by Robin Kaye
The bedroom door squeaked. Annabelle ran the water in the bathroom sink and splashed her face.
Mike pushed the bathroom door open. “Annabelle, are you okay?”
“Yeah, fine.” She held up one finger. “Becca, Mike just walked in. I have to go.”
“Tell my big brother I said hi, okay?”
“Sure. You’re really pushing your luck, Bec.”
“Yeah, but you still love me, just not the same way you love my brother. Tell him. Everything will work out. You’ll see.”
“I’ll call you soon. Bye.”
Annabelle ended the call. “I needed to check in with Becca.”
“You’ve been crying again.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his neck. “I love you, Mike. Always.”
“Babe, I love you too, but you’re starting to scare me. Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I am as long as you’re with me.”
He stepped back, raised her chin with his finger, and stared deep into her eyes. “I’m not going anywhere without you. I promise.”
She knew he meant it, now. She just wished his promise would last longer than the weekend.
Mike placed the last suitcase in the trunk and went back to the house to hurry Annabelle along. She’d insisted on washing the sheets. He tried to tell her that Nick always had a cleaning service come before he or anyone else visited and after they left, but she wouldn’t hear of anyone cleaning up after them.
While he appreciated the thought, he’d already cleaned up. Cleaning was what he did. He was a self-proclaimed neat freak, though he tried to downplay that tendency.
In her attempt to clean, she only succeeded in doing the opposite. He’d spent half the day trailing along behind her and cleaning the messes she made.
It was obvious to him that she didn’t want to leave, but they had a three-hour ride home, and he had an interview to prepare for in between work and engagement ring shopping.
Vinny had friends in the diamond district and could probably get Mike a good deal. The only catch was that he’d have to talk to Vinny. Oh man, he’d have to go ask Annabelle’s dad for permission too, wouldn’t he? Did people still do that? Again, Vin would know. Then there was his mother. He’d have to tell her… or maybe he and Annabelle could tell her together—if Annabelle said yes. Man, he hadn’t thought about that. What if she didn’t want to get married? No, he wasn’t going to go there. He didn’t have much to offer her now, but after he paid off his student loans, they would be comfortable. He’d probably never be wealthy, but they’d be happy and comfortable.
“Mike, why are you staring into space?”
“What?”
“You’re a million miles away.” She wrapped her arms around him, her body molded to his as he rested his chin on the top of her head. “You’re not thinking about work are you? You had a frown on your face.”
“No, I was just thinking that it’s time to leave.”
Dave stuffed his big blockhead in between their bodies.
“Maybe we can stay one more night and take off early in the morning.”
“I have rounds at seven a.m.”
“Oh.”
He kissed her temple. She smelled so good, he was tempted to pick her up and give the other couch a spin before they left. “I’m sorry, babe. We’d better go. We’re going to hit traffic on the way back as it is. I promise we’ll come back soon without the family. Just you and me again, okay?”
“Sure.” She let go of him and headed for the front door.
He was really starting to hate that word.
Annabelle really didn’t want to leave, ever. Their time together was the closest thing to perfect she’d ever had. Except for the time she spent worrying about Mike’s reaction. She fell deeper in love with him, and losing him was going to gut her.
Not one prone to melodrama, she knew she’d survive. She imagined telling him a million ways, but every scenario ended with disaster. His reactions ranged from rage to hurt, both of which she expected and yet had no idea how to handle.
When she’d awoken in the middle of the night, slipped out to the deck, and called Becca without a second thought to the hour, Annabelle had begged her to meet them in Brooklyn. Becca refused because she knew Annabelle too well. She explained in that no-nonsense way of hers that Annabelle would try to turn the news into a reunion instead of the end of a relationship. Becca was still under the misconception that Annabelle and Mike could work it out. What Becca didn’t understand, and what Annabelle was just beginning to figure out herself, was that she wouldn’t allow herself to be mistreated by his father, and she loved Mike too much to allow him to choose her over his family and have him resent her for it five years down the road. No, she wouldn’t let that happen.
