Aunt Loretta looked at her strangely. So much so that Tessa made sure she didn’t have any food on her face. Leaning over, she said, “Leo must think a lot of you, Tessa, to give you his mother’s ring.”

Tessa’s hand suddenly felt paralyzed on the table. The sun was shining, reflecting off the ring in prisms of sparkling light that must have caught Aunt Loretta’s attention, making it look more beautiful than ever.

Leo had given her his mother’s ring? Her thoughts whirled. Maybe he’d done it to make their marriage look authentic to his family. But it was sentimental. Valuable. Full of memories. Not to mention it had belonged to his beloved mother. She’d had no idea.

“I-I love it,” she managed, twirling it a little, where it caught even more light and looked even more beautiful. “It’s so unique.”

The older woman quietly patted her hand. “Like you, sweetheart.”

“Thank you, Aunt Loretta,” she said, lifting her glass in return.

“Sapphires in a wedding band mean faithfulness and sincerity,” Vivienne said. “I learned that when I was doing some wedding photography last year.”

“They can also match a person’s eyes,” Leo’s dad said.

“Did—did Leo’s mom have blue eyes?” Tessa asked.

“Like the summer sky,” his dad said, smiling a little.

“I’m honored to wear it,” Tessa said. This was terrifying. The ring—this lunch—underscored that real people were involved with their scam. And feelings. And…her own were being messed with, too.

Fortunately, at that moment, Leo came through the door, carrying steaming bowls of linguine. He served his dad first, then everyone else.

Tessa recognized calamari and mussels, and judging by the fragrant scent, the pasta was covered in a garlic butter sauce.

Everyone waited for Leo to finish dishing out the pasta, except Noah, who immediately dug in until Jack knifed him in the ribs.

Leo took a seat next to Tessa, giving her a wink. “Dig in, everyone.”

“Wait,” Marco said, frowning after a few bites. “This is your mother’s recipe.”

“That’s right, Dad,” Leo said, stopping with a fork halfway to his mouth.

“I—I haven’t served this recipe in the restaurant for…a long time.”

Oh no. The seconds ticked. No one broke the silence. Tessa wracked her brain to think of a quip, but not even a bad one came to mind. Leo himself seemed to be struggling with what to say.

The table was so silent, you could hear the birds twittering in the trees behind the parking lot. Finally, Leo spoke. “I wanted to do something to honor Mom. Taste it, Dad.” His strained voice seemed to include a silent please.

“Oh. I see,” Marco said, examining the dish as carefully as if he’d been using a microscope. “And these are the fish that were alive yesterday?”

“Swimming in the Atlantic,” Leo said with a grin.