Filed to story: Falling for My Ex's Mafia Dad Novel Free PDF (Fay Alden & Kent Lippert)
The woman pauses, giving him a warm smile. “Well of course, we’re always glad to see you, Kent,” she says, her eyes darting between us.
“Rosemary is your aunt,” Kent tells me, accepting the glass of whiskey that the waiter is quick to bring back. He takes a sip, looking to me, apparently allowing me to continue the conversation.
I open my mouth, wondering what to say, but Rosemary picks it up for me. “We remember you from when you were a baby, of course,” she says, gushing, waving several people over from a nearby table.
I blink in surprise but of course, they would have known me. Of course I had biological aunts, and uncles, and cousins people who loved me as a child. I just had really never thought of it before.
It seems like I meet hundreds of people that night the large Italian family I never knew that I had. Everyone wants to say hello, pressing my hand, telling memories they had of me, welcoming me.
People from Daniel’s side are here too fewer, of course, but several cousins with the same dark hair and green eyes. I’m pleased to meet them all, but I admit that I’m surprised that Kent stays at my side the entire time sometimes interceding with the answer to a question before I can provide it, sometimes guiding me towards or away from a certain person with a little tap from his hand on my lower back.
He doesn’t interfere, quite but he is a constant presence during the evening.
As we work our way across the floor, I see that we’re heading ever so subtly towards my father and his wife at the front of the room. The children are there Romulus stands on a chair to wave at me before his mother tugs him down.
“Um,” I say, hesitating a little. “I think I’d like to…visit the bathroom,” I say, “before I take that on.”
“Of course,” Kent says, turning with me, putting a hand on my back to show me the way.
“Dad,” Daniel says, his face frustrated as he steps in front of us. “I’ll take her,” he says, shaking his head. “You’ve been kind of hovering all night ”
“Nonsense,” Kent says, frowning at him and nudging me forward. As a trio, we head towards the alcove with the little restroom sign. Daniel pushes the point further.
“Seriously, dad,” he murmurs, “you can go, I’ll stay by her side I can handle this -“
“No, you can’t Daniel,” his father snaps, taking an aggressive step towards him, cutting me off in my path. “You have no idea what the politics are in this room who it might be dangerous for her to talk to who is out for blood, who could be a possible friend.”
Daniel’s face twists, angry. “And whose fault is that, dad?” he asks, his voice hurt and stubborn. “You never involve me in these conversations, you never ”
“It’s your fault, Daniel,” Kent snarls, Daniel falling silent. “It’s your fault. Before tonight you’ve never been interested in the family business always more interested in college, and books, and whatever the hell it is you do all day. And tonight, because she’s here ”he throws out a hand towards me, “what, suddenly you know what you’re doing in this world? Suddenly you’re a boss, a Don, in the business?”
Daniel frowns at his father, crossing his arms across his chest, clearly hurt. “I can handle myself,” he says, still angry but a little cowed. He knows, deep down, that his father has a point.
Kent opens his mouth to speak again but I push past him, eager to get away. “Um, I’m going to go to the bathroom,” I say, looking over my shoulder at them. “While you two…sort this out.” They ignore me, turning to continue the argument even in my absence.
When I come out of the bathroom a few minutes later, Kent is still standing there, but Daniel is not.
“Where did he go?” I ask, looking around for him.
“He went to cool off,” Kent murmurs, his arms crossed. I can tell he’s still pissed, but he’s putting on a controlled front for everyone in the room.
Just then, a waiter at the front of the room rings a gong. I jump and blink a little at the noise, surprised. What the hell does that mean?
Apparently, everyone else knows, because they start to filter away towards tables. The waiter scurries over to us, bowing a little. “If you would please, sir, miss,” he says, gesturing towards the head table. “Just this way.”
Kent nods and we follow him to a long rectangular table with just three seats left. I watch as the waiter pulls out the furthest chair, gesturing towards it with a smile and looking directly at me.
I glance back at Kent, who gives me a smirk. I narrow my eyes at him a little, knowing that he’s not going to be of any help.
