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Her gaze met her brother’s. “I’ve got to go. I have something to do.”
She turned and rushed off in the direction of the ship. She heard her brother call to her but she didn’t care. She had to do this. She had to take this chance.
As she drew closer to Roberto and his grandfather, she overheard his grandfather say, “You strike a tough bargain, but I think we can make this work.” His grandfather held out his hand to him. “Welcome back to the company.”
Roberto shook his hand, all the while smiling.
Stasia came to a halt. Roberto was smiling. He was happy. Maybe it would be best just to leave well enough alone.
“Stasia—” her brother’s voice came from behind her “—what’s going on?”
It was then that Roberto and his grandfather noticed her standing off to the side. Roberto’s gaze caught and held hers. Her heart pounded in her chest. She should say something, but no words came to mind.
Xander stepped forward. His gaze moved between her and Roberto. “It’s him?”
Stasia was done keeping secrets. She nodded.
Xander’s expression hardened. He moved toward Roberto in determined steps. “You were supposed to watch over her—keep her from getting hurt.”
Stasia rushed to stand between the two most important men in her life. “Xander, I love you. But this is none of your business.”
“I can explain,” Roberto said.
“We don’t want to hear it.” Xander pressed his fists to his sides with a glare written all over his face. “You screwed up. Big-time.”
“Ignore him,” Stasia said to Roberto. “I want to hear what you have to say.”
Just then Roberto’s grandmother joined them. “What’s going on?”
“Shh...” Roberto’s grandfather said. “You don’t want to miss this.”
Roberto approached Xander. “First, Xander, I resign. I’m sorry for the short notice, but with you moving most of the operations to Infinity Island, this is probably the best time for a change.”
When Xander went to say something, Stasia glared at him and he closed his mouth without saying a word. She didn’t want her brother to ruin one of his closest friendships.
“And second—” Roberto moved to stand directly in front of her “—thanks to your support, I am taking the CEO position. However, my grandfather and I have hammered out a deal where the headquarters are to be moved to Athens.”
“Really?” A big smile pulled at her lips. The thought of Roberto being close by, the thought of being able to see him regularly, almost offset the sadness of calling off their engagement. “But I don’t understand. Why would you do that?”
“You honestly don’t know?” When she shook her head, he said, “Because I love you. I love the way you smile. I love your laugh. I love your generous heart. I love everything about you. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, but someone set me straight.” He glanced at his grandmother, who had happy tears in her eyes. Roberto turned his attention back to Stasia. “And I plan to stick around until you realize that you love me too.”
Her heart swelled. “You won’t have to wait long because I already love you.”
A smile lit up Roberto’s face as he pulled her into an embrace and kissed her. The kiss was short but it left no doubt in her mind that there would be more to follow soon.
When he pulled back, he said, “I think I have something that belongs to you.” He pulled the engagement ring from his pocket. He bent down on one knee.
Her heart lodged in her throat. She had never expected this. His gaze held hers. When her gaze blurred from happy tears, she blinked repeatedly.
“I know I did this once before, but I want to do it over again, the right way.” He took her hand in his and held the ring at the end of her finger. “Stasia, you’ve shown me what true love is. You’ve shown me that some risks are worth taking. I want us to walk through life side by side with no one in the lead. If you give me the chance, I’ll be your biggest cheerleader. I believe you’re capable of anything you set your mind to.” He stared deep into her eyes. “Stasia, I love you with all my heart. Will you be my partner in life?”
