Baby V (Chianti Kisses #1) (22 page)

Do
m’
s arm appears in my line of sight, matching his voice from behind. He sets down a couple of green bills on the counter to bribe his new accomplice in controlling my sobriety. I hang my head low, unable to face him. He was about to loose so much. Because of me.

Dom guides my slouching form back to rest against his solid pillar of strength.

“
I
t’
s gonna be fine, V. I swear. Just... just do
n’
t work yourself up
.
” He spins me to face him. It probably is
n’
t the best idea given the amount of alcohol swirling around in my otherwise empty stomach right now. He crooks his finger under my chin and elevates it.
 “
Trust me, babe. Everythin
g’
s going to be just fine. Better than fine, even
.
”

I roll my eyes in response. H
e’
s in denial.
 “
Dom, we made a mis
-
”

Dom smashes his lips down to quiet my protest. I inhale deeply breathing in his crisp scent, committing every aspect of his kiss to memory as
I’
m sure it will be our last. Once w
e’
re fully outed, ther
e’
s no way
I’
ll be able to bear the disappointment of my family by staying with this man.

“
Enough already, you two. Tony and Cecily are about to make an announcement. Come up for air and get in there
.
”

I hear Joh
n’
s words, replaying them for any hidden meaning. I take in his tone, searching for harshness. There is none.  How is this possible?

“
See
?
” Dom playfully kisses the tip of my scrunched nose, the confusion doing visible things to my face. He smacks my rear, lingering long enough to fist a handful of my curves before grabbing my hand and leading me to the wolves.

~*~

Ding, ding, ding. The clinking of the crystal glass reverberates as Tony commands attention of the room. The space is filled to capacity with family and friends lunching and laughing. The noise politely quiets down to an acceptable level. Tony holds close to Cecily as he addresses his loved ones.

“
Thank you all so much for coming out today to help my wife and I celebrate this... this fantastic time for our family. W
e’
re about to welcome a new perfect little person in to our lives, and we are so grateful to have each and every one of you be a part of it. I need to take this opportunity to thank my wife... my life. Sh
e’
s given me more than I could have ever dreamt of and sh
e’
s about to give me even more. I am so grateful to her. Sh
e’
s so brave and she inspires me every single day. She is a fantastic wife and she is going to make a wonderful mother. I may be the luckiest man on earth, but our baby is going to be the luckiest child to have such a warm, caring, loving mother
.
” Tony lifts his champagne flute to the crowd.

“
So, please. Lift your glass to toast my wife, my Cecily. Sh
e’
s got just a little further to go before she brings our baby into the world. May she pass her wisdom, beauty, courage, and strength to our baby... Salute
.
”

“
Salute
,
”
 
is echoed in response throughout the celebration. Tony kisses Cecily tenderly as we all look on, sipping on our champagne and admiring the happy couple.

Well, almost all of us.

Tanya is sulking in her seat, visibly casting jealous glares at her cousin through the crowd.

“
And now
,
”
 
Tony adds,
 “
on a more serious note...
I’
d like to ask two people to step forward. Dom, Vincenza... please come up here for a second
.
”

I stop breathing. I ca
n’
t hear this. I ca
n’
t bear to witness Tony shame us in front of everyone important to me. Face after face turns to Dom and I standing in the corner. My mind begs me to stay put. My legs do
n’
t listen and follow Do
m’
s lead instead. He grasps my limp hand, lacing his large fingers through mine, and guides us to join my brother and his wife at the center of attention.

“
You see, trust means everything to us as a family. We depend on each other, and are nothing without it. We placed a lot of trust into each of you..
.
”

Oh God. Here it comes. Public admonishment, humiliation, and tongue lashing. I brace myself, preparing for the shame. I hold tight onto Do
m’
s hand. His thumb moves to massage into my palm. I scan the crowd, searching pairs of eyes, so sorry
I’
m about to disappoint so many of them. My gaze falls on Tanya and her hardened stare, which immediately moves to the area where Dom and I are joined, she scowls and sits up, taking it in.

“
And now...
.
” I close my eyes as if it will somehow shield me from Ton
y’
s words.
 “
We are about to place even more trust in you
.
”

Huh? My eyes fly open.

“
Cecily and I would love nothing more than for you two to agree to become the Godparents to your niece. We ca
n’
t think of a better example for our daughter, than to give her such a loving and supportive couple to love her just as much as her parents will
.
”

Cecily jumps to her swollen feet to embrace me, holding me tight, her enthusiasm contagious. Dom and Tony have their own
 “
br
o
”
 
version of our hug, complete with back slaps. What the hell is happening here? I
t’
s like
I’
ve entered a parallel universe where nothing makes sense.

