4.

M ATTEO

I looked down at my phone and smiled when I saw a Snap had just come through. It was Bella using a filter that made her nose long and had rings falling from the top of the screen. She was giggling as she tilted her head back and tried to catch the rings on her extended nose, and then she smiled at the camera and said, “I got thirteen rings. Can you beat me?”

I looked around and made sure I was alone before I hit the button to reply with the same filter and then played the game. Finally, I looked into the camera and said, “I got fifteen, Twang. You’re a loser.”

“What are you doing, Mattuca?” my youngest brother, twelve-year-old Mario, asked in Italian, calling me by the nickname my family used for my brother and I when they weren’t sure which twin they were talking to.

I answered in Italian, as that was the language we’d always spoken at home, and asked, “Why are you all up in my business?”

With a worried look, he asked, “Have you talked to Mama lately?”

“I talked to her earlier, and she said Papa is feeling much better. I need the three of you to pack your bags so you can stay at my place for a few days until Mama gets Papa settled at home. We’ll go visit Papa on the way to my place.”

“Since we’re staying at your house, can we skip school tomorrow?”

“No, sir. Papa’s on the mend so we need to get back to our regularly scheduled programming.”

“And I thought you were the cool brother, Mattuca.”

“You’re not even positive which one I am, so how do you know if I’m the cool brother or not?”

“Luca?” When I grinned at him and slowly started shaking my head, he hissed, “Shit.”

“Or maybe I’m lying and I am Luca, but I just wanted you to think you’re wrong.”

“You’re not going to let me stay home from school either way, so what does it matter?”

I laughed at his forlorn expression and said, “Go pack your stuff, little brother, and tell Stephania that I said she doesn’t need to pack her entire closet, just enough clothes for a few days.”

“Papa said she gets that from Mama.”

“I guess it must be a girl thing, huh?”

“I don’t know why she needs so many clothes since she has to wear a uniform just like I do.”

“I’ve got no answers for you, Mario. It’s a question for the ages. Go on. We don’t want to miss visiting hours.”

Mario jumped up from his seat on the other end of the couch and rushed toward the stairs. My phone rang, and I picked it up to find that Bella was FaceTiming me. We’d talked this way a few times since I abruptly left the wedding last weekend, and every time I saw her name on the screen, it made my heart race.

I couldn’t remember a time when I was ever this excited to talk to a woman. I understood the gravity of that. At first, I’d thought it was just because she was someone new and my only connection to the less uncertain reality I was living after my father’s heart attack. It was a shock to all of us because Carlo Robano seemed to be the picture of health. He was an easygoing man who rarely ever let the stress of our way of life get to him. He had always been quick with a smile as he tried to diffuse whatever situation he faced.

It was a sad reminder that none of us were getting any younger and our future wasn’t certain. Even though the doctor had determined the heart attack was a mild one, Carlo had required surgery to remove some blockage, and it would take him some time to recover. Of course, Mama wanted to be with him as much as possible, so Luca and I had volunteered to take our brothers and sister to our place for a while so she could get Papa out of the hospital and settled at home before the craziness of everyday life ensued again.

I didn’t miss the irony that I’d been slapped with - that I should make everyday count - within an hour of meeting a woman who bowled me over with her cheerfulness and blunt honesty. However, it was early in the relationship and I didn’t know her very well yet, so all of that could change.

But until then, I’d enjoy every second of time I could get with her.

“Ciao, Bella,” I greeted her with a smile as soon as we were connected.

“Do you know where Jimmy Hoffa is buried?”

I burst out laughing before I asked, “Do you know where Hoffa was from?”

Bella looked uncertain for a minute before she glanced off to the side and asked someone, “Hoffa was from New York, right?”

I heard a man’s voice say, “I think he was. Wasn’t he?”

“He was a mobster, so he has to be from New York.”

I laughed again and said, “Twang, the mafia is all over the place, not just New York.”

“Okay. So where’s he buried?”

“Probably somewhere near where he died.”

“So you don’t know? I would have thought that was something all of you kept track of.”

“Twang, sweetheart, Hoffa was the president of the Teamsters Union in Michigan.”

“Okay?And?”

“He wasn’t even in the mafia, Twang. He might have had some friends who were connected, but he lived in Detroit.”

“You’re saying you don’t know?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

“Hmm,” Bella said with a frown. “Do you know any of the men who might have been his friends?”

“Have you ever met Willie Nelson?”

“No, although that would be really awesome.”

“But he’s from Texas.”

“Look at a map, big guy. Texas is huge.”

“So is the mafia!” I thought about the conversation we were having, and it hit me that I wasn’t being careful about what I said at all. If this was being recorded for some reason, it might seem like an admission, so I said, “Not that I have any contact with that sort of thing.”

“But you . . .”

“I don’t like to talk about my personal life on electronic devices . . . especially when I’m not sure who might be listening.”

