Chapter 37

Despite what both Luca and Daisy wanted, things did not get better the next morning. They couldn't even look at one another for half the week. Daisy stayed with Gia most nights with Theo while Luca laid awake in bed wishing he could just talk to her and hold her.

The few times that they did speak, it was filled with sharp snarky remarks or bitter sarcasm that resulted in the two breaking into more arguments. Luca hated arguing in front of Theo and he could tell Daisy wasn't a fan of it either. A few times they made the poor boy cry with their shouting and it broke both of their hearts. They knew the pain of coming from a broken family. The last thing either one wanted was to put their child through the same experience. To avoid the conflicts, Daisy stayed with Gia and to keep the peace, Luca didn't stop her. No matter how much he wanted to.

When the night of Isabella's dinner rolled around, Daisy was in no shape or mood to go anywhere. The last thing she wanted to do was socialize. Her heart was sore from the cuts Luca left. She knew attending a part where everyone would be asking about him was not the best idea. So when Gia popped into her room to see what she was going to wear, Daisy let out a heavy sigh and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Dee," Gia frowned, taking a seat beside her friend. "I know you're hiding things from me."

"No," Daisy lied, shaking her head.

"Stop lying," Gia clicked her tongue. "Just tell me. Please. I can see it in your face. You're walking around like a dead body!"

"That's ironic," Daisy chuckled.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Please, just talk to me," Gia begged. "You used to talk to me. We used to tell each other everything. What happened to us?"

I fell in love with your brother, Daisy wanted to cry out. I fell in love with him against my better judgment and trusted a man. I was foolish and I'm getting my heart broken. And I can't tell you that because you love your brother. It'll hurt you to know what's happening.

As Daisy thought all of these words in her mind, she stared at Gia. She could see how patiently the girl waited for her to utter her thoughts. But Daisy couldn't. She was never good at sharing her emotions. It was easier when it was anger. But not heartbreak. Heartbreak seemed too intimate.

Maybe it would have been different if Gia and Daisy didn't know each other so well. Maybe if Daisy knew Gia wouldn't be stuck in the middle of picking her best friend or her brother, she would have told her what was on her mind. But Daisy couldn't do that to her. She would never ask that of her.

"Please," Gia begged again.

"Not yet," Daisy lied yet again to get Gia off her case. "I just need some time."

"Is it Luca?" Gia asked. "Did he say something to you? Tell me and I'll go talk to him."

"No," Daisy shook her head. "Please don't. I can handle your brother."

"Is it your mom?" Gia pushed. "Richard?"

"Gee, please just drop it."

"I can't!"

"I'm not ready to talk about it!" Daisy said. "Just go to the stupid dinner and leave me alone. God! You and your brother are driving me insane!"

Gia pulled back as Daisy jumped off the bed and tugged at her hair.

"I'll talk to Luca," she said quietly.

"No," Daisy's voice was stern. "Stay out of it."

"What did he do?"

"Stay out of it, G."

"But-"

"I said no!"

Defeated, Gia's shoulders slouched. She pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth and peered at Daisy with concerned eyes. She knew Daisy was as stubborn as a mule. If she didn't want to talk, there was nothing in the world that could make her talk.

"I love you," Gia said quietly. "And whatever it is, just know I'm here."

Daisy slowly nodded, "You should go get ready."

With a heavy sigh, Gia rose from the bed and walked out of the room. Daisy stared after her. She felt her heart look for a corner to hide as the house began to feel strange and unfamiliar to her. In the short time that she had been there, it was really starting to feel like home. Daisy was starting to imagine herself having a big family and a husband. But after almost a week of despair, she was left with nothing but empty dreams.

Daisy wasn't sure how much time had passed as she laid in bed watching Theo play beside her. She focused all her attention on the little boy as he tried to stack his wooden rings. If it weren't for the yelling coming from downstairs, Daisy wouldn't have gotten out of bed. She could hear Luca and Gia shouting back and forth as she put Theo down in his crib and went to go see what they were fighting over.

With her hair messy in a braid falling down over her shoulder, eyes tired and dull skin, Daisy dragged her feet over to the stairs and leaned against the railing.

"Why are you guys yelling?" She asked with great effort.

"What's wrong with you?" Gia asked with concern. She didn't remember Daisy looking so pale when she had left the room earlier. She turned to stare up at her best friend but Daisy waved away her concerns.

"I think I caught a cold or something," she said. "My head is killing me."