With that, I sigh, thanking the waiter and sinking into the chair seated directly next to Tristin, my new wicked stepmother.
Tristin turns her eyes to me as soon as I am seated, the baby in her lap looking up at me curiously. “Hello, Fay,” she says, her face cold. But hey, at least she’s talking to me.
“Hi,” I say, giving her as bright a smile as I can manage. Romulus peaks around her to give me a happy wave, which I return.
My father, on Romulus’ other side, turns to me as well. “We wanted to apologize, Fay, as a family. For the events at our house yesterday.”
“Oh, please,” I say, waving a hand to dismiss it. “Don’t worry about it. I understand that it’s…awkward. That I’m sort of a new addition, and that I screwed up some of your plans. I’m…sorry about that, by the way.” I look into Tristin’s face as I say it.
“Not a new addition, Fay,” my father says, looking at me steadily. “A love one returned to us after a long parting.”
“Yes,” Tristin says, her voice low and rehearsed. “You are a member of this family.” Her eyes flick to Kent and Daniel then, and I wonder why.
The rest of the dinner proceeds a little blandly. The food is good, the chitchat a little dull. I get a lot of family history, then, with Alden showing me pictures of my grandparents and telling me about their journey to America from Italy.
I look at the old photos curiously, trying to see pieces of my features in their faces. I’ve never really considered, before, that I’m actually Italian. I never thought much about my ethnicity, but with my red hair and pale skin, Italian had never popped into my mind. I glance quickly at Kent and Daniel with their dark skin, thick black hair, and roman noses, they look Italian.
“Thank you so much for showing me these,” I say to Alden, handing the pictures back to him. “I’m learning so much about myself these days.”
“And you have so much more to learn,” he says, giving me a warm smile, which I return.
The party goes quite late, with everyone drinking and chatting. At some point, a DJ comes out and begins playing the oldies that this crowd apparently favors lots of Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. It’s not a bad time, overall even Daniel is laughing and chatting around.
Only Kent seems to be having a poor time or, at least, not a good one. He’s very stern, always glancing around the room, looking over everyone who comes to say hello. I purse my lips, considering him as he looks critically over an old woman who introduced herself as my great aunt. Does he ever have a good time?
Kent feels me watching him and turns his attention to me, raising his eyebrow.
I shrug at him and shimmy my shoulders, encouraging him, without words, to try to loosen up and have a good time. He smirks at me and then looks away, continuing his surveillance.
Too serious, I think, getting up to get another drink. Kent stands to go with me, but I put out a hand to stop him.
“Really,” I say. “I’m just going to the bar for a glass of wine.” I indicate the alcove in the wall where the bar is stationed, only a few feet away. “I’ll be back in a moment.”
He hesitates and then settles back in his chair. “I’ll be right here,” he says. I nod and briskly step away.
A younger set of people are standing by the bar chatting. They raise their glasses to me as I sidle up.
“Welcome to the family, cousin,” a tall guy with closely-cut black hair and broad shoulders says to me. “We’ve missed you.”
“Really?” I ask, nodding to the bartender who hands me a glass of wine. “Um, are we really cousins?”
“Sure,” he says, laughing. “I’m Michael, this is Chris,” he says, indicating the slightly smaller version of himself next to him, “and our sister Amy.”
“Oh,” I say, raising my brows. “Wow, it’s really nice to meet you.”
“Not quite cousins,” Amy says, leaning in familiarly to talk to me. Her words are just a little bit slurred not sloppy, but I can tell she’s had a couple of drinks. “We’re second cousins! Your dad is our mom’s cousin, which means,” she screws up her face in thought, thinking, “we have great-grandparents in common.”
“Wow,” I say, taking a sip from my glass. “Um, my family I mean, the family I was adopted into we didn’t pay a lot of attention to that sort of thing. So to find out I have great-grandparents and second cousins all in one day…” I raise my eyebrows in emphasis and they laugh, nodding.
“Yeah,” Michael says. “It must be a lot, to go from nothing into a big Italian family like this.”