Home.
The word pulls at the organ in my chest, tugging it with a familiar, longing twinge.
This city still does notfeellike home, though I have made it a temporary one.
Many of the Sinners have a room above the bar, and I am no exception. We spend a lot of time here, and I’ve found I’d rather be around people than alone in the apartment I rent across town.
I often think about home—myactualhome. About family and friends. About Vincenza. But being around the club, and Rosie, lessens the ache.
It kills me every day, being so far away and choosing to be no-contact with them, but right now, for me to heal, it is for the best. One day, I will go back for a visit.
But today is not that day, nor is tomorrow.
“Nah, not yet. I’m going to help Indie close down the bar, then I’ll head home,” Rosie tells me. Her hand is already on the knob of my bedroom door, readying herself to leave.
“If you get too tired to drive, please feel free to come back up. You’re never a bother, mia preferita.”
“I will.” She smiles again, although this time, it doesn’t quite meet her eyes. “See you later.”
Then she slips through the door, closing it quietly on her way out.
My phone rests next to me on the sheets, and I can’t help but stare at it, fighting against the urge to pick it up. My thoughts are still on New York, and I can’t help but think how easy it would be to call my loved ones and check in. It is late, but Sully would be awake. I could update him, ask him to let Mamma know I am okay, and then?—
No.
Calling would reopen the wound that is still healing. Hearing their voices will only make things harder.
Instead of calling, I do the only other worst thing I could possibly do in this state of vulnerability and loneliness.
I search Vincenza's name again.
Air constricts in my lungs as I scroll the page and come across a link to aNew York Timesarticle I hadn’t noticed in past searches. A wedding announcement, dated from just after Christmas.
Nearly two months after I left.
Clicking it, a wave of nausea twists in my stomach as I stare at a photo of Vinnie and August, both smiling happily at the camera. My brain deceives me, telling me her smile is forced, but I recognize it as a cruel lie I’m telling myself.
Reluctantly, I read the article.
A Love Story for the Ages
By William Tybalt
Vincenza Paladino and August St. Jean began dating in secret earlier this year, but after a perfect Halloween proposal, it’s clear these two were meant to be from the start.
Vincenza “Vinnie” Paladino is the owner of a growing publishing house, Star-Crossed Publishing, located on the Upper West Side, and August. St. Jean is the COO of St. Jean AM, the asset management firm that has been in the St. Jean family for three generations.
The couple kept their courting a secret. Friends close to them say Vinnie played hard to get, but that August put up a good fightand won her over with his charms. The two began dating exclusively, and when they told their families, both the St. Jeans and the Paladinos were thrilled.
August shocked the city, and his new fiancèe, Vinnie, with a Halloween proposal that left everyone speechless.
It’s a whirlwind romance that keeps friends and family members swooning over their love story, from the secret love and late nights talking to the stolen glances.
Excitement is buzzing all around the city for the previous most eligible singles to become Manhattan’s most influential couple of the year.
The two are to be wed in August in the Catholic church.
The article ends there, but there is more about Vinnie and August linked at the bottom, with thumbnail photos of each of them above the article’s titles.
