A/N: Normally, parents of a miscarriage or stillbirth baby have to give the hospital a name for certification of death, but I used a creative license for the sake of this chapter. Happy times are almost here again. Promise. All mistakes are mine.

Shortcake99 is the genius behind the idea for the shouting match between Marisol and Tony. (Only I made them harsh whispers). Thanks, sugar!

Enjoy!

Chapter 21: Just Desserts

Yael La Havas Banquet Hall, Los Angeles, Thanksgiving, 7:30PM

The Ortiz and Toretto families were delighted to come together for Thanksgiving dinner at the invitation of Letty and Dominic. Although Letty was less than pleased that Dominic's mother made an appearance, she was willing to forget -if only just for one night- that the woman had once called her a golddigging whore.

Seating one-hundred-and-ten people, the staff at the Yael La Havas banquet hall had set up ten, long rectangular tables in a huge square, leaving the middle wide open. Food and drinks littered nearly every inch of every tabletop. Eleven people to a table. Letty and Dom sat at the center of one with their parents and immediate family on either side of them.

The families were even more delighted that the holiday was a joint celebration and naming ceremony for their lost family member. There was a bittersweet feeling mixed with love inside the room as they talked, ate, drank, and laughed.

Somewhere during the middle of dinner, Letty stood up and tapped her goldware fork against her glass of wine. She cleared her throat and Dom stood up as well, putting his hand on her lower back. It took a few more clinks of the fork before the entire banquet hall settled into a hush.

"Okay, so, first Dom and I want to, uh, thank you you guys for spending this time with us. I mean, I know it's Thanksgiving and we all make time for family on Thanksgiving, but this year is really special. And we're glad that both of our families are here to hear the name that we've chosen for... her." Letty finished. She took a deep breath, pushing away any and all tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks.

"Right. So, first we've decided on the first name Lailah."

Letty's mother gasped. And then excited whispers went around the room.

"Lailah is the angel of conception who oversees and protects childbirth." Dom explained. "And if Letty decides to try again for another baby, we're sure that... that our Lailah will be her angel."

A tear fell down Letty's cheek, but she quickly wiped it away before giving a small, smile. "And for her middle name, we've decided on Haven."

"Right," affirmed Dom. "A safe, protective place."

Another bout of whispers and smiles from their family.

"So," Letty lifted her glass, and everyone followed suit, "here's to Lailah Haven Toretto."

"To Laila Haven!" Everyone shouted and drank from their glasses.

Dinner continued. Dom and Letty were on the receiving end of cards, money, well-wishes, and benedictions from either sets of their grandparents.

Dom, alone, had been on the receiving end of Letty's mood shift for the few weeks before the dinner. When he tried to comfort her with a simple hand on her shoulder or on the middle of her back, she would pull away. And tonight was no different. The only thing she accepted from Dom was more wine, or something stronger every now and then.

By the time the elaborate desserts were brought out, and the other foods were replaced, Letty was half-past drunk and well on her way to a peaceful black out. Dom signaled for a staff member to collect the glasses and alcoholic beverages from in front of them. Letty was too deep in conversation with her mother, and effectively ignoring Dominic, to even realize what was happening. The pumpkin spice ice cream placed before her, slowly melted.

Twenty minutes later, Letty stood from her seat, excusing herself. Most of the gentlemen, who were seated close, stood as well, only sitting again when she was gone from the table. Dom could only assume that she was heading to the bathroom, ridding her body of the liquor she'd consumed.

Letty flushed the toilet and left the stall. At the sinks, she turned the water on, slowly washing her hands. She was in no rush to get back to the main hall. If she was honest, she truly needed to a few moments to herself. Breathing in and out a few times, Letty finally shut the water off then pulled a couple of paper towels from the rack to dry her hands.

Looking at herself in the mirror, Letty pushed a hand over her hair, smoothing stray pieces back into its sleek ponytail.

"How did you get here, Letty?" She asked her reflection.

A few more moments passed before she deemed herself physically and emotionally ready to head back to the main hall. Heading out of the bathroom, Letty heard hushed whispers around the corner. It sounded like a couple having a quiet argument. Her curiosity got the better of her and she flattened herself against the wall, peeking her head around it to see who the lucky lovers were. Her mouth dropped open and her eyes widened before she ducked her head back to listen without being seen.

