Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 85569 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85569 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
He shook his head. “No, Montana. You came because I didn’t make the situation clear to you. I would have done the same thing in your shoes.”
I nodded and rose to my feet, then, needing to leave, needing to process, but then he caught my hand and looked into my eyes.
“Thank you for protecting Bianca the way you did. Everything turned out well because of you. I was already taken with you, but your loyalty today just proved I was right all along.”
“Right about what?” I asked. My heart was racing so hard in my chest I could hardly swallow.
“Just how special you are, just how gorgeous, and smart, and wonderful. And just how fucking in love with you I am. The past few weeks, knowing I couldn’t go further, was pure torture. If you’ll give me another chance, I’ll go to the very ends of the earth for you. I know you probably want to think about what I said, but today I realized how easily everything could change, how precious life is, and … I didn’t want to let another minute go past without telling you this."
I was too hyped up on adrenaline, anxiety, pain meds to make any decisions, but I looked out the window at the starry night and knew he was right. He had just reminded me once again of just how fragile life was, and I knew that like him, I didn’t want to wait for even one more minute to accept him into my life.
I turned away from the sky full of stars and looked at him. His eyes were full of pain and uncertainty. That was because of me. I could turn those pools of misery into beautiful twinkling stars with one sentence.
“I’m in love with you too,” I whispered.
For a second, the disbelief was so great, he could do nothing and I thought maybe he had not heard me. Then he jumped to his feet, pulled me to mine, and clamping his large hands around my waist, began to twirl me around. Round and round we went until I was laughing uncontrollably, just as he was, and then a nurse came running.
“Shh…” she scolded sternly. “Stop that. Patients are sleeping.”
“Sorry,” he said and put me down.
“Sorry,” I echoed, and she went away shaking her head, and tutting.
I saw then that his eyes were beautiful and twinkling. He leaned forward and kissed me. I didn’t want the nurse to come back and scold us again so I wanted to control myself, but it was impossible. Tears of happiness flowed down my cheeks.
I’d thought I'd never taste him again, never feel the warmth and fire and excitement of his smile, his laugh, his touch. But now that I knew the truth about him, and most of the dots were connected, it made me realize the picture I’d been too afraid to dream about was possible.
“I love you, Luca. I love you, I love you,” I said with all of my heart.
“I don’t even know if what I feel for you can be covered by a four-letter word like love. I love you so much that my heart feels as if it could burst. Now I understand what you meant when you said, you wake up every morning and give thanks for the gift of another day. Finally, for the first time in my life, I know why someone would wake up in the morning and give thanks for another day in heaven.”
I smiled with happiness. “I can see now that we’ll be fine. We’ll be just fine.” Luca, little Bianca, and me.
Chapter 60
Luca
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iAzMRKFX3c&list=RD0iAzMRKFX3c&start_radio=1
-wind beneath my wings-
My dad was dead. Without Paganini’s protection, he didn’t even last a week. I went to my mother’s apartment and Greta, the nurse, opened the door.
“Mr. Rossi,” she greeted warmly. “Come in, come in.”
“Is my mother awake?”
“Yes, she has just had her lunch and is listening to music in her room. Let me take you to her.”
“It’s okay. I know my way around.”
I walked down the hallway and knocked gently on the door before I opened it and went in. My mother was sitting by the window looking out. Her favorite piano music was tinkling softly in the background. A tiny bird was busy at the bird feeder. It looked peaceful. I was about to break it.
I sat next to her. “Hello, Mama.”
She blinked but didn’t turn to look at me.
I took her hand. “It’s me, Mama. I’m back, and soon I will be bringing Bianca to see you.”
Slowly, her hand gripped mine and tears pooled in her eyes and spilled down her face.
Without breaking her clasp on my hand, I moved so I was kneeling in front of her. “Mama, can you hear me?”
Her eyes moved over my face, slowly, but purposefully.
“Mama?” I called again.
But she transferred her gaze far away. She stared at the sky blankly. Disappointment crushed me. For a second there, I was sure she could see me. I was so sure there had been emotion there. She had missed me. Nobody could convince me that for those few seconds, my mother was not trapped in this unresponsive body and looking at me from inside.