Chapter 3 - The Brother She Never Mentioned
“Why does your daughter have the key to my brother's house?”
Vanessa opened her mouth, but nothing came out.
Luca looked at Rosie.
“Sweetheart, is your daddy's name Gabriel Moretti?”
The little girl nodded.
“Mommy calls him Gabe.”
I watched Luca grip the back of a chair.
Gabriel Moretti.
His younger brother.
A man nobody in the restaurant had seen in four years.
And the little girl standing beside me was apparently his daughter.
Luca looked at Vanessa.
“You were with Gabriel?”
She wiped her cheeks.
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Before you and I met.”
“How long?”
“Almost three years.”
Luca stared at her.
“You lived with my brother for three years, had his child, and somehow forgot to mention that when we got engaged?”
“Gabriel didn't want our relationship discussed with your family.”
“That was his decision then. What's your excuse now?”
Vanessa looked toward the guests.
“Please, Luca. They're all listening.”
He glanced at the thirty people around the table.
Then looked at Rosie, who had started pulling nervously at the loose thread on her rabbit.
His expression softened.
“Marco, could you bring that pasta now?”
“It's ready, boss.”
The chef hurried forward with a fresh bowl.
Rosie looked at the noodles.
“Is that for me?”
Luca crouched beside her.
“All yours.”
She looked toward Vanessa.
“Can I eat it, Mommy?”
The question nearly broke me.
Vanessa nodded.
“Of course, baby.”
Rosie climbed into a chair at the corner of the table.
I placed a napkin across her lap.
She took one cautious bite.
Then another.
Within seconds, she was eating like a child who had been hungry for hours.
Luca watched her, his eyes shining.
Then he turned toward the guests.
“I'm sorry, everyone. Dinner is over. There has been a family matter, and I need some privacy.”
Nobody argued.
A few guests approached to offer quiet words of sympathy.
Others avoided Vanessa's eyes.
Within ten minutes, the private dining room was nearly empty.
I began clearing the broken bowl.
“Hannah.”
Luca stopped me.
“Please sit down. Marco can take care of that.”
“Sir, I should finish cleaning.”
“Your hand is bleeding.”
He looked toward Vanessa.
“And you weren't stealing anything.”
She lowered her eyes.
Marco brought a small first-aid box.
While he bandaged my finger, Luca sat across from Rosie.
“Do you remember your daddy?”
Rosie nodded.
“A little.”
“What do you remember?”
She considered his question.
“He sang when I was little.”
Luca's face changed.
“What did he sing?”
Rosie shrugged.
“Mommy knows.”
Vanessa stared at the table.
Luca leaned back slowly.
“My brother used to sing old Italian songs while he cooked.”
I saw his jaw tighten.
For a moment, he looked like he was somewhere else entirely.
Then he turned toward Vanessa.
“Does Gabriel know about Rosie?”
She looked almost offended.
“Of course he does. He's her father.”
“Then why have I never heard about her?”
“Because you and Gabriel weren't speaking.”
“That doesn't explain why you kept her from me.”
Vanessa folded her hands.
“Your brother left me with a two-year-old child, Luca. I was trying to survive.”
Luca went still.
“Left you?”
“Yes.”
“You told me you'd never been married.”
“I wasn't married.”
“That's not what I asked.”
Vanessa's voice trembled.
“Gabriel walked out four years ago. He left me with bills, a toddler, and a house I couldn't afford to keep.”
Luca looked toward the key.
“The house on Willow Street?”
She nodded.
I saw his expression darken.
I knew the property.
Everyone who worked for the Morettis knew about the small blue house near the old neighborhood church.
It had belonged to the brothers' grandmother.
Gabriel had lived there before he disappeared.
Luca had kept it maintained but empty ever since.
“Gabriel signed that house over to me,” Luca said.
Vanessa looked down.
“Because of the money.”
I saw his hands tighten.
“What money?” I asked before I could stop myself.
Luca looked at me.
“Forty-six thousand dollars disappeared from this restaurant's employee hardship fund four years ago.”
I stared at him.
“That fund helps staff members with emergencies.”
“Yes.”
His voice became bitter.
“Gabriel admitted taking it. He offered the house to repay what he'd used, and then he disappeared.”
Vanessa whispered, “That's why I wanted the house back. Rosie deserves somewhere that belonged to her father.”
Luca shook his head.
“You could have told me she existed.”
“You would have hated me.”
“I might have been angry about the lies. But I would never have hated a child.”
Rosie stopped eating.
“Uncle Luca?”
He turned.
Her voice was small.
“Are you my uncle?”
Luca swallowed.
“Yes, sweetheart. I am.”
She looked relieved.
“Can I call you that?”
His eyes filled.
“I'd like that very much.”
Then she pushed her bowl toward him.
“Want some?”
He gave a shaky laugh.
“No, honey. You eat.”
Rosie carefully picked up one noodle with her fork.
“Daddy liked these.”
Luca smiled sadly.
“He sure did.”
Vanessa reached for her daughter.
“Rosie, finish your dinner.”
But Luca wasn't finished.
He looked at the faded green ribbon.
“Our mother tied those around the spare keys when Gabriel and I were boys.”
Vanessa nodded.
“Gabriel kept his.”
Luca touched the ribbon.
“Mom said a key should always remind you where you belong.”
Rosie looked toward him.
“Daddy said that too.”
For a moment, Luca couldn't speak.
Then he asked Vanessa quietly, “Did Gabriel ever try to come back?”
She looked away.
“No.”
“Not once?”
“He wanted nothing to do with us.”
Rosie lowered her fork.
I noticed her little face changing.
She looked confused.
“Mommy?”
Vanessa turned.
“What, sweetheart?”
The little girl clutched her rabbit.
“That's not right.”
Vanessa's expression tightened.
“Rosie, finish eating.”
But Rosie looked at Luca.
Her voice was barely louder than a whisper.
“Daddy came to our apartment last Sunday.”
Luca stopped breathing.
May you like
Rosie pointed toward her mother.
“Mommy made him go away.”
