Twenty minutes later, as she was walking down Chestnut Street, her cell phone rang. This time she looked to see who it was, although the caller was no surprise. She’d been expecting this call.
“I’m sorry,” she said when she picked up. “I’m really, really sorry.”
“So you do know about caller ID,” Tony said, laughing.
“Of course I do. I didn’t look because I figured it was you.”
“In the last twenty minutes I have heard from Catherine twice and once each from Theresa, Mary Ellen and Mom. It may be a record for all three sisters and my mom calling that close together.”
“Oh, God, now I’m more than sorry. I’m scared.”
“You should be. The second call from Catherine was to confirm the time for dinner at my mom’s tonight with the full cast of my family plus your mother. We are to bring wine.”
“Shit.”
“Exactly. I wanted you to myself. Now I have to share.”
“I don’t know how else to say I’m sorry. At least I can get the wine.” She laughed nervously. “Are you mad?”
“You mean, do I think you’re a bad girl? No. Besides, I kinda like bad girls.”
• • •
As she drove her rental car to the old neighborhood that evening, Margo asked, “Do you have any idea why this meeting of the clan has been called?” She tried to sound off-hand about it, although she was anything but.
He shook his head. “My sisters said they just wanted to see us. Although I did get a lot of questions about our going to the reunion together and what they seem to assume is a week of you staying with me.”
“Damn it, I should never have left the hotel. All I’d have to deal with then was Greer if she saw you coming in and out of my room.”
“I think it’ll be okay tonight.” He glanced over at her, his mouth twitching with amusement. “Although, now that I think about it, my sisters haven’t seen much of you since you graduated from law school. So maybe they’ll look at this as their chance to catch up on your religious habits, professional prospects, relationship status, that sort of thing. Don’t think anyone will bother asking if you’re still a virgin, not after a week of living with me.” The amusement turned into a huge grin.
“Thanks, Alessandro, I was hoping for something a bit more comforting from you.”
Margo pulled up to the curb at his mother’s house a few minutes later. An uneasy feeling crept up the back of her neck as she got out of the car, as if she were being watched. She asked Tony if he felt it, too. He laughed.
“Of course, we’re being watched. There are a dozen people inside, staring out every window. In fact … ” He took her in his arms, backed her against the car and kissed her with enthusiasm.
She broke up the kiss by laughing. “What are you doing?”
“Giving them something to look at.” He gave her a quick peck on the cheek, reached in the back seat of the car and brought out the bottles of wine they’d brought. Margo picked up the flowers she’d added to the wine purchases.
“Ready for this?” With his free hand, he took hers and they started up the path to the house. Before they got to the door, it opened and Theresa and Mary Ellen, the sisters on either side of Tony in age, came down the steps to greet Margo, while Catherine, the oldest of the four Alessandro siblings, stood in the doorway. They pulled her into the house leaving their brother to bring up the rear with the wine and the flowers he’d rescued from Margo when his siblings had captured her.