Page 66 of Disarming Caine

“Everything you said…” She rubbed her nervous fingers together, whispering in return. “As terrible as I am with words, I feel the same.”

“So open the box.” I placed a hand underneath the one that held the jewelry box, offering her my strength and belief in us. “It’s something Idohope will hang around your neck for the rest of our lives.”

With a slight tremble, she creaked it open, peeked inside, and then snapped it immediately shut. She pushed it back to me. “No.”

“What?” exclaimed my mother, who separated from the group and came to my side. “You don’t like it?”

“Mamma—”

Samantha nudged my leg with hers. “That’s not it. It’s just—it’s too expensive.”

“Expensive?” said Mamma. “He didn’t pay a cent for it!”

I’d told her Samantha would say no, but my mother had insisted. I accepted the box and opened it for her. A single round cut diamond on a gold chain, roughly a carat and a half. Under the multiple small lights of the gallery, its fire exploded.

Samantha’s wide, insistent eyes bored into me. The insurance adjuster in her had likely already calculated its worth. “There’s no way you didn’t spend a small fortune on this.”

“Then it’s mine!” said Sofia, rounding the couch to stand next to Mamma. “I’m older, after all.”

Samantha’s brow furrowed, and her eyes darted over everyone in the conversation.

Papa joined the women and took the necklace from me, gazing at it with reverence. “I gave this to Valentina early in our courtship. She said something very similar to what you’re saying, Samantha, but I promised her it was an heirloom to be passed down.”

Mamma took the box from him and placed it back in my hand. “And I want you to have it, my dear.”

“Much like you gave me something precious from your mother,” I said, holding out the box. “We all want you to have this.”

Cheater, mouthed Samantha.

I shrugged my shoulders, recognizing that she had surrendered. “May I put it on you?”

She nodded and turned, lifting her long hair out of the way for me to drape it around her neck and secure the clasp. When she faced me again, a blush had risen up her cheeks. My love was the most beautiful creature in the world, even under the harsh attention of my family.

A sudden loud clap startled us all, and we whipped around to Nonna, who was leaving. She called over her shoulder, “Back to the kitchen, Valentina!”

“Oddio.” Sofia grabbed Samantha’s hand and hauled her up. “You’re coming with us.” Without so much as a glance at me, Sofia pulled Samantha out of the room, stealing my moment the celebrate the gift with my girlfriend.

Mamma watched them leave. “Samantha needs to test everything we’re going to serve tonight to be sure it’s perfect.”

My gaze went heavenward. “Don’t scare her off.”

She glared at me. “You’re getting old—and heaven knows your brother’s hopeless, but at least he’s younger than you and has more time—so we need to put some meat on her bones.”

“She has a very healthy appetite,” I said.

“Nonna’s outdone herself, although I think there are too many sprinkles on the struffoli.” She gestured to the book. “This will be something wonderful to pass on to your own children.” She gave me a lingering look, her meaning clear.Give me more grandchildren and hurry up about it.

I sighed as she left, leaving me alone with my father. “Time for you to harass me, too?”

“No.” He sat next to me on the couch and leaned forward on his elbows. “Unfortunately, we need to talk. I got a call from Andrea earlier today.”

“Is everything alright?”

“They found out who was behind the stolen painting at the Rome studio this past summer.” He flexed his fingers and his jaw. “She was a short-term employee by the name of Eva Zabelle.”

The breath caught in my throat. I was sure of the fact already, but my father and I hadn’t had time to talk about everything that happened in Napoli in September. “So she started at Uncle Andrea’s studio and then came to Pompeii to steal from me.”

“I want to do something about this, Antonio. Mybrother—” He ground the word out, making it obvious he was speaking of Zio Giovanni. “—has been enough of a stain on our family. I moved here to get away from his influence, but just left Andrea open to it.”