Chapter 170

“She liked the house, huh?”  Jon asked with a smirk as they lounged poolside late the next morning.

Richie grinned at his best friend, chest puffed out with pride.  “I do believe she did.  She and Ava were disappointed that we didn’t stay there last night, but I think it’s safe to say she liked it.”

David, overhearing from where he and Tico were taking turns throwing Jake, Romeo and Hector in the pool, called out, “Did she let you fu-“  He gave a quick glance to his pint-sized playmates.  “Have any fun to show her appreciation?”

“That’s not the only way to tell someone likes something,” Richie growled, flipping him a Jersey salute when the little ones’ heads were turned.

“That’s a no,” David told Tico with an evil snicker.  “So, Rich, would you say they’re STEEL blue, DEEP blue or pea-COCK blue?”

“There’s a special place in Hades for you, Lemma,” Richie swore over top of the other men’s laughter.

“Where’s Hades, Daddy?”  Romeo asked as he flew by the lounge chairs.  “Are we going there?”

“Not today,” Jon told the boy through his laughter as Tico scooped him up and splashed him into the crystal clear water.  Redirecting his attention to Richie, he flicked his hand out and smacked him lightly.  “And what happened when she found out the house wasn’t part of that prenup she made you sign?”

Richie frowned, pissed that Jon would even bring up that stupid-ass prenup that left Allegra with nothing should they ever divorce.  He’d just barely gotten around it with the new vacation house, by sneaking in a clause that exempted gifts from what was considered community property.  She didn’t yet know that the beach house was in her name alone.

“I didn’t tell her, jackass, because that prenup is a useless piece of paper.  There will never be a reason for that thing to see the light of day again.”

“Good answer,” Jon nodded with approval after swallowing a gulp of iced orange juice.  Ensuring that Dave and Tico were engrossed with the boys, he lowered his voice.  “I know I’ve asked once, but seeing as we’re on the eve of your marriage to my cousin, I have to ask again.  Are you sure about this, man?  I mean absolutely, feel it in your bones, one-hundred percent sure?  If you have even the slightest reservation about this marriage or that baby, now’s the time to own up to it.”

Richie thoughtfully considered the man at his side, who had been in that position for more than twenty-five years.  It would be so easy to be angry at him for questioning – questioning him, his feelings and intentions.  After all this time, he knew Jon was only asking with his best interest at heart – and Allegra’s.

“I could lie and tell you that I’m a thousand percent sure everything is going to be rainbows and roses, but honestly…”  He curled his fingers a little more tightly around his glass of Diet Coke, visually focused on some unknown point in the distance.  “I’m scared of fucking this up.  She’s too good for me.  I know it and I’m worried that one day she’s going to figure it out, too.”

“Good.”

Richie’s surprised gaze snapped to his friend, who was reclining carelessly, hands tucked behind his head.  “Thanks for the support there, Bro.”

“If that’s where your head is, you won’t take her for granted.”

“Feelin’ the love…” Richie mumbled under his breath.

“If you don’t take her for granted, she won’t take you for granted and the whole thing won’t go to hell in a handbasket before you realize what’s happened.  So what about the baby?”  Jon pressed on, his face seemingly relaxed, but his true expression indecipherable behind the oversized sunglasses.

“After that last Hallmark moment, I don’t know if I want to tell you shit.”

And really, he didn’t – didn’t know if he wanted to give voice to his own doubts.  If he verbalized that miniscule thought in the back of his brain, it made it real.  If it was real, it could come to fruition.  If it came to fruition, who knew what the hell Allegra would get in her head?  Fairness, justice and obligation took on a different light when viewed through her eyes.  If he didn’t have faith, she never would.

“Don’t be such a girl.  What about the baby?”

So Richie continued to build his preferred reality by speaking it into existence.

“The baby is mine, and I’m tired of repeating myself.”

