I'm sorry that it has been forever, but I've had terrible writer's block. Thanks to all of you who have continued to wait and read this. I'm very grateful for you all!

Chapter 21

Betty and Gio were sitting at the Rossi family dinner table with his parents, Andre, and Antonella.

Paz scooped potatoes onto her plate as she looked over the rim of her glasses. "We've heard a lot about you, Betty. It's nice to finally meet you."

Betty smiled, saying, "It's nice to meet you, too, Mrs. Rossi."

Gio's father snorted. "Please call us Carlo and Paz. Looking at all of you young people, we don't want to feel any older than we have to."

Everyone laughed. Andre shrugged, saying, "Well, it's about time you two got together. If I had to see Giovanni mope around the deli one more day, I think I would have quit."

Gio gave him a cocky smile and took Betty's hand. "I don't think you have to worry about quitting, tio. You're fired."

"You can't fire my brother, mijo," Paz said, sighing. "We'd have to start feeding him all of the time."

Antonella scoffed. "We already do."

A few minutes later, Carlo changed the subject by saying, "So, Giovanni, how's your plans for Italy coming?"

Gio looked down at the table and took in a deep breath. "Good, Pop. I've been saving and should be able to go in a couple months."

Betty leaned close to him and squinted, confused. "What plans for Italy?"

His family became quiet as they realized that he had not told her yet. Gio said, "I've been planning a trip to Italy for months."

Betty paled. "What?"

"It's a part of my five year plan. I'm going for a month to discover my flavor."

Her eyes bulged, "A month!"

His voice lowered and he said close to her, "I was going to tell you soon."

Betty composed herself and asked, "We'll talk about this later, right?"

He smiled. "Yeah."

After Betty left, Gio went back inside the house.

His mother was standing behind him. "She's cute, mijo. Una gordita, no?"

"Mamita!"

She put her hands up. "What? It's a good thing. She's an eater. There're so many girls now that think they should be a size zero. All these Latina women have forgotten that we're supposed to have curves. These hips don't lie, mijo.

He pointed his finger at her. "That's it. I'm taking your Shakira cd away."

She laughed loudly and freely, patting either side of his face. "You can't censor the old, mi amor. We're too senile to know."

His face turned serious. "What do you think of her, mamita. Que tal pareció Betty?"

She smiled. "Si, me gusta. Especially because you like her. I trust your judgment." She looked over her glasses at him. "Except for that one time when you dated the girl that tried to burn down the house."

He looked at her deadpanned. "You're never going to let that one go, are you?"

Her smile faded and she asked, "Why didn't you tell her about Rome?"

He sat down on the couch and let out a breath. "We've been through a lot. From Henry to Dulce—we were just getting somewhere. I wanted to be sure we really had something before I left."

She cocked an eyebrow. "And are you sure?"

As he thought about it, a smile slowly spread across his face. "Yes, Mamita. I'm sure."

………………………………….

A couple of days later, Betty was eating dinner with her own family. "I can't believe he's going to Rome in a couple months. I won't see him for four weeks!"

Ignacio rolled a tortilla and took a bite before he said, "He won't be gone forever, Betty. You have to let him follow his dream as you follow yours."

She shook her head. "I know. I know! But we're getting so close. I'll miss seeing him every day."

The sentiment was so sweet that Hilda almost starting crying. Before she could do anything, there was a knock at the door and Justin sprang up to answer it. When he came back, he said, "Mom, Daniel's here to see you."

Betty's brow furrowed. "You mean me, Justin?"

"No, he said he wanted to talk to Mom."

Hilda started waving her hands, clearly upset. "Well, I don't want to talk to him."

Daniel busted into the room. "You have to, Hilda. Please."

Tears now stung at her eyes. "No, Daniel. There's nothing left to say."

His hair was a mess, his eyes were bloodshot, and he looked pale and exhausted. "Yes, there is." He knelt down in front of her chair and took her hands. "I should have told you when you left me. I haven't been with another woman since the first night we slept together."

"You slept together?" Betty shrieked.

Justin's face scrunched. "I so don't want to know this." Ignacio dropped his taco to the plate.

Daniel's eyes pleaded with Hilda's. "I don't want anyone else. I know you worry about Justin, but I want to be there for him. I want to take care of him like I want to take care of you. You have swept me away, Hilda. I love you."

