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Caramelina pulls back, her gaze flicking from me to Indie as her smile grows. She’s practically bouncing as she says, “Who do we have here?”

Indie shuffles awkwardly under the intensity of Caramelina’s gaze, so I squeeze her hand reassuringly. “This is my girlfriend, Indie.”

Indie’s eyes grow wide at the label I threw out there without thinking. She doesn’t look annoyed, more shocked that I called her it. I hadn’t meant to, it just sort of slipped out. Caramelina is like family, and it didn’t feel right to lie to her.

Just as I expected, Caramelina turns her full attention to Indie, running her gaze over her body as she assesses her. With a firm nod of her head, signalling her approval, she reaches up and squeezes Indie’s cheeks the way she did mine.

“Indie, it’s so lovely to meet you, and aren’t you beautiful? I knew Miles would end up with a beauty, but you are something else. I hope you’re treating him right.” Her words at the end take on a stern, motherly tone, and Indie is quick to nod.

“I promise, I am.” Her words seem to placate Caramelina, whose face softens into a content smile.

“Well, I’m so glad to meet you. Miles has never brought a girl home before,” she says, as she picks up two menus and leads us over to the booth in the corner where I always sit.

Indie looks over at me, her brows raised in question at the way Caramelina calls this place home. “Me and Courtney spent a lot of time here growing up,” I offer as an explanation.

Caramelina hears my sister’s name and turns abruptly, staring at me. “How is your sister? I saw her the other month, and she told me about her new relationship.” She practically spits the words, her nose wrinkling in disgust. “I told her to bring him over to meet me, but she’s not been yet.”

I have to bite my lip to hold back a smile. Maximus Morelli might be the old ruler of Blackthorn, one of the most powerful men in town, but he will cower under the weight of Caramelina’s stare the way we all do.

I think I might quite like to be here when Courtney introduces him. I’ll make a mental note to set that up straight away. Maybe I’ll invite Marcus too. I’m sure he’d love to watch Caramelina take down his father,I think to myself, trying my best not to smile and face her wrath.

“Courtney is good. I’ll tell her you want to see her.”

Her eyes narrow on me, making sure I’m not lying to her. When she’s satisfied by what she sees, her face softens. “Good. Now, sit. Here are your menus.”

I motion for Indie to slide into one side of the booth, while I take the opposite side. The booths are actually U-shaped, so we both shuffle into the middle, until we’re sitting next to each other, taking the menus from Caramelina with thanks.

“I’ll bring you some water and breadsticks, then I’ll take your drinks order,” she says, walking away before we can respond.

For a small lady, she has a very big presence, and I can’t help but smile as she walks away. Indie must have been watching me, as she says, “She’s important to you.”

“Yes, very. We’ve been coming here my whole life. When things were tough with Mum, I’d bring Court here and Caramelina would feed us. She’d let me do my homework in this booth, while she looked after Courtney. She helped raise her, in a way.”

Mum’s mental health problems were very cyclical, so she had periods where she was a great mum. She took care of us, provided for us, and gave us what we needed. But when her mental health worsened, she stopped taking her meds, or she slipped back into using, and being our parent was the last thing on her mind.

Caramelina wanted to report her to the authorities on more than one occasion, and I think she would have if I hadn’t begged her not to. I thought I’d be separated from Courtney, given our nine-year age gap, and I couldn’t bear the thought of strangers raising her without me there. So, Caramelina agreed not to say anything, as long as I came to her for help when things were tough.

When I got old enough, I’d help out as a server at the restaurant, taking the pressure off her just a little. It was also my way of paying her back for all the help she gave us over the years.

Now that we’re older, Courtney and I don’t see Caramelina as much as we should, but I text her a lot, and we talk on the phone occasionally. Whenever we have time, we come here for a meal and to catch up, and it feels like old times again.

“She seems lovely,” Indie says, soothing the nerves I didn’t know I had. Of course, I want the girl I’m seeing to like the lady who thinks she’s my grandmother.

Caramelina comes over with the breadsticks and water as promised, and walks away again after taking our drinks order. We both take some time to look over the menu, but I don’t know why I’m bothering, as I always have the same.

Once we’re ready to order, Caramelina comes rushing over. I order my usual chicken and mushroom pizza with extra cheese, and Indie asks for prawn Alfredo with a side of garlic bread. Caramelina doesn’t bother writing it down, as she never forgets, but rushes into the kitchen to pass it on to the chef.

When she comes back out, a large party is waiting at the hostess stand. It’s the same group that always comes in around this time, opting to hold their work meeting here over some nice food.

I knew they’d be here, and that they’d provide Caramelina with the perfect distraction, so I can set my plan into motion. It usually takes at least fifteen minutes to prepare the pizza from scratch, and given how wound up I am, I’m almost certain we won’t need that long.

I lean in closer to Indie, and as soon as she sees the devilish smirk on my face, her eyes widen. I sweep her long blonde hair over her shoulder, exposing her neck to me as I press a kiss just below her ear, right beside the mark I left earlier.

She shudders beneath my lips as I place my hand high on her thigh, letting my fingers trail over the soft fabric of her dress. With my lips right beside her ear, I drop my voice to a deep whisper. “Are you ready for your punishment?”

Her brows shoot into her hairline as her mouth falls open, her gaze flicking around the room, no doubt looking for Caramelina. “Here?” she hisses.

I give her warning glare, making sure to keep my face stern, even though I’m practically humming with excitement. “Here,” I repeat firmly.