Chapter 10 - The Promise
The velvet box on my nightstand contained an antique platinum ring set with an uncut, radiant diamond surrounded by sapphires the color of Leo’s eyes.
Beside it lay a handwritten note in bold, sharp cursive:
*I spent ten years building a kingdom of shadows because I thought it was the only way to keep what was mine safe. You showed me that a house built on fear is just a prison with nicer walls.*
*I don't want an employee. I don't want a contract.*
*I want you.*
*If you stay, you get the man, not the monster. I laid him to rest this morning.*
*Come find us on the terrace.*
My eyes filled with hot, blinding tears as I clutched the note against my chest. My hands shook so badly I almost dropped the ring as I slipped it onto the third finger of my left hand.
It was a perfect fit.
I threw on an oversized cream knit sweater, leggings, and slippers, practically running down the sweeping marble staircase of the east wing. The house was different this morning. The oppressive, cold silence that had haunted the corridors for months was gone, replaced by the warm smell of brewing coffee and bacon drifting from the kitchen.
The armed guards in tactical gear were no longer pacing the hallways; instead, the French doors leading to the expansive garden terrace stood wide open, letting in the crisp, golden sunlight of a crisp autumn morning.
I stepped out onto the stone patio.
The lawn stretched down toward the woods, ablaze with red and gold leaves.
In the center of the grass, Leo was tottering on unsteady legs, laughing with pure, unfettered joy as he chased a bright red rubber ball across the lawn. He fell onto his padded diaper, giggled, rolled over, and pushed himself back up, his little sneakers digging into the turf.
Standing two feet behind him, ready to catch him the instant he stumbled, was Luca.
He had abandoned his suits entirely. He wore worn denim, work boots, and a simple gray Henley with the sleeves pushed up, his dark hair ruffled by the morning breeze. He looked younger, the brutal lines of tension around his eyes smoothed away by the morning light.
Leo spotted me first.
"Mama!" the boy shrieked, his face breaking into a massive, toothy grin as he pointed his chubby little finger at me. "Mama, Mama!"
My heart stopped, then expanded so violently it felt like it would burst through my ribs.
*Mama.*
Luca froze, turning around. When his dark eyes found me standing on the terrace steps, his breath caught in his throat. His gaze dropped immediately to my left hand, catching the flash of platinum and sapphire against the morning sun.
A slow, breathtaking smile broke across his face—the kind of smile a man wears when he has crawled out of hell and realized the gates of paradise were open all along.
He walked toward me, scooping Leo up into one arm as he crossed the lawn. When he reached the steps, he didn't stop until he was standing on the riser just below mine, bringing our eyes level.
"He chose well," Luca murmured, his voice rich and low, reaching up to rest his hand against my cheek. "Mama fits you."
"You retired," I whispered, resting my hand over his on my cheek, feeling the steady, warm pulse beneath his skin. "Just like that?"
"Not just like that," Luca said softly. "It took an extraordinary woman throwing a fire extinguisher off a twelve-story building to knock some sense into me."
I let out a wet laugh, tears spilling over my lashes. "You're crazy."
"Completely," Luca agreed, leaning in until his lips brushed against mine with intoxicating warmth. "Crazy about you. In love with you, Avery. From the second you held this boy at Table Twelve and looked at me like I was just another tired father instead of a demon."
He wrapped his free arm around my waist, pulling me flush against his chest, while Leo happily smashed his wet, sticky cheek against my neck, babbling incoherently about the red ball.
"Marry me, Avery," Luca whispered against my lips, his dark eyes begging, stripped of all pride, offering me everything he was and everything he would ever be. "Let me spend the rest of my life making sure you and Leo never have to be afraid of the dark again."
I wrapped my arms around his neck, burying my fingers in his thick hair, pulling him down into a deep, desperate kiss that sealed our fate in the warm autumn sunlight.
May you like
"Yes," I breathed against his mouth, tasting his tears and mine. "A thousand times, yes."
Leo squealed between us, clapping his little hands together in triumph, and for the first time in our lives, none of us looked back.
