Song above for Chapter: "Next To You"---Chris Brown Ft. Justin Bieber

ELENORA

Exhaustion.

Bliss.

I'm consistently in a state of both the last couple days, but I'm also thrilled we will be getting discharged today.

I look at myself in the mirror after stepping out of the shower. My eyes look tired but the smile on my face softens some of the harshness the sleep deprivation has given me. I comb my hair and apply some lotion before I walk out of the bathroom.

My breakfast is waiting for me on the table and I walk over eager to eat. I had no idea breastfeeding would make me as hungry as I am. My milk came in and my body does not look anything like what it used to, and I try not to let it get to me; reminding myself I carried a tiny human for months and that will definitely create some changes in anyone's body.

I nibble on the fruit and then pour the syrup over the french toast. As I take a bite the door opens and Rico walks in with Domani.

He looks around, "Where's Mateo?"

I sip on orange juice before I answer. "The nurses took Matty for his hearing test and then they're giving him a PKU test." I smile, emphasizing our baby's nickname knowing he doesn't like it shortened.

"You let them take him alone?" Irritation is clear on his face as he sets my bag down on the bed and starts heading out the door again.

"Of course not, Ciccio went with them." He stops, the tension leaving his face.

"Okay here we are." A nurse pushes the bassinet in but I notice it's empty and now there's panic on Rico's face.

"See? Back safe and sound to mommy and daddy." She croons as she looks behind her and Ciccio walks in.

He's a blubbering mess, holding Matty in his huge arms. "They did him dirty Boss, pricked his little foot for no goddamn reason," He stammers as I stifle my laugh.

"I'm not sure who cried more, the baby or the big guy," The nurse whispers, putting the cuff on my arm to take my blood pressure.

Matty is crying too but you can barely hear his whimpers over Ciccio's wheezing and sobs as he hands him over to Rico.

"Pull yourself together, man," Domani pats Ciccio on the back. Rico kisses Matty's head before he hands him to me to feed him.

"He's just a little guy, no need to make him cry like that," Ciccio explains through shuddering breaths.

"The doctor will be in shortly with your discharge paperwork. Do you have a carseat for the baby to travel in?" The nurse asks me and I look to Rico hoping he was able to get one.

"Yes, I just installed it," he says with pride, but he stops himself from smiling and lets his face fall into the usual fierce look he wears.

He confessed during one of the late night feedings with Matty, he's worried he's losing his edge with the men after the fallout with Rosetta.

I assured him his reputation, if anything was more than solidified by his actions, from what Mostro and Ciccio told me while I was gone—both times.

Matty grunts as he eats and then we hear the tell tale sign of the explosion in his diaper but he continues chugging along contently.

"I miss those little baby sounds," The nurse smiles at Matty.

"Little? I fuckin' heard that all the way over here," Ciccio states in disgust.

I laugh along with the nurse. "I meant the sounds of contentment of something as simple as eating." She keeps chuckling to herself as she walks out of the room.

"Do you guys mind stepping out too while I change?" I ask Domani and Ciccio. They nod and walk out of the room. "Do you mind changing Matty while I get dressed, Rico?"

Rico smirks as he walks over to the sink to wash his hands. "Don't think I know you don't want to change his dirty diaper."

"What?" I raise my eyebrows, indignation rising within me. "You do realize I change him way more than you do, right?"

"That would be true if I didn't change him before handing him to you during the night, amore." He counters with a grin as he takes Matty from me, setting him in the bassinet and gets everything ready.

"Here we go Mateo, we'll make it quick so you can go back to eating like a champ, okay?" My heart melts watching him smile and interact with our baby.

Rico refuses to baby-talk to him and went as far as showing me an article he found explaining speaking in proper adult cadence to a baby is better for their brain development.

He sets Matty back in the bassinet. "There we go; all done and just in time to let me be able to watch as mamma finishes getting dressed. Damn..."

"What?"

"You look amazing, mia patatina." (my little potato)

"Ha ha." I give him a dry look. "Don't get used to these." I gesture to my now massive boobs.

"You know they don't normally look like this." I pull the straps on my nursing bra over my shoulders and quickly grab my shirt feeling self conscious with my belly also exposed.

Rico walks closer to me, and tugs the shirt out of my hands. " I love your body, and I can't wait to get my hands and mouth all over you again, baby."