Tony brushes my cheeks and holds me tight as I stand dumbfounded.
 “
Thanks, sis
.
”

He withdraws back to his wife and they lead the toast as each person joins in to celebrate not only our appointment as Godparents, but also the revelation that
I’
m going to have a niece.

I
t’
s a double whammy.

I stand with my mouth agape, stunned at the recent turn of events. Dom angles his chin down and purses my opened lips in his. The crowd cheers once again.

This is not the reaction I was expecting.

~*~

Concetta, Cecil
y’
s mother pr
y’
s herself from her daughter and unborn granddaughter long enough to carry her teacup carefully over to the set-back table
I’
ve chosen to occupy while I mull over my famil
y’
s reaction.

“
Hello dear
!
” She kisses my cheek,
 “I’
ve been so busy mingling that I have
n’
t had a chance to chat with my favorite
in-law
.
” Connie, as we all call her, has always has a soft spot for me. She would send me care packages while in school, and even came up once with Cecily for a visit. I was the envy of every girl in my dorm when one of Conni
e’
s packages would arrive... she is one mean baker!

“
Hey Connie. Congratulations on your new granddaughter, i
t’
s exciting... is
n’
t it
?
” I hear the echo of my own words in my ears, and hope she does
n’
t mistake my ho-hum attitude for one of indifference.

She pats my hand delicately.

“
Darling, you have put together quite the party. Cecily is lucky to have such a great sister-in-law, like you, V. And the baby is going to be spoiled rotten by her aunt! I just know it
.
” Connie gives me a conspiratory wink as she sips her warm tea. We both know sh
e’
s going to be spoiling this child a whole lot more than anyone else will.
 “
And, what a great opportunity for you and your new gentleman to make your first public appearance
.
”

“
Can I join the fun
?
”

We both turn to acknowledge our interloper. Tanya is stumbling forward, mimosa in hand, taking up the last vacancy at our table. I guess her words were a mere formality, as she has
n’
t waited for our reply before crashing our conversation.

“
Hey, Aunt Cece... do
n’
t Baby V and her new
boyfriend
  look cute together
?
”

Sh
e’
s drunk. Drunk and bitter, a nasty combination. Not only do I not like Tanya using my famil
y’
s nickname, but I also know for a fact that Cecilia
does not
enjoy being called Cece. Concetta attempts to diffuse the ticking time bomb.

“
Now Tanya... le
t’
s not be rude. Vincenz
a’
s relationship is nobod
y’
s business. Le
t’
s just be happy for them, shall we
?
”

Yeah, tha
t’
s not likely to happen.

Tanya pounds down the half glass of mixed drink.
 “
But, Aunt Cece... they just look so
perfect
together. Like it was
meant
to be... predestined, almost. How can we not admire two people
finally
  accepting their fate
?
” Her words are laced with venom.

Connie abruptly drops her porcelain cup harshly onto its saucer.
 “
Tha
t’
s enough , Tanya
,
” she reprimands her niece.

I nod to myself.  Connie is right, it
is
  enough.
I’
ve had enough of this gir
l’
s drunken jealous rantings. Dom did
n’
t want her, no matter how hard she would throw herself at him. I
t’
s only natural for her to feel hurt but I do
n’
t need to take her verbal abuse. I push out my chair, the metal legs humming as they scrape against the wooden floor.

“
I
t’
s alright Connie. Tany
a’
s right. He
is
perfect.
We
  are perfect. And
I’
m gonna go get a piece of that perfection right now
.
” I turn around, swinging past Tanya and wink.
Chew on that, bitch
.

Dom has retreated back to the bar area where all of the men are congregating, leaving the ladies to their traditional gender segregated celebration. I see him relaxing, jacket off and casually strung over his unused stool. The lot of them, my three brothers... and Dom, are sharing a drink while watching the baseball game on the screen behind the bar. Mike is positioned in a way to see my approach first.

“
Hey, sis. Bored with party games? Looking to join the real fun
?
”

I roll my eyes, sliding my arm through Do
m’
s elbow. He throws a handful of peanuts into his mouth while staring at the hit into the outfield.

“
Wha
t’
s up, babe
?
” He crunches on his peanuts between words.
 “
Yes!!! Yes, yes, yes
!
”

The bar erupts into thunderous applause and celebration as the uniformed runner cruises his way around second base. John hollers out, grabbing Dom close and side hugging him. The boys are nothing if not loyal fans, but the second a games comes on i
t’
s like they fall into a pin-striped coma.

Once the latest round of enthusiasm has quieted, Dom lifts his chin over to me,
 “
You want a drink
?”
`