Page 107 of In My Heart
“Head on in then. Cal already grabbed you some water and Arran was making you a plate to put aside for when you woke up.” He leaned in to kiss my lips briefly and I barely caught the kiss before he was ushering me through the door into the dining room.
The long oak table was overflowing when I entered, and for a moment I just stared at it; huge bowls of pasta swimming in rich tomato sauce, creamy risotto, roasted vegetables glistening with olive oil, fresh focaccia still warm enough to steam when torn apart, and enough parmesan to bury a small child. Terza had gone all out. Perhaps that was why she was stood at the foot of the table, appraising it all, and looking personally offended that there dared to be gaps unfilled with food.
“I should cook more. You’re all too skinny,” she declared, setting another dish down dramatically. “I cook like this constantly, and still you all look like starving dogs.”
“Starving dogs?” I laughed as I looked around the table between Rafe, Cal, and Arran. Dio walked in behind me and I looked him over too.
They were aglow with health, rippling with muscle, and built like warriors. Even Rafe, as ill as he looked, was still a hell of a long way from unhealthy.
“Cara! There you are my dear!” Terza cried as she whirled around and wrapped me in a hug. “The boys have told me how they behaved like children yesterday. Damned fools. Don’t you worry. I’ve handled it. It will not happen again, will it?” She turned to look over her shoulder with a glare.
“No Mum,” Dio spoke first.
“Definitely not,” Cal was next.
“Lesson learned,” Arran nodded.
When there was just silence from Rafe, Terza released me and turned so we were both facing him, but where I was trying to stifle a laugh at the naughty boys around the table, Terza was throwing pure fire at my brother.
“Raffaele,” she warned firmly. I saw Rafe flinch and was pretty sure Dio had kicked him under the table.
Finally, Rafe looked up, his face set like a rebellious toddler and huffed out his reply. “They should have told me,” he argued.
“They should. I agreed with you when we had this discussion earlier. Now we are all moving on, correct? Don’t test me, Rafe. You may get to order everyone else around, but I changed your nappies.”
“Jesus,” Rafe sighed as he looked to Dio for help. Dio just smirked, clearly trying to hold in laughter, as was I. “Fine. It’s handled. I’ll let it go,” he ultimately conceded.
“Thank God for that,” Cal sighed.
“See? No more trouble now. You be happy, Cara. I know my boys will be everything you need,” Terza assured me. I smiled to her gratefully, then allowed her to all but shove me into a chair between Cal and Arran.
“Eat now!” she ordered, and we all started to dive into the food as Terza took her place beside Dio and sipped at a glass of red wine. She was smiling brightly as she watched us fill plates. It was clear that feeding us all made her happy.
“Let Cara get food!” She growled when Rafe cut in front of me to grab a spoon for the risotto. “What is wrong with you? Why do you act like you have no manners?”
"It's because they eat like escaped livestock," I said, reaching for the focaccia before Cal could steal it. Too late. He snatched it first with an unbearably smug grin.
“Animals!” Terza declared as she slapped Cal on the back of the head, then glared at him until he offered me the bread. I smiled smugly at him as I took the biggest piece.
Across from us, Arran laughed quietly into his wine glass, having obviously witnessed the exchange. Dio was laughing too as he leaned back in his chair looking deeply satisfied, though I was pretty sure he was using the relaxed front to hide the fact he’d rather wait for me to finish than risk any further wrath from his mother.
"Stop worrying, Mum," Dio sighed, eyeing the table, "…this is enough food for twenty people."
"And still somehow you boys finish everything," Terza accused, pointing a spoon at him.
"Because we're growing," Cal laughed.
"You are grown," Terza threw back, making us all laugh.
"I can still grow emotionally," Cal teased.
Rafe snorted into his drink hard enough to immediately regret it. Pain flashed across his face and I was already on my feet, all my amusement vanished instantly.
"Rafe…"
"I'm fine," he muttered, waving me off before I could get up.
He looked exhausted. He had slept for most of the afternoon, just as I had, but it didn’t seem to have helped much. His skin was still paler than normal, dark bruising beneath his eyes, and every deep breath seemed to cost him something. Even sitting at the table for this long clearly hurt and strained him. He should be in his room, resting in bed, but convincing Rafe to rest was like trying to fistfight with gravity.
