Page 69 of Secret Babies For My Brother's Best Friend

“Careful, sweetie,” I warned, unsure about what he’d find in there. “Maybe you should let your dad have a look.”

Leo looked up at me with a cheeky grin. “He said I could do it.”

“I said we’ll do it together,” Luca said, rounding the kitchen counter to come over to us.

Once there, he and Leo went down on one knee at the same time that the latter pulled a giant diamond ring from the tomato. I was so perplexed by the level of secrecy and skill required to pull that off that it distracted me from what was happening in front of me.

“How did you do that?” I asked, flabbergasted.

Luca shook his head with a laugh. “You’re supposed to say yes.”

“You’re supposed to ask her first, Papa,” Leo corrected him with an elbow to his ribs. Then he looked up at me again and asked, “Will you marry me, Scarlett?”

Luca took the ring from his outstretched hand and picked mine from my lap. “Will you?”

I gazed up at him, unable to fight back the tears, and nodded. “Of course, I will.”

He wore a broad smile as he slipped the ring onto my finger, pulling me into a tight embrace. Leo bounced around us, cheering and applauding as we celebrated with a kiss.

“You managed to keep it simple,” I said, smiling against his lips. “I’m surprised.”

“Aren’t you proud?” Luca gave me a light peck. “I didn’t act like one of those obnoxious billionaires you hate and do something over the top.”

“It doesn’t have to be extravagant to be special,” I replied. “It was the perfect proposal.”

Luca pulled me into a warm embrace, and I settled into his arms, feeling like home. I breathed him in, committing the moment to memory. Me in the kitchen with him and Leo, our twins growing inside me, about to start the rest of our lives together. It was better than perfect—it was mine.

All those months I’d been weighed down by losing it all. My brother, Luca, the life I never knew I wanted but couldn’t imagine leaving behind… I was convinced that my secret was one I would never be able to come back from. That it would cause me to lose everything.

“Thank God I was wrong,” I murmured into Luca’s neck.

He rubbed my back gently. “What was that?”

“Nothing,” I said, laughing softly as I let him go. “I’m starving. What do you say we get dinner going?”

“Meatballs are ready,” Leo announced proudly. “I finished up while you two were kissing.”

Luca ruffled his hair affectionately. “That’s my boy. Go set the table on the balcony, and I’ll get these in a pan.”

I couldn’t think of a time I'd been happier than I was sitting in that kitchen, watching Luca and Leo prepare the celebration dinner for their joint proposal. It was the sweetest moment, capped by an even sweeter gesture. One I was sure I’d remember forever, no matter what Luca thought about it.

If it were up to him, he’d have booked a private performance from the world’s leading pop star, booked out an entire stadium for the show, and flown me there in his helicopter. Or something to that effect. But he was slowly starting to learn that the most meaningful moments happened in between things like that. Like right then in that kitchen.

“Ready?” he asked, holding out his arm for me to hook myself in.

I slid off my stool and followed Luca out onto the balcony. Leo received us, a white napkin slung over his forearm and a couple of handwritten menus in his other hand.

“Here you go, ma’am,” he said as I sat down.

I tried to decode his childlike handwriting on the menu he’d handed me. “Oh, I didn’t know I’d be able to order anything. I’m loving this restaurant already.”

Leo cupped his hand to my ear and whispered, “It’s not really a real menu. There’s only the stuff on there that me and Papa made.”

I bit back my laughter and nodded my understanding. “Of course. Luckily, it’s exactly what I’m in the mood for.”

He gave his dad a proud smile. “Now for the first course,” he said and darted off into the kitchen.

“Will he be okay?” I asked, doubting the eight-year-old’s ability to carry heavy dishes back and forth.

---