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I manage to fall asleep for a while, and when I wake up, I have to take a piss. I shuffle over to the bathroom. While I’m in there, I hear a sound in the room. Probably just one of the nurses coming to check on me.
But when I walk back into the room, I freeze.
Francesca is here.
“Leo?” she whispers.
“You came back.”
“I did.”
For a moment, neither of us moves, then she takes one step forward, and I do the same, and then we’re in each other’s arms. I hold her tightly to me as she buries her head into my chest.
“I thought I’d never see you again,” I tell her.
“I thought that, too.” She pulls back, looking me over. “Lay down. You shouldn’t be standing if you’re hurt.”
“Nothing can keep me down.” Though, I still let her help me back onto the bed, where, admittedly, I feel better than when I was standing.
“Marco told me you were in the hospital. I was so scared.”
“I’m fine. Just got into a car crash. Henry died.”
She gasps. “That’s horrible.”
“Did you find your brother?”
“I did. He’ll be all right, but … he can’t return home. Not with Franco wanting him dead. My entire family has been fractured. Nothing will be the same ever again.”
I reach out for her hand and pause before touching her, waiting to see what her next move is. When she doesn’t pull her hand away, I take it in mine. “Fran, listen. I need to explain. No, actually. There’s no explanation for what I did. I did it because I was an asshole. That’s the truth. But then we married, and it ended up being the best thing for me. I … fell in love with you, Fran.” Her eyes widen. “That’s the truth. I told Henry the bet was off, that I didn’t want to seduce you for fun anymore. I just wanted to be with you, Fran. I still do. If you’ll have me.”
She doesn’t answer.
“I know I messed up,” I continue. “I know you probably don’t trust me. But I’m telling you the truth. All the dates we went on, all the nights we talked … that was all real. I wasn’t faking that just to get to you.”
“So, us sleeping together …?”
“Was real. That’s why I pushed you away at first. I felt guilty. I didn’t want to hurt you. I never want to hurt you again. You mean everything to me, Fran. Truly. I have no more secrets to keep. No more lies to hold onto. It’s all out in the open. You know what kind of man I used to be, but you also know what kind of man I’ve become. I just want to see you happy. And I want to be the one responsible for that. I never faked my affection for you. Not once. The only reason I made that bet in the first place was because I was attracted to you. I know that’s not right. I never should’ve done it. But I want you to know I was never faking how I felt for you. From the moment you told me you preferred lilies to roses, I was captivated. Even though I didn’t want to get married at first, it ended up being the best thing to ever happen to me. It brought me to you. I never want to lose you, Fran. Can you forgive me?”
She stares down at our hands for so long that I think she won’t reply. Then she asks, “You really love me?”
“I do.” I squeeze her hand. “I do.”
Fran lets out a small laugh tinged with tears. “Well, when you put it all out there like that, how can I not forgive you? My mom told me the reason your betrayal hurt so much was because I … loved you, too.”
“Loved?”
She inhales deeply before giving me a warm smile. “Love. Present tense.” Her words send a flare of hope though me. “When Marco told me you were in the hospital, I was so scared. I knew in that moment I loved you. If you tell me you’re a changed man, that you meant everything you said to me, then … I choose to believe it. I can tell you mean it. You just have to promise me to never make such a stupid mistake ever again.”
I laugh and lean over to kiss her cheek. “I promise.”
“How about we start fresh? Because I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you when I knew we were fighting. I don’t want to ever feel that way again. So, let’s start anew. No bets. No past mistakes. No doubting each other. Let’s begin again and see where our marriage takes us. We’re both changed people. I want to be my new self with you.”
“I want that, too.” I almost can’t believe any of this is happening because I’ve never felt like I deserved much forgiveness. But there Francesca goes again, surprising me in the best way possible. “But just for good measure, I’m going to send you bouquet after bouquet of lilies until the end of time, just to show you how much you mean to me.”
“I won’t complain about that,” she says, leaning down until our lips are about an inch apart.
“Good. Because you’re stuck with me, and I’m going to make sure you feel loved every day because that’s what I want. I want to see you happy, Fran.”
