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I’m staring at Rome. He becomes blurry as I look at him holding onto my hand. He doesn’t move; neither do I. My lungs struggle to pull in air. The beating of my heart is the only thing I hear, a rhythmic melody that forces me to my knees as well.
“I mean, you don’t—”
“Yes,” I interrupt him. “Yes, I’ll give you more than one night. I’ll give you the rest of my life,” I tell him easily. “I’ve spent my life holding back, keeping myself hidden from a life I wanted because I had to please everyone else around me. But with you, I know what I want and what I need. And I’m tired of putting my happiness on hold for everyone else.”
Rome pulls me into his arms, wrapping me in their strength. Slowly, I realize that everything I never knew I wanted is right in front of me. Back in Portland, I have the bakery I’ve always wanted, I have a home, friends, and now I have a man who loves me for who I am.
“I can’t believe I just said yes,” I mumble into his shirt, holding onto him in the hopes that this isn’t some dream that’s going to disappear the moment I open my eyes.
The house looks just like it did when I was last here. I don’t know why I thought it would have changed. That it would’ve perhaps been less foreboding, but it’s still as scary as it was when I was younger.
With Rome’s fingers laced through mine, we make our way to the door. The garden is lush, the men guarding the entrance all dressed in black, and as we near them, they offer me a curt nod.
I’ve known some of them all my life, and they’re still as intimidating as they were the first time I came across them. By the time we reach the door, which is etched with an intricate pattern, my heart is attacking me with a rhythm that threatens to stop me in my tracks.
I reach for the door knocker and bang it three times against the heavy wood. It doesn’t take long for Maria to open the door and gasp when she sees me.
“Elisabetta,” she says, her voice filled with happiness, and her smile lights up her face. “I cannot believe you’re here.”
“Neither can I, Maria.” I grin as I step inside and wrap my arms around her. She holds me close for a long while, but when we finally break contact, I gesture toward Rome and introduce her. “This is my boyfriend, Rome, and this is Maria. The woman who was there for me after my mother passed away.”
I can see the tears that shimmer in her eyes, but she blinks them back, her focus on Rome as she shakes his hand. “You take care of my girl,” she tells him, unperturbed that he’s so much taller than her.
“Always,” Rome promises, and just then, I hear the clearing of a throat, and I look up to see my father at the top of the sweeping staircase.
“Elisabetta,” he says, and even though I was expecting him to be angry with me, I don’t see it written on his face. Instead, I find sadness, laced with . . . guilt?
“Dad,” is all I can manage before he’s down the steps and in the foyer. Pulling me into his arms, he holds me close.
“I’ve missed you, Tesoro,” he mumbles into my hair, and I know my father won’t hate Rome as much as I thought he would. Only because he’s missed me, and if there’s one thing I know about my father, he wants me to be happy.
Chapter 32
Elisabet
We break our hug, and I take my father in. He’s aged a lot over the years, and I wonder if his job is finally getting to him. Nobody can live the life he does and not feel the effects.
“Dad, this is Rome,” I tell him, stepping aside so the two men in my life can meet. The tension emanating from my father is clawing at my chest. I want them to get along, but even though my father may want me happy, he’s not going to give in easily to a man he’s just met.
“And you’re the man that’s been looking after my little girl?” Dad asks, holding out his hand, and I watch them shake.
“Yes, sir,” Rome says. “I love her very much.”
Dad’s hand tightens on Rome’s, and the air suddenly becomes stifling. “Love?” My father’s head tips to the side, then he glances at me. “You’re in love?”
“Yes, Dad,” I respond with confidence. I hope he’ll see that I’m no longer the little girl he wants to rule but a woman who has her own mind and is confident enough to make her own decisions.
“Then I guess it’s time for us to sit down, and I can get to know this man,” he says, tugging Rome along with him, and I follow behind. They’re both larger-than-life characters, and I know that their personalities will most probably clash. But what makes my heart happy is knowing that they both love me.
