Page 90 of Whatever You Need

“Mom, please stop fussing over me,”I said as she wrapped a throw blanket around my legs.

“I brought over a lasagna, a bowl of homemade Italian Wedding soup, and that breakfast casserole you love,” she fired off, too busy to even hear my request. I didn’t know what it was with Italian women and why they thought that food was the answer to all of life’s problems. She looked at the Target bag on the kitchen counter, remembering something. “Oh, I have to get that ice cream in the freezer before it melts.”

She scurried into the kitchen and started putting everything away.

I rolled my eyes in surrender and glanced over at my grandmother who was resting comfortably in the recliner. She pulled a bottle of red wine out of a paper bag. “Marietta, get me a glass and a wine opener while you’re in the kitchen, please.”

My mother placed her hands on her hips. “Hey, I grabbed that wine for Marco and Amelia.”

“Well, Marco is still high from all those pain meds.” Her gaze slid to mine, daring me to contradict her. I started to object but thought better of it. “Plus, Amelia likes white wine, and I don’t want this to go to waste. This Chianti is the good stuff.”

There was a reason why I moved out as soon as I earned my first paycheck. While I was lucky to have these women in my life, one could only take them in small doses.

The doorbell rang. My mom strolled over to answer it, wiping her hands along her apron.

“Expecting someone?”

“It’s probably one of the guys,” I said, remembering that Quinn and Logan were planning on visiting later in the day.

“Uh…” My Mom paused, peering through the sidelight window. “Definitely not one of the guys.”

She opened the door, and I blinked my eyes in disbelief, wondering if the pain pills were making me hallucinate.

“Sienna?” I said as she aimed a big smile at me. There was a time where I would have melted seeing that smile, but now it didn’t even faze me. “What are you doing here?”

She waved to my grandmother, but my nonna would rather have her teeth pulled without Novocain than return my ex-girlfriend’s smile. “I heard what happened and came right away.”

“Where’s Antonio?” my mom asked, stepping out onto my front porch and looking out into my front yard expecting to see him walking up the sidewalk.

Sienna’s eyes darted across the room; she gave me a nervous smile. “Oh, he’s back in California.”

I tilted my head to the side. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand?”

“Antonio and I are getting a divorce.”

The news only added to my confusion.

“I’m sorry to hear that, but what does that have to do with me?” I asked as gently as possible, even though I had a sneaking suspicion that she was quite possibly here for me.

She breezed through my house and perched herself on my coffee table. “We haven’t been doing well for some time. I asked him for a separation right after Christmas.” She pursed her lips and I couldn’t help but notice the amount of lipstick she had on them. “It’s been over between us for a while.” She clutched my hand and I just stared at it in disbelief. I didn’t dare look into her eyes because she didn’t deserve my attention. “I heard about you being shot. I was so upset. I came back for you.”

My eyes drifted to my grandmother. She never liked Sienna, and when she finished that big glass of wine, there was a good chance that things were going to get a lot more uncomfortable in this house.

My mother had her arms crossed over her chest in a protective stance; she was watching Sienna closely.

I closed my eyes and tried to figure out how to let her down easy. Sienna wasn’t a bad person, just severely misguided. I would like to think that once she thought this through that she would realize that this was messed up. We didn’t talk. We didn’t keep in touch. Other than this past Christmas, I hadn’t seen her in years. This was crazy.

My hesitation must have been a second too long because she reached in with her other hand and cupped my face. “I was so young and stupid.” Her eyes filled with longing. “I feel like I gave up on us too soon. I never should have married Antonio, not when my heart still belonged to you. I want another chance. A chance to make things right with you and me.”

I turned my head when I heard the front door swing open. Amelia stepped into the room, pulling a piece of rolling luggage. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. She halted in place, and the black duffel bag along her shoulder fell when she caught sight of my ex.

I held my breath, waiting to see how things played out. The last time these two women were in the same room together, things did not go well.

Sienna threw her a phony smile. She always did have a jealous streak.

Amelia set her luggage to the side, appearing cool as a cucumber. She unbuttoned her coat and dusted the snow off her hair. She acted like seeing Sienna was an everyday occurrence. I knew this act wouldn’t last long. When I looked closer, I couldn’t help but notice how much weight she’s lost over the past couple weeks due to all the stress. She was usually strong and vibrant, but the woman standing in front of me looked exhausted. I was eager to ask her how her meeting went today, but my curiosity would have to wait.

“I didn’t realize we were expecting company?” Her eyes shifted to me. She didn’t appear all that happy with our uninvited guest.

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