Chapter 14 - Luca Asked Me the Only Question That Mattered
He did not propose during snow.
He said that would be cliché.
He proposed in June.
Warm evening.
Porch.
Mosquitoes.
Very romantic.
I was reading.
He was repairing a railing badly.
“Stop.”
He looked up.
“What?”
“You’re making it worse.”
“I ran companies.”
“You cannot use a level.”
“I delegated.”
“Obviously.”
He put down the hammer.
Then sat beside me.
Too calm.
“What?”
“Nora.”
Suspicious.
He reached into his pocket.
I stared.
“No.”
He froze.
“I haven’t asked.”
“I know your face.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
I closed the book.
He held a small ring.
Not giant.
Simple.
Silver.
Mountain-blue stone.
“Before you say anything—”
“Dangerous beginning.”
He smiled.
“I don’t want you to save me.”
My chest tightened.
“I don’t want to save you.”
“Good.”
“I don’t want to own this cabin.”
“Very good.”
“I don’t want you to become Mrs. DeSantis if you don’t want that name.”
I stared.
“I want mornings.”
That was unexpected.
“What?”
“Coffee.”
His voice softened.
“You yelling because I stack firewood wrong.”
“You do.”
“Rafael showing up uninvited.”
“He does.”
“You coming home covered in snow because someone needed you.”
My eyes filled.
“Me coming home angry because somebody filed something incorrectly.”
“That seems likely.”
He laughed.
“I want ordinary things.”
His eyes stayed on mine.
“With you.”
I started crying.
Annoying.
He continued.
“Will you marry me?”
I looked at him.
The man I found bleeding.
The boss everyone feared.
The son who inherited violence.
The brother who survived betrayal.
The man who gave up a throne because keeping it required becoming someone he no longer wanted to be.
“Yes.”
His breath left.
“You sure?”
“Yes.”
“No dramatic reconsideration?”
“Keep talking and we’ll see.”
He kissed me.
Then the railing collapsed behind him.
May you like
I laughed until I couldn’t breathe.
Perfect proposal.