He pulls me close to him, cupping my ass with his hands and presses slow tantalizing kisses on my neck. He groans as his lips move across my shoulder and his teeth graze my skin; a quiet moan makes its way out of me.

There's a quick knock before the Dr walks in. "Whoa, ay, oh! Looks like I came just in time," he jokes.

I roll my eyes, shaking my head when Rico keeps standing in front of me as a shield. "He's seen my vagina and you're worried about him seeing my covered up boobs?" I mutter but Rico still doesn't move until I pull my shirt over my head.

"A couple of do's and don'ts before going home," The Dr proceeds to give me a brief rundown of the discharge paperwork.

Another nurse comes in with a wheelchair. "Alright, Nurse Belle will wheel you out per hospital policy and you'll be on your way. Congratulations again." He shakes our hands before he walks out the door.

"This is it. We're on our own now," I say, half joking with Rico. He looks back at me and smiles with Matty in his arms.

"We'll be fine, mia patatina." (my little potato)

"Any last minute advice?" I ask the nurse as I sit in the wheelchair. I hold my arms out to Rico so he can hand me the baby while he grabs our bags.

"Oh my, that's a lot of pressure," The nurse chuckles. "But I'd sum it down to a few things I learned with having my own kids. Try not to stop living because you have a baby in the house. Meaning, make sure it's noisy or do things as usual at home with normal talking, cleaning, laughing, you know?

"I learned that the hard way. If you constantly keep things quiet, the baby will wake up to every little noise. Granted, each baby is different but my younger kids could sleep while I vacuumed their rooms or did other things in the house without worrying I would wake them up. While my oldest, wakes up to the smallest of sounds."

"Oh, good to know, what else?" I ask eagerly as she wheels us out of the room. Domani and Ciccio grab some of the bags from Rico as we continue walking down the hall.

"Remember and cherish this newborn stage and then every year after because it will go fast. You'll blink and one day they're graduating, getting married, having kids of their own." She sniffles.

"And the last thing I'd tell you two," She stops as we come to the pick up, drop off area outside of the hospital entrance. "Always make time for each other; love and support each other. Remember it was you two before the baby and any future babies that will come. Sometimes we as parents lose ourselves when we have our kids. Make time for each other, even if it's going on simple walks, it doesn't have to be anything elaborate, never go to bed angry and embrace the quickies." She winks at us.

I stand and thank her as she helps me put Matty in his carseat and tells me to make sure he's snug but not too tight.

"Okay but for real this is the last thing, I promise," She smiles laughing. "Don't be afraid or feel ashamed to ask for help. A baby is a huge responsibility and very overwhelming at times." She gives me a hug and then says goodbye to the guys.

Rico wraps his arms around my waist smiling, I get a fluttering in my stomach as he looks at my lips. He leans down and his lips brush against my ear as he whispers. "Six weeks is an awfully long time, Elenora."

"Yes, it is, and you're not going to make it any easier I can tell," I hold his face as I kiss him, taking my time.

"If you two don't control yourselves we'll be back here in less than a year. I'm callin' it right now," Domani teases.

Rico pecks my lips three times and I hug him tight. "I missed that so much."

"I'll do it more often then." He does it again. "Come on, I have a surprise waiting for you at our house."

"Our house?"

"Yes, our house, amore." He closes the door behind us and Ciccio pulls away from the hospital.

__________________

"He looks like my Uncle Elmer," Olive states, peering at Matty over her bifocals.

"What the hell are ya talking about? They're not even related to you. He looks like a grumpy little old Asian man," Martha argues as she also studies the baby.

"He's not grumpy, he's happy; look he's smiling. Aren't you sweet boy?" Maggie states, sitting next to me as I place Mateo on my lap for them to get a better look of him.

"That usually means they have gas, Mags." Viola smirks at her, which causes Maggie to give her a look of annoyance.

To say I was surprised when we pulled up to the gorgeous mansion in New Castle is an understatement. The beautifully maintained cobblestone driveway, forks as you drive up to the modern estate styled house.

As I gaped at the house, Rico informed me it's over twelve thousand square feet, it has ten bedrooms, seven bathrooms, a gourmet kitchen with a breakfast room and adjoining family room.

There are six fireplaces, two wine cellars, an exercise room, a theater, sauna and the lower level has a tunnel to the pool, and cabana and not to mention there's also a golf course. I'm not sure how I managed to pick my jaw from the ground but I forced my legs to move to walk inside the massive house.