Bella’s eyes got wide, and she whispered, “Oh! I get it.”

“Where are you?” I asked as I looked at her surroundings.

“I’m at my brother’s restaurant. He’s tweaking a new sauce recipe and wanted my opinion.”

“How is it?”

“He made it, so it’s obviously fantastic.”

“Obviously.”

“What are you doing? How’s your dad?”

“He’s good. Recovering from surgery. They think he’ll get to come home on Friday, so my brothers and sister are coming to stay with me and Luca tonight and through the weekend so my parents can get settled and rest before life starts up again.”

“What are you brothers like?” Bella asked.

“They’re good kids.”

As if they knew we were talking about them and wanted to prove me a liar, a fight broke out at the top of the stairs. Stephania was yelling about something CJ had done, CJ was yelling at Mario, and Mario was egging both of them on like little brothers seemed to enjoy doing.

Apparently, Bella could hear the commotion and smiled before she said, “They sound absolutely angelic.”

“I know, right?” I gave her a frustrated grin and said, “Excuse me for a second.” I walked into the hall before I yelled, “Smettetela di urlare e portate il culo in macchina o vi trascinerò dietro fino a Manhattan!” There was instant silence upstairs, even though all three of them knew I wouldn’t drag them behind my SUV. I was smiling when I looked back at the screen. “I don’t know why people complain all the time. This parenting shit is a breeze.”

“What did you say to get them to stop fighting?”

“I told them to use their inside voices and speak to each other with respect,” I lied.

“Oh, really?” Bella giggled before she said, “I call bullshit.”

“He’s lying,” Stephania yelled as she struggled to come down the stairs with a backpack sliding off of one shoulder, her purse barely hanging onto the other, and a large suitcase in each hand. “He said that if we don’t stop yelling and hurry up, he’ll drag us behind the car all the way to his apartment!”

I scoffed before I looked at Bella with an innocent expression and asked, “Does that sound like something a rational adult would say?”

“I guess it worked. I’m ready, aren’t I?”

“To go on a three-week cruise?” I asked sarcastically. “You’re gonna be at my place for less than a week. You don’t need all that shit.”

“I do!”

“What’s she carrying?” Bella asked. I flipped the screen around and watched as Bella nodded before she said, “Yeah, she does. Makeup and hair products in the backpack, one suitcase full of necessary clothes along with casual clothes and pajamas, and I’d bet that the other suitcase is filled with shoes.”

“Exactly!” Stephania said in shock. “It’s all perfectly necessary!”

Carlo Junior, or CJ as the family called him, walked down the stairs carrying his school backpack and a gym bag, and Mario jogged down behind him with just his school bag.

I sighed before I said, “Go back upstairs and get enough clean underwear and socks for a week. A week has seven . . . one two three four five six seven . . . days in it. Seven pairs of socks. Seven pairs of underwear. Two days of school uniforms and, count with me now, seven days worth of regular clothes.”

Mario and CJ sighed and turned around to go back up the stairs in unison. I looked back at the screen to see Bella with her lips pulled between her teeth as she tried not to laugh.

“Obviously, your sister could teach them a thing or two,” Bella finally choked out. “Oh, to be a fly on the wall this weekend. Have fun on your temporary parenting journey, Matteo.”

“Fly up and spend the weekend with me.”

“I can’t do that. I took all three jets in to get detailed, and they won’t be available for at least seven days.”

I burst out laughing and said, “I could send one of my jets for you.”

Bella rolled her eyes before she said, “Whatever.” Sobering, she said, “I’ve got an engagement party, a bridal shower, and an anniversary party this weekend, so that’s a no-go.”

“Do you work every weekend?”

“No. Holly makes sure that we have at least one weekend off a month with no responsibilities. This is not my weekend.”

“When is your time off?”

“Last weekend of the month.”

“We’ll have to make plans for that weekend then.”

Bella’s face lit up and she said, “That would be perfect!”

“Do you have your passport yet?”

“No, but I have an appointment on Friday.”

“We’ll have to keep this trip domestic, but I’m sure we can figure out something.”

“I can’t wait.”

Just then, there was a loud thump upstairs before my brothers started screaming again.

“Parenthood calls,” Bella teased. “Call me later when you get some free time.”

“Count on it.”

◆◆◆

I flopped back onto the couch to try and catch my breath and wondered how my mom was still a sane and rational human being after dealing with me and Luca and then adding three more to the mix. Getting them up and ready for school every morning was a chore, and I was already over it - and this was just the first day!

I lifted my phone and took a picture before I sent it to Bella with the caption ‘FTK, I’m done!.’ Within a few seconds, my phone was ringing with a video call from her.

The second her smiling face came across my screen, my troubles seemed to melt away and I found myself smiling back.

“How was school drop-off?”

