Page 32 of Shameless in Vegas

My internal monologue has me so fired up that every muscle in my body is flexed, bracing for the first shitty thing that comes out of Papá’s mouth that will trigger me to take Natalia and walk right out of this house again.

But apparently, that’s not what’s going through his mind.

Papá clears his throat and focuses his neutral gaze on Natalia, and I wrap my hand protectively around her waist.

“Mija,” he begins in the gentlest tone I think he’s capable of. The term of endearment makes me a little less on edge, but I continue to brace. “I owe you an apology. You are not responsible for my frustration with my son. In that moment, you were a guest in my home, and I treated you unkindly based on my own assumptions of the situation.” He pauses and cuts his eyes at me before looking at her again. “I still don’t approve of the manner in which you were married. I still don’t know who you are. But you seem like a polite, respectful young woman, and you’re both adults, so it’s not my place to make decisions for either of you.” He pauses again, sighing quietly. “My other concern is the fact that my son and this family in general are currently facing a serious problem that I can’t imagine you were aware of when you agreed to marry him. You may not have any desire to be a part of it.”

Papá pauses a third time, long enough to indicate that he’s finished speaking for the moment, and Natalia sits up a little taller and a little closer to my side.

“He did make me aware of it,” she says with a respectful tone. She doesn’t specifywhenI made her aware of it, and I couldn’t appreciate her meticulous vagueness more. “It does not change the fact that I am happy with him, and it does not change the fact that I want to be married to him.” She turns her head to smile at me, then looks back at Papá. “I think we are very good together. And I appreciate your apology, but it wasn’t necessary. I respect your position as the patriarch of this family, and I understand why such a marriage would be concerning to you. I promise that I will do whatever I can to be a good wife to him and a good daughter-in-law to you both.”

Mamá clutches the pearls at her sternum and knits her brows, cooing quietly, and Papá offers an approving nod.

“I appreciate that.” He clears his throat and looks at me. Even though he’s obviously in a calmer, less pissed off state of mind, I continue to brace. If Papá’s past behavior is an indicator of his reaction, he’s about to read me the riot act and point out how fucking stupid and disappointing I am, even if he is calmer about it this time.

“Mijo.”

“Yeah,” I clip, meeting his eyes and not backing down.

“As I said, I still don’t approve of the manner in which this marriage took place,” he says. “However… whether this was a mistake or not… you’ve proven that you are standing by your choice, rather than coming to me to bail you out. The reasons you gave me for sticking to that choice are respectable. The fact that you returned to address this issue face to face is also respectable. Your behavior indicates that you are committed to making the best of this situation and also to making this marriage work as well as you can.”

Papá pauses, but I don’t say anything because I’m speechless at the fact that he actually has somethingpositiveto say about me for once.

“Beyond that,” he goes on. “Your mother and I expect and hope for this to be an opportunity for you to settle down from a less than respectable lifestyle. To that end, we would like for you and your bride to accompany us at the yacht club’s annual summer celebration this evening so we may announce your marriage to our circle of friends properly. And on that note…”

Papá turns to Mamá, who’s now wearing a giddy smile as she stands from the loveseat to cross the room. She approaches a mahogany hutch and picks up a flat, rectangular leather box, then returns to the loveseat and sets it on the coffee table in front of us.

“This has always been intended for Joaquin’s bride,” Mamá says, still so excited she can barely contain herself as she lifts the lid.

Inside is something I never knew anything about, but I guess fine jewelry isn’t something my parents thought I’d be interested in, being a guy and all. And this particular piece of jewelry isfineasfuck. Kinda like my pretty little wifey, whom I can’t help smiling at as her big, stormy blue eyes go wide at the sight of the sautoir style necklace that features a large, yellow diamond suspended from its center. The rest of the necklace is nothing but blinding white diamonds in a lace-like pattern that will wrap around her beautiful neck, and all I can think about is Natalia on my bed wearing nothing butthat.

“Dios mio,” Natalia murmurs, death-gripping my arm. She glances up at my parents below knitted brows. “Señor y señora…this is such an extravagant gift.”

“It would delight us both if you wore it to the celebration tonight,” Papá says. “Then it can return to the safety of the vault until you and Joaquin decide on a home of your own.” He arches a bushy brow at me. “I trust that you’ll be purchasing a home soon,mjio. You cannot exactly start a marriage properly while living under your parents’ roof.”

“Uhyeah.” Laughter bubbles up from my chest and out my throat. I actuallyhadn’tthought of that yet, but I’m so friggin’ relieved right now that I could do a friggin’ backflip right here in the middle of this room. This whole thing turned out infinitely better than I expected, and I’m on cloud nine right now. “Yeah, I was planning to take care of that within the next week or so.”

“Very good.” Papá places his palms on his knees as he stands up, and Mamá, Natalia, and I follow suit. Not one to offerhugs—and not that we have that kind of relationship anyway—Papá extends his hand to me, and we shake firmly. “Again, I’m not pleased about the hasty and untraditional wedding itself,however, I do understand the importance of executing a decision that you believe is right, and I appreciate the fact that you made a choice and are sticking to it. I expect you to continue to do so, because marriage isn’t easy.”

“I assure you I will,” I reply, looking him in the eye, andno friggin’ way.

There it is. Something I never thought I’d see when my father was addressing me. It’s subtle and restrained, but unmistakable because I’ve seen it in his eyes when he’s looked at pretty much everyone elsebutme.

Respect.

Not just as his son, but as a grown man who’s capable of a hell of a lot more than just disappointing him. It wasn’t until this exact moment that I realized how badly I’ve needed that. And it’s all because I married the woman at my side who’s hugging and kissing my mother; the woman who I now know I am one-hundred-percent in love with.

Now, all I have to do is get the balls to tell her.

TO BE EXPECTED, THE party at the yacht club is just as boujee as ever. The club itself is the standard size of all the estates in Southampton, but the architecture is modern and gives it the feel of an urban high-rise.

I lead Natalia on to the vast, rooftop party space just behind my parents and take in the sight of the whole spectacle. Strings of white lights drape overhead, set off by a stunning view of the marina, the boats, and the lit-up mansions of the seaside skyline. The ocean glitters, and the air is cool, but not too cold, although the intermittent breeze makes me think Natalia’s going to need my tux jacket before long to cover her bare shoulders. A full big band is set up on the left side of the space, the musicians wearing black-tie attire and crooning old jazz standards. Servers glide back and forth amongst the crowd, carrying trays of champagne and passing them off to people. Men wearing tuxedos meander about the space with women on their arms who are dressed in sparkling gowns in every vibrant color on the spectrum.

Natalia, in her strapless, sumptuous gold evening gown and with the necklace from my parents glittering around her neck, fits in famously. Her posture and demure smile cause her to seem completely at ease, like she was born into this world of the upper crust of society just like I was. Her tight grip around the crook of my arm indicates she’s more nervous than she’s letting on, and I take a small step away from my parents to pull her close to me with my hands encircling her narrow waist.

“You’re magnificent.” I lean down to kiss her cheek. “Don’t be nervous. I’m gonna grab us some champagne, and we’re gonna get tipsy on bubbles.”

Her full, red lips spread into a wide smile. “Champagne would be very good right now.”

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