Still.
She shouldn’t have been in the middle of a fucking battle that could have taken her from me. I should have been the one protecting her. I thought about that every day, almost every second, the thought becoming a permanent fixture in the back of my mind, even if I could focus on other things too.
But my wife. She stared at me and Luca longer and harder, held him closer, even when he wriggled to get down. It was like she was gazing at her own stars and waiting for the day to come when they would disappear.
I refused to allow her to be bullied by fear.
I was the monster the day should fear when I emerged from the night.
I was her protector.
Her husband.
The father of her child.
Her man.
And I always learned lessons from the past.
I’d approach every situation differently from the night of her premiere going forward.
Stella always felt more at home at ourcastelloin Tuscany, and after the hospital stint, that was where we went. The stars there had always hypnotized her. We immediately fell into a routine that felt like…life. We spent every second together with Luca, watching him change and grow.
The honor of my life.
I wouldn’t have a household of sons, but my wife and son made up for that.
My wife and son were more than enough.
My wife and son were my always.
And if my family couldn’t accept that, fuck them too.
I was willing to give them up before formyfamily. And I’d do it without a second’s hesitation again.
The uncertainty was still on the table, and so was Padrino’s place in the family. My uncle wasn’t dealing with the unfortunate unfolding of his life as of late. After Rosaria set them on a trajectory of sorrow and despair—Padrino, Massimo, Amadeo, and Ludovico—he wasn’t himself.
If my uncle decided to give up the throne, like I had been willing to do, that meant that I would be next in line to lead the family. I accepted the position along with the cut over my heart my grandfather had given me, though he took a smear of my blood and touched his heart with it. I knew it was a sign of respect. He knew the only thing I would ever give up my place for was love, just like he was doing.
It was romantic.
And the Faustis lived for romance just as much as ruthlessness.
It might make my transition easier, too, if my leadership started sooner rather than later. We had Luca, and that was enough—for that second. But once years passed and no other children came from our household, the inquiries would begin.
Notifthey would, butwhen.
I would be honest.
And if that made other branches challenge me, so be it.
I’d think about all that later, though.
Tonight.
Tonight, I wanted my wife to stare freely at the sky without a worry.
After dinner, I scooped my son up, his face full of sweet cream from dessert, and took my wife’s hand.
