Mafia Betrayal

Chapter Thirty One

Luca

"Why the flying fu-" I snapped my mouth shut the second I saw Layla come around the side of the tree. Jesus, it was harder to watch my language than I expected, but I was going to have to get used to it if I didn't want to see my baby girl walking around dropping f-bombs.

Charlotte narrowed her eyes at me, crossing her arms over her chest.

"The flying what, daddy?" Layla asked, continuing to put ornaments on the tree.

"Nothing, baby." I kissed the top of her head. Char was less than amused as I mouthed an apology her way.

"It looks beautiful, girls." I stood back, admiring the monstrosity that Charlotte had set up in our bedroom. A Christmas tree in the living room was one thing, but was it really necessary to have one in the bedrooms, too? All I could think about was how those damn lights were going to keep me up all night. If anything was going to keep me awake, it was going to be Charlotte's moaning as I made her come.

It looked like Christmas threw up all over my house, but as promised, I kept my complaints to myself. If this made Charlotte and Layla happy, I could grin and bear it for a few days.

"Daddy, can you lift me up so I can put the star on it?" Layla begged, clinging to my legs.

"Of course I can! But then it's time for bed."

"But I don't want to." She whined, looking to Charlotte for support.

"Nice try, munchkin." I said, scooping her up into my arms and lifting her to the top of the tree so she could put the star on. "You want to be all rested so you can play with grandma tomorrow."

Charlotte tensed up a bit when I mentioned my mother. My mom's surprise visit made her uneasy, and I couldn't exactly blame her. I was uneasy, too.

For the last five years, I'd only seen my mom a handful of times, and the same month I find out I have a daughter and am trying to patch things up with Charlotte, she shows up at my doorstep. Talk about timing.

My mom didn't even know Charlotte and Elena were alive, let alone my connection to them. She didn't recognize Charlotte immediately, but it was only a matter of time. And if Elena was coming for Christmas, there would be no hiding it. I had to have a conversation with her soon, but I was still working up the courage for that.

My mom was a saint, and the sweetest woman I'd ever met, but she was strong in her faith and beliefs and I knew how disappointed in me she would be when she found out the truth for a number of reasons. It wasn't even so much that I had a child out of wedlock. She would be so deliriously happy to have a grandchild that she could probably overlook that. I was more concerned with having to tell her about the layers of my relationship with Charlotte. I couldn't hide it from her—the good, the bad, or the ugly. Her only goal in life had been to make sure I didn't turn out like my father, and the first few weeks Charlotte was here, that was all I'd done. Things were light years better now, but I still had a lot of work to do. My mom's approval meant the world to me, and admitting it to her was another step in the right direction.

Thankfully, Char agreed to go along with my marriage lie, and I had to admit, I fucking loved the look of my ring on her hand. Someday it would be for real—someday soon, if I had my way.

One of the things I was learning, though, was that it wasn't just my way anymore. What Charlotte wanted was more important to me now.

"But daddy..." Tears gathered in Layla's eyes as she gave me a puppy dog look that mirrored the one she gave me in the mall this afternoon. How did a little girl perfect the guilt trip so well?