Page 69 of The Fall Affair

I shook my head again. “I’m sorry.”

She pushed off my chest and stood, wobbling as she got to her feet. “Fine.”

Somehow I managed to keep my hands at my sides and not reach for her as she walked away. Allegra disappeared into the apartment, and thirty seconds later, I heard the door to her bedroom close.

I let out a string of curses before swallowing the rest of my wine. The sound of the ocean lapping against the sand in the near distance did nothing to help me relax, so I sat on the balcony for a long time before finally picking up her abandoned glass and carrying it in with me.

Inside, I stopped at Allegra’s door and pressed my ear against it, listening for any signs that she might be awake. When I heard nothing, I gently turned the handle. Allegra was curled up in the middle of the bed, knees drawn up, still wearing her clothes. The bedside lamp was on, so I stepped inside to turn it off, but first grabbed the blanket folded at the foot of the bed. Standing over her, I looked down and smiled at how peaceful she seemed. Her lips were slightly parted in sleep, and my gaze lingered longer than it should’ve.

I did the right thing tonight.

But I was drawn to this woman in a way that wasn’t easy to resist. There was a pull, an ache, something quiet but insistent that had been there from the start. She made me feel like something unfinished was trying to right itself. And maybe that’s why, as I stood there watching the rise and fall of her breath, another night rose up in me—uninvited but as vivid as ever.

A different girl. But the same strong pull.

And I didn’t want to make the same mistakes.

Chapter 22

Matteo

13 years ago

“I DON’T WANT you to go,” I said.

Izzy plopped down on her bed next to me. “It’s only for the summer.”

I looked around the room. “It doesn’t feel that way. You’re packing everything you own.”

“I told you. My dad doesn’t want to pay rent when we’ll be gone for a few months. So we’re putting our stuff in storage.”

“Where will you live when you get back?”

She shrugged. “We’ll find a place.”

“What if it’s not near me anymore?”

She smiled. “Then you’ll find a new girl to watch like a creeper.”

“Dat’s not funny.”

Izzy laced her fingers with mine. “Think of it this way, when I get back, we’ll only have a month until I turn seventeen.”

I frowned. “Yeah, and then your father will probably say you have to be eighteen to date.” I’d waited four long months for Izzy to be my girlfriend last year, only for her to tell me on her birthday that her dad had changed his mind, and she had to wait another year to start dating.

“If you don’t want to wait, it’s fine.” She shrugged. “I understand.”

“You say dat like you don’t care if I go out with someone else.”

“Of course I do. But I’m not going to be here the whole summer, and if you find some other girl, I’ll understand.”

My jaw tightened. I wasn’t going to be so understanding if she found some other guy.

Izzy noticed my face and moved from next to me to sit on my lap. “You’re cute when you pout.”

“I’m not pouting.”

She ran her fingers through my hair. “I’ll write to you.”