But the house was not the only surprise.

As we walked in, the four ladies that befriended me in the small town of Skaneateles, were inside with my family and friends.

There was a lot of hugging, tears, pinching and thorough inspection of my face from all four ladies. But they have now moved on to gushing over Mateo.

"So what'd you name him, Nora?" Viola asks me.

"Mateo Armani Di Maggio."

"Lord, that's mouthful!" Olive states looking back at me like I'm crazy.

I chuckle. "I shorten his name to Matty, but Rico likes saying his full name of Mateo."

"That doesn't surprise me; he's very different from who I pictured you with, Nora," Maggie states with haughtiness.

Viola moves in front of us with her hands on her hips. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing," Maggie shakes her head. "I'm just saying Nora is sweet, quiet and demure. And Rico is dark and brooding that's all I'm saying. But he sure knows how to wear a suit, doesn't he?"

They all murmur in agreement observing Rico talking with my parents, Mrs Jones, Ruben and Adrian.

"Ladies, you don't know my best friend very well, if that's all you see. Get a few drinks in her and we are the life of the party." Clara walks over to us with Domani.

"Oh Fabio, I was hoping I'd see you today," Olive struggles to stand but makes her way over to Domani, who has a look of apprehension on his face. She pulls him down to hug him and kisses his face.

"Now Olive, you keep your hands to yourself, you hear me?" Viola admonishes her.

"Oh, so you're Ms. Olive," Clara states, her tone teasing. "I'm going to have to ask you to keep your hands off my man, here." She hooks her arm around Domani, possessively as she winks at me.

"He ain't got a ring on his finger and neither do you, missy." Olive comes back prepared. Clara gasps in shock but laughs.

"Olive Walker, have you no shame?" Martha states and Maggie adds her own disapproval with a click of her tongue. "What would Wally think? Huh?"

"He ain't here, is he?" Olive waves her hand at her friends.

"Probably rolling over in his grave," Maggie mutters. "Would have lived longer if you fed him properly."

"Here we go." Viola throws her hands up exasperated, as Olive storms up to Maggie who now stands, too.

"You know he had heart problems and instead of taking care of him, you let him eat whatever the hell he wanted," Maggie gets in Olive's face.

Everyone's attention is now on the arguing old ladies.

"Yeah? Well, guess what? The last thing he ate before he croaked was me, so you know he died satisfied!" Olive declares.

I gasp along with everyone else, except Luna who bursts in a fit of laughter.

"Ladies, ladies," Domani intervenes. "Let's all take a deep breath." He breathes in deeply and Olive and Maggie do as well, even though they are glaring at each other. "Let's go out onto the terrace and have a chat, shall we?"

He gives them each an arm and Olive sticks her tongue out at Maggie before taking his arm and he leads them out the back of the house.

"I'm sorry Nora. Sometimes their history blows up but it always simmers down. It could be worse considering they both loved Wally," Martha tells me.

"What?"

Viola sighs, sitting next to me and rubs Matty's hair. "Wally was married to Maggie for twenty two years. They moved back to Skaneateles years ago so he could open his private practice; but Olive and Wally were high school sweethearts and long story short, Wally had an affair with Olive, divorced Maggie, married Olive and they lived in town until he died. Maggie refused to move after the divorce. Eventually they buried the hatchet but every now and then, one of them says something that sets off the other."

"Wow, that's so..." I'm at a loss for words.

"Scandalous? Tell me about it," Martha scoffs. "It was the talk of the town, still is, if you pay attention to the gossip. Mostly because people are surprised Olive and Maggie are friendly towards each other."

"Ladies, I'm sorry to cut the visit short, but if you're going to make the show then we need to get you back to the city," Rico states.

"Show?" I look between Martha and Viola and then Rico, who smiles.

"Rico has us staying in a penthouse in the city and he got us tickets to see Hamilton." Viola informs me.

"That sounds like fun," I stand smiling at Rico. He takes Matty from me so I can hug the ladies and walk them out towards the foyer.

"Don't be a stranger, Nora," Viola tells me.

"I won't, I'll come visit," I assure her.

Olive and Maggie are both laughing as they walk back in from the terrace with Domani. They appear to have put their bad feelings aside.

