Laughing, Aria answered, “It’s a date.”
Aria was too upset to eat more than a bowl of cereal for dinner. Putting her bowl in the sink, she went to the bathroom for a shower, hoping for sleep to help ease her aching heart.
When sleep eluded her, she walked around the living room aimlessly. Before she could make herself stop, she dialed Alex’s number.
“The caller you have reached is not available.”
Maybe I can call Sofia in the morning. But she’s likely upset with me for hurting her brother.
Just then, her eyes landed on one of her decorative bottles. She picked up her favorite one, turning it over and over in the lamplight.
An idea was born, and even though she knew it was insane to think it could work, she couldn’t let it go. She dug around in her desk drawers until she found some parchment paper. Sitting down at the desk, she started to write.
Chapter Fifty-One
In the light of day,Aria’s idea seemed even more crazy than it had the night before, but something about it felt so right. Before she could change her mind, she got ready for work with one stop in mind before heading to Libri Stellari.
Pulling up to the house, Aria was shocked to see a garden filled with herbs and flowers that wasn’t there the last time she saw Alex. She touched them gently, watching them bend, the motion releasing their fragrance.
Rosemary, oregano and basil dotted the garden in between flowers of every color. But what stood out more than anything was the dozens of jasmine vines that were growing on a tall white trellis in the garden.
Smelling a familiar floral aroma, Aria spun around to see eight small orange trees nearby in various stages of growth, some of them covered in fragrant blossoms.
Alex has to have done this. It has to mean something.But what?And when?
Corinna said he left the same day she did.
Walking down the path that led to the house, her memory brought her back to that night when candles lined it. She pushed down her sadness and walked out to the water's edge.
Have I lost him for good?
Reaching into her purse, she pulled out a small, blue glass bottle. Turning it over in her hands, the etched edges caught the sunlight, causing prisms in the sand.
Aria pulled out the parchment paper she’d written on, her words rolling around in her mind like the gentle waves coming ashore on the beach. She placed the paper in the bottle and pushed the cork stopper in as hard as she could to protect it.
Looking up at the morning sky, she whispered a prayer before throwing the bottle into the blue water.
“If this is meant to be, come home to me, Alex.”
Chapter Fifty-Two
Natalia,Luna, and Gio, and the rest of her staff met Aria at the door in a flurry of excitement when she walked into Libri Stellari. Aria hugged them one by one as they all talked over one another.
“We’re so proud of you. You’ve inspired us all,” Natalia said as heads nodded around the room.
Aria told them about Madrid, and Natalia caught her up on everything since their last phone call a few days earlier.
After everyone got back to work, Aria and Natalia stepped into Aria’s office and closed the door.
“I started editing your book as soon as you sent it in and I can’t put it down, Aria. I’ve laughed, I’ve cried. I know I’m biased, but I think this is going to be bigger than Thomas’ book. Why haven’t you been writing until now?” Natalia asked when they sat down.
“You really think so? I don’t know what to say. I do think you’re just a tiny bit biased, but I’ll happily take your compliment,” she answered with a chuckle. “To answer your question—life, loss, responsibilities. So many things.”
“I don’t want to pry, but the character Dante sounds an awful lot like a famous photographer we know,” Natalia said with a smirk, tilting her head. “He called here the day you left, you know.”
Aria took a deep breath in, her emotions still raw from her visit to his house.
“I don’t know if he will take me back,” she answered, shrugging her shoulders.