Nothing was more depressing than the drive home from a vacation, especially when your companion was eerily quiet. Mike tried several times to start a conversation. Planning their next trip to the Hamptons only seemed to make matters worse, and discussing the week ahead met with the same fate. Annabelle set her iPod in the cradle and played a depressing jazz mix as he traversed through holiday traffic on the Sunrise Highway, which he was sure could rival the Long Island Expressway as the world’s largest parking lot.
By the time he double-parked in front of Annabelle’s brownstone apartment, the tension in the car was almost unbearable. He slid out of the driver’s seat, and by the time he finished stretching, Henry and Wayne were waiting beside the car, greeting Dave and Annabelle and carrying her bags in. He’d been counting on privacy to ferret out whatever the heck was bothering her.
“What time will you be finished with work tomorrow?”
She was actually talking to him? “I’m not sure. I have some errands to run. How about a late dinner?”
She turned to Wayne and Henry. “Would you mind taking Dave out to the garden? I’ll be right up.”
Mike watched them leave as he pulled Annabelle to him. “We need to talk about whatever it is that’s bothering you.”
Annabelle nodded. “We’ll talk tomorrow.”
Mike tamped down the ominous feeling he had and chose to figure out how the heck to propose to Annabelle. He walked her into the apartment and, ignoring the domestic duo, gave her a kiss good-bye to remember.
Mike drove right from Annabelle’s to DiNicola’s, parked in the alley behind the restaurant, and entered through the kitchen door. Vinny took one look at him, passed his orders to his assistant chef, and without a word walked to his office. Mike followed and sat in front of the desk while Vinny poured them both Jack Daniel’s.
“Are you gonna tell me what the problem is? Or, are you gonna stare at me until I guess?”
“I need help.”
“Shit, I knew that the moment you walked into my kitchen.”
“I’m going to ask Annabelle to marry me.”
Mike should have let the man swallow before blurting it out. Vin had just taken a sip of Jack, which he spit all over his desk.
Mike reached for a stack of napkins and handed them to Vinny one at a time while he cursed and dried off all the orders he’d soaked in his shock.
“What the fuck is it with those Ronaldi girls? And what’s the rush? You take her out for a weekend of hot sex, and you decide you can’t live without her? You didn’t knock her up, did you?”
“No. I love her. And you’re right, I don’t want to live without her. I have this interview coming up, and I want to know if I end up moving away, she’ll be with me.”
“Hold up, where you movin’ to? You tell your mother about this yet?”
“Outside of Philadelphia. And Vin, if I do get the job, I’m gonna have to take it. It’s one of the best practices on the East Coast. But no matter what happens, I have to get out of the nightmare practice I’m in. If I don’t get this job, I’m going to have to find another. I can’t stay where I am.”
“Okay. You need another job. I get that. But do you have to get engaged before you even h
ave the interview? Why not wait and see how it shakes out?”
“I love her. That’s not going to change. Ever.”
“Well, at least you’re not being a putz like Nick was, but shit. I gotta worry about the timing here. You two been together, what, a month?”
“How long were you and Mona together before you knew she was made for you?”
“Me and Mona are not the subject here.”
“No, the subject is how long it took you to propose to her. Oh, and did you have to ask her father for her hand in marriage?”
“Three weeks, and yeah, I did talk to her father, but that was after we… well, you know. Things were different back then. Mona was a nice girl, and unless you put a ring on her finger, there was no… anyway. I talked to her old man, and after meeting Mr. Ronaldi, I’d advise you to do the same. Especially with Annabelle being the baby of the family and all. That’s if I can’t talk you out of this.”
“I love her.”
“Yeah, I hear ya, but do you have to marry her now? Maybe we should call Nick. I got his number somewhere…” He started searching through the pile of Jack-splattered papers on his desk.