"Why should I feel bad? It's been seven months. As far as I'm concerned, we shouldn't still be grieving." Marisol Toretto was saying.

"When did your heart turn so cold, Marisol? You are not the woman I married." Anthony admitted.

"She must have known how much Dom was going to be worth someday." She sounded as if she were thinking aloud for a moment.

"I ain't dead yet! Which means Dom ain't rich yet." Tony reminded her. From behind the wall, Letty stuck her tongue out, mockingly, at an unsuspecting Marisol.

"She's a golddigger. And she's got Dom still following after her like a puppy dog."

"Because he's in love with her! Let them be happy! For God's sake, Mari, they lost our grandchild!" Tony's whisper was harsh. He honestly sounded a bit disgusted with his wife. "Now, you will get out there and you will be kind to Letty because if Dom has it his way, Letty will be your daughter-in-law soon."

Letty's eyes widened at that revelation. Once she was sure Tony and Marisol had headed back into the main hall, the brunette left her hiding spot. She, too, walked inside, determined. The alcohol now ruled her head and anger reigned in her heart.

She leaned down to speak in Dom's ear. "You might want to leave the room." Was her only warning to him.

Letty picked up her forgotten dessert. She then promptly overturned the bowl of melted pumpkin spice ice cream onto Marisol Toretto's head.

Dinner was clearly over.

Letty's apartment, Thanksgiving, 9:45PM

The door nearly slammed in Dom's face. He threw his right hand out, palm slapping harshly against it, and stepped through. He shut it behind him, hard, before he started in on Letty.

"What the hell is your problem?" His baritone voice boomed. Blu's head lifted and she hopped off of the couch to stand by Letty's side. Letty whirled around to face him.

"Your mother is my goddamn problem. Let's for just a second forget about the fact that she called me a golddigging whore who 'trapped' you in the first place. But, her behavior tonight was just... unforgivable."

"Alright. Let's not forget that you gave her a pumpkin spice facial." Dom defended.

"She deserved it! And why are you even sticking up for her? Even your father said she was wrong! You haven't even heard my side of the story."

Dom exhaled deeply and took off his jacket, throwing it over the back of the armchair. He closed his eyes for a brief moment. "You're right." Plopping down on the couch, he spread his arms over the back of it. "Enlighten me."

Letty stared at him for nearly a full minute before she crossed her arm over her chest. "Let's have sex."

Dom's eyebrows shot up. He gave a slight shake of his head, trying to clear his mind. Did he hear her correctly? "What?"

"You heard me." The brunette said, matter-of-factly.

"We're not having sex." Dom chuckled in disbelief.

"Why?"

"Because I'm not a toy that you can use when you need to feel good."

Letty stretched her neck, moving it side-to-side, working out the kinks. Her eyes closed and she sighed, "How did I get the man with morals?"

Dom was officially amused. He had no idea who this person was but it was definitely not the Letty that he knew. There was something wrong, but he didn't dare suggest therapy. He loved his life, after all.

He patted the empty spot next to him on the couch.

"No." Letty defied.

"Sit." Dom commanded, his tone giving no room for argument. Letty huffed, but sat, nonetheless. If she didn't, she was almost positive that the muscled man would manhandle her into sitting.

His arm returned to the back of the couch behind Letty's head. "I think we should talk."

"I don't want to talk. I want to be f-."

Dom reached over and clamped his hand around her mouth. "We're gonna talk."

And they did. Letty told her side of the story. She told him how she overheard the spat between Tony and Marisol outside of the restrooms. Dom listened, intently, nodding his hed when he felt it was necessary. Truth be told, when Letty finished her story, Dom understood her anger. He could feel it to, rising in his chest. He was going to give his mother a piece of his mind when he saw her next.

"So?" She said after he still hadn't spoken.

Dom looked at her for a dozen heartbeats before taking her hand and pulling her off of the couch with him. "Come on."

"Where are we going?"

"To have sex." Was his reply.

Up Next: Dotty lovin' and another lazy day.