Page 89 of Worth the Vow

“Hush, you,” Nonna snaps. “You see, Dominic wouldn’t eat fish. He saw a live lobster in a tank and was horrified about eating that. Shrimp creeped him out, scallops too. But for some reason, he was willing to try calamari, even after we told him it was squid. Now, Dominic had a little bit of a speech impediment?—”

“Oh, fuck me, she’s really going for it,” Dominic murmurs, tilting his face up and closing his eyes.

“And saying calamari was too difficult for him. He couldn’t pronounce the ‘l’ or ‘r’ sounds correctly. So we taught him how to say tentacles. But he didn’t always say it correctly …” Nonna trails off, grinning devilishly at Dominic.

“What did he say?” I finally ask.

“When Dominic, Alex, and his mother drove into Denver to find the fresh squid, or at least as fresh as we can get it here, Dominic happily ran into the store shouting about how he needed to get the tentacles so he could introduce his twin siblings to them.”

“Okay?” I say, quite confused with where this story could go wrong.

Nonna turns to me. “He shouted, ‘I want to cook and eat all the testicles, Mommy!’”

Too shocked to reply, I turn to Dominic, and find his entire hand covering his face. “Thanks for that, Nonna.”

Nonna looks nonplussed. “I was going to be nice, but you didn’t let me come in on the bed with the hot young men like I wanted, Dominic. This is all really your fault.”

“You retaliated by telling my wife a story about me?” he asks.

“I could have told the one about you pulling on your penis so much that we had to take you to the pediatrician because it swelled … and not in a good way.”

“Fantastic,” Dominic mutters. Looking at his grandmother, he raises his eyebrows. “Anything else? You done?”

“Yes. Wait! I’m not. I have a brilliant story about Kate, as well,” Nonna says, her devious smile turning to me.

“What? How? No one here even knew me as a kid!” I cry out. Turning, I stare at my brothers. “What did you do?”

Both Matt and Zane put up their hands in mock surrender.

“This story comes from your mother, Kate,” Nonna says quietly.

“What?” I ask, my heart in my throat. “How — what?”

“Oh, God, the flood,” Dominic breathes. “I forgot about how much was damaged. Your baby book was in one of the boxes that got wet, and my mom took the baby book to Nonna so she could dry it out, page by page. She knew we were stressed with everything that happened that weekend.”

“I’ve never looked at my baby book,” I confess.

Nonna smiles sweetly. “December twenty fifth, nineteen ninety-nine. My sweet Katie finally understands what Christmas is all about, and refused to go to sleep last night, too excited about Santa coming. When I accidentally fell asleep myself, I woke up to find Katie out of her bed. As I tore through the apartment, I found her sitting next to our stove. Since we didn’t have a fireplace, she assumed the next hottest thing would be where Santa would enter our home.”

“Okay, that’s actually adorable,” Dominic whispers, letting go of my hand to slide his arm around my waist.

“Just wait, it gets better,” Nonna says as she continues to read. “I told Katie to wait a moment so I could go to the bathroom, and I saw a kaleidoscope of colors all over the sink, toilet, and mirror. Walking back into the kitchen, I asked Katie what had happened. I actually screamed when she turned around, because she looked like a horrific clown! Katie announced that she wanted to get gussied up for Santa, but didn’t want to wake me, so she used all of my makeup herself. It took ten makeup wipes to get everything off her face, and we laughed the entire time.”

I sob quietly into Dominic’s shoulder as Nonna continues. I could hear my mother in the story. I could picture that apartment, the table where she’d help me with homework, and the couch where she and I would watch The Bachelor. God, I miss her.

“July seventeenth, two thousand and eight. I can’t get over what a little woman my Katie-girl is becoming. She’s blossoming right in front of my eyes, but still has the sweetest heart of anyone I know. So far this summer, we’ve rescued countless crickets, one toad, a mostly dead prairie dog that I convinced her was just sleeping (it wasn’t), and an odd turtle that we found in the middle of the mall parking lot. Kate wants to help everyone, no matter their circumstances. She knows times have been tough for us financially, and has spent a tremendous amount of time brainstorming ways she can help around our neighborhood without spending any money. Kate has only recently begun showing interest in boys, and I can’t wait to watch a man when he realizes how special she is. He’ll have to fall at her feet and beg her to let him into her heart, I think. But my Katie needs a fighter. Someone who will challenge her, but love her through all of it.”

I hear more than one sniffle behind me as many in attendance get emotional at my mom’s words. I shift slightly to whisper in his ear. “She would have loved you. You’re exactly who she envisioned for me.”

“Yeah?” he says softly, and I nod against him. I’d forgotten having a conversation with my mom shortly after she was diagnosed, and she reiterated that I needed someone to challenge me. That we might fight, but I’d never feel more cherished than when I was with him.

Dominic carefully slides behind me, wrapping his arms around my shoulders, and I lean back against him, thankful to have him supporting me right now, just as he has for months. Dominic is my shelter in the storm.

“Sometimes, love is for a lifetime,” Nonna says quietly. “It’s the one person who completes you, and makes you content through whatever trials and tribulations come your way. That person could be your love, your best friend, or your sibling. But other times, love is as short as a blink of an eye.” She pauses, overcome with emotion. “There’s no timetable for grief, unfortunately. I know your mother would give absolutely anything to be here with you, Kate, but I believe with my whole heart that she’s looking down on us right now, thrilled with watching my grandson love you exactly as you deserve. Just as I know my sweet Vincent is watching, absolutely tickled at this wonderful match.”

I cast a quick glance over my shoulder to find almost every woman in attendance dabbing at their eyes. I’m relieved to know I’m not the only one a crying mess right now.

“Now, are we ready for the vows?” Nonna asks brightly as she wipes a tear from under her eye. Wait, what? Vows?

---