Epilogue
Nine Months Later…
“I’ve seensome beautiful babies in my day, Giovanni, but this little girl is beyond words.”
Gino sat in the bed beside Elizabeth, his arms wrapped around his wife, with a watchful eye on his mother as she snapped photos of Nona holding her namesake.
Nine months to the day after his wedding to Elizabeth, Sophia Margarita Nicole Vitale was born.
Gino recalled how he struggled to keep his hands respectable from the moment Emilio lifted Elizabeth’s veil. However, his control was shot to hell as he knelt before his new bride to remove the garter from her leg. Tossing her over his shoulder, the garter was flung to the first guy he passed as he bolted out the back door of the hotel. Boarding the Vitale jet, Gino had Elizabeth naked and was balls deep in her before the plane reached cruising altitude.
They spent four weeks, blissfully naked, in a home Gino owned in Sicily until the running of the Family pulled them back to New Jersey. A few weeks later, Gino found Elizabeth bent over the toilet, retching her guts out. He knew instantly Elizabeth was pregnant, and a trip to Elizabeth’s doctor gave Gino one of the happiest days of his life.
He’d been overprotective during her pregnancy, which led to several arguments, ending in makeup sex. The day prior had been one of those arguments, this time, however, before Gino could get his wife naked, her water had broken and they’d barely made it to the hospital before Sophia was born.
Chiara handed her phone to Luca; they’d married in a private ceremony in the Canary Islands not long after Gino and Elizabeth returned from their honeymoon. Moving to sit on the arm of the chair, she reached out to twirl one of the many curls her grandbaby was born with.
“It’s funny really if you think about it,” Chiara began, leaning over to kiss Sophia’s hand. “These tiny creatures come into our lives and in an instant we love them with an immeasurable passion, willing to give everything we own for them.”
“Unconditional love,” Emilio defined, as he stared hard at the little miracle, he hoped his Nicole in heaven could see.
“That’s exactly what it is,” Elizabeth added, adjusting her position in the bed as her daughter began to fuss. Holding out her arms, she waited as Chiara took the baby from Nona, laying her gingerly to her breast. “And I plan to make sure Sophia goes to bed every night knowing how loved and treasured she is. How her Nona Nicole is watching down on her from heaven.” Elizabeth swore, her voice cracking with emotion.
“And I will teach her the fine art of shopping.” Gia teased, needing to keep the smile on Elizabeth’s face. She’d lived vicariously through her sister-in-law these past nine months, watching as her niece grew strong and healthy before her eyes.
“And how to speak Italian.” Elizabeth added, sending a grateful wink to Gia.
“Are you kidding? Sophia will be the best-dressed, most protected, Italian speaking toddler on the planet.” Gia boasted as her phone vibrated in her hand. She, like the rest of the family, had taken a million photos of the newest Vitale. Glancing at the screen, Gia quietly stepped toward the door, her heart pounding in her chest. Blind Date was three weeks away, she and Ardan had solidified plans of meeting face to face. Gia felt guilty for keeping so much from her family, but she was too invested, bordering on being in love with a faceless man. She had intentions of seeing this to the end, Vitale’s weren’t quitters, and even though Jonathan wasn’t her father, she’d refused to take Luca’s last name. She’d change it once, stealing her new sur name from the man she chose to marry.
Burying his nose in Elizabeth’s hair, the emotional moment clogging his throat. His mother was right; he would give anything, kill anyone, to protect the women in this room, especially the tiny bundle enjoying her breakfast from her mother’s breast. None of the things he’d found pleasure in before gave him a tenth of the joy he felt now. Here, protecting his family, was where he was meant to be, and nothing, or no one, would take that away from him.
As Sophia’s belly filled and she drifted off to sleep, Elizabeth leaned into the strong arms of her husband. The road that brought her here was paved with heartbreak and bloodshed, hard work and sacrifice. Given the chance, she would do it all over again as she couldn’t imagine her world without the people in this room in it. Recalling the last words her mother wrote in her journal, she found them fitting for the moment: Every family has their secrets; how safe you keep them is what matters.
The end