"We're sorry for causing a scene, Nora, I hope this doesn't mean we can't visit again," Maggie hugs me.

"No, of course not."

"If you're not welcome here, you can come to our house," Luna announces from the kitchen doorway.

I laugh. "I'm pretty sure you ladies earned a fan for life in my younger sister."

They chortle as they head out the door with Ciccio, who's driving them back to the city.

I yawn, turning back to Rico.

"Go take a nap, amore," Rico tells me as he rocks Mateo in his arms. "If Mateo wakes up, I'll bring him up so you can feed him, but you know your family will love to spend time with him."

"Okay," I reach up on my toes to kiss him. "But you're going to have to show me where to go," I laugh.

He hands Mateo to my dad who's eyes light up.

Rico takes my hand and leads me to the stairs, but I only take a few steps before he lifts me in his arms. I laugh wrapping my arms around him. "Rico, you don't have to carry me."

"Of course I do, mia patatina. You're still recovering and there are a lot of stairs."

"But I weigh too—"

"Don't." He stops me with a sternness to his voice and face. "I know I don't have a clue what your body has gone through, but what I do know is you looked beautiful carrying our son and more so now when I watch you with him. And I swear to you Elenora, if I wasn't warned by the Dr—more than once, to give your body time to heal I'd show you exactly how much I want you right now." He stops before a set of double doors and kisses me.

"If it makes you feel any better, you make me want to speed up the six weeks when you say things like that and by the way you're looking at me, Federico," I kiss him back. He opens the door and walks in as I continue kissing him.

He walks into the room, setting me down on a comforter that feels like I'm floating. I pull Rico down over me, but he's careful not to rest any of his weight on me and moves to my other side. "Baby," He says between our kissing. "You need to rest."

"The Doctor didn't say anything about not making out." I kiss his face and then his neck. His deep chuckle makes the tightness in my belly spread like a blanket of warmth through my body.

But he leans away much to my disappointment.

"Rest first, amore. I'll be back to check on you." He pecks my lips three times smiling before he walks out the door.

Thirty minutes later, I'm being nudged awake by my mom. "Sorry, piccola. Matty is hungry and your dad just changed him. I'll show you the video of him peeing on your dad," She chuckles.

I laugh, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Matty begins whimpering and crying as I sit up against the headboard. My mom hands him to me and he immediately cranks his little head towards my chest and I wince as he latches on.

"They're so sore." I grimace before the pain subsides.

"They'll get used to it in the next week or two." My mom smiles, watching Matty eat. "Rico brought you some water, earlier." She hands me my jug of water and I take a few large gulps of it, feeling the coolness of the water go through me.

"Where is Rico?"

"He had to deal with his Zia." I notice the irritation in her voice.

"She wants to meet Matty but Rico refuses to let her meet him and I don't blame him. We don't need her poison to be passed on to the baby."

"Ma, I wouldn't let that happen. Rico didn't have anyone to protect him from Rosetta." I look down at Matty whose eyes are starting to drift close. I play with his feet to keep him awake to eat. "I think she should get a chance to meet him, but that doesn't mean she'll be in his life."

There's a knock at the door. "Well, I don't think you'll have a choice in the matter, since Rico wants absolutely nothing to do with her." My mom tells me as she makes her way to open the door.

"I want to see the baby again," Maya's voice floats in the room.

"Come on in, Maya," I call out to her; she walks in uncertainly.

Her head is wrapped and bandaged, but she stops when she sees me. "Where's the baby?"

"He's right here, eating. See?"

Maya's face scrunches in confusion. "What the heck is he eating, from there?"

I laugh. "It's going to sound crazy, but milk."

"But I thought only cows have milk inside of them." She crawls onto the bed to get a closer look and leans over to watch.

"Well, moms can choose to feed their babies this way too." I ask my mom for a burp cloth and she places it over my shoulder and I start burping the baby.

"So, when can I play with him?" She asks after a few minutes.

"He's too little to play with, tesoro mio," My mom smiles at her and Maya pouts. (my darling)

"How's school going, Maya?"

"Good, did mamma tell you we're doing a play at school?" She asks me and I shake my head. "Yup, it's Peter Pan. Guess who I'll be?"

"Hmm, Tinkerbell?"

"No." Maya shakes her head.

"Tiger Lilly?" Again she shakes her head.

