The CEO's Unexpected Child(20)

"It's so good to meet you, Claire. I'm sure we would've met sooner if  I'd known you and Eva existed." There was a biting tone at the end of  his mother's words directed at Luca. He didn't care.

"Claire, this is my family. That's my mother, Antonia. This is my  father, Mario." He went around the room as fast as he could. She likely  wouldn't remember all the names anyway. "You know Mia, then my sister  Carla. My brother Giovanni and his wife, Nicole. My other brother Angelo  and his wife, Tonia. My nephews Tony, Giovanni Jr., Matteo, Paolo and  my niece Valentina."                       
       
           



       

Luca watched Claire's eyes get wider with every name he listed. "Is that everyone?" she asked.

"No," he had to admit. "My brother Marcello and his family apparently  couldn't come, but they have a new baby. And it looks like Carla's  husband stayed home with the kids." Luca turned his back to his family  and silently mouthed the words to Claire, "I'm so sorry."

She just shook her head and pasted on a smile. "So glad all of you  could come. Please, set down your things and relax. Can I get anyone  something to drink? I was just about to make some breakfast. Have you  eaten?"

The resounding roar of voices startled Claire for a moment, but Luca  felt a touch of pride as she recovered. At the mention of food or drink,  half the family headed toward the kitchen. No one bothered to tell her  what they'd like; they simply took over like they would at home. She  watched them for a moment in confusion.

Luca handed Eva to her and leaned over to whisper in her ear. "Just go  with it. This is how they are." He leaned in to plant a kiss under her  earlobe, but she shied away, heading toward the kitchen to help the  others. He tried not to frown at her rejection.

Instead, he approached Giovanni as he sat in one of the overstuffed chairs. "Really?" he asked.

Giovanni just shrugged him off. "You know how they are. I got a phone  call at ten last night telling me that you had a daughter and I was to  be packed, ready and at the airport by six a.m. to go see her."

Luca slipped into the chair beside him. "You all took the corporate jet?"

His brother nodded. "Did you really think you could keep this a secret?"

"It worked for a few months."

"Months?" Giovanni looked stunned.

"Yes. I found out about this mistake at the clinic, and then I wanted  to wait to get the results of the paternity test. You remember what  happened with Jessica. I wanted to keep it under wraps until I knew for  certain Eva was truly mine. After that were a few weeks of battling back  and forth with her lawyer before I could see Eva. We came here to break  the ice and figure out how to work together. It didn't seem like the  right time to bring all of you into the picture."

"It seems understandable, but I doubt Mama will accept your excuse. Expect a tongue-lashing later."

Luca chuckled. "You mean that wasn't it just now?"

"Oh, no. You were saved by your pretty girlfriend and talk of cooking.  That distracted her. You'll hear more about it when she's done pumping  Claire for details and we've all been fed."

"She's not really my girlfriend," Luca argued. The way she pulled away  from him a moment ago made that very clear. Last night was what it was,  but she obviously didn't want his family to read into anything. "I mean,  we're just..."

"You two came out of the same bedroom, Luca. And you're not wearing a shirt."

Luca looked down and realized he needed to fetch his shirt from the  bedroom floor. "Yeah, but that was the first time. I'm not sure it will  happen again, especially with you all showing up and breaking the  romantic spell I'd so carefully crafted."

"Are you trying to woo her?" Giovanni asked.

"Not at first, but then I realized Claire and Eva might be my one shot  at a real family. I'd be stupid to let this chance slip through my  fingers."

"You don't know that for sure, Luca. Have the doctors-"

"No," Luca interrupted. "But I know. This is my chance. It could be  worse. Claire is..." He found it hard to find the words in the moment.  "A very special woman. And a great mother."

The two brothers turned to look into the kitchen. Their parents, Mia,  Carla, Nicole and Angelo were talking all at once, bumping elbows and  carrying around ingredients for the breakfast of champions. Tonia was  unsuccessfully trying to corral a toddler. Claire stood on the fringe  with Eva, not quite brave enough to jump in. She watched the group with  fascination, like a circus performance.

Periodically, their mother would stop what she was doing to pat  Claire's arm and pinch at Eva's cheeks. She'd mutter something in  Italian that they couldn't make out, then she'd return to what she was  doing.                       
       
           



       

"Well, dating or not, Mama seems to like Claire," Giovanni noted. "That's a huge hurdle to get over."

Their mother was notoriously picky about the women her sons dated. It  was a pretty big deal to get the Antonia Stamp of Approval. Luca had  never brought a woman home before Jessica, and that was only because of  the baby. Even without Eva, Luca got the feeling that his mama would  take to Claire. It was hard not to like her, even as different as she  was.

"Does she know about your illness?" Giovanni asked.

Luca stiffened in his seat and shook his head. "No. And I don't want anyone telling her, either."

"It's not a big deal, Luca. You had cancer. That's nothing to be  ashamed of. You survived. You should be shouting it from the rooftops."

Luca knew his brother was right, but he'd never felt like shouting. He  only ever felt as if he'd lost something. A woman like Claire deserved a  whole man who could give her everything she wanted.

Maybe, just maybe, he could fake it and be enough for her.

* * *

Overwhelmed wasn't quite the word Claire would use to describe the past  three days, but it was close. She knew now what Luca was talking about  when he said his family was loud, boisterous and fun-loving. They were  all of those things and more. The sisters and sisters-in-law had taken  Claire into their fold. She was worried they would be cold to her when  they found out about the custody battle she and Luca had been fighting,  but that wasn't the case. They'd taken the children to the beach and the  ice-cream stand. They'd sat out on the deck together drinking wine and  talking about children and men. It was surprising how quickly the sense  of camaraderie had set in with these women who were virtual strangers.

Claire had barely even seen Eva since they arrived. Someone was always  holding her. The only time they'd had together was when she would insist  on giving Eva a bath and putting her to bed. Her room was her only  sanctuary. There were Morettis everywhere else. The three couples took  over the downstairs bedrooms with the kids sleeping on the floor in  blanket forts. Mia and Carla shared the sofa bed.

Truthfully, there was a Moretti in her room, too, but it wasn't quite  the same. She had let Luca return to her room while they were there, but  only because there wasn't anywhere else to sleep. She felt guilty  taking up a king-size bed while he tried to get rest on the recliner.  She'd set a few rules, however. No hanky-panky. There were too many  people around to hear every creak in the wood floors.

Besides that, she wasn't sure it was something that should be repeated,  as much as she might like to. Luca was a complex man, and she got the  feeling it would take a long time to peel back all his layers. Sex was  just a distraction. If she was going to fully give herself to anyone,  there had to be a level of trust and honesty between them. She didn't  feel as if she and Luca had that yet. And maybe they never would. This  trip wasn't supposed to be about romance anyway. It was supposed to be  about family, and now, it certainly was.

On the third afternoon of his family's visit, the men had all gone out  in search of fresh lobster to bring home for dinner. Mia and Carla had  gone to the grocery store to replenish the pantry they'd depleted.  Nicole and Tonia went to the beach with the kids, but Claire passed. She  was exhausted from all the activity.

Suddenly, the house felt very quiet. Too quiet. After a while, she  started to wonder where Eva was. Although she rarely had her, she did  like to keep tabs on where she was. Claire meandered through the house,  finally spying her out on the deck with Antonia. She slipped through the  French doors and approached the deck chairs.

"May I join you?" she asked.

"Of course. My new grandbaby and I were just enjoying this beautiful  day. I'm going to hate to leave tomorrow. I have so much more sugar to  give these little cheeks."