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“I’ve never heard anyone explain it like that.” Gia hated my mother for not being there for me and for exposing me to her boyfriends. “I’ve been so jaded by everything that I haven’t even bothered trying to meet anyone. I just figured it was enough to be the two of us.”
“I hope you give me a chance.”
“Isn’t that what we’re doing?” I asked him, my voice a little breathless.
“I want to be good for you. I want to be everything you need.”
We were supposed to be exploring this chemistry between us, but Leo seemed a little more serious than that. It gave me hope that he might be the guy for me. “I can take care of myself.”
“That’s what I love about you. You’re strong.” He kept his gaze on Evie as if he was making sure she didn’t get hurt. It was so similar to how a fathershouldact that my heart ached.
But my brain snagged on his words—that’s what I love about you.He couldn’t mean that. It seemed more feasible that he’d admire me, but it was too soon for a romantic kind of love. Wasn’t it?
“You are too. Being the eldest of the family, the responsibility weighs on you the most.”
He raised a brow. “You see that?”
“I see everything about you.” I’d watched him from afar for years. I saw the way he took over more and more responsibility at the restaurant. How seriously he took it. He liked being in charge, but it came with a price, especially when he still answered to his father.
Leo shook his head. “I can’t believe you crushed on me since you were a teenager.”
I flushed. “All the girls had a crush on you. I wasn’t any different.”
He shifted on the bench, resting his elbows on his knees as he looked over at me. “I’d like to think you were different.”
His expression was serious, so I said, “Honestly, I didn’t think anything would come of it. It was safe because you were so off-limits. You were the oldest, you never looked twice at me, and I was almost like a sister.”
His head shook. “I never thought of you like my sister. I tried not to think of you at all. I think I knew it would be a slippery slope, especially when you were younger.”
“And now?”
“Now we’re both adults who can make their own decisions and mistakes.”
I didn’t like referring to our attempt to get to know each other as a mistake, but there would be consequences from our relationship. Even if everything felt right in the moment.
We watched Evie play for a while, and then Leo said he had to get to work and prepare the restaurant for opening. We walked to the pizzeria, and Leo unlocked the door and closed it behind us. We washed our hands while he prepped the kitchen.
We sat on stools while he efficiently moved around the room, starting the sauce for the day. He showed Evie how he prepared it, the temperature, and the time it took to cook. Once it was simmering in a big pot, he said to Evie, “Now it’s time to make your pizza.”
He pulled out a container of leftover sauce, reheated it, and smoothed it over her crust. “We normally use fresh sauce, but the newest batch won’t be ready for a little while yet.” He pointed to the array of toppings that were chilling in the containers on the prep table, covered by plastic. “Do you know what you want on it?”
Evie studied the options and said firmly, “Pepperoni.”
Leo chuckled. “Pepperoni it is. I’m glad you went with something besides plain cheese.”
“I like pepperoni.”
Leo ruffled her hair. “That’s the thing—we’re allowed to change our minds.”
Evie looked up at him as if he’d said something important, and maybe he had, but I was mesmerized by the way my little girl was looking at this man. She was missing a father figure in her life. She had Mr. G. and all of Leo’s brothers, but at the same time, the Giovannis weren’t our family.
Leo patiently demonstrated how he dressed a pizza but allowed Evie to do it her own way. He smiled when she placed the pepperonis in the shape of a smiley face.
“Can’t say we’ve ever served a smiling pizza before.”
Evie gave him a serious look. “Everyone would love it.”
“I have no doubt,” Leo said, his voice soft. And when he lifted his gaze from her, he winked at me.
