Song above for the chapter: "A Little Bit Yours"--JP Saxe

ELENORA

It feels nostalgic and overwhelming being home in my father's study. He steeples his hands in front of his chin, with his thick eyebrows furrowing as he contemplates. "And you really think that will work?"

"Considering it's the only leverage she has, yes. Unless you know of anything else that she could use against you?" Domani asks my father.

He ponders Domani's question longer than necessary and glances at my mom but shakes his head. "No, nothing, comes to mind."

"Then if you're on board I'll get everything ready to go out as soon as tomorrow." Domani stands and shakes my father's and kisses mother's hands.

"I'm going to go with Domani to see Rico," I inform my parents.

"Does he know you're here?" My mom asks me.

I shake my head. "No, but he has to know the truth about the baby, even if he ends up hating me more than he probably already does."

"Sometimes pain comes across as anger and even hate, piccola, but it's good to get everything out in the open." My mom gives me a tight embrace. (little one)

My father cups my face. "Will you be coming home to have the baby? You're not that far from your due date, five weeks left, right?"

"That's right, five weeks. When I head back I'll pack a few more things to bring while I have the baby here."

"Why not move back, figlia mia?" My mother holds my hand in both of hers. "You're going to tell Rico and we're not going to let Rosetta threaten us any longer, please come back." Her eyes shine with tears. (my daughter)

I glance at Domani and Clara, and they both give me an encouraging nod. "I...I suppose I could." Feeling somewhat hesitant because of the very real possibility that Rico won't want anything to do with me.

Sal was very understanding when I asked for time off, but not knowing how Rico would react to seeing me, I told him I'd only be gone a few days; guilt weighs over me realizing I'll be leaving him even more short-staffed than he already is.

"You know you always have a home with me, girl." Clara offers and I smile back at her.

My mother exclaims happily while also sobbing as she pulls me into another hug. My father smiles as he watches us and then he also joins in the hug. "It's good to have you home, tesoro mio." (my darling)

We continue talking as we walk into the kitchen and my sisters once again start bombarding me with anything and everything about the baby and how they want to throw me a shower and ask who I'm going to pick as the baby's godmother, to which Clara responds. "Duh, that's a no brainer."

"What? You can't even keep the plants in your house alive! You wouldn't know the first thing about taking care of a baby," Jackie jokes, even though we all know she's half serious. It's a running joke that Clara can't keep anything alive from plants to goldfish.

"And you can't cook," Luna chimes in.

"Wow, you guys really know how to make a person feel good about themselves," Clara says grumpily.

"I love finding out all these interesting things about you, Clara," Domani chuckles amused as he wraps an arm around her.

"Well, if you guys actually spent time talking instead of..." Luna makes a squeaking sound as she makes a circle with one hand, inserting a finger from her other hand inside the hole repeatedly. "You'd learn a lot about each other."

"Luna Antoinette! Why is your head always full of trash, young lady?" My mother exclaims.

"Because it's fun," She grins widely; my mom shakes her head muttering in Italian.

I laugh, enjoying being around my family. I scan the room with all of their smiling faces, feeling the sense of happiness for the first time in a long time, but I need to ask about my nonno and feel torn about bringing him up.

I clear my throat. "Where is nonno? Is he here or in a hospital?" As expected the room quiets down.

"He's here, dolcezza," My father tells me, the sadness in his eyes is hard to take in. (sweetheart) "Considering how quickly everything progressed we opted for in-home hospice care."

"How long does he have?"

"The Doctors aren't sure, but they say not long," He tells me. "Do...Do you want to see him?"

I shake my head. "No, not yet."

"We should go, if we want to beat traffic, Nora. Rico is leaving for a business trip tonight and I don't want that to cut into your time with him."

"Will you bring Rico home?" Maya pleads, puckering her bottom lip. "I haven't seen him in ages! I miss him so much!"

I smile. "I'll see what I can do, but no promises."

"But you always keep your promises, Nora," Maya replies.

I crouch down to get eye level with her and tuck some of her hair behind her ear. "You can't force someone to do something if they don't want to."

I find the words hard to hear after doing something to Rico I never wanted to do.

