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He stopped walking and turned to face her. “That’s entirely up to you.”
She looked up into his eyes. “How?”
“Because I plan to say here until you ask me if I want to move back to Napa.”
She sucked in a deep breath. “Wow. That’s a lot of responsibility to put on me.”
He shook his head rapidly. “No. Not at all. It’s not responsibility; it’s freedom of choice. If you don’t want me to move back there, then I won’t. If you do, I will. It’s not like I want to be there but would stay away if you told me to. The reason I want to be there is because I want to be with you.”
She rested her head against his chest, and she could feel his heart thundering through his shirt.
“I don’t like that.”
He tucked his thumb under her chin and made her look up at him. “Why? I was trying to do right by you.”
“I know. I get what you’re trying to do, but I don’t like it.”
“Why not?” He looked so worried, she smiled.
“Don’t look like that. What I mean is that I can’t ask you to come back there for me when we don’t know how things might turn out between us. I think you should come back anyway, and we can figure it out there.”
His smile lit up his face. “You do?”
“I do. I know you said earlier that if I met a guy and things worked out between us, he might move to Napa to be with me, but I don’t want to wait until we know if it’s going to work out. I want you to come.”
“Okay. Then I’ll come. I’ll come back next weekend.”
“Are you sure? What about your house here and your friends?”
He smiled. “I bought the house. It’s not like I have a lease to get out of or anything.”
“Wow. I guess the cryptocurrency thing is doing well for you.”
“It is. Very well.”
“And what will you do in Napa?”
He shrugged. “I’ll find a place.”
Molly frowned. “Won’t you live on the estate?”
“No. Mom and Dad gave it to Antonio when he and Mary Ellen got married.”
“Oh! Wow! How do you feel about that?” She couldn’t imagine he was happy about it. The Di Giovanni estate was surely part of the family legacy he talked about. She knew he loved the place—but then he’d left it when he left her.
“I think it’s perfect. And don’t worry, you don’t need to feel bad for me. It was my idea. I suggested it.”
“Why? It doesn’t fit with you—or at least not with the you I knew.”
He smiled. “I told you. I’m not the same stupid boy I was. Antonio has made the place, the label, the wines what they are today. He’s built it all. It’s his. I’ve had no part in it, and I don’t want to lay claim to something I didn’t build.”
That made sense; she could understand that.
He looked deep into her eyes. “I hope that I’ll be able to come back there and build something that we can share.”
Molly nodded. She didn’t know what to say. That was what she’d believed would happen twelve years ago.
He nodded sadly. “I know you don’t trust me yet. I can’t blame you. That’s why I wanted to stay away until you do. I want to come back there to build a life for us, not just come back and build a life. You’re my reason to be there.”
