Chapter 5
"My promise expired?"
Luca's voice was barely audible.
Sophie was watching him with the frightened attention of a child waiting to discover whether she'd said something wrong.
He looked down at her.
"Sweetheart, come here."
She stepped into his arms.
He held her tightly enough that her silver bracelet pressed against his black jacket.
"That promise doesn't have an expiration date."
Sophie began crying again.
"But Vanessa said—"
"I know what she said."
He kissed the top of her head.
"And I'm telling you she's wrong."
She pulled back slightly.
"Even if you have babies someday?"
Luca closed his eyes.
When he opened them, tears were caught in his lashes.
"Even then."
"What if you get really busy?"
"I'll still be your uncle."
"What if your wife doesn't want me around?"
The question seemed to take the strength out of him.
He looked over Sophie's shoulder at Vanessa.
"Then I will have made a terrible mistake about who I married."
Vanessa turned pale.
A few guests quietly looked down at their plates.
Luca guided Sophie back into her chair.
Then he sat beside her instead of returning to the head of the table.
I noticed the difference immediately.
He wasn't speaking to her from above anymore.
He was sitting where she could reach his hand.
"Tell me something," he said gently.
"When did you start believing I wanted you to leave?"
Sophie twisted her bracelet.
"When we stopped having breakfast together."
Luca frowned.
"We had breakfast together yesterday."
"Just for a little while."
He thought about it.
"You were reading when I left."
"Because Vanessa said I should eat before you came downstairs."
Vanessa immediately protested.
"She needs a consistent routine."
Sophie nodded.
"She said I was getting too old to wait for you."
Luca looked toward Mrs. Carter.
"Is that what you've been told?"
The housekeeper spoke carefully.
"Mrs. Bellini asked that Miss Sophie's breakfast be served earlier during the wedding preparations."
Luca leaned back.
"How long?"
"About two weeks."
He looked ashamed.
"I thought she was becoming more independent."
Vanessa folded her arms.
"She is becoming more independent."
"By being told not to eat with me?"
"By learning she doesn't have to organize her life around you."
That argument would have sounded reasonable if Sophie hadn't been sitting there in tears.
But Vanessa didn't seem to realize that.
I looked at Sophie.
"May I say something?"
Luca nodded.
"Of course."
I turned toward him.
"Sir, Sophie waited beside the breakfast-room doorway three mornings last week."
His head turned sharply.
"What?"
"She wanted to show you the picture she made for her school play."
Sophie lowered her eyes.
"I didn't want to bother you."
Luca looked devastated.
"Why would showing me a picture bother me?"
Sophie whispered, "Because you're starting a new family."
He covered his mouth briefly.
Then he turned toward Vanessa.
"Did you tell her she wasn't part of my new family?"
Vanessa's voice shook.
"I told her a marriage changes a household."
"That's not what I asked."
"I told her we needed boundaries."
"She's twelve."
"And I'm supposed to be your wife!"
Vanessa's voice rose unexpectedly.
Several guests flinched.
She seemed embarrassed by her own outburst.
When she continued, her voice was quieter.
"Every plan we make has to fit around Sophie. Every holiday includes traditions I wasn't part of. Even our wedding flowers had to be changed because white lilies reminded her of Julia's funeral."
Luca stared at her.
"Sophie asked for roses."
"Exactly. And you immediately agreed."
"Because I don't want her crying through our wedding."
Vanessa pressed her lips together.
"And when do my feelings matter?"
For the first time, Luca didn't answer immediately.
I could see the question reach him.
Vanessa wasn't inventing the loneliness she felt.
But she'd chosen to solve it by frightening a child who already understood too much about loss.
Luca finally spoke.
"Your feelings matter. That's why we should have talked about them."
"I tried."
"You told me you wanted more time alone."
"Because whenever I mentioned Sophie, you became defensive."
"Then we needed help talking. Not a forged signature."
Vanessa looked away.
I thought the conversation might finally become honest.
Then Mrs. Carter cleared her throat.
"Mr. Moretti, there's another household matter you should know about."
Luca turned.
"What matter?"
"The renovation instructions."
Vanessa snapped, "Mrs. Carter, that's not relevant."
The housekeeper's hands tightened around each other.
"I believe it is."
Luca sat straighter.
"What renovation?"
Mrs. Carter swallowed.
"The second-floor bedroom changes scheduled for after the wedding."
Sophie's face went white.
"My room?"
Luca frowned.
"What about your room?"
Mrs. Carter looked at Vanessa, then back at him.
"I was told Miss Sophie would no longer need it."
The words struck the table like something heavy.
Sophie gripped the edge of her chair.
"But that's Mommy's old room."
Luca looked at Vanessa.
"You planned to change her room?"
"Only after she left."
"Into what?"
"A guest suite."
He stared at her.
Vanessa lifted her chin.
"Your relatives visit constantly. We need somewhere appropriate to accommodate them."
Luca looked astonished.
"You're talking about turning my niece's bedroom into a guest suite?"
"I was trying to use the space sensibly."
Sophie whispered, "You promised I could keep Mommy's window seat."
Luca turned back to her.
"I did."
"Even if I got bigger."
"Yes."
She nodded as though reminding herself of something.
Then Mrs. Carter spoke again.
"Mr. Moretti, the work was listed under the west-wing improvements."
Luca frowned.
"The general renovation budget?"
"Yes, sir."
"I approved that months ago."
Vanessa suddenly looked relieved.
"Exactly."
Luca's expression changed.
"What are you suggesting?"
"You authorized the improvements. I was carrying them out."
Mrs. Carter spoke quietly.
"The contractors were told the affected rooms had already been approved."
Sophie looked from one adult to another.
Then she pulled her hand away from Luca's.
It was a small movement.
But I saw how much it hurt him.
May you like
Her voice trembled.
"Uncle Luca... you signed the paper for my room, didn't you?"
