She prodded him, but he only grinned and pulled her in for another far-too-chaste kiss.
A few moments later, Noah returned with a hot dog, a mound of potato salad, and his sister, who eyed Matteo as if he might bite. She dropped onto the blanket. “What’s up?”
Matteo’s grip on Danielle’s hand tightened. He gave her a soft, private smile, then faced the kids. “So, uh, I know you guys have to go back soon. Summer soccer league starts next week, right?”
Noah held up a finger. “Yeah, about that—”
“Let me finish, okay?” Matteo sucked in a breath. “I have to stay here and help my Zio Sal with the shop. But I talked to Sal, and his guest room is yours whenever you want it.”
Olivia wrinkled her nose. “All three of us in one room? Eew.”
He chuckled. “I was hoping your mom would stay upstairs with me.” He squeezed Danielle’s hand again. “The thing is, I’m in love with her.”
Her heart karate-kicked her ribs.
Eyebrows sky-high, the kids gawked at each other, then at her.
She forced her lungs to inflate. “Matteo, I—”
“Still not finished.” He raised her hand to his lips and kissed it. “So I want you guys to know I’m not trying to replace your dad or anything. I’m not trying to rearrange your lives either.”
Slow nods from the kids.
Matteo’s bright-eyed gaze held hers as he finished his obviously rehearsed speech. “I just want to spend as much time as possible with her. And with you guys, if you’ll let me.”
A juicy sniff burst through Danielle’s blurry, stunned state. She snapped her head toward Olivia, who swiped away a tear.
“Aww. That’s so sweet.” She elbowed her brother. “Isn’t that sweet, Noah?”
He shrugged. “I guess.”
Another sharp jab.
“I mean, that’s cool with me. Especially since we’re not playing soccer this summer.”
His sister nodded. “Right.”
Still reeling from Matteo’s declaration, she wheeled on the kids. “Since when? Your dad already paid and—”
Apparently, this was Interrupt Danielle Night, because Olivia jumped right in. “So Noah and me were talking on the plane.”
“Dad was asleep,” Noah interjected. “He was snoring so loud this lady in the next row kept giving us the stink eye.”
Olivia glared at him. “Anyway, since we both play sports during the school year, we thought it would be cool to just, you know, chill during the summer.”
“Especially at the beach,” Noah added with a grin, as if the whole brilliant plan had been his idea. Had it? Or were her kids and Matteo in cahoots?
Danielle forced her shoulders down from their ear-level perch. “Um, why don’t you guys go hang out with your friends for a while? I need to talk to Matteo.”
They hopped to their feet and trotted away, but before Danielle could open her mouth, Olivia dashed back, talking a mile a minute. “I almost forgot. Emma and Jayce are having a sleepover in their backyard tonight. Can we go? Pleasepleaseplease?”
Matteo nudged her ribs. “Jerry and Lana’s kids. I can vouch for the parents. They live right next door to Sal.”
Okay, definitely in cahoots. “I’ll think about it. Give me a minute.”
The kids scooted back to their new friends. Danielle sank onto the blanket, flopped onto her back, and blinked up at the stars. Matteo reclined next to her, propped on his elbow, and twirled a lock of her hair around his finger. For several minutes, they lay side by side as bottle rockets and firecrackers exploded up and down the beach. The sharp scent of gunpowder filled the air and made her eyes tear, but she kept her gaze on the heavens while her mind spun and fizzed.
He loves me. He’s in love with me.She turned it over and over, not quite able to grasp the shape of it, the heft and color and taste of this amazing…serendipity?
