Page 42 of Twisted Vows

“Same.” She smooths out her hair. “Unfortunately, we won’t have time to visit since the plane is waiting for me.”

“Making your great escape?”

“Something like that.” She waves to Tony, who is waiting by the door. “I’ll be ready to go in five minutes.”

“The pilot is up my ass.”

“Sounds uncomfortable,” I reply with a smirk.

Tony ignores me and taps his watch. “Something about the weather and not wanting to be delayed in Rome.”

“Italy?” I ask as my cousin taps out a quick text.

“Yes, I’m going to Sicily and stay with the family for a couple of months.”

There’s a hint of excitement in her eyes, and I know it’s not because Zia Maria is a ball of fun.” “Anything you want to share?”

Luna looks away and shakes her head. “Just need some sunshine and quiet.”

Tony taps his foot loudly, and Luna gives me a quick hug. “I’ll call you when I get back.”

“Sounds good.” I spin around and walk toward Nonna’s wing, wondering exactly what my cousin is up to.

The warm wood floors and simple silk curtains welcome me when I walk into Nonna’s space. The air smells lighter here, touched with lavender and something that is uniquely hers.

Nonna sits at the round table, her posture as perfect as ever. She wears a tailored black dress, her pearls catching the soft light streaming through the stained-glass window behind her. Her dark eyes meet mine as I step into the room, and a smile lifts the edges of her lips. It’s small and enough to loosen the tension in my chest.

“Arianna,cara mia,” she says, her voice warm and familiar. She stands, her delicate hands reaching for me as I lean down tolet her kiss my cheeks. Her touch lingers on my arms as if trying to read me through her fingertips.

“Nonna.” I smile and then slide into the chair she gestures to.

The table is already set—fine china, silver polished to a high shine, and a crystal decanter of red wine that glints in the sunlight. A vase of roses sits in the center, their petals almost too perfect to be real. The smell of garlic and basil drifts from the sideboard, mixing with the warmth of freshly baked bread.

“It smells amazing,” I say, letting my voice rise just enough to sound casual.

Nonna tilts her head, pouring wine into my glass with the steady precision of someone who has all the time in the world. “Pasta alla Norma,” she says simply. “It was your favorite as a girl. I thought it might make you happy.”

The words are kind, but her tone isn’t just kind. It’s layered, sharp in the way only Nonna can be.I see you,it says.I know what you’re not saying.

We eat in silence at first. Nonna serves the salad herself, the greens crisp and glistening with olive oil. I focus on my plate, stabbing at a roasted tomato as if it’s the source of all my disquiet.

“You’re quiet today,” she says at last, her voice soft but sharp enough to cut through the quiet. “Marriage keeping you busy, I suppose?”

The fork stills in my hand for half a second. “Something like that.”

Nonna doesn’t react right away. She dabs her mouth slowly with a heavy linen napkin. “Marriage is like tending a garden,cara. Some days, it’s beautiful. Other days, you’re pulling weeds.” She looks up, her gaze steady and piercing. “How is your garden, hmm?”

I grip my fork tighter. “It depends on the hour. One minute, I think it will eventually bloom, and the next, I’m ready to mow the whole thing down.”

Her eyebrows lift just slightly. She doesn’t say anything, letting the silence stretch until it feels unbearable. Until the truth slips out.

I sigh, breaking off a piece of bread and tearing it in half without realizing it. “Creating trust with the enemy is difficult…especially when you are married.”

Nonna’s fingers tap lightly against her wineglass, the rhythm slow and deliberate, like she’s calculating something far beyond the room’s confines. Her dark eyes, so much like my father’s, meet mine with a sharpness that makes it impossible to look away.

“Your husband,” she begins, her voice even, “is a man who understands strategy, no?”

I nod, unsure where she’s headed. “He wouldn’t be where he is otherwise.”

---