Page 55 of A Treasure To Keep
“Do you want to hold Gia?” Stupid question.
“You didn’t come here to let me hold Gia. The answer will always be yes, though.” I grab Gia from her, smiling as I notice the sparkle of blue in her hazel eyes. She may have Alessandro’swavy dark hair, but her eyes are 100 percent Luci’s. Alessandro told me once that depending on her emotions, a different color becomes more prominent in her eyes. Since that conversation, I’ve been paying more attention, and I’ve deciphered them for myself. The green in her eyes shows the hurt she hasn’t expressed. That speaks louder than anything she plans on saying.
“I’m sorry, El. You and Andrea deserve to be together, and I’m thrilled you’re having a baby. I can’t wait to do everything for you that you did for me. But—” I interrupt her mid-sentence, not interested in hearing what else she has to say.
“But what? You think you have the right to interrupt my life? But what? You took the opportunity and officially got an opinion of your own? But what? I trained you too well, and now you’ll speak your mind?” Wow, can you say major bitch? I’ll even admit it to myself.
Luci channels all her strength into not crying, based on the sheen in her eyes. “The last thing I want to do is hurt you! And if it were any other guy, I wouldn’t care. Marco is my family too, and I care about both of you. I want to be the friend you deserve.”
The friend I deserve?
“You should have had my back! You don’t understand what Andrea and I have gone through since you got back to Philadelphia. Andrea had kept it from me that he had cancer as a kid. When I mentioned having a baby at your wedding, he scheduled doctors' appointments for us. During his appointment, he found out his treatment had left him with an extremely low sperm count. I guess with how distraught I was, it slipped my mind to go back and get my shot. That left me unprotected against Marco’s dumbass sperm, leaving me pregnant. You don’t understand, Luci. I thought that I’d never have a baby with Andrea. That I’d never be able to carry a childof my own. I was heartbroken. Now Marco comes in and fucks everything up. Because why wouldn’t he? I’m convinced it’s in his DNA. I don’t want to raise a child with Marco. Have to sling my child back and forth between my house and his house. Explaining to people that my partner—the man I was with before I got pregnant—isn’t my baby’s father. As someone who’s been cheated on, I know people will assume the worst. My parent’s colleagues will whisper about me when they walk by. I’ll be the topic of every luncheon and coffee date. You think I love to gossip? You should see my parents ‘friends.’”
I put finger quotes around friends with my free hand, knowing my parent’s friends are some of the fakest people I know. Nice to your face and bitter behind your back. Who needs Botox when you have a fake smile that doesn’t cause any lines on your face?
“Regardless, I’ll always be seen as the bad guy here. I want to raise a child with my love, my future husband, and live in peace. Do you get it now?” I stand there, still holding Gia as Luci processes everything I told her.
“I’m sorry, El. I had no idea. Does he still have his genitals? The guy who cheated on you. Is he still alive?” Maybe my training is too proficient. I bite the inside of my cheeks to keep myself from smiling. If I weren’t mad, I’d be proud she would know to ask.
“Unfortunately, yes, he does have his genitals. When I found him, he was too deep in my cousin for me to cut them off. I—OUCH!” Gia wiggles in my arms as I scream when she grasps a chunk of my hair. She yanks hard enough that I’m convinced she’s about to yell mosh and get me and the other dogs to pull a sled.
Luci grimaces when she grabs Gia from me, gently peeling her fist away from my hair. “Yeah, that’s her new trick. Babies are surprisingly strong. Something you’ll experience soon.”
Luci sets Gia back on her hip, and we continue to sit in the same awkward silence as we were before our argument. Part of me hopes she will take a hint and leave until she speaks.
“Honestly, El, I am sorry. You and Andrea are a perfect couple, and both of you deserve to be parents. What I don’t understand is why you three can’t parent together. You, Marco, and Andrea were getting along until you got pregnant. I’m assuming in and out of the bedroom. What changed?”
“What changed was that I had no plans to have a baby. If Andrea couldn’t get me pregnant, I had given up on any plans to be a mother. I came to terms with that. Then here comes Marco with his pretty hair, muscular body, and annoyingly large dick. This would all be better if he had a small penis. Now I have to spend the rest of my life raising a baby that I know isn’t Andrea’s, throwing it between two people. This is my baby Luci, not a fucking football.” My voice shakes as tears threaten to fall down my face. I’m officially over these hormones. Before Luci has an opportunity to respond, Andrea appears from down the hall.
“Excuse me, ladies. Luci, I understand you’re trying to be helpful, but it’s upsetting El. I think it’s time for you to go. Maybe you two can have a less emotional conversation when everything has settled.”
Luci stands there, shocked by Andrea’s sudden appearance. “Were you here the whole time?”
“Oui. When you knocked, I ignored it because I knew El wouldn’t knock, and I had no interest in talking to anyone except her. Once the door opened and I heard Gia’s laugh, I let you two converse unless I needed to intervene. Now, I’m asking you to let El rest.” Andrea eloquently leads Luci out of the apartment, even though I don’t miss her green eyes over Andrea’s shoulder as he gently closes the door.
Andrea walks over to me, wrapping me in his arms as he kisses me on my temple. “How are you so good at that?”
“Ma mère raised me to lead myself gracefully through any situation, minimizing any chance for an argument. Changing the subject, I noticed you had several large bags that you brought in. Care to show me what you got?” Ugh! He always knows what to do.
He kisses me on the tip of my nose when it wrinkles up. We both know that means ‘Fuck yeah, I’ll show you.’
“Sit down, my love. I’ll show you my favorite first.”
I rush back into the second room, pulling out the piece of lingerie I’ll wear for the first and potentially last time. At least until I have the baby.
I pull out the high-cut emerald green bodysuit—a.k.a. Andrea’s favorite color—pulling it onto my body with a slight wiggle of my hips to get it over my curves. I strap my heels back on and turn around to examine myself in the full-length mirror. I’m dumbfounded by how I missed just how far along I am in my pregnancy. The fullness at the top of my breast is one thing, but how my belly slightly protrudes, mainly at the bottom, is a completely different story. How could I have missed it?
I open the door, walk down the short hallway, and instantly Andrea gasps when he notices what I’m wearing.
“Tu es exquis, mon beau trésor.” Seriously, I have no idea what that man said, but my vagina instantly wentsplash.
He leans into me, lacing his fingers in mine while simultaneously kissing me with such passion that it makes me weak at the knees. The second he pulls away, he’s quietly leading me to our bedroom. I can’t wait to find out where tonight leads.
Chapter 60
Andrea
My cock immediately hardened the second I saw El in her new lingerie. It took all the blood in my body a second to rush back to the head on my shoulders to remind me how to breathe. Incroyable. Day after day, I’m stunned by this goddess of a woman.