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He was standing there wearing a white button-down shirt and blue jeans. His brown eyes shone, and he gave me a wide smile as I approached him. “Hey there, beautiful,” he said softly.
“Hi.” I held out my hand, and he rolled his eyes as he brought me in for a bear hug.
“We don’t shake hands, Callie,” he said as he pressed his lips against mine.
“Well, hello,” I said, laughing and flushing slightly.
“I’m so glad to see you,” he said. “I got a picnic for us.”
“Oh? What’s in the picnic?”
“I have ham and cheese sandwiches, salt and vinegar potato chips, watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, chocolates, some cookies, and even some champagne.”
“Ooh, sounds good,” I said as he escorted me to the blanket, and we sat down.
“What’d you like to start with?” he asked.
“I guess a ham and cheese sandwich, please.”
“Okay.” He opened the basket and then leaned back. I started laughing as he pulled out plates and napkins. “What?” he said, frowning as he looked at me.
“This is the most domesticated I’ve ever seen you, and it feels so weird.”
“Why does it feel weird?”
“Because you’re Antonio ‘the wolf’ Marchesi and…”
“And what?” he said.
“You’re a freaking Mafia boss, and we’re just sitting here in Central Park having a picnic like we’re just two regular human beings and…”
“And maybe that’s what I want us to be,” he said softly, leaning forward.
“What do you mean?” I asked him.
“I mean, what if I told you that I wanted to give this life up?”
“Huh?” My jaw dropped as I stared at him.
“What if I told you I didn’t want to be the Mafia boss anymore? What if I told you I just wanted to be your boyfriend?” He gave me a wry smile. “And a restaurateur.”
“A restaurateur?” I raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah. I was thinking I could take over the day-to-day operations of Lupo’s. And I’d keep Lucio on, but not as manager. I’d train him up and see if I could make it a real success.”
“But what about the Marchesi famiglia, and what about all your other plans? This is what you’ve waited for your whole life. Why would you do that?”
“For you, Callie. I’d give it all up for you, because I love you and—”
“You can’t give up being a don,” I said, shaking my head. “No way. You have literally been born for this. You—”
“No,” he said, taking my hand. “I was born to love you. I was born to take care of you. And do you have any news?” he asked. “I know you were going to go to see an ob-gyn. I didn’t want to ask or pry or…”
“I’m pregnant,” I said, nodding, staring at his face to see how he’d react.
His eyes widened, and a smile burst out. “You are?”
“You’re not mad?” I asked.
