"Anthony's friend?" I question.
He looks kind of familiar. Where had I seen him before?
Antonio places a hand in the air tilting it back and forth. "Yeah, sort of, his family works for Anthony. I guess you can call them best friends since they spent a lot of time together."
"What about that person?" I asked.
"Ah, that's Marvin DuSang," he said.
"Best friend too?"
He puckers his lips and scratches his head, "I think so, I'm not quite sure. Anthony rarely talks about anyone in this photo. I only know the basics."
"Will I get to meet them?" I ask, standing up straight.
"You probably will meet only Drew. The rest are occupied," he said.
"I'm not going to meet Michelle?" I question, feeling quite odd mainly since I will become Anthony's wife. I thought I would be able to meet all his family members.
Antonio bit his lower lips, "She is dead," he said, lips thinning into a line.
My mouth widens and shuts; a hand involuntarily flinches over it. "I'm sorry, I didn't know," I whisper.
"That's fine, just don't talk about her in front of Anthony. It's kind of a touchy subject for him."
I turn back and look at the photo again. "How come Francesco, Pietro, or you aren't in here?"
"Ah, it's because that photo was taken roughly over ten years ago before I met Anthony. That was when he lived in America, and Francesco lived in Italy. We met Pietro a while back," he explains.
I nod and walk away with Antonio following me, silently. We parted ways when I needed to go to the kitchen, and he went to the living room. Entering the kitchen, I saw Lily climbing on the counter, opening every cabinet as if she lived there her whole life. She smiled and threw a bag of flour at me. Fortunately, she did not give me a heads-up, and it hit my head, but I caught it.
She ignores the pain she gave me, and I smack her bottom as she continues gathering the ingredients. Pietro walked in and rolled up his sleeves. "Antonio and Francesco are helping the boys make the fort," he said.
I could hear loud laughter from the living room.
"Why are you here?" Lily questions.
Pietro grabbed a bowl, "I told you, best cooker in this house."
"That's sexy," Lily said.
"My mom says the best way to anyone's heart is through their stomach." He pats his stomach.
"Your mom is a sagacious woman." I clapped in approval.
We bake cookies and microwave popcorn. Lily grabbed a bunch of soda and started carrying it into the living room.
"Thanks, Ann," Pietro said, breaking the silence.
"For what?" I asked, attempting to make perfect cookie dough balls like Pietro.
"For being here. Sometimes, it gets very lonely in this house, even with just the guys. You can't imagine how long it has been since I heard so much laughter and noises."
"Why is it that you all live together?"
"We work for Anthony. He believes it's better if we all live together," he said, waving his hand around like a genuine Italian.
"You work at his company?"
Pietro stops rolling balls and licks his lips. "Yes," he replies after a long pause.