“I don’t need Nick’s permission to get married. And I already know what he’s going to say, so don’t bother.”
“He thinks this whole thing is wonky too, doesn’t he?”
“Let’s just say he mentioned some reservations, but he doesn’t know Annabelle and neither do you.” Mike took a sip of Jack and stared down Vinny. The man was hard to stare down, but this was important, and even though Mike was on the receiving end of the Brooklyn stare, he had to stand tough. Vin looked away first.
“Okay, so, you’re gonna ask her. What do you need from me? I know you didn’t come to listen to reason.”
“I need you to hook me up with one of your friends in the diamond district. I need to get her a nice ring without going bankrupt in the process.”
Vinny flipped through an old-fashioned Rolodex wheel, picked up his phone, and dialed. “Ira, it’s Vinny DiNicola. How you doin’?”
Mike sat back and listened to Vinny set up an appointment. Ira would meet Mike in Vinny’s office at lunchtime the next day with a sample of his wares.
Vinny and Ira talked for a while, and when Vinny dropped the phone onto the cradle, Mike knew there was another lecture coming.
“Now, Mikey, just because you get a ring on her finger doesn’t mean you need to marry the girl right away. You two should plan a nice long engagement—like a year or two. Get to know each other better. Make sure this isn’t just your Johnson talkin’, if you know what I mean.”
“Vinny, I love her, man.”
“I know that’s what your thinkin’ now with all the great sex your havin’. But once the great sex cools down, and believe me, my friend, it will, you gotta like livin’ with the chick. You hear what I’m sayin’? You gotta love her even when you don’t feel like it. Love is a decision, not a feelin’, because believe me, you won’t be feelin’ the love a whole lot of the time.”
“I hear you.”
“Now, you know Mona’s gonna be here sniffin’ out those rocks tomorrow, so you better talk to your mother about this before Mona does. You don’t want her to hear that you’re engaged from Mona. That’ll hurt her feelings, you know?”
“Okay. I’ll talk to Mum.”
“Ira’s gonna want to deal in cash. I’ll make sure I got enough in the safe tomorrow. You can pay me back after you get that new high-falut’n job. And if this thing with you and Annabelle don’t work out, get the damn ring back. You don’t need to be padding no chick’s jewelry box. You get what I’m sayin’?”
“It’s going to work out, Vin. I—”
“I know, I know. You love her.”
“I do.”
“And there’s no way I can talk you into waitin’ on this?”
“No.”
“Okay, I hope you know what this is gonna cost me.”
“I’ll pay you back.”
“It’s not the money. Nick is gonna fuckin’ kill me.”
“Nick needs to mind his own business.”
“Now don’t be givin’ Nick shit. He’s worried about you. We all are.”
Vin stood and raised his glass. “Well, I wish you all the luck in the world. You’re gonna need it.”
Mike drained the last of his drink and set the glass on the desk before he stood. “Thanks. I appreciate it.”
Vin grabbed Mike into a tight hug and slapped his back. “Now, get your ass over to your mother’s place before it gets too late. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Mike followed Vinny through the kitchen. “Nino, pack up a few cannoli to go. Mikey here is going to see his mama.”
Nino made up a to-go package and handed it to Mike. “You say hello to your mama for me, eh?”
“Sure, Nino. Vin, thanks again.”
Vinny smiled at him. “Now get the hell outa here. I got work to do.”
Vinny was right. He needed to tell his mother. It didn’t mean he looked forward to it.
All his life, it had only been him and Mum. She liked Annabelle. She certainly raved about her enough after their lunch together. But she’d only met Annabelle twice.
He hoped she wouldn’t have the same reaction to the news that Vinny had. Even more than that, he hoped she wouldn’t cry.
Mike could handle any emergency you could throw at him, but he couldn’t handle his mother’s tears. Happy, sad, made no difference. His mother crying just wigged him out.
