“Sì, piccola ladra. We can go to my home—to Verona—and start anew. Or Paris. Madrid, even. Wherever you decide, we can be together, amore mio.Reallybe together.”
“They would find us,” I whisper, staring down at our connected hands. A numb feeling has settled deep inside, my head at war with my heart. “Myfatherwould find me, eventually.”
“Let me worry about that. It is my burden to shoulder, not yours. I willalwaysprotect you. I have no fear of my life when it comes to your family.” Hope shines in his hazel eyes. It makes my heart flip-flop in my chest, inflating my own sense of optimism. He presses a chaste kiss to my lips. “Run away with me,” he whispers against them.
I squeeze my eyes shut, wanting so badly to say yes. “I?—”
“You don’t have to say anything now,” he interrupts. “Think about it. Think about both options. We don’t have to leave, we can simply tell our families. I know you love New York—your loved ones, your business. We can stay and weather the storm together. Just think about it. If you decide I am worth running away with, and leaving all of this behind, I will be waiting. Or if you choose to tell our families, we’ll devise a plan—figure it out together. But if you do n?—”
This time, I’m the one who cuts him off. “I’ll be there. Wherever you say to meet, I’ll be there.”
Notisn’t even an option.
A life without Sly is not a life I want to live.
“Wait, let me get this out, amoire mio.” He slides from the couch, crouching with one knee on the floor, and takes both of my hands in his. “If you decide a life on the run is not one you are willing to live, or that you simply cannot tell your family about me, then I will respect that. I love you with the heat of a thousand suns, but I also understand the gravity of what I am asking you to do. And even though I would do anything, earth side or heaven far, to keep you, I will not ruin your life just to do so.”
He pauses, shifting his weight slightly. “Think on it. If you want to leave with me, pack the things that mean the most to you. If you’d rather tell our families and allow ourselves to love another in the open, then we will. But if you don’t arrive, I will understand. It may kill me, but I will understand that you had to chooseyourhappiness over ours.”
“I’ll never be happy without you,” I stress. “I don’t need the time to consider it.”
“You do. I want this decision to come as easily as breathing, piccola ladra, and decisions as such needtime. Meet me tomorrow in Central park. I’ll be at the staircase in Shakespeare Garden at one p.m..”
One p.m.
He’s giving me the chance to have one lastnormalbrunch with my family, even though I’ve already decided I won’t be there. Still, I know he’s chosen one o’clock to ensure I get that time with them, because regardless if I choose for us to run away or to tell our families, things will be forever different.
I’m just not sure which path I’ll choose to take for us.
He grabs my face with both hands and pulls me to him, his lips smashing against mine hard. There’s no tongue, no wandering hands, but the words spoken through the kiss speak louder than any we’ve ever spoken out loud.
Sly and I break apart when my front door opens, the sound of keys jingling and bags shifting, following the sound of footsteps. We both turn to see Cecilia standing in the threshold with two large brown paper bags, soaked with raindrops, in her arms. She looks like a deer caught in headlights as her eyes bounce between us.
“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry!” she gasps, using her foot to shut the door.
Without a second thought, Sly stands and goes to her, taking the bags from her hands. “There is nothing to apologize for. I am inyourhome. To the kitchen?”
“Yes, please. Thank you.” She looks back at me, a smile on her lips as she follows him into the kitchen.
“I am Sly Lucchetti,” he tells her, extending his hand after he’s set the groceries on the counter. “It is nice to meet you.”
“Cecilia.” For some reason, she seems a little awestruck as they shake hands.
He offers her a warm smile, then crosses the room to me. “I must go now, but please, think on it, amore mio.”
“I’ll be there,” I reaffirm, nodding my head through the tears that just won’t cease to end. They’re lighternow, but still tumble down my skin from the mayhem inside.
With his thumb and finger on my chin, he tilts my head down, pressing one last kiss to my forehead. Another lump builds in my throat as he releases me. “Ti amo, piccola ladra.”
He leaves without another word, closing the door quietly behind him as he goes, and I’m left alone with my thoughts and heavy decisions to make.
Either path I choose, I end with the same outcome: Sly by my side.
But how do I choose between leaving my family and telling them something I know will drive us apart?
There’s no way in which I win in terms of my relationship with my family.
But Sly… my third, unspoken option is to walk away from him, and that’s not something I could ever do.
