Starter Wife (The Jilted Wives Club Book 1), Bethany Lopez [great novels to read .TXT] 📗

car, I was at the curb, ready to open her door and give her a big hug for actually showing up.

I may have thought there was a ten percent chance she wouldn’t.

“Hi,” I said happily as she got out of the car.

“Hey,” she replied, laughing when I took her into my arms. “You good?”

“Never been better.”

I took her hand in mine and brought it to my lips to kiss it gently before leading her up the walkway to the house.

“You ready?” I asked, pausing at the door to get a look at her face and gauge her level of nervousness.

“As I’ll ever be,” Whitney answered with a quick nod. “Let’s do this.”

I gave her a quick kiss on the lips, took a deep breath, and opened the door.

Since she already knew my dad, I figured we’d start with him and ease her into things before going back to the kitchen.

“Hi, Mr. Russo, thanks so much for having me,” Whitney said as we stepped into the den.

My father rose from his chair and crossed to pull Whitney in for a hug. “You’re welcome anytime, and please, call me Giovanni.”

She nodded and repeated, “Giovanni.”

“My wife and I are thrilled you’re joining us today and hope next time you’ll bring your children. We’d love to meet them.”

“Thank you, I will,” Whitney said easily.

“Come on, my brother and his wife are here. They’re in the kitchen with my ma, so we can knock them all out at once.”

When Whitney looked suddenly nervous, my father patted her on the shoulder and said, “Don’t worry, she’s harmless.”

“Like a honey badger,” I muttered, and my dad slapped me upside the head. “Hey,” I grumbled, rubbing the spot where he’d hit me.

Whitney chuckled and I knew he’d done it to take her mind off her worries.

“Believe me, Franny’s just as nervous to meet you,” he told her.

She gave him a grateful smile and let me lead her out of the safety of the den.

“Ma,” I called out in warning, not wanting to startle her when she had a knife in her hand. “Whitney’s here.”

“Oh,” I heard her exclaim, then there was some pounding and shuffling.

When we entered the kitchen, she was wiping her hands on her apron, her eyes eagerly watching the doorway.

“Welcome,” she said loudly, just a trifle too loudly, and came rushing toward us. “I’m so happy to meet you.”

“Ma, this is Whitney. Whit, this is my mother, Francesca.”

“Please, call me Franny, or Ma, if you’d like,” my ma said as she threw her arms around Whitney.

Whitney wasn’t that tall, but my ma still only came up to her chin.

“It’s so nice to meet you, Franny. Thanks for having me over today.”

She masked her disappointment at Whitney choosing not to call her Ma, but I saw it and rubbed my hand over her back briefly before gesturing to our right.

“And this big lug is my older brother, Vanni, and his beautiful wife Sara. Their rugrats, Peter and Paul, are running around here somewhere.”

As they went around hugging and greeting each other, I heard the back door slam and glanced over to see Charlotte coming in carrying Sky, the diaper bag, and a look of utter exhaustion.

“I came early because I wanted to be here to witness Ma being confronted by Luca’s new woman. I mean, a divorcee with two teenage kids is obviously going to be a lot older than our little brother. I have to see the look on Ma’s face when…”

I felt Whitney stiffen beside me as my ma said sternly, “Charlotte Marie Russo Bonetti, you should be ashamed of yourself.”

Char’s face went ashen, and she burst into tears.

Whitney looked ready to bolt, so I said, “Please, stay here. I’ll be right back.”

When she nodded, I moved to my sister, took the baby out of her arms, and said, “You … with me.”

Thirty-One

Whitney

Luca’s family looked as embarrassed as I felt.

Things had been going so great that I’d lost my nerves and was about to ask if I could help in the kitchen when Luca’s sister had come in and laid all of my fears about this relationship and meeting his family right out on the table.

She’d looked truly upset when she realized I was already there and she looked so tired and sad that I almost felt sorry for her, even as I wanted to run from the house, get in my car, and go home.

“She didn’t mean it,” Sara was saying, patting my back like she was soothing one of her kids. “Char’s been feeling really stressed lately with the new baby and all, and I’m sure she was just letting off steam.”

“She really doesn’t have a mean bone in her body,” Vanni added.

“I’m so sorry,” Franny said, moving to take my hands in hers. “Charlotte has no excuse to talk about you that way. You’re Luca’s girlfriend and a guest in our home. I’ll be talking to her, you can be sure of it.”

“It’s fine, really,” I said, wanting the horrible moment to pass. “Is there anything I can help you with?”

“Oh, no, we’ve got it, you go ahead and go have a seat in the den. Relax, and supper will be ready soon,” Franny said, giving me a little push toward the hallway.

I walked out of the kitchen, unsure of what my next move should be.

Do I go back into the den and sit with Mr. Russo, do I go in search of Luca, or do I ignore his plea and walk my ass right out the door and hop in my car?

The sound of Charlotte crying answered my question for me, and I turned to head toward her.

“Nigel has been out of town constantly and Sky never sleeps. I’m exhausted and sad and lonely,” Charlotte was saying between sobs. “I didn’t think it was going to be like this.”

I peered around the corner to see Luca and Charlotte sitting on a bed. He was holding her as she cried, rubbing her back in soothing circles and looking absolutely