"Where's Theo?" Luca asked, climbing the stairs two at a time until he reached Daisy.

"In his crib," Daisy said. "G, tell Isabella I'm sorry I couldn't attend tonight."

"She's not going," Luca said.

Gia groaned from behind him as Daisy frowned.

"Why?" Daisy asked.

"It's not safe," Luca shook his head. "I don't trust anyone here."

"It's dinner," Daisy sighed.

"Daniel will be there," Luca cut in. "It would be different if you were going with her."

"I can't."

"Obviously," Luca pointed out. "And I can't leave you here alone like this."

Daisy's eyes flickered towards Gia standing behind her brother. She could see the frustration in her eyes as clear as day. It angered her that Luca couldn't see it. Did he ever see what anyone else was feeling? Or was he so in love with Stella that his mind was only occupied by her?

The bitter feeling seeped into her system almost made Daisy gag. She stared at Gia knowing she had to do something. Softening her gaze and growing, Daisy turned her attention towards Luca.

"I'm going to need help with Theo tonight," she said.

"I know," Luca ran a hand through his hair. "I'm staying home."

"Okay," Daisy nodded. "Could you please check on Theo?"

"Give me a second," Luca began to turn but Daisy stopped him. She grabbed his arm and flinched as the memories of his touch shocked her whole body. Luca looked up at her as if he felt the wave of electricity too.

"I'll talk to her," Daisy said, quickly removing her hand.

Luca hesitated for a few seconds before Daisy cleared her throat and stepped around him.

"No," Gia shook her head. "Dee, not you too."

"Gia, Luca's right," Daisy sighed. "It's not a good idea."

"Are you serious right now?"

"I think you should change," Daisy suggested. "Put on something comfy and we can watch a movie in your room."

movie in your room."

"You have got to be kidding me! Dee!"

"Let's go," Daisy took Gia's hand and began to pull her towards her room downstairs. She looked over her shoulder and spotted Luca disappear around the corner once he was sure Daisy had a handle on things.

"What am I going to tell Isabella?" Gia demanded. "Is this what I have to deal with from no-"

"Shut up," Daisy hushed her. "Just go into your room."

"What?" Gia asked in confusion as Daisy pushed her inside and followed behind. She closed the door and turned around quickly.

"You're going to sneak out," Daisy whispered. "I'll stay in here for a few and make luca think we watched a movie and you fell asleep and you're still angry."

"He's going to find out," Gia's eyes widened.

"By then you'll already be at the party," Daisy said. "He's not going to drag you out of there in front of everyone and risk the whole town talking about it tomorrow."

"He's going to be so mad at you," Gia shook her head.

"When isn't he?" Daisy snorted. "And I'm mad at him. I made those fuckin meatballs from scratch and he asks was any effort applied? What a fuckboy!"

"He ate them all," Gia said.

"I don't care," Daisy snapped. "You need to go for Isabella. Call her and have her or Dino pick you up down the block or something."

"You're a genius," Gia said. "But I'm pretty sure we're still going to get caught."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," Daisy said. "Call Bells."

"Okay," Gia fumbled through her small purse.

"I'll go make some popcorn," Daisy unlocked the door and headed out to the kitchen.

The halls were dark as Daisy's long dress sweeped behind like a shadow. Her head buzzed from the constant crying. She rubbed her forehead as she walked into the kitchen and popped one of the popcorn bags into the microwave. As she waited for the timer to finish, Daisy stared at the yellow light insides and listened to the kernels popping. She was so lost in her thoughts that when Luca appeared behind her, she didn't sense him at all. If he hadn't reached for the cabinet above her head, Daisy would have missed him completely.

"What are you doing?" She asked, whirling around in the dark to face luca.

"Just grabbing a cup," Luca said, looking down at her.

"You can't ask me to move?"

"I did."

"No, you didn't," Daisy argued. "I would have heard you."

"I asked you to step aside, my love," Luca sighed. "You didn't hear me."

Feeling her heart clench, Daisy stepped to the side and away from him. Luca stood motionless for a few seconds as he stared at her, his eyes full of unspoken words. When the silence stretched on for too long, he reached back into the cabinet and pulled out a box of tea. Daisy watched him as he made a brew with herbs, lemon, and some peppermint.

"Here," Luca said, holding out the cup towards her.

"What is that?" Daisy asked.

"Tea," Luca said. "You said you had a cold."