"You wouldn't force Rico, he'd come because you're here. He'd follow you anywhere," she counters in her soft voice. I kiss her head before I hug her and then excuse myself leaving with Domani and Clara.

When we drop Clara off at her house she tells me she will call tomorrow to help arrange my things to begin moving back.

I turn to Domani after he pulls away. "So, when did things change with you two?"

He looks over at me. "You haven't asked Clara?"

"She'll skirt the question and I want to hear it from you anyway." I tell him as we merge onto the highway.

A small smile plays on his face. "We ran into each other at a bar a couple of months ago. She was out with a couple of co-workers, I was there with Mickey and Ciccio. She seemed sad, and when I approached her she blew me off," He chuckles. "Anyway, I bought her a drink and then that led to another and another and then we woke up at her place the next morning."

"Sounds about right," I smile before chuckling, then I back track. "Not that she does that a lot." I look at him wide eyed which causes him to laugh. "Gosh, I'm the worst friend, I made it sound like she's easy. She's not. I swear, I mean, yeah, she's not a saint, but she's not a ho either."

"Relax, Nora," He chuckles again. "I know she's not. She likes to come across as someone who's all about fun, easy going, and she doesn't want to put too much into what's happened between us because she's afraid of getting hurt."

"You nailed it," I sigh, rubbing my belly when the baby kicks. "You really like her."

"I do, she's great," He smiles.

We pull up to the Hotel Di Maggio and a wave of memories rush back when I step out of the car. Staff assist customers who are coming or going and I find a few familiar faces of the crew.

"Are Ciccio and Mostro here?"

Domani shakes his head. "Rico travels solo most of the time now." He pulls the door open for me to step into the lobby. "Like I said he doesn't trust anyone any more."

"Did he fire them?" I ask worriedly.

"No, he has them doing other things, but I think they'll be with him tonight. It's usually a surprise, so I never know." He hits the button to the elevator and some of the staff walk by do a double take when they see me and then focus on my belly.

"Where is he going for this business trip?"

"Italy, I believe; he'll be gone most of the week."

"Can you tell me what happened to Zoey? The young girl you helped from the auction?" I glance over at Domani.

"Unfortunately, her mother was killed by her boyfriend, that same night she was taken."

I gasp, not expecting that information. "But we found an aunt who was very happy to know Zoey was alive and safe and she went to live with her. They live in Texas." Domani smiles. "I have her contact information if you want to reach out."

"Yes, please." I smile back.

The elevator opens and I'm surprised by how different everything looks. "He redecorated."

"Rosetta wanted to erase that you were ever here." He tells me and a ripple of sadness comes over me, noticing he's right. I didn't add much to the decor but wanted to soften the look. It feels cold and dark now.

"Maybe this was a bad idea, Domani." I say, feeling overwhelmed. "I think maybe I should call him first."

"Nora, I think what needs to be said should be in person, don't you?" His voice is quiet. "Here, why don't you sit down? Put your feet up, they look swollen."

"Do they? I can't really see them," I chuckle. "People have told me I don't look pregnant unless I turn to the side, but my body sure likes to remind me that I am." I run my fingers through my hair and tug at my black shirt. I should have changed into something different.

"You look great, Nora," He smiles, observing me. "When Serafina sees you she's going to want to help name the baby, plan a shower, probably want to be there when the baby comes, too. She loves babies," Domani tells me with a laugh. "Where do you want to sit?"

"At the table, so I can use a chair for my feet. His new coffee table looks too fancy to put my elephant feet up on it." Domani laughs as he pulls a chair out for me and I sit, setting my bag down in front of me.

"Do you want me to stay?"

"Um—"

The elevator dings and Rico steps out when it opens; my heart skips a beat as my breathing accelerates. Calm down Nora!

I'm overcome with several emotions at once; happiness, excitement, love, nervousness and even fear. He hasn't noticed us yet, preoccupied as he shouts into the phone. Domani pats my hand before he stands and walks to the kitchen.

"I don't give a fuck! You get your tweaked out ass to deliver the product like you agreed or I'll come for you, myself, Jonesie!" Rico hangs up, tossing his phone on the counter near the island.

