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“I met Sal first. A night out. It was a stupid one-night stand,” she started, her voice muffled by the teddy she was clinging to. She lifted her head up and inhaled deeply. “I never expected to see him again. A few days later, I met Vinny and it was love at first sight. I know that sounds cliché but it was. The instant connection and chemistry I had with him just made me want to throw away everything I had ever known to be with him. We slept together the same day we met. I know what that sounds like. Sleeping with two men without really knowing either of them but I wasn’t always like that. They both had this power of me. Over my body and my emotions.”
I nodded slowly, knowing exactly what she meant. I am not even sure how I managed to hold off from sleeping with Giovanni for so long!
“By the time I found out who Vinny really was and made the choice to stay, I was madly in love. I was then introduced to his family and was shocked to walk into a room with Sal sitting on the sofa smoking a cigar and drinking a brandy. I always remember the look on his face when he saw me again. He thought I had found him. He’d been obsessed with looking for the girl who left him in a hotel room apparently. He jumped up with a beaming smile which soon fell when Vinny put his arm around me and introduced me as his girlfriend. Sal and I never told Vinny we had slept together but it didn’t stop Sal from wanting more. By the time I realised I was pregnant, I was in too deep with Vinny. I was head over heels in love with him and I was scared I would lose him if I told him the truth. I prayed the doctor would say I was early on in the pregnancy but when I found out I was already two months, I could have cried. The dates matched the same time I met the brothers. I had no idea who the father was. But I lied. I told Sal Gio was Vinny’s for certain. I stuck to that story for 29 years. But clearly Sal never believed it.”
I reached for her hand and looked at her beautiful side profile as she stared at the floor. Her lip trembled as she spoke about what had caused all of this. I really felt for her. She did what she thought was best in a difficult situation. Knowing how these mafia men are about their women, I knew she did it to protect her relationship and the family. If she had told him the truth, it would have torn the brothers apart. But unfortunately, it was Gio who was now suffering the consequences of her decision.
“I am sorry Cecilia. That you have had to carry the weight of that secret for so long.”
“I haven’t. I have convinced myself that Vinny is Gio’s father. Even if it isn’t by blood, Vinny was still his father. He raised him. He loved him. He was the best role model Gio ever had,” tears fell from her face and she quickly wiped them away. She suddenly pulled herself together and sat up straight. “I know he doesn’t want to speak to me. So, I came to tell you that I am leaving. I am moving in with Sal.”
My eyes widened at hearing this. After the shock confession that Sal could possibly be Gio’s dad, I had completely forgotten that Cecilia and Sal had announced they were together. Is this really what she wanted?
“Cecilia, I hope you don’t think I am stepping out of line here but I have to ask. Do you love him? Salvatore?”
She chuckled sadly and shook her head. “I will never love another man after Vinny.”
“Then why are you agreeing to this? Why are you going to be with him?”
“Oh you poor, naïve girl,” she stood up suddenly and I frowned. Her mood had changed again and she now seemed cold and angry. “Life is all about sacrifices Olivia. Sal will be here to get me in two hours. Look after my children for me.”
My mouth dropped open at her words as she strutted towards the door. “What? Wait! You are leaving Sani and Raya here?”
She turned quickly to look back at me and once again her face showed sudden sadness and intense emotion. “Yes. They will be better off here with you all. Where I am going… I will not be able to care for them.”
She stormed out the room, leaving me standing speechless. How? How can she leave her young children to go and live with that man? What did she mean, she wouldn’t be able to care for them?
I rubbed my forehead as I felt a headache coming on. This family was something else. There was never just one calm day in this house. Making up my mind, that enough was enough and Gio needed to speak to his mother before she left at least, I made my way downstairs and out to the swimming pool.
He was floating on the water, head over the edge of the pool with his eyes shut when I stomped out onto the decking. He squinted open one eye against the sun to see who was rampaging towards him and shut it again when he saw me. Charming.
“Giovanni. Enough. You need to speak to your mother before it’s too late.”
“I don’t need to do anything,” he said in a bored tone. I folded my arms across my chest. He was stubborn but I was too and I don’t give up.
“Cecilia is leaving in two hours. Sal is forcing her to move in with him.”
He didn’t move or speak, just continued to lie in the pool with his eyes closed.
“She told me what happened thirty years ago. If you go and speak to her, she will tell you too.”
“I don’t want to know. How can I believe anything she says to me? She has lied to me my whole life.”
I scoffed loudly which caused his eyes to flicker open and jaw clench. “Gio! I get that you are feeling betrayed and angry and you have every right to feel that way. This is so unfair on you but don’t you want to know the truth? Can’t you at least hear her out before she leaves?”
“No.”
“Fine then you will listen to me. Your mum met Sal on a night out. They had a drunken one-night stand and she didn’t even know who he was.” Gio abruptly jumped out of the pool, pulling his body up onto the side and grabbed a towel. He tried to storm away from me but I continued. “It was before she met your dad! Before she fell in love with him.”
“Which dad?” He snapped back at me over his shoulder. I grabbed his bicep to try and stop him from hurtling away from me again. He shrugged me off aggressively and I lost my footing. My arms were flapping as I stumbled at the edge of the pool but it was too late. I was falling. Fully clothed, in my little dress, straight back into the water.
“Liv!” I heard Gio shout before I went under. I sunk down to the bottom and started to kick up but felt a strong arm around my waist hoisting me through the water to the surface at speed. When we broke through, I inhaled the air sharply and wiped my eyes.
“Are you okay?” His voice was full of panic as I blinked back at him, while we treaded the water to keep us afloat. His arm was still around my waist holding me to his naked torso. I burst out laughing at the serious expression on his face. Did he think I couldn’t swim?
His face softened slightly when he saw I wasn’t harmed, and a smile stretched across it for the first time in days.
“I can swim, you know! You didn’t need to dive in and save me,” I giggled as he pulled us over to the shallow end where we could touch the floor.
