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I nodded even though I had no idea when I would be able to do that.
I turned to Verona. “You too, Verona.”
She looked at me with narrowed eyes. “Luciana, I don’t even care.”
I couldn’t keep my laugh inside at that one. I still found Verona weird, and I still didn’t know Bianca very well. I was not a steady part of this family, but unlike before now, I was hopeful. I knew I would be accepted, and it would be the best thing that happened to me.
Finally, I was actually happy.
Valerio
I helped Elsie wear her coat. We were just going to walk from the plane to the car, but it was chilly, and she was a California baby, so I didn’t want her to get sick. After I pulled up her zipper, I put her hat on. “Are you excited to see Luce, Peanut?”
She nodded with a huge smile, and I couldn’t help mine in return. Elsie was a damn cute kid. Of course, I would have accepted any child of Luce as my own, but if I could choose my kid, I would probably choose Elsie. She was an excited soul, but she was also a bit shy, which made her really cute. Ever since I made the decision to get her here, I couldn’t stop thinking about how our life was going to be.
I always loved kids, and I was always good with them. For a long time, I didn’t trust myself to become a dad. I had a horrible one, and I was broken in some aspects. However, I knew deep down I always wanted to be a father. I still had my doubts about myself, but I was not going to let them cloud my judgment because Elsie deserved a good dad, and I had to thrive on being the best.
Good thing I was surrounded by good fathers now. None of them were too happy about me bringing Elsie, but they accepted my decision and told me I could ask for help whenever I needed it. I was sure I was going to need it soon enough.
I straightened and held my hand out for Elsie to hold. She complied quickly. And we started walking out of the plane. When we came to the stairs, after a few steps, I realized her legs were too small and picked her up in my arms. “Your personal carrier, milady.”
She gave out a delicious little giggle.
I walked down the stairs quickly. I could see Luce waiting next to the car. She was also almost jumping up and down in excitement. I didn’t know if I ever saw her like this. She looked so happy, and that, combined with Elsie’s giggle, was enough to say it was worth the risk.
“We are gonna see Luce, and then I have a surprise for you, Elsie,” I said.
Her eyes widened. “Surprise.”
“Yeah. We won’t go home. We are going to go somewhere really fun.”
“Where? Where?”
“That is the surprise.” I saw Luce coming to us and grinned. “Now, though, it is time to see Luce.”
Elsie made a happy sound, and Luce quickly grabbed her from my arms. She pressed her daughter to her chest. “My baby,” she said, pressing kisses to her soft cheeks.
Elsie hugged her back, and I heard her whisper, “Mama,” to her ear.
When I asked Luce how much Elsie knew, she told me it was complicated. Apparently, Luce really did act as her mother at home, and Elsie’s first words were calling her mama. She kept calling her that to this day, but Elsie’s mom made sure she never did in front of strangers. Elsie was still young, so she probably didn’t understand everything, but she was no doubt confused about things. Luce also told me she thought Elsie’s shyness was a result of this weird situation. The little girl had so many rules for acting right in front of strangers.
Luce’s parents also treated her like their own daughter, but Luce was pretty sure Elsie knew who her real mom was. I hoped by being close to other families and being freer, she would pass up her confusion about her family situation. We decided to take it slowly, though. We were not going to have a talk about who was what to her yet. We wanted her to be happy and comfortable here first. She was still young anyway.
After letting Luce kiss and smell her kid, I mumbled, “I am getting jealous.”
She rolled her eyes at me but, the next moment pressed her lips to mine. “Welcome,” she said first, and then she whispered, “Thank you.”
She was really trying to make me cry, but it was not going to work. Elsie was here, and whatever shit was going to happen, it was a problem for tomorrow. Gino thought she was staying over at Tommaso’s house. He was not going to cause us any problems tonight.
Tonight was for celebrating.
I clapped my hands and looked at my two girls with a huge grin. “I believe it is time for Peanut’s surprise.”
Asking Priscilla to throw this party was the absolute best choice. She was great at event planning, and especially her colorful taste made kids very happy. This time was no different. She went far and beyond.
The party was at Priscilla and Antonio’s mansion. There was a feast in the dining room, and the doors to the backyard were fully open. All my family was here dressed nicely. When we arrived, most of the kids were playing outside, which was not very surprising since Priscilla got a damn inflatable castle. She was truly extra.
Elsie didn’t think so, though. The second she saw the castle, her eyes grew. “Oooh!” she said in amazement.