I stall knowing she's getting excited that I can't seem to guess. "One of the mermaids?"

"Nope!" Her grin widens.

"I'm going to be Wendy!" She yells but then she covers her mouth afraid she startled Mateo.

"It's fine, you don't have to be quiet." I reassure her. "But that's great! You're going to be a wonderful Wendy. I can't wait to see you in it."

"The teacher said my English accent is..." Maya kisses her fingertips in a chef's kiss gesture.

"Really?" I chuckle looking at my mom who shrugs back at me, smiling. "I'd like to hear this English accent of yours."

She sits up with excitement, and begins speaking in a very convincing English accent. "Right! Well, lovely sister of mine, my teacher tells me I'm quite cheeky and bloody brilliant for only being seven. However, she does say I must be a handful for my dear mum and dad at times; I've invited her for tea and biscuits so she can meet my mad sisters then we'll see if she thinks I'm still a handful." She winks at me and I burst out laughing.

"Princess Maya."

We all turn as Rico steps in through the doorway. "You are full of tricks and talents, not just a pretty face."

"You think I'm pretty?" Maya blushes.

"Not pretty," Rico begins and Maya's smile falls instantly. "More like, beautiful." And she smiles bigger this time.

My mother sighs looking up at the ceiling muttering, "Why did God give me a handful of boy crazy girls?"

Rico gives me a chaste kiss before he turns towards my mom. "I think it's your girls who drive the boys crazy, Teresa. And it's probably because they're all a spitting image of you." He winks at her.

"Oh, Rico, stop." My mom waves him off with a deep blush on her face. I chuckle watching as she runs her hands through her hair. "Come, Maya, let's give Nora and Rico some time alone with the baby."

"Why is your face all red, mamma?" Maya asks

I laugh as my mom tries to rush her out of the bedroom.

"See you three later. Rico, since I know my daughter won't call me if she needs help, please do not hesitate to call. I know you're busy, too, and I would love to spend more time with Matty." She hugs me and kisses Matty's head and then hugs Rico, kissing his cheek too.

"Bye Rico, bye Nora, bye baby Matty!" Maya sings her goodbye as she skips out of the room.

Rico caresses my face. "Did you get any rest?"

"A little," I tell him as I start burping Mateo. He walks to the window and looks out into the property.

"But something is better than none."

He doesn't say anything as he pulls off his suit jacket.

"I heard Rosetta wants to meet Matty."

Again, he doesn't respond and heads to what I assume is the closet. When he walks back out he's only in his boxer briefs. I momentarily forget that I'm burping the baby enjoying the scenery.

He heads to a dresser and pulls out a couple of drawers before he finds a pair of black joggers and slips them on.

I shake my head to focus on burping Matty; he lets out a cute burp. I swaddle him and lay him down in his bassinet before I follow Rico into the bathroom.

It's a beautiful bathroom with his and her sinks and a large tub in the center of the room and an even bigger standing shower. I stand behind Rico and wrap my arms around him as he brushes his teeth.

"Rico, I know she hurt you—us. But even if we let her meet Matty that doesn't mean she'll have a part in his life."

He spits the excess toothpaste out. "That's never going to happen." He glares at me through the mirror. There's fire in his eyes and I can feel the heat coming from them.

"She's your family."

"No. No, she's not. If there's one thing I learned this last year, Elenora, is that blood doesn't make you family." He turns to face me. "You. You are my family."

"You're hurt and angry, Rico. But she did raise you."

He walks out of the bathroom. I step back when he turns on me."Are you listening to yourself, Elenora? You want our son around someone so..." He struggles to find the right word and then he shakes his head. "No, she will never meet him."

His dark fierce eyes warn me to let it go.

"Okay, I won't push it anymore." I walk up to him and kiss his chest before I hold him tight and he wraps his arms around me, burying his face in my neck.

"Are you hungry?"

"I'm starving," I chuckle. "But I should probably catch up on some sleep before Matty wakes up again."

"I'll make you something and bring it up so you can relax."

"You cook now?" I pull away, giving him a skeptical look.

"Hey, I can make a pretty mean turkey and provolone sandwich," He defends.

I laugh. "Well, that sounds delicious."

He kisses me before leaving and I take a large drink of water from my water jug as I look over Matty; he looks so peaceful sleeping away. I lay back on the bed and immediately fall back asleep.