“Miles, I’m not here to tell you that I’m getting married. If you want to know the truth, I have met other men and dated a few since I left.” I decided not to give any more details yet when I saw his jaw pulse with tension and his other hand ball into a fist.
“Then, you’re here for work?” he asked, his voice raw with emotion.
I let my eyes flick between his, choosing my words carefully. “Before I answer that, I need to ask you. Is there someone else foryou? I mean, I saw your ribbon, so I have hope that there isn’t.”
Shaking his head, he took my other hand. “There’s no one else. I’ve dated a bit myself but, no, there’s no one, Vicky.”
His words were like ice in my veins. I knew Miles. He’d never date anyone he wasn’t serious about because of MJ.
“But therewassomeone? Did MJ like her?” I asked, my heart pounding loudly.
He shook his head again. “There’s been no one since you left that I’d evenconsiderintroducing to my daughter. Vicky, I know we’re tiptoeing here, being careful. But I’m done with that. I’ve waited two years to say these things to you.”
I took a deep breath in, lost in his ocean-blue eyes, waiting, anticipating.
Miles pulled me up to standing, our hands still clasped tightly. “My family has a saying. A motto, I guess, that we try to live by, and it’s this. Don’t miss the opportunity to say the words.”
I couldn’t breathe as he let go of my hands and pulled me closer, placing his palms on my cheeks.
“Vicky, I’m in love with you.” A tear snaked down my cheek, and he kissed it away. “Honestly, I think I fell in love the night I found you in MJ’s room holding her pink dress. I’ve tried to push those feelings aside since you left, but I can’t anymore. I thought I was ready to move on, but my heart kept bringing me to that wishing tree over and over, almost like I was being drawn there. But when you were here, Enzo made it clear you were off limits.” I shook my head and laughed.
“Hehasgotten better,” I said through a teary chuckle.
“Good to know but my heart wouldn’t,couldn’tlisten. When you showed up at my house that first night, it took everything in me not to pull you into my arms after thinking about you for almost a year after Enzo’s wedding. I figured that if God had brought you back into my life, there must be a reason.
“No woman has made me feel the way you do. You’ve seen the real me and torn through all my defenses and obliterated them. Made me laugh and listened to me. You saw me and it broke me while putting me back together, if that makes sense. I felt like such a failure with Katy. But you…you were a miracle. One I never saw coming. I wanted you so badly, but there were so many reasons not to allow myself to ask you to be mine.”
I wanted to tell him that none of that mattered to me back then, but he continued talking.
“When you got that job offer in Rome, I wanted to ask you to stay. I felt torn that night because I never wanted you to give up your dreams so we could be together. I’d done that with Katy. When she left, I was broken. But whenyouleft, I couldn’t breathe. There was a constant ache in my chest. You took a piece of my heart with you. Vicky, you hold my heart in your hands. I won’t lie to you. My desire is to have your heart as well.”
“I’m so sorry. I never meant to hurt you. But you’re right. I needed to go. Needed to grow and experience and be on my own.” I covered his big hands still warm on my cheeks with my own.
“I’ve seen beautiful parts of the world. Met people, experienced different cultures. I’ve grown as a designer, learned to take risks, and built the confidence I never had. And I still want to do all those things. But I want to do them with someone by my side, witnessing my life, experiencing them with me. Miles, I’ve been all over, but what I want more than anything right now is to find my home.”
His eyes were soft and hopeful. I knew he needed me to do what his family believed in.
Say the words.
“Miles, I’ve found my home. And it’s here with you. You and MJ.You’remy home. I’m so in love with you. While we’ve been apart, I felt untethered.”
He pulled me into an embrace again, but I wanted to say more. I laid my cheek against his chest and continued. “No matter what I did, where I went, there was something missing. It was you. You were my missing piece, too.”
A second later, we were kissing, his warm embrace making my soul feel at peace. Nothing else mattered in that moment. I’d told Elena that I wanted to see if moving back to San Diego was the right thing for me. She didn’t ask anything personal but said she didn’t want to lose me as a designer. Her offer surprised me when she gave me the choice to stay in Rome or to work for her again in San Diego.
“When do you leave?” he mumbled against my lips. “How long do we have? Maybe we can visit you on the next holiday.”
I leaned back and looked into his eyes with a smile. “Well,aboutthat. I have a choice between staying in Rome and coming back here. If I choose to stay, Elena will sponsor me until I get my residency here.”
Miles pulled away, his eyes wide again, joy written on his wide smile. “Well, I hear San Diego is beautiful year-round.”
I took a step back, tapping my finger to my lips. “Hmm, I don’t know. Rome is considered the eternal city, you know?”
“Oh yeah,” he teased, pulling me close again with one arm around my waist. “Anything I can do to convince you to stay?” His eyes moved to my lips with a smirk.
“Well, I don’t know. Do you know any cute, tattooed tech nerds?”
“Listen to me clearly, Ms. Lazzara,” he said, his voice lowering an octave. “There will beno oneelse. No other tattooed tech nerds but me. Understand?”