♥ ♪ ♥

“Lani, you have been exceptional!  I don’t know how I could thank you enough for seeing to everything,” Allegra admired, the skirt of her billowy sundress twirling around her calves as she spun to take in the entire room.  “Seeing it all in person does wonders for my nerves.”

“It’s been my pleasure,” the beautifully exotic woman assured her.  “We’ve arranged the priest to meet with you this evening after dinner, and your party can check out the wedding site at the same time, to get a feel for how things will be in the morning.  Until then, I’ll just go check on your dinner.”  Nodding, she excused herself from the room.

The hotel dining room was an elegant tropical paradise, and Allegra smiled her excited pleasure at the women around her - her mother, Joan, Aunt Carol, Lexi, Alejandra and Dot.  “Isn’t it beautiful?”

They all nodded and made the appropriate sounds of admiration, taking in the décor Lani had designed from her few telephone conversations with Allegra. 

Two large, round tables were draped with floor-length fuchsia tablecloths, with only a square of white linen at the table’s center to interrupt the sea of color.  Tropical centerpieces were assembled in shades of magenta, orange, and purple and were surrounded by clusters of complementary glass votives, whose candles were flickering merrily. 

White square plates were at each setting, accompanied by traditional silver.  Vividly hued linen napkins in gold, pink, orange, purple and bright blue were rolled and topped with a spray of pink and white orchids.  Over the back of each guest’s seat was draped a fresh lei whose flowers lent their scent to the tropical ambiance.

Allegra was beyond pleased.  She hoped Richie would be just as delighted.

If he ever showed up.

“Has anybody heard from the ‘big boys’?” Dot asked with a frown, noting that the girls – Steph, Gabi, Ava and Tyger Lily – had made their way into the room and were oohing over the colored lights strung across the room and sniffing the leis.  Michael and John had kept an eye on the three younger boys while their fathers had gone with Richie, David, Jesse and Colton for the bachelor celebration.

From what Allegra gathered, that consisted of trying to ‘kill’ one another with paintballs in a private jungle somewhere on the island.  The charm escaped her, but Richie probably wouldn’t have enjoyed the way she spent her day and she wouldn’t trade anything for the massage, manicure and pedicure she’d indulged in this afternoon.

“Daddy, did you and Uncle John hear from the guys?”  She asked as they arrived with Hector, Jake and Romeo.

Her father appeared uncomfortable at the question.  “Uh, they called and said they would be running just a few minutes late.  That was almost an hour ago, so I imagine they’ll be along shortly.”

“Did they say why?” Therese questioned her husband from within Romeo’s death grip hug around her knees.  “Hello to you too, Romeo!”

An impish grin skated across his features and he darted around the nearest table, chasing after Hector.

Before Michael could reply, the dining room door flung open with a clatter.  “Fear not!  Your wounded warriors have arrived!” David thundered with a wide sweep of his arm.

Quickly inspecting them, Allegra was relieved that they weren’t covered with paint splatter.  They’d obviously showered and changed into dinner clothes – button down or polo shirts with jeans.  Counting heads, she inventoried the two teenage boys, Jon, David and Tico. 

“Where’s Richie?”

“David, what do you mean wounded?” Lexi demanded.  “Are you hurt?”

“Of course not,” he grunted, beating one fist on his chest.  “Me big, strong man.  Not puny weakling.”

“Where’s Richie?” Allegra asserted more loudly, eyes zipping back and forth over the group, distinctly aware that they all refused to look at her, except David.  “David, where is he?”

“Now don’t get mad, Legs,” he crooned, dropping his arm over her shoulders in a buddy-buddy gesture and tugging her in for a hug.  “He’ll be here in a few.  He just needed an extra minute to change.”

Allegra’s temper started to simmer along with her concern.  David telling her not to get mad had always proven an excellent reason to get mad.

“David if you don’t-“ 

Her threat was interrupted by a shaggy brown head popping around the door.  “Retract your claws, Sunshine.  I’m right here,” Richie told her with a grin, easing himself into the room.