"Trouble?" Domani slides a drink over to him, but Rico doesn't answer.

"Where the fuck have you been?" Rico throws back the drink and then he lights up a cigarette.

I smile when Domani pulls it out of his mouth and snubs it out on the counter.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

"Smoking's bad for you," I speak up.

Rico tenses at the sound of my voice but keeps his eyes focused on Domani.

He rolls his head on his shoulders before he moves to refill his tumblr with whisky. "What's she doing here?" He questions Domani, ignoring me.

I move my feet from the chair to adjust myself, sitting up straighter. "I came to see you."

"Take Nora back where she came from. I have a flight to catch." It surprises me that he used my nickname.

"You need to hear the truth about why I left, Rico."

I jump when he turns, throwing his drink against the wall of the kitchen and the glass shatters. "I don't need shit from you! Get the hell out, Nora!" He seethes, his eyes appear black as they glare back at me.

"Elenora," I state, struggling to get a full breath with my shallow breathing and fast heart rate.

"What?"

"You've always called me by my full name. Unlike everyone else, you never use Nora, " I explain. He holds my gaze for a moment before he pulls out another cigarette and lights it. "Please, put that out. It's not good for me and I don't like the smell."

He lets out a wry chuckle and takes another long pull before he exhales. "You seem to think I care what you like or don't like." He inhales again before blowing out a cloud of smoke in my direction.

"Rico..." Domani begins but he turns on him.

"And you, going behind my back, too?" He moves in on Domani. I start to get up but Domani puts his hand up to stop me as Rico grabs him by the lapels of his suit.

"Clara took me to where she was and we brought her back, because you need to hear her out." Domani explains, but he's shoved away.

"Rico, I'm so sorry. Rosetta came to the hospital and—"

"I don't want your fucking apology! Whatever you're here for, Nora, whatever you fucking think I need to hear. Save it." Rico's face is red and furious.

"Rosetta threatened to expose a video of you killing Elijah and she recorded us in our room making love. She's probably listening and watching at this very moment. Enjoying every second of this. She threatened to make sure you'd end up in prison and would humiliate my family even more with the videos of us, but she would modify all of our times together to make it look like you were involved in sex trafficking."

"Our room?" He focuses on that detail, as if what I'm saying is unbelievable. His phone rings, but he ignores it so I continue.

"My Ma, Pia, they were there, they both saw it. They heard what she said. She blackmailed Pia to go along with the miscarriage, threatening to have her license revoked but the truth is—"

Rico's cold laugh stops me. "Well, thanks; that clears everything up. Now leave."

"Rico, please. I love you. I never stopped loving you."

"Love me?" He shouts, picking up a chair next to the kitchen island and throws it against the nearest wall. He turns away, groaning and yells. And then he laughs; the sound is unnerving.

"You just confirmed what's been going through my head for the last what? Six? Seven months? You and me, it wasn't real." He stalks closer to the table, standing at the other end.

His beard is longer than the stubble he used to wear. His hair is not as long and trimmed shorter and I still get butterflies, looking at his handsome features. I take a deep breath when the baby kicks me.

Rico's phone rings again, but his dark eyes remain on me.

"The first sign of trouble and you fall apart, you leave. You didn't trust me enough. You didn't love me enough to tell me what was really going on—to wait for me." His voice is laced with venom and then he adds quieter. "You didn't believe in me."

"Would you have believed me?" I ask but he doesn't answer. "I left because I love you, Federico. That's never changed. Rosetta is just using you as a pawn for whatever sick game she's playing. She's poisoning your heart. My father didn't betray your parents. I only left for you, because I didn't want you to end up in prison. The truth will come out and you'll see—"

"Again with the fucking truth?" He groans, running his fingers through his hair before he sets the cigarette on an ashtray. He goes to the room and walks back with a travel bag in hand.

"Where are you going?"

"Leaving. You should recognize the gesture," He says as he grabs his phone but then he walks to his office. He comes back shortly and flips through a small stack of papers and writes something on the last page.

