Page 26 of Unravel You

“That’s great.” Valentina gripped the back of my shirt. “What is he doing there?”

“He’s a doctor. He’s there on some farming project with the Peace Corps.” I hugged Valentina closer to me. “I should’ve done note cards for you.”

“I just need to put a face to a name, that’s all.” She relaxed against me.

I should have warned her about Mom. After my short marriage to Bridget and the whole debacle of how I almost lost everything to her, Mom didn’t think it would be a good idea for me to jump into another relationship so soon. But that was why we were here. So she could see what Valentina and I had was rare and beautiful.

I was rushing into it, yeah, but my eyes were wide open. I knew exactly what I wanted. I wanted a life with Valentina and Max. Why wait? I didn’t need to date other people to know Valentina was the one for me. Mom thought I needed to date for a while to make sure my feelings for Valentina were real.

If she knew the kind of hell I lived in before Valentina walked into my life, she never would have suggested I see other women. But I couldn’t tell her the truth. It would just hurt her to find out how hard I hit rock bottom and how long I’d stayed there, seeing a different girl every night, waking up drunk in the middle of the day, not knowing where I was or how I’d ended up at home after I left the bar.

No, Mom didn’t need to know about any of that. Instead, she needed to get to know Valentina and see how happy she made me.

“It’s not that hard, dear.” Mom put up her hand and counted on her fingers, starting with her thumb. “Derek is the oldest. Next is Tyler. He lives in New York City now, doing God only knows what. He never tells me anything. He’s the same age as Mattie.”

When Valentina raised an eyebrow, I interrupted Mom to explain. “Matt came to live with us when he was ten. Our parents adopted him officially the next year, I think.”

“Poor boy. Such a sad story. Anyway, the twins, Wesley and Zack, are the youngest.”

“Five boys. I bet they kept you busy.” Valentina beamed at her.

“They did, which is why they spent a great deal of time with my late mother-in-law.”

“We weren’t that bad.” I poured more wine in Valentina’s glass. After that first drink, she seemed more at ease. “Valentina has a six-year-old son. Max is by far the most well-behaved boy you’ll ever meet.”

“How sweet. Who’s staying with him while you’re here on vacation?”

Valentina swallowed, furrowing her brows at her glass. “Em stayed with him. They get along great. My mom and dad also said they’d drive over and spend a few days with him so his routine is not disrupted.”

“He has school, but he’ll visit next week so you can meet him, Mom.”

“I’m looking forward to it. This house needs kids. Why don’t we finish our wine outside? A little stroll should get our appetite ready for dinner.” Mom grabbed the platter of cold cuts and headed out through the double french doors off the breakfast nook.

“I love that smell.” Valentina walked out in front of me.

“I know. It’s gardenias, like your perfume.”

“I didn’t know you’d noticed.” She slipped her arm around my waist and kissed my cheek. Too bad we didn’t get to do a tour of the master bedroom first.

I bent down and whispered in her ear. “I notice everything about you.”

Since the moment I’d met Valentina almost a year ago, she felt like home to me. I spent months going to a coffee shop near her campus just so I could sit next to her and bask in her scent and soothing energy. I went back day after day, thinking I didn’t need to talk to her, that sitting next to her was enough.

Mom waited at the bottom of the steps beyond the terrace, where a narrow gravel path stretched out and got lost behind the oak trees.

“I couldn’t get rid of the trees,” she said when we joined her. “They’re so beautiful. Instead, I had the architect design an English garden that made the trees part of it. What do you think?”

“You did an amazing job.” I put my arm around her and kissed her temple.

“Grams would’ve loved to see this. I know she said she didn’t want us to touch any of it, but I think she would’ve come around eventually. I mean, how could she not?” She hugged my waist and led me deeper into the gardens. “We decided it made more sense to move the greenhouse to the east end of the house. Having it in the middle of the property made the space feel small, which is ridiculous given the eleven acres of land we have behind the house.”

I nodded. “It’s exactly how I remember it, but better.”

“I’m glad you agree with all the executive decisions I made. It’s been a joy to finally right this house.” She tightened her hold on me, beaming.

When I told Valentina about the disagreement I had with Mom five years ago, she’d advised me to talk to her. I had every intention of doing that to clear the air and start fresh. I was glad the house project had served to bridge the chasm between us. I still had a lot of work to do, but this was a hell of a start. I didn’t want to mess it up with a serious talk.

Beyond the tree line, the Copenhaver estate came into view. During renovations, I’d tried to buy the property next to us—all of ten acres of land. As it turned out, the surviving daughter of the Copenhavers had the same idea as me. She wasn’t ready to let her parents’ property go at all. Instead, she’d decided to come home. If Mom wanted to give me credit for Little Ana’s return, then who was I to argue with that?

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