Chapter 9
The rest of the night was a blur of pure, unadulterated joy.
I didn't care that I was wearing my maid’s uniform. I didn't care that the white rosebuds on my apron were crushed. I wore them like a badge of honor.
Luca and Teresa Moretti didn't leave. They sat at the main family table, eating catered chicken and drinking cheap wine out of plastic cups, laughing louder than anyone else in the room.
When the DJ played a fast song, Luca actually took Lily out onto the dance floor, spinning the giggling six-year-old around while Teresa clapped her hands in delight.
I sat at the head table next to Sophie and David, holding my daughter’s hand, my thumb rubbing the familiar dent in my gold wedding band.
“I can't believe he saved the Mustang,” Sophie laughed, leaning her head on my shoulder.
“He was always full of surprises,” I smiled, looking at the silver key resting next to my plate.
Later in the evening, when the guests were distracted by the cake cutting, Luca approached my table.
He stood there, a billionaire mafia boss in a dive-bar community hall, looking completely at peace.
“Margaret,” Luca said quietly.
I stood up, automatically wiping my hands on my apron out of habit. “Mr. Moretti.”
“Luca,” he corrected gently. He looked around the room, taking in the cheap streamers, the plastic cups, the overwhelming warmth of the people. “My mother hasn't smiled like this in a decade. Thank you for letting us stay.”
“Thank you for bringing me here,” I replied, my voice thick with emotion. “I’ll never be able to repay you for the house, or for stopping Vanessa.”
Luca looked down at his polished shoes. “You don't owe me anything. But… I do have a question.”
“Anything.”
He looked up, his dark eyes serious. “My estate is going to feel very empty without you running the household. But I know you have the car to sell, and the house is paid off. You don't need the job anymore.”
I swallowed hard. I loved Teresa. I respected Luca. But the thought of going back to that massive, silent mansion, scrubbing floors while missing out on Lily’s childhood…
“I can't go back, Luca,” I said softly, bracing for his anger. “I need to be here. With them.”
Luca didn't look angry. He looked relieved.
“I agree,” Luca said. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a sleek, black business card. He handed it to me.
I looked at it. It didn't have a name. Just an address and a phone number.
“That address is a commercial bakery downtown,” Luca explained. “I own the building. The previous tenant went bankrupt. It’s fully equipped. Ovens, display cases, everything.”
I stared at him, confused. “I don't understand.”
“My mother told me about the cakes you bake for Sophie’s birthdays,” Luca smiled. “She said they’re the best she’s ever tasted. I need a new tenant. I’m offering you a zero-interest business loan to start your own bakery. You pay me back from the profits.”
My jaw dropped. “Luca, I’m a maid. I don't know how to run a business.”
“You managed a thirty-room estate, organized the schedules of fifty staff members, and kept my mother from driving me insane,” Luca laughed. “You can run a bakery, Margaret. And if you need help, David is an accountant. I checked his background.”
I looked at David, who was grinning from ear to ear. He had known.
I looked back at Luca, tears welling in my eyes once again. “Why are you doing this for me?”
Luca glanced across the room, watching his mother laugh as Lily tried to teach her a dance move.
“Because my mother was a maid,” Luca said softly. “And nobody ever gave her a way out. I can't change her past, Margaret. But I can change your future.”
He bowed his head slightly, a gesture of profound respect, and walked away.
I stood there, holding the business card in one hand and the silver key in the other.
I looked at my daughter, radiant in her white dress, kissing her new husband. I looked at Lily, twirling on the dance floor.
I wasn't a maid anymore.
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I was Margaret Ellis. A mother. A grandmother. A homeowner. A business owner.
And as the final song of the night began to play, I walked out onto the dance floor, took Lily’s little hand in mine, and danced until the lights went out.