A tear finally fell from her eye. She looked at his wearied face and said, "I love you, too."

He smiled. "Yeah?"

She laughed and nodded. "Yeah." He grabbed her and kissed her, holding her close to him.

When everyone calmed down, Betty asked, "When did this happen?"

Daniel and Hilda held hands as they sat together. "A couple weeks after you left for Tucson," her sister said.

Betty pointed at him saying, "Daniel is the guy you've been crying about for two months?"

Hilda looked at him lovingly. "Yeah, but not anymore." They kissed.

Betty eyed them sickly. "You both lied to me."

Daniel interjected, saying, "Betty, we didn't want to tell anyone until we knew that it was going to work out. When we broke up, we thought it was best not to say anything. But now we're sure."

It was two secrets too many for Betty. "I need to leave for a while."

Hilda stood up. "Betty, we weren't trying to hurt you or anything."

Betty put her hand up to stop her. "I know and I'm happy for you, but I want to go clear my head."

Half an hour later, Betty was in the backroom of Gio's deli. They were sitting on a couch, her back resting against his chest. "I had no idea that they were seeing each other. How could I miss that?"

Gio stroked her hair with one hand as he hand his other hand firmly around her waist. "Maybe you just didn't want to see it. You were going through a lot of your own stuff at the time."

She frowned, saying, "But it can't just be me. No one else saw it either."

He tilted his head thoughtfully. "Well, I was pretty sure they were."

Her head whipped around to see him. "What?"

He nodded. "I wasn't sure, but they seemed like two people who were sleeping together at your birthday party."

Her mouth dropped and she hit him hard in the shoulder. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"Ow!" Grabbing his shoulder in pain, he said, "It wasn't my place to. If they didn't want to tell you, they had a reason."

"And after you and I started dating—why didn't you tell me then?"

He shifted on the couch, not liking where the conversation was headed. "They seemed to have already broken up by then. There was no reason to."

She got up and swiftly went towards the door. "I can't believe you didn't tell me."

He quickly followed her into the front of the deli. "Are you really going to get angry at me about this?"

The muscles in her back tightened. "Gee, Gio, it looks like I am."

He put his hands out in front of him. "Betty, it's not really any of our business whether they are together or not. They had no obligation to tell you."

"Guess you don't have any obligation to tell me anything either." She opened the front door and went through it.

It was starting to rain but they both walked out onto the sidewalk. "That's what this is about, isn't it?" Gio asked forcefully. "You're mad at me that I didn't tell you about Rome."

Betty finally stopped walking and turned to look at him. "I'm just a little sick of people lying to me, Gio."

He threw his hands up. "I didn't lie to you. I was just waiting for the right time to tell you."

"And when was that time, Gio?" she asked, her hair starting to dampen from the rain.

He stepped closer to her, saying, "I didn't want to tell you because the thought of not seeing you for thirty days kills me. I want to see your smile. I want to hear your laugh. I even want to hear you yelling at me. And I will miss that everyday I'm gone. I'll miss you."

She searched his eyes. "Then why are you leaving?"

He put his hands on her shoulders. "Because I have to follow my dreams. I have to fulfill my goals. Just like you. We'd both eventually resent each other if we gave up what we wanted for each other. I need you, Betty. But I need my five year plan, too."

It rained harder now as she breathed harder. "Am I a part of your five year plan, too?"

His face broke out into a wide smile. "Of course you are. I want you in my life."

"I want you in my life, too."

He smiled. "I love you so much."

"What?"

He trailed his finger down her cheek and over her bottom lip, saying, "I've been waiting months to tell you. I love you."

Tears welled in her eyes. "I love you," she said. She kissed him on the lips. Their clothes clung to their bodies as the water fell around them. They kissed and hugged and caressed. "We should go in. We're getting soaked!" she said, laughing.

He shook his head. "No, let's stay right here." He licked rain from her lips.

She laughed, saying, "You are crazy!"

He took her hand and started to dance. They walked around for hours, splashing each other with puddles, dancing, kissing, and playing in the rain.

When she went home that night, she had forgiven Hilda, Daniel, and Gio for their secrets. She was too happy to hold it against them. She was a woman in love.

TBC