along. “And Stefania is here in Seattle, you said? What’s she up to?”
“She’s a punk.”
“She was always a little wild,” I agreed, smiling at the affectionate note in his voice.
Dante laughed, a deep rich sound that skittered across my skin. “No, I mean she’s a real punk. In a band. A punk band,” he clarified when I looked at him blankly.
“No way!”
“Yep. Lead singer and guitarist. I’ve seen her band a few times. They’re loud, but they’re pretty good.”
“That’s amazing. I can’t imagine her all grown up like that. How old is she now?”
“She’s twenty-two. Yeah, it’s weird, that’s for sure. But she’s happy, so I’m happy.”
“That’s so great.” The conversation trailed off and I couldn’t think of anything else to say. Sipping my wine, I flicked Dante a look from under my lashes. He was watching me. Was I only imagining the heat flickering in his dark eyes? “Oh good, here’s our pizza.” Grateful for the distraction, I gave the waiter a dazzling smile when he placed the pizza and plates on the table. He blinked, giving me a bemused smile in return.
“That poor kid. He didn’t know what hit him,” Dante said when the server left, his voice tinged with amusement.
“Huh?”
