Fall For My Ex’s Mafia Dad
Chapter 249

When night truly falls and the garden becomes too dark to be practical, we all troop back to the front of the house, heading indoors. Kent takes the opportunity to dislodge Natalia from his side, somehow, and is waiting for us at the entrance to the garden. "How did that go," he murmurs, looking us over as we walk towards the house, his hands behind his back. "Fine," Daniel says, giving his dad a nod and a reassuring smile. "We weren't the feature item, anyway - most everyone met us yesterday."

"Excuse you," Janeen says dryly from behind us, "I am always the feature item."

Kent sends her an appreciative smirk over his shoulder but returns his focus to Daniel and I.

"You've got a little something, I think a little lipstick" I say wiping my own thumb over my cheekbone, indicating that Kent has something in the same spot. When he frowns, raising his hand and wiping at his own cheek, I continue. "It's a light shade of berry pink - I think the shade Natalia was wearing tonight."

Kent smirks, grinning at me, I think liking a little bit to see me jealous again. But he drops his hand, ignoring my joke.

"Where's nonno?" Daniel asks.

"I don't know," Kent says seriously as we pass into the house and make our way to a gigantic formal dining room that can probably seat fifty people. "But I have a feeling we're going to find out."

Nonna is waiting for us by the door, reaching out to take Kent's hand and leading him to a place of honor at the right hand of the chair at the head of the table, clearly reserved for Don Bianci but as-yet vacant. She murmurs something warm to Kent before coming and tugging at my hand, obliging me to lean down so she can kiss me on the cheek. She then kisses Daniel and presses Janeen and Jerome's hands, welcoming them, before bustling off.

"Where is she going?" I ask Daniel, confused as to why she's not sitting down with her guests.

"She's got to get the food ready," he says, pulling out my chair and gesturing towards it.

"What?" I gasp, staring after the tiny woman. "She cooked for everyone!?"

"She's an Italian wife," Daniel says, laughing and guiding me to the chair to sit. "This is her super bowl - trust me, she's in heaven."

"I would like," I say, staring wide-eyed at my husband, "you to always remember that I am an American wife. Because this?" I say, twirling my finger around to encompass the massive feast about to be fed to fifty guests, "this is not in my wheelhouse."

"No worries, Fay," Daniel murmurs, leaning in to kiss me on the cheek as he takes his own chair. "No one would eat what you cooked anyway, for fear of food poisoning."

I scoff at him, turning to my other side and looking for Kent to step in at my defense, but to my surprise he's staring down at his plate, smiling and blushing of all things.

"What?" I ask, completely shocked as I stare at him. "What is it?"

"Nothing," he murmurs, clearing his throat and sitting up straight.

"Tell me," I insist, dying to know - because never, ever have I seen Kent Lippert blush. I didn't think he was capable of it.

"It's just something mamma said," he says, the little smirk still on his face as he pulls his napkin into his lap.

"Tell me!" I push, using my fingers to give him a little shove on the shoulder, forgetting - for just a second - that he's supposed to be my father-in-law tonight.

Kent turns to me, I think a little unable to help himself. He lowers his voice. "She said you were very pretty, Fay," he murmurs.

"So?" I say, leaning in, my eyes flicking over him. "It was more than that, I know it was -"

He blushes again, laughing and my jaw drops open to see him like this. "She said," Kent says, giving in and making me lean so close that I almost tip out of my chair to hear him, "that you were very pretty, Fay, but that she was surprised that you married Daniel, because you seem more like my kind of girl than his."

My eyes flare wide as Kent laughs, shaking his head.

"Oh my god," I say, sitting up and looking around, glad suddenly that no one is yet sitting across from us and that everyone seems to be wrapped up in their own conversations. "Do you - do you think she knows!?"

"No, Fay," Kent murmurs, taking a deep breath as the food starts to come through the doors, carried by a series of servants and aunts who surely helped nonna prepare it all. "I think she's just a very perceptive old woman who knows me very well."

I relax back in my chair a little bit, smiling at him, touched. "I'm glad I get to see you with her, Kent," I say quietly.

"Me too," he says fast, and then nods towards Daniel. "But pay attention to your husband now."

I turn, intending to do just that, and as I do I see Kent's reason for the change as Alessi and Valentina move to their seats across from us, Natalia on Valentina's other side. Natalia slips into her chair across from Daniel as Alessi comes around the table to give Kent a big hug, slapping him on the back like he hasn't seen him in years instead of months.

The two speak cheerfully to each other in rapid Italian as Valentina leans across the table, greeting us and helping servants set out plates and plates of food that all smells delicious. His greeting finished, Alessi moves to his seat and the room quickly fills with chatter as wine is passed around, though nobody touches the steaming food or fills their plates.

Because we're all waiting.

A hush falls on the room when the doors bang open again and Don Bianci strides in. He smiles at his family, his hands tucked into his pants, and many call greetings to him as he crosses to the head of the room. Bianci gives paternal nods to those who greet him, but his eyes quickly focus on Kent, who stands.

I move to stand myself but Daniel puts a hand on my knee, letting me know that this is just between them.

And so I watch with very closely held breath as Bianci takes the final steps towards Kent, his face serious -

My breath leaves me all in a woosh as Bianci finally throws his arms wide and smiles, wrapping Kent in a wide hug that Kent, laughing, returns. A cheer goes through the room then, the family all raising glasses to the son who has returned home, and I raise my own glass in the toast, though I only let the red wine within it barely brush my lips when I sip.

Instead, I watch as Kent and Bianci say what look like warm words to each other as they continue to hold each other tight, Bianci smiling up into Kent's face as Kent warmly pats his back.

I raise my eyebrows, wondering if this is all a performance or if Bianci really is glad to have home the boy who is his son in so many ways, even though just yesterday we lied and said we didn't know where he was.

But whatever they say to each other is lost to me. The two finally let each other go, Bianci taking his seat and apparently not noticing that as soon as he reaches for the dish of pasta in front of him the rest of the family leans forward as well, beginning to serve themselves.