“The drop-off wasn’t the problem, it was the waking up at an ungodly hour and dealing with their grumpy bullshit that almost killed me.”

Bella laughed before she said, “It sounds like you’re the one who is grumpy!”

“How hard is it to wake up, take a shower, put on the right clothes, and get your ass to the front door? That’s all we had to do. Did they do it within a reasonable amount of time? Hell, no. Did they do it without bitching? Also a big hell no.”

“Did you feed them breakfast?”

“Shit!” Bella’s laughter rang out over the speaker, and I frowned at her before I said, “And I was so proud of myself for getting them there in one piece.”

“Now they’re going to be hungry all morning with their stomach pains taking their attention away from their schoolwork and causing their grades to fall.” Bella shook her head sadly and said, “Shame on you, Matteo. You’ve probably changed the entire trajectory of their lives.”

“That’s a little dramatic, don’t you think?”

“Just imagine what it’s like for those people who have half a dozen kids and have to do this every single day.”

“I’m not that strong.” I shuddered before I said, “Can you imagine having twins? That’s a hard pass from me.”

“I never got to meet my grandparents, but they must have been saints. They didn’t just have one set of twins, but five, although one of them passed away in infancy so they raised nine children altogether.” My face must have shown my horror because Bella laughed before she said, “Can you imagine what mornings were like? Or having to cook for that many?”

“Absolutely not.”

“My parents had me and Dill and then two singles, but a few of my uncles have twins and one even has quadruplets and a set of twins.”

“That’s . . . I just can’t . . . ugh.”

“Mom said she was lucky because when they got me and Dill, all of our uncles were single and more than happy to help with us. All of them really took us in, not just my mom and dad.”

“You’re adopted?”

“Sort of but no?”

“Is that a question or an answer?”

“My biological parents were killed in a car accident before we were born. It’s a very unique situation.”

“Okay, I’m hooked and confused at the same time. Tell me.”

“My mom and dad are actually my biological uncle and his wife. My birth mother was his twin sister. They were on their way to a sonogram to see us when they were hit by another driver. My aunt Greer, the only single child since her twin passed away in infancy, died that day with my father and grandparents. They kept my biological mother on life support until we were strong enough to be born, and then she became an organ donor.”

“Holy shit,” I whispered. “That’s horrible and wonderful all at the same time.”

“You’re right. I can’t imagine losing Dill. It would feel like half of me is missing.”

“Exactly. As much as I want to kill my brother sometimes, I don’t even want to think of what life would be like without him.” I watched her surroundings as Bella got ready to leave her own house to go to work, and I asked, “What’s on your agenda for today?”

“A catered lunch at the bank for the shareholders meeting, and then I get to meet with a woman about her child’s birthday party.”

“Someone needs an event planner for a kid’s birthday party?”

“You wouldn’t believe what some people pay for.”

“I guess that does happen. I’ve seen tabloid stuff about how elaborate some stars’ kid parties are.”

“What are you doing today?”

“Well, I’m going to take a fucking nap first. This waking up early is hard on the body.”

Bella rolled her eyes and asked, “What exactly do you do every day?”

“I have businesses that I have to check on and employees I need to oversee.” When Bella looked skeptical, I said, “There are some things I’m not keen on sharing by phone and others I can’t share at all.”

“That makes sense.” I was shocked at how easily she accepted that explanation and even more shocked when she left it alone and changed the subject to ask, “How is your stepdad doing?”

“He’s my papa. Luca and I don’t even use the word ‘stepdad’ to refer to him because he’s the father that raised us since our dad was in prison.”

“I like that. It would be like me calling my parents my adopted parents rather than referring to them as Mom and Dad.”

The scenery around Bella changed, and I realized she must be walking out to her car, so I asked, “Where do you live, exactly? A house or an apartment?”

“I live in the house my parents built for me after I finished college,” Bella said before she turned the camera around and showed me her neighborhood. “All of these houses are my family. We’re lucky enough to have our own neighborhood.”

“Your own neighborhood?”

“Yeah. My grandparents owned a whole bunch of land and built their house on it. As their kids grew up, they built their own houses, and then, as we grew up, we helped build all of the rest of them.”

“You helped? What do you mean they built their own houses? Like from the ground up?”

“Yeah. My family owns a construction company that my grandfather started with his brother. They didn’t just build all of these houses, they designed them too.”

“Wow. We don’t have a lot of new construction where I’m from.”

“You live in an apartment building?”

“Sort of, but not really.”

“That’s clear as mud.”

“You’ll have to come to New York so I can show you where I live.”

“Maybe someday, once I make sure you’re not a serial killer or anything like that.”

I realized that Bella was in her car now, so I said, “I guess we’ll have to meet somewhere else first. Have you ever been to Vegas?”

“No.”

“What would it take to convince you to meet me there?”

“I’ll have to think about that while my jets are being serviced.”

“You do that.”