Touched by his kindness, Daisy reached out and took the cup.

"Be careful, it's ho-"

"Ah!" Daisy yelped in pain as she pulled away from the cup.

"Hot," Luca finished, taking the cup out of her hand. "Let me see."

"I'm fine," Daisy lied, covering her lip.

"Let me see," Luca grabbed her chin and stepped closer. He removed her hand and titled her face towards the dim light coming in from the backyard.

"You have to stop grabbing my face," Daisy complained.

"It's not so bad," Luca said, gently rubbing his thumb over her lip.

"I didn't think it was," Daisy frowned. "Now let go of me."

Luca didn't budge. His eyes stayed on her lips as his thumb continued to glide over the soft pink flesh.

"Luca..." Daisy tried again, her voice wavering. Her heart began to flutter from the way he barely touched her. The pounding in her chest began to rise into her throat as Luca leaned forward.

"I can't live without you," Luca's hand moved to the back of her neck. He pulled her forward as his fingers gently tugged on her roots to tilt her head back.

"I can't do this," Daisy shook her head and placed her hands over his chest. She pushed away as the microwave began to keep. "I'm going to stay with Gia tonight. If Theo needs anything, call me."

"You don't have anything you want to say to me?" Luca asked.

"No," Daisy grabbed a bowl and poured out her popcorn.

"Liar," Luca said, following her around the kitchen.

"God, Luca!" Daisy clicked her tongue. "Stop! Stop playing games with me."

"I'm not playing games with you," Luca said, stepping forward and caging her against the countertop. "I have no regrets about that night. As soon as I saw you, all I wanted was you. Nothing else has ever made this much sense to me."

"Then why won't you tell me that you love me?" Daisy asked.

"I do it every day!" Luca said. "I can't say the words but I show you I love you every single day, my love."

"Why can't you say the words?" Daisy demanded.

"I just...." Luca's breath caught. "I can't."

"Then let's revisit this conversation when you can," Daisy pushed his hands down and turned towards the halls.

"Daisy," Luca called after her, his voice hardening. When he saw she wasn't going to stop, he called to her again, "Sunshine."

Daisy held up her middle finger as she threw a piece of popcorn in her mouth and continued walking out. Luca's words began to swirl around in her head as she entered Gia's room and shut the door.

"What's up?" Gia asked, looking at her face.

"Your brother is a weirdo," Daisy said.

"He always was," Gia laughed.

"He's downstairs right now," Daisy said. "Give it some time and let him go back to his room."

"Okay," Gia nodded. She looked down at the bowl of popcorn and laughed.

"I'm hungry," Daisy said.

Gia grabbed a handful of popcorn and began to munch away. Daisy absent-mindedly put on a random movie and laid down on the bed. She paid no attention to the screen as her hair hung over the side of the bed and she picked at the threads on the blanket.

"Have you and Luca ever...." Gia began slowly.

"Don't even finish that sentence," Daisy warned her. "Where did that abomination of a question come from?"

"I don't know," Gia shrugged. "Sometimes it feels like there's something there."

"There's nothing there."

"But if there were, would you want to explore it?"

"With Luca?"

"Yeah."

"No."

"What? Why not?"

"Didn't I just say your brother was a weirdo?"

"But I feel like he would make a good boyfriend or husband," Gia said. "He's great with Theo and when you guys are out in public, it's so easy to believe he's in love with you."

"He's a good actor," Daisy said, truing onto her belly and staring down at the floor. "He's so good at it because he had so much practice with Stella."

"No," Gia thought for a minute. "He wasn't like this with Stella. It was different with her."

"He was more in love with her? It was actually real? He hung on her every word?" Daisy sat up slowly, her face twisting with irritation.

"Actually, no," Gia frowned, remembering her summers in Del Mare. "I mean in the beginning yeah. But after high school, Luca just always seemed...stressed? Always tense around Stella."

"Why?" Daisy asked.

"From what I remember, she was very critical of everything," Gia said. "Very picky."

"They must have been a match made in heaven."

"I guess," Gia shrugged.

"So..." Daisy looked at her friend through her lashes. "He's not like that with me?"

"No," Gia shook her head and picked at the popcorn.

"How is he with me?" Daisy asked casually.

"Relaxed," Gia said. "Which is shocking because that man always looks stressed as fuck."

"He's not relaxed around me," Daisy shook her head.

"He appears to be," Gia said.