The first thing she – and all the women, if the audible gasp was any indication – noticed was the sling on his right arm.

“David, you’re a dead man!”  Allegra threatened, pushing him away with a withering look and moving swiftly to Richie’s side.  “Sweetie, what happened?  How badly does it hurt?”

“Hey, hey, hey.”  Richie wrapped her in his good arm.  “No worries, it’s just a slight shoulder sprain.  The sling is just insurance to make sure it’s all better by morning.”

“And it wouldn’t have happened if he hadn’t been trying to pretend he was a teenager by taking a rolling fall to dodge a paintball,” David pointed his finger accusingly.

“You put me on a team with two teenagers, I was just trying to keep up.”

David shrugged as though it couldn’t have been helped.  “Well it was bachelors against married men.”

The rest of the witnesses to this injury were stoically silent, more than content to let David accept the brunt of Allegra’s displeasure.  She, however, was not content.

“Jon, I can’t believe you let this happen twelve hours before my wedding!  And Tico, you’re the grown-up of the group!”

Jon threw up his hands in a gesture of innocence, fending off glares from his mother, wife and cousin.  “How was I supposed to stop him from throwing himself to the ground?”

“Baby, stop,” Richie interrupted, leading her from the room’s entrance toward the dinner tables.  “There’s nothing to be upset about.  I’m fine.  I can still play guitar, I can still get married and do… everything… that I need to do.  Let’s eat, okay?  The place looks amazing, by the way.”

The lazy circles he was making with his thumb in the small of her back went a long way toward soothing her agitation.  With a final huff, she made a conscious decision to let it go and enjoy the eve of their wedding.  She could assess his shoulder a little more closely later.

“Didn’t Lani do a great job?”

Following the couples’ cue, the rest of the wedding party/guests found their seats and slipped the fragrant leis over their heads, adults at one table and the kids at the other. 

“So Legs, what color blue would you say this is?” David inquired innocently, holding up his napkin.

“I don’t know.  Peacock, maybe?”

“Just as I suspected,” he crowed with a triumphant grin at Richie.  She would have to find out what that was all about later.

David’s cryptic humor aside, the group was still a bit subdued after Allegra’s outburst.  That is, until each of the band members made a point to extravagantly compliment something about the table, room or her appearance until it became so absurd that Allegra couldn’t resist laughing. 

“Okay, okay!  I’m over it.  Please resume acting like yourselves, for Pete’s sake.  I can’t stand the Stepford Band anymore!”

About that time, the wait staff began filtering through the kitchen doors bearing trays laden with aromatic food.  Allegra had opted for a custom dinner, allowing each person to choose their own entrée.  Seafood was the definitely the order of the day.  The only exceptions were Allegra’s grilled pineapple chicken and chicken nuggets and hot dogs for the younger boys.

As everyone was finishing their meals, Lani appeared at Allegra’s side leaning in to speak.  “Ms. Castanelli, the chef would like to step in and make sure the food was to your satisfaction.   Do you mind?”

“Of course,” she agreed with a smile.  “The food was fabulous and I’d love to give the chef our compliments.  Right, honey?”  She patted Richie’s knee.

“Yeah, absolutely!”

“Very well.  I’ll let Chef Lucy know.  Thank you.”  The coordinator slipped silently away unaware of the impact her words would carry.

Allegra’s hand froze before her fork full of rice pilaf clanked to the plate noisily and she turned to Richie, dumbfounded.

“No.”  She shook her head vehemently, hissing, “She did not just say Chef Lucy.”

“Um, I think she did, actually.”

“Chef Lucy?” David piped up from the other side of the table, his trouble-making sonar zeroing in on Allegra’s distress.  “Our Chef Lucy from last time we were here?  When you set the food on fire, Legs?”

She completely ignored him, speaking instead to Lexi.  “I hope you’ve enjoyed these few short weeks of marriage, because you’re going back to Jersey a widow.”