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He smiled slightly before his eyes lit up with approval. “I’d love to.” He sat down and set his cup on the table, keeping his posture perfectly straight and his shoulders squared. Steam wafted from his coffee toward the ceiling. He looked at me for a moment longer, quickly reading the expression on my face before he turned to my family. “I bought one of Vanessa’s paintings. It’s hanging in my apartment right now, in the living room. She’s very talented. I’m sure you guys already know that…but she is.”
Carmen grinned from ear to ear as she listened to him talk, affected by his sexy voice just the way I was. “She is. We’re all so impressed by her. No one else inherited this talent.”
Conway cleared his throat.
“You aren’t a painter,” Carmen said.
“You design lingerie, right?” Antonio asked. “I love painting, but I think you might have the best job in the world.” He wore a playful grin, indicating he was joking.
Conway obviously liked the compliment. “There are worse ways to make a living. And it’s how I met my wife.” He moved his arm around her shoulders.
“That’s awesome,” Antonio said. “And you’ve got a little one on the way?”
“Yes.” Sapphire moved her hand to her stomach. “They’ll be here in a few months.”
“Congratulations.” Antonio turned back to me. “You’re about to be an aunt. Very exciting.”
“Are you an uncle yet?” Conway asked. It was shocking my brother was asking him anything considering he hated seeing me with a man at any time. He usually intervened in my dates, didn’t aid in them. But now he was talking to Antonio like a friend, making him feel welcome instead of barking at him like a guard dog.
“Yes.” Antonio drank from his mug. “I have two nieces.”
“Aw, that’s nice…” I was learning this information for the first time. It was strange that I didn’t know Antonio at all but I enjoyed his company so deeply. I was comfortable around him even though there was no foundation to our friendship. We just clicked. “How old are they?”
He turned back to me, clearly excited by my interest. “Seven and four. They’re beautiful little girls—like my sister. But don’t tell her I said that. She’s got a huge ego.”
I chuckled. “Your secret is safe with me.” It reminded me of something Conway would say in confidence, before my parents stabbed him in the back and told me what he said.
“Does everyone live in Florence?” Antonio asked.
“No.” Conway rubbed the back of Sapphire’s neck. “My wife and I live in Verona. But we actually have some exciting news…” He turned his gaze to me.
I already knew what he was going to say before he said. “You’re serious? You guys are moving back to Tuscany?”
Sapphire couldn’t keep the words in her throat. “Yes! We’re looking for a house right now.”
“What?” Carmen almost knocked over her coffee mug when she threw her arms down. “That’s so awesome! Do your mom and dad know?”
“Yes,” Conway answered. “We told them last week.”
“You have no idea how happy you just made them.” My parents were hurt that I was heartbroken, but they were also happy I was right down the road. Both of my parents stopped by to see me whenever they felt like it, and they were overjoyed to have my close by. Now their son was back in town, just when he was starting his family.
“I think we do,” Conway said confidently. “So, it looks like the two of us will be seeing a lot more of each other.”
“Good.” My brother could be a jackass sometimes, but it didn’t change the love I had for him. “I miss seeing both of you. Now Sapphire and I can hang out all the time, bringing the baby along.”
“We can have those family dinners every week,” Carmen said. “It feels like our family just got a little bigger.”
I felt Antonio stare at me, so I shifted my gaze to him. He wore a gentle smile, his eyes lit up with affection. His thoughts were clearly written on his face, his adoration for me obvious in the glow of his coffee eyes.
“What?” I asked.
He grinned before he looked down at his coffee again. “You’re cute, that’s all.” He said the words out loud, not caring that my brother and cousin heard it. His confidence always dictated his behavior, made him indifferent to the opinion of others. He didn’t care what anyone thought of him, and that made him even sexier. “I like a woman who’s close with her family. I’m exactly the same way.”
Antonio returned to work, and the four of us walked back to my gallery to say goodbye. Carmen had to return to her shop, and Conway and Sapphire were having dinner with my parents.
“Thanks for coming down to see me,” I said, appreciating the fact that I was never alone, even in my darkest hour. My brother was always there for me, even when I didn’t deserve it. I looked up to him in ways he would never understand.
