Chapter 12

When their laughter had faded to just smiles Daria opened her menu as she asked, "So, what do you recommend?"

"I have never had a bad meal here, but of course I do have my favorites…"

He would have said more but Maria Callisto came up to the table. "AJ! It has been much too long since you have been here to see us! And you have brought a lovely lady with you…this is good!"

AJ introduced Daria to Maria, telling her that she and Gino owned the restaurant. When the introductions were over, Maria asked, "So how is your darling daughter?"

He should have been expecting this question from Maria, but it still shocked him. The hurt was so deep that he couldn't speak for a moment allowing his date stepped in for him.

"You mean his son, don't you?" Daria questioned.

"You have a son as well, AJ?! Why did you not tell us!? We could have married Gina off to him! At least he would be half Italian, not like Lance who has no Italian blood at all!" Maria exclaimed, waving her arm about and grinning happily.

AJ knew she was only teasing in her flamboyant way. Gino and Maria both loved their son-in-law no matter his non-Italian heritage. He hadn't been to the restaurant since his break up with Meredith so no one here knew about Francesca.

Because AJ still hadn't said anything, Daria spoke, "That would have been an interesting wedding since Robby is only two months old."

Bewildered at this information, Maria looked from Daria to AJ then back again. AJ swallowed hard and began to explain. By the time he finished, Maria and Gina had both sat down at the table, each were holding one of his hands and tears were streaming down both their cheeks.

That was how Gino found them when he came out of the kitchen for a visit. He was going to scold his wife and daughter for loafing when he saw their tears. "What is this?! What has made you weep?!" he demanded loudly, attracting the attention of every patron and employee in the place.

Daria had already apologized to Maria and Gina and she started to do so again when Maria told her husband, "AJ has lost his daughter! She has gone to be with the angels!"

"My friend, I am so sorry!" the huge Italian man exclaimed, pulling AJ out of his chair like he weighed no more than a child and clasping him in a bear hug.

"Let him go, Papa! He was about to show us pictures of his bambino!"

"Bambino!? You and this lovely lady already have a bambino?!" Gino boomed. Clearly he had only one volume of conversation…loud!

Maria pulled another chair over to the table and once again the story of how AJ came to be raising Robby was told. This time he did manage to get the pictures out and pass them around before one of the assistant cooks came out of the kitchen to tell Gino that he was needed.

He rose, grabbed the menus and gave them to his daughter, telling AJ and Daria, "Tonight I make you something special! Nothing on the menu will do!" He was gone before either of them could say anything. Gina had also hurried off to deal with the line of patrons waiting in the foyer for a table.

Maria smiled sadly at them as she said, "I will bring you wine," before she left as well.

"AJ, I am so sorry for starting all that!"

"You have nothing to be sorry about, Daria. No matter how they were told they would have reacted in the same way. It helped to have you here as the story came out."

"It did?" she questioned, surprised at feeling the warm glow around her heart at his comment.

"Yes, but I should apologize that they assumed Robby was ours."

"Why? I was flattered that they thought it. Robby is a wonderful baby! If circumstances made it possible I would have been happy to have him thought of as mine too."

Raising his eyebrow, he looked into her eyes and questioned, "What do you mean, if circumstances made it possible?"

"I discovered during my marriage that I couldn't have children, in fact it was the reason the marriage ended."

"Daria! I'm sorry to hear that!" he said, reaching out to take her hand in his.

"It's ancient history now. Why don't we talk of more pleasant things?" she asked, as their promised wine arrived. Maria poured them each a glass and left them, leaving the entire bottle at the table.

"I hope you're thirsty," AJ teased, as he clinked his glass with hers and took a sip.

To be continued…