"Yes. Tomorrow morning."
"Good." She squeezed my hand, then turned to Matteo. "Nice to see you again."
And then she was gone, and it was just the two of us on a rooftop full of fairy lights and fading flowers.
Matteo crossed the space between us slowly.
"Bella."His voice was soft. "You look beautiful."
I laughed, self-conscious, pressing my hand to my hair which had long since abandoned any pretense of style. "You don't have to lie. I know I look like a mess. It's been a very long day."
"Beautiful," he repeated. Firmer this time. Like he meant it. "Always beautiful to me."
I didn't know what to say to that. So I said nothing.
He sat in the chair Kim had vacated, turning it to face me directly. His knee brushed mine, warm even through fabric.
"How was the shower?"
"Good. Really good, actually." I found myself smiling, the tension easing. "We played games—there was one where Aria had to guess Sebastian's answers to questions about himself. She got most of them right. And then we made her drink every time she said his name, which was very entertaining."
"That sounds dangerous." His eyes were warm, amused.
"It was. She was very tipsy by the end." I reached for my champagne, took a sip. "And then we danced. And she opened gifts. We made her a photo album with pictures of her and Sebastian—candid ones, moments we'd captured over the past year. She cried."
"Happy tears?"
"The happiest."
He was watching me while I talked. Not just listening politely, but actually engaged. His eyes moved over my face, catching every expression, every shift in emotion.
"It sounds like it was perfect," he said.
"It was. I think she felt really loved. That was the whole point, making sure she knew how much she matters to all of us."
"You did that. Made her feel that way."
"Not just me. Everyone helped."
"But you organized it. You made sure every detail was right." He smiled. "You're very good at that. Making people feel special."
My throat tightened unexpectedly at the sincerity in his voice.
"I leave for Milan tomorrow," I said, needing to say it before I lost my nerve. "Back to the boutique. Back to real life."
Matteo nodded slowly. "I'll be in Milan, too. Next week. Business with a distributor."
"Really?"
"Really." He leaned forward slightly, his eyes intent on mine. "Maybe you'll let me take you to dinner. A proper dinner. Just the two of us."
I should have hesitated. Should have reminded him that I was still figuring things out, that my last relationship had ended less than a week ago, that I didn't know what I wanted.
Instead, I said: "Yes."
His eyebrows lifted in surprise. "Yes?"
"Yes."
