Chapter 11 - The End Of The Thin Blue Line
Dinner that night was the loudest the Moretti dining room had ever been.
There were no snooty guests. No silent, tense atmospheres. No fake laughter.
It was just family.
Teresa sat at the far end, arguing good-naturedly with my father about the proper way to make marinara sauce.
Leo was sitting between Luca and me, covered in tomato sauce, happily kicking his feet under the table.
And resting right next to Luca’s plate, holding a fresh piece of garlic bread, was the chipped porcelain plate.
It belonged on the table. It always would.
As dessert was being cleared, Luca stood up.
The room went quiet, but this time, it was a warm, expectant silence.
Luca looked at Teresa, then at my father, then down at Leo.
Finally, his dark eyes locked onto mine.
He walked around the table and stopped next to my chair.
He didn’t care that he was wearing a bespoke suit, or that the floor was hardwood. He dropped to one knee.
Leo gasped loudly, dropping his spoon. “Are you doing the knee thing from the movies?!”
Everyone laughed, even Luca, though his eyes never left mine.
“Emma,” Luca said, his voice steady and full of absolute certainty. “You walked into this house and saw the broken things, and instead of throwing them away, you protected them.”
He pulled the velvet box from his pocket and opened it.
Inside was a stunning, vintage gold ring with a single, elegant sapphire surrounded by small diamonds.
“You brought light back into this family,” Luca continued. “You gave me a son. You gave me a home. And you kept the promise our mothers made thirty years ago.”
Tears were streaming down my face. I couldn’t even wipe them away.
“Will you marry me, Emma?” Luca asked.
I didn’t hesitate. I didn’t think about the wealth or the mansion. I just thought about the man in front of me who had fought for me, protected me, and loved me exactly as I was.
“Yes,” I sobbed, throwing my arms around his neck. “Yes, absolutely yes.”
Luca laughed, a deep, joyful sound, and wrapped his strong arms around my waist, lifting me out of the chair and spinning me around.
The room erupted in applause. My father was cheering, and Teresa was wiping her eyes with a napkin.
Luca set me down and slid the sapphire ring onto my finger. It fit perfectly.
Suddenly, a small tug on my dress made me look down.
Leo was standing there, looking up at me with his big brown eyes.
“Does this mean you’re going to be here forever?” Leo asked quietly.
I knelt down so I was eye-level with him. I took his small, sticky hands in mine.
“Forever and ever, Leo,” I promised him.
Leo looked at Luca, then back at me. He took a deep breath, as if he had been practicing what he was about to say.
“Okay,” Leo said softly. “Then… can I call you Mom?”
My heart stopped. It just completely stopped.
I looked at Luca, who was smiling so hard his eyes were shining with tears.
I looked back at the little boy who had been hidden away in a dark apartment, abandoned by a woman who only cared about shiny things.
“I would love that more than anything in the world,” I whispered, pulling him into a fierce hug.
Leo wrapped his arms around my neck and buried his face in my shoulder.
“I love you, Mom,” he mumbled.
I squeezed my eyes shut, holding him tighter.
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“I love you too, my sweet boy.”
TITLE: A Place Setting For Everyone
