Page 1 of A Valentine's Day Gift
Chapter One
Allie Marino found herself tearing up over the happy chaos of their Sunday family dinner. Her fully grown children—three sons and three stepsons—valued this weekly time together as much as she and her husband, Vinny, did. Her sons rarely missed a dinner, and now they were so blessed to have six daughters-in-law, two seven-month-old granddaughters, and a three-year-old grandson.
She exchanged a look with Vinny sitting at the head of the table next to her. His dark eyes warmed on hers. He was just as happy as she was to have this special time together. They were in the large Victorian in Clover Park, where their family began, only now it was her oldest son, Gabe’s house. Her Marino stepsons were dark-haired, olive-skinned Italians like their dad—Vince, Nico, and Angel—bonded like true brothers to her light-haired, fair-skinned sons—Gabe, Luke, and Jared. Not an easy path to bonding, but they got there eventually.
Her youngest stepson, Angel, with his dark brown tousled hair and dimpled smile, looked over at her and then Vinny. “Julia and I wanted to talk to you guys.”
Allie grabbed Vinny’s hand under the table in anxious excitement. Angel and Julia were newlyweds and had been open about starting a family. “Is Julia pregnant?” Her voice came out so loud the entire table quieted. Even her granddaughters stopped babbling.
“No,” Angel said.
“Sorry,” Julia said, pushing her long dark brown hair behind her ears. “We didn’t mean to get your hopes up. We’re hoping soon.”
Allie worked hard to hide her disappointment. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes,” Julia said with a smile. “We were planning on surprising you with a keepsake book of photos and memories leading up to your wedding because you’ve been so supportive of all of us with our weddings. Cat’s out of the bag now, I guess. We couldn’t do it because no one had any pictures.”
“And only you two have the memories,” Angel added.
Allie tensed. Their relationship was not something she was willing to share with the kids. No sense digging around in the past.
“Do you two have any pictures from when you were dating?” Julia asked.
Allie turned to Vinny, hoping he’d shut down this whole line of questioning, but he merely shrugged one bulky shoulder. She didn’t want to sound like she was hiding a secret, but it was hard for her to outright lie. The way things had unfolded between her and Vinny might be seen, in the wrong context, as scandalous. Better not to open that can of worms at all.
She turned back to Angel and Julia. “I don’t think we do.”
“Not everybody had a camera in their pocket like they do now,” Vinny said.
Allie glanced down the table at Gabe, who was staring at his plate, not eating. Gabe knew. He was the one who’d found the letters in her old art studio. He’d read at least one that she knew about, and had confronted Vinny about it. Vinny had gotten defensive, which probably told Gabe all he needed to know.
“Any special memories from back then?” Julia asked.
“Not much to tell,” Vinny said with a note of finality. “We met, we dated, we got married, same as most couples. End of story.”
Yes.Some things were private.
~ ~ ~
Back when it all began…
Allie Reynolds hurried to answer the front door. The construction crew for her new art studio must be here. She could hardly believe it was really happening. Her husband, William, had always considered her art to be a frivolous hobby. They’d compromised on the art studio by having it made into a full studio apartment with galley kitchen and bathroom. She had no problem with the added amenities even if it was because, as he said, “at least they could get some rental income when she finally moved on to more important endeavors.” There was no love between her and her husband, an uptight workaholic lawyer. They’d married in a hurry when she got pregnant with her oldest son, and she’d been paying the price for her impulsive decision ever since. Not that William noticed she was unhappy, or noticed her at all, really. If it weren’t for her three boys, the light of her life, she would’ve left him long ago. But the boys were all in school now and, for the first time in years, she had her mornings to herself, which meant art time.
She opened the door to two men wearing blue T-shirts that read Marino and Sons Construction, along with worn jeans and work boots. The older man, thirtysomething, definitely Italian, made a strong commanding impression between his massive size—over six feet tall and bulky with muscles—to his serious expression. She figured he was the one in charge. The younger man, early twenties, was thin and wiry and stood a little behind his boss.
The large man spoke in a deep melodious voice that had her leaning in. “I’m Vinny Marino. We’re here to work on your garage.” Their eyes met, and her breath caught at the incredible sadness in his dark brown eyes framed with thick lashes. It was like looking in a mirror—the joy sucked out of him just like her. He was strikingly handsome otherwise with thick dark brown hair, chiseled cheekbones, strong jaw, and full sensuous lips. If he smiled, he would no doubt be stunning, but he didn’t smile.
Vinny spoke again. “It’s the detached garage over there, right?” He gestured over to it.
She snapped to attention. “Yes. I’ll get the key. Sorry.” She turned to get it and then stopped. “I’m Allison.”
Vinny nodded. “Nice to meet you, Allison. This is Tony.”
Tony lifted a hand in greeting.
She grabbed the key from the kitchen hook and joined them outside. They walked over to the garage together. Vinny kept pace with her, Tony trailing behind. She was a petite five feet three, but next to Vinny, she felt tiny. Her head came up to his huge bicep, his shoulders were massive, his neck thick. She’d bet he used to play football. His stride was slow and easy, and she realized he’d deliberately slowed down to match her shorter steps. Her husband always strode ahead of her, leaving her behind with the kids.
“We’re using the garage more like a shed right now,” she said. “There’s an access panel to get upstairs. It’s basically just storage on the second level, but the roof is high enough you can stand up.”