"Whatever," Daisy sight.

"Do you want to go up and see if he's in his room?" Gia checked her phone. "My ride will be here soon."

"Give me five minutes," Daisy said, rising from the bed.

She gathered up her hair into a high bun and hurried upstairs. Upon entering the bedroom, her eyes immediately fell on Luca.

He was leaned back against the headrest with his phone in his hand as Theo played beside him. The TV was on some news channel neither one paid attention to. As Daisy entered, both Luca and Theo looked up at the same time.

Daisy held Luca's gaze as she slowly made her way over to the bed. She kneeled on the bed and leaned forward, her bun coming undone and falling down one side.

Luca's pupils dilated as he lowered his phone. Daisy could tell he was holding his breath as she leaned in closer.

"Hi, my baby," She cooed, kissing the top of Theo's head.

A slow smile pulled across Luca's face as he looked away and shook his head.

"What?" Daisy's eyes narrowed.

"Nothing," Luca said, returning to his phone.

Snatching her phone from under the pillow, Daisy turned back around and walked out of the room. She hurried downstairs and signaled for Gia to make her escape.

"Stay close to the walls," Daisy whispered as they crept outside. "I'll go upstairs and distract Luca. Text me when you drive off."

"Thank you," Gia said as she slipped out the door.

Daisy wasn't much of a believer, but as she ran back upstairs, she said a small prayer and asked the lord to protect her best friend.

"Okay!" She said loudly, walking back into the bedroom and shutting the door. "You wanted to talk? Let's talk."

"Now?" Luca arched his brow.

"Yes, now."

"You can start."

"Thank you. I will," Daisy walked into the room and put her hands on her hips. "What did you mean when you said you can't live without me?"

"Exactly that," Luca said. "I can't live without you."

"What about....." Daisy waved her arms around. "Her."

"She's....dead."

"So why won't you tell me you love me!"

"That has nothing to do with Stella."

"So it's me?" Daisy asked. "Am I the problem?"

"You're not the problem."

"Then what is it, Luca?" Daisy asked.

A deep frown formed on Luca's face as he sat staring at Daisy in silence.

"You see how your silence makes me think crazy shit, right?" She asked. "I don't want to sound crazy. I don't want to be envious of a dead girl."

"Please trust me when I say there's no competition," Luca sighed. "I want you."

"I can't believe that," Daisy shook her head. "I can't."

"What can I do to make you believe?" Luca asked. "Tell me and I'll do it."

"Say you love me."

"Anything else beside that."

"That's all I want!" Daisy cried. "Why is it so hard? Was it this hard with Stella? I bet you told her you loved her every day! Why am I so hard to love?"

"It's for your own good," Luca's face twisted with pain.

"How can this be for my own good?" Daisy asked, baffled by his explanation.

"You won't understand."

"Help me understand."

"My love," Luca rose from the bed and walked over to where Daisy stood. "Ask for anything else in the world. Ask me to do anything else and I'll do it. Just....don't make me say the words. Please."

"I can't understand you," Daisy shook her head.

"I can't lose you," Luca said, his voice tight. He stepped forwards and pushed his hand into Daisy's hair. "I can't. I won't survive that."

"You have no right to say things like that," Daisy said as Luca leaned his forehead against her.

"Please forgive me," Luca begged. "You're not asking for much. But you are asking for the one thing I can't give you. And it's killing me to deny you that."

Feeling drained and tired to her bones, Daisy let out a deep sigh, "Where can we even go from here?"

"Anywhere you want," Luca said, rubbing the back of her neck.

"I want to be with you," Daisy said.

"No one is standing in your way," Luca smiled.

"But...." Daisy hesitated, feeling overwhelmed as if she was repeating herself over and over again. "I feel like there is someone in our way."

"No," Luca shook his head. "There's no one."

"You say that, but that's not how I feel," Daisy frowned.

"Let me prove it to you," Luca said. "Let me show you that there's no one else."

Daisy shut her eyes against her will. She leaned her head against Luca's shoulder as he placed a small kiss on her head.

"Stay with me tonight," Luca wrapped his arms around her.

"I can't," Daisy shook her head. "We shouldn't."

"Not what you're thinking," Luca said. "I just want to hold you."

"I don't know..."

"Please," Luca held her head tightly against his chest and kissed her ear.

Slowly, with an anxious heart, Daisy nodded her head. "Alright." 

This is good for them, right? :P