Page 108 of Hail Marry
“Simple as that, huh?” I say with a hint of sass.
“Maybe. I mean, you guysarein love. It may have started as fraud, but it’s legit now. Either way, don’t give up yet. And don’t waste the time you and Luca have by worrying. And for the love of all that is good and holy,tell him how you feel.While you can.”
My heart races at the thought. But I know she’s right. I have to. And I want to. But I’m terrified. “What if it ends, Siena?” I swallow. “What if I end up hurt again, like with Ryan?”
“Don’t you mention He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named to me. Luca is twice the man that little punk could even dream of being. And he’s not going to hurt you.”
“But how do you know that? You said it yourself—I make bad decisions. What if this is another one of those?”
“Do you make decisions I personally wouldn’t make? Yes. But so what? You always come out on top, Tor. Take Ryan. Him breaking up with you hurt you like crazy, but it was the best-case scenario foryou. You’re better for it.Unlessyou let it get in the way of what you have with Luca. That would be the true tragedy. So don’t you dare sabotage your marriage over an idiot like Ryan. Luca’s the real deal, and you fight for the real deal.”
I breathe in, letting her words soak in. Iwantto believe them, and everything I know about Luca supports what she’s saying. He’s looked out for me from the beginning. Literally from the moment we met. He’s not Ryan.
“It’ll all work out,” Siena says. “I really believe that. We’ll find a way, okay?”
I force myself to breathe. “Okay.”
She yawns. “I’m overdue for my third nap now, so…”
“Third of…”
“Three. Maybe four. But I love you. And so does Luca. And true love conquers all. Keep me posted, okay?
“I will.”
I take a few slow, deep breaths once we’ve hung up.
We can do this.It’ll all work out.
I smile slightly at the thought of what Joyce would say if she could hear my manifesting thoughts. Well, Joyce, I’m about to manifest the crap out of my future with Luca.
The next morning,I’m up by eight. I mean business. I’m full of energy and determination. Yes, there’s still fear bubbling behind it, but I refuse to give in to it.
Instead, I do what I know I have to do next: I call my parents and tell them the truth. With less desperation and tears this time, but still a decent amount of nerves. No one likes admitting they’ve been lying to their kind and loving parents.
It’s those same kind and loving qualities they have in such abundance that lead them to accept my story like this isn’t the first child they’ve had marry a stranger for fraudulent purposes.
I’m in tears by the end of the call. Happy tears. Grateful tears. I’m so fortunate to have a family who supports me in all of my harebrained ideas. A family who loves Luca and is ready to go to bat for him too, despite everything. The Sheppards are ready to take on U.S. Immigration.
It’s this type of support that so many of the youth we met at Summit Rise are missing. A lot of them come from broken homes, and the others generally have parents who are running themselves into the ground just trying to put food on the table and a roof over their heads.
I didn’t do anything to deserve the situation I have, and it makes me want to help Dallin and those other kids. I’ve done enough sitting around at home trying to figure out what I want to do with my life; I may as well be doing some good while I look for a job.
I shoot an email to Summit Rise, letting them know I’d love to work more with the kids if they have any opportunities
Before I hop in the shower to get ready for the game, I shoot off one more text. A daring one.
Tori
Good luck today (heart emoji)
Okay, maybe not that daring. People use heart emojis in a lot of circumstances. But there’s subtext to this one. A lot of it. It’s close enough to the game that I don’t even know if Luca will see it. He usually puts his phone away about two hours beforehand.
I take a shower, even washing my hair. I want to look good today. I’ve done my curl routine and am heading for my closet when I spot my phone on the bed.
Too curious to resist, I tap the screen. There’s a text preview waiting there.
Luca