Mike used his key and let himself into his mother’s apartment. “Mum, I’m home.” He set the cannoli on the dining room table and went into the kitchen to get plates.
“Michael, what are you doing here? I thought you’d be with Annabelle on the last night of your vacation.”
She kissed him and then wiped the lipstick off his cheek. He wasn’t even sure she actually had lipstick on, but she rubbed his cheek whether it needed it or not.
“Did you have a good time? Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, it was fine. We had a great time. That’s why I stopped by. You want some tea? Vinny sent over some cannoli.”
His mother filled the kettle while he pulled out the cups.
“You had a nice time, but instead of staying with Annabelle, you went to Vinny’s and then came here?”
“Mum, I’m going to ask Annabelle to marry me.” Oh man, he knew it. She teared up. “Please don’t cry. You know I can’t stand it when you cry.”
She turned her back to him and fussed with the teapot. “I’m not crying. I think it’s wonderful. Sudden, but not unexpected.”
If she was crying, at least she had the decency to pretend she wasn’t. It still bothered him, but not as much as when she was out-and-out crying.
“So, this is okay with you?”
“Michael, you’re in love with the girl. I think it’s wonderful. You were always one to make a quick decision. I’m not surprised. I wish you and Annabelle every happiness.”
“Thanks, but I haven’t asked her yet. I’m not sure she even wants to get married.”
“She’s in love with you. You’re a wonderful man. Why wouldn’t she want to marry you?”
“I don’t know. This weekend was incredible, and we had a great time, but I think something was bothering her. I’d catch her looking at me, and she seemed… I don’t know… sad, I guess.”
“So talk to her. Find out what’s wrong.”
“We’re having dinner together tomorrow night. I went to Vinny’s to see if he could hook me up with one of his friends in the diamond district.”
“There’s no need for that. I have a ring I’ve been saving for you. It was your grandmother’s. It’s beautiful. I have it in the safety deposit box at the bank. I’ll get it for you and take it to have it cleaned on my lunch hour tomorrow.”
“You never told me you had Grandmother’s ring.”
“It was from your father. He’d given it to me as a promise ring… I hadn’t thought to menti
on it. You were never serious with anyone before. I put it away years ago. I guess it slipped my mind. It’s a beautiful ring, though. Annabelle will love it.”
“Are you sure about this? You know you can have it reset.”
“I’m not the diamond type. You know that. If I’d wanted to have it reset, I would have done it ages ago.”
Mike hugged her, and she waved him off. “You go call Vinny and tell him to cancel that appointment. And make sure you thank him, too.”
“I will.”
Mike never knew his mother had a ring given to her by his father. It made him feel a little weird, but it would save him a fortune. So who was he to question it?
He and his mum had tea and cannoli and made plans to meet the next afternoon.
Chapter 15
MIKE MET HIS MOTHER THE NEXT DAY AT THE JEWELER’S where she’d had the ring cleaned. When she opened the box, the size of the stone astonished him. It was as big as, if not bigger than, the rock Nick had bought Annabelle’s sister, and Nick had money to burn. Mike didn’t know anything about diamonds, but this one was brilliant. He couldn’t imagine how much it was worth. To think all the times his mother had struggled to put food on the table and pay the bills, she’d never sold it. Amazing.
“I told you it’s perfect for Annabelle. She can carry it off. I always felt as if it wore me rather than the other way around.”
“You wore it?”
“Yes, for a time, when I was pregnant with you. I wore it and a wedding band.”
“Oh.”
He put the ring on the tip of his finger and watched how it caught the light. She was right. Annabelle would love it. It was unusual, big, bold yet delicate, just like her.
“It’s amazing. Thank you.”
“Why are you thanking me? It’s rightfully yours. It’s all you have of your family heritage.”
“It’s not much of a family, but it’s a great ring.”
“I suggest you get it appraised for insurance purposes. But you can have that done when you have it sized for Annabelle.”
“Right.” Mike nodded. He was nervous as hell.
