Page 17 of A Treasure To Keep
My hand slips while meal prepping, causing me to almost cut my hand, when someone knocks on my door. That was a close call.
I wipe off my knife and walk over to the door, caught off guard when I see El through the peephole. I know she wouldn’t randomly show up at my door. I hurry to unlock the deadbolt and swing the door open. I’m convinced my heart physically cracks in half at the big tears in her eyes.
“Mon trésor, come in. Tell me who brought tears to your eyes.” I spend several minutes with her in my arms while she sobs into my chest. When we part ways, I take her shaking hands in mine, leading her to the sofa. I make sure she’s settled before grabbing her face in my hands and gently kissing her. “Relax, I’ll make you some tea.”
She holds the mug of tea when I hand it to her and crouch in front of her, rubbing her knees in an attempt to comfort her. “El, mon trésor, my love, please tell me what’s wrong.”
She takes a sip of her tea before answering, quiet enough that I almost miss her words. “Mamma and Papa want me to break up with you and date Marco. They refuse to accept that I’m with you, and I can’t take it anymore. I want you, I need you. I can’t live with them anymore. Do you still want to live with me?”
I stifle back a smile, ecstatic to finally have the opportunity to live with El, but broken at the situation that brought her to me. “What kind of question is that? I would give you anything if it would dry up these tears that make your eyes shine so bright. Like freshly polished sapphires highlighted by the sunlight. You know that, right?”
El nods, blinking as she lets those tears fall down her face. As I stand up, I kiss the top of her head, knowing it won’t fix everything but hoping it will comfort her. “Do you have any of your things?”
She nods her head while still focusing on the mug of tea. “Yeah. I have four bags in my car. In my defense, I tried for one. Also, at some point, we need to get me a new phone. I don’t want to deal with my parent’s bullshit phone calls. And texts. And video chats.”
I take the opportunity to search for her car outside the window behind the sofa. When I spot her car, I notice the four suitcases stuffed into her car. “I see you only brought the basics. We can buy you anything else you need. Let me go get them for you.”
Her keys lay on the floor in the entry, where she dropped them after I brought her in. While walking to her car, I think about everything she told me. Her parents have always been judgmental of me, but the thought of her parents being this forceful about her dating Marco frustrates me. She’s mine, and no one will take her away from me. I will treasure her, hold her, marry her, and, in an ideal world, give her my children. No one can stop that. Once I get to El’s car, I can tell she tried tokeep it to an overnight bag, but the bags kept getting larger the more she packed. She also forgot to mention that the four bags didn’t include her cosmetics or accessory bags. Is that part of girl math?
El still sits on the sofa, as radiant as ever, when I’m done bringing her bags in. It took me three trips to bring in the overnight bag, a carry-on, two large roller bags, an accessory bag, and her large cosmetics case. I won’t deny I’m delighted she’s moving in, even though I wish it were under better circumstances. I’ve been saving for a ring and know exactly which one she deserves. Now that we live together, I know it’s the right time to purchase it.
“I brought in all of your bags. Do you want me to unpack them?” She shakes her head, and I think she may stay silent for the rest of the day until she responds.
“No. I can do it. I don’t want to take up any of your space. We can figure out where I’ll put things later. Will you hold me?” Music to my ears.
“Remember that this is your home now, too. Redecorate, move my things, we could even move into a new place if that’s what you want. As long as I’m living with you, I can do whatever brings light back into your face. In the meantime, I will spend all day holding you. Let me get the remote, and you can turn on a movie.” I lay down on the sofa, situating El between my legs to rest her head on my stomach, allowing me to play with her golden blonde hair. My heart breaks when she sobs quietly until she falls asleep.
We don’t move until almost dinnertime, when she wakes back up. I tell her to shower and change into something comfortable while I make dinner. I smile greedily as I do so, knowing this is the beginning of the rest of our lives together. If only her parents would come around one day.
Chapter 18
Marco
Two days have passed since El, Andrea, and I fucked, and I couldn’t get them out of my head even if I tried. It couldn’t be worse timing either, because I have too much shit to do before Alessandro’s wedding. Who decided it was a good idea for me to be his best man? All I thought that would involve was being in charge of the party aspect. Somewhere, I missed the fine print in the description for that job. Classic rookie mistake.
I’m sitting on the sofa, ankle crossed over my opposite knee as I attempt to block out Geno and Alessandro fighting about Luci. The real questions are, what am I doing here, and how can I get out of this?
Suddenly, my phone dings, and the hallelujah chorus echoes through the room. When I check my phone, El’s name is on the screen, causing my dick to twitch.
Whoa, Little Marco. Down boy. Not in front of family.
El:
We need your help. Can you come to my house?
Assumingweis her and Andrea, I know this is the out I’ve been hoping for. “Well, gentiluomini, I’ve got to go. Have a wonderful night of whatever, and I’ll see you two tomorrow.”
The drive to El’s house is invigorating as I think of what may be in store for me when I get there. I know she lives with her parents, who aren’t Andrea’s biggest fans. I’m curious if he’s snuck his way in or if she’s there alone. If she’s alone, who is ‘we’? I’m assuming her and what she calls her ‘inner bitch.’
Once I pull into their house, I step out of my truck, the beep of my car confirming that I locked it. My hand is balled up, prepared to knock until it’s flung open. Her mamma stands on the other side, notably distraught from the sight of her swollen eyes and red cheeks. The second she sees me, she hysterically throws her arms around me and sobs into my chest. Suddenly, I’m missing the annoying argument between Geno and Alessandro.
“Oh, Marco, it’s terrible!” Her husband pulls her off me and escorts her back into the house, me in tow as I shut the door. I awkwardly stand in the entryway, listening to Mrs. Gallo’s cries get quieter. What the fuck?
Mr. Gallo comes out from the kitchen, waving me in once he’s settled his wife into a chair. “Marco, excuse my wife. Please come, have a seat.”
I put my hands in my pockets, refusing to step away from the entryway. Something about this screams that it’s a trap. “Is El here? She texted me and asked me to come over.”
“That was us. Eleanora left her phone here yesterday when she ran away. Some of her things are gone. We only assume she’sleft her phone to ignore us, and that she’s at Andrea’s apartment. Could you help us bring her home?” This is a trap. No way I’m getting in between whatever weird family dynamic they have going on. I’d rather cut off my left nut. And I’m fairly attached to both my nuts. Literally and figuratively.