"Since you're here, you can sign these—finally set me free. You said the man you married wasn't real. Barone is a name I use interchangeably. But it doesn't change who I am." He slides the papers across the table with the pen on top; continuing to keep his distance.

His eyes focus on the wedding band hanging around my neck before his cold eyes meet mine. "You're saving me the trouble of wasting anymore time, or resources hunting you down and paying certified mail to send these to whatever hole you fucking came from."

"Rico, you need to know, Nora is still—" Domani starts to interject.

He pulls his gun on Domani and cocks it. "Don't go behind my back again!"

"No, Rico!" I yell.

The elevator dings and then opens. A beautiful woman steps out in an elegant cocktail dress and looks between Domani and Rico before her eyes settle on me. "Rico...I...I tried calling you, but you didn't answer. But I see you have forgotten we're meeting before you leave."

"I didn't forget. I just got tied up, let's go." He tucks his gun back inside the back of his pants before he picks up his travel bag and starts walking to her without looking back at me.

I struggle to get up out of the chair. "Rico, please don't go. I need you."

He keeps walking further away as I race to stop him.

"If you leave, I won't come back."

He stops, but still faces away from me. I wasn't prepared for his next question.

"Promise?" His cold voice pierces my heart.

I swallow the lump lodged in my throat. "I promise." A tear falls down my face.

"Good."

He takes the woman by the hand and they walk into the elevator. When they turn he keeps his eyes on her and then he leans in to her before the doors close.

After a moment, I turn back to the table and sit down trembling and with shaky hands, pick up the papers he left. I scan over the bold lettering, they're divorce-annulment documents. His signature stares back at me like a blaring neon sign.

"Nora, I'm so sorry."

"I-I knew he would be mad and angry, but..." I can't finish as I skim over the divorce documents; it's cut and dry considering we shared nothing as a married couple. But the nightly conversations we had of our plans replay in my mind and I cover my mouth to keep from sobbing. I take a few deep breaths and shake myself from the pain that's crushing me.

"Can you please get me a note or some stationery from his office?"

Domani returns with what I need. "Don't leave again, Nora."

I take another deep breath. "He doesn't want to hear the truth. I hope you're there for him when everything comes out, Dom."

I walk into the bedroom and place the signed divorce papers on the bed and take the necklace off with the ring. I hold it in my hand and look at the engraving of his name inside. Tears fall as I set it on top of the papers. I dig through my bag and grab what I need before walking out.

But I stop remembering about the videos; I'm sure Rosetta hasn't stopped her recordings, and then I turn back to the nightstand. I pull the drawer open and stop when I see a framed photo of us from our wedding day.

My hand trembles as I pick it up. The unfamiliar happy faces stare back at me. There's another photo where I'm smiling at the camera but Rico's eyes are focused only on me and the tears keep falling seeing the love in his eyes that no longer exists.

I wipe my eyes and place the frames back in the drawer deciding to grab what I left on his bed and head back to Domani.

"I'm going to call a Lyft to take me home."

He shakes his head. "I'll take you home."

We head into the elevator before I turn to him. "Rosetta is probably still recording everything in there." I hand him the papers and the other items I want Rico to have. "Here, please make sure he gets this."

He looks through the items. "This will destroy him, Nora."

"I hope not, Dom," I tell him with sadness. "But this isn't about him anymore. I have to think about this baby who's going to be here very soon. Rico's focus is...somewhere else. He's closed off his heart from me and I don't blame him but I need to focus on myself and the baby."

The drive back is painfully quiet.

"Are you sure we should release the videos of you and him? The Gallo one will be easy to spin off as Rico saving you, but the other one exposes you to an unknown amount of backlash."

"I've handled worse," I respond, solemnly. "I'm tired of Rosetta thinking she's won or has any power over me anymore. I hope you find out the truth about everything, Domani. There has to be other witnesses or other people who worked with Rico's father or someone who knew Rico's mom."

"Between your father and I joining forces, I'm sure we'll come to find the truth," He reassures me.

"Thank you for believing in my Pop. And even though it's hard and he's stubborn, thank you for always looking out for Rico."

I hug him before I step out of the car and walk into my parent's house, letting the fresh tears fall.