Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 66661 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 333(@200wpm)___ 267(@250wpm)___ 222(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 66661 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 333(@200wpm)___ 267(@250wpm)___ 222(@300wpm)
He could only nod his head, knowing Lucca had brought Melissa’s garden, which he had let die, back to life.
“I would appreciate any help he or any of your children would be willing to give.” Linking her arm through his, she proudly beamed at the work that was taking place in front of her. “I want the garden to reflect how much you and her children loved her.”
Dante placed a gentle kiss on her lips. “That isn’t all it will reflect.”
“What do you mean?”
Wistfully, he stared into her eyes. “It will show how much love and dedication you put into Moonbeam. You give everything. You never measure the cost to you. You just give all of yourself. Even to me when you said you wouldn’t. You caved after just one kiss. You share your heart with everyone you come into contact with.”
She lovingly wrapped her arms around his neck. “What can I say? I’m easy.”
He didn’t laugh at her humor. “Just do me a favor and don’t get on anything above four feet.”
Surprise showed on her face. “You were that scared for me?”
“Put it this way, I made two promises when I saw you up there: go to confessional to confess my sins … and tell you I love you.”
“I was perfectly safe, Dante—” Realization hit her at what he had just said. “You love me?”
He nodded, having only been this sure once before. Like what this room would one day hold, Dante had a woman who smelled of flowers, and now a woman who smelled of sunlight. That was why he had been so attracted to Nadia’s scent; it was so different from Melissa’s, but it was the exact thing you needed for flowers to grow. Whereas a flower’s time would come to a beautiful end, the sun was always there to greet you in the morning.
And it was clear his sun had been waiting for this day and wanted to cherish it.
“How much?”
Dante smiled. “A lot.”
“I love you, too,” she said the words that he, too, had been waiting to hear. However, it was obvious from the heat that continued to radiate off him that he was still unhappy she had been up there. “I swear I’ve been much higher than that before. There was nothing to worry over.”
Dante felt himself breaking out in a cold sweat. “If that’s supposed to make me feel better, it doesn’t.”
“If it means that much to you, my feet will stay firmly planted on the ground from now on. I promise.”
Dante gave a sigh of relief. No arguments, nothing except the agreement that she wouldn’t put him in that position of fear again.
“You know, I’ve never begged for anything my whole life, not from any man, woman, or even God have I considered lowering my pride for. Darling, I was getting ready to beg you for that promise.”
“Now you don’t have to. You won’t ever have to with me, Dante.” Her words slipped from her lips like an oath. “Anything you want from me, all you have to do is ask.”
“Then are we going to take that vacation I wanted to?”
“Yes,” she laughingly agreed. “But I still say Desmond won’t fly us there. He wouldn’t let us near his plane and made us fly commercial to Cancun.”
“This is different. I plan to give him a good reason.”
Slight concern showed on her face. “Like what? Is there someone else who wants to kill us?”
“No. We’re going to be celebrating.”
“What will we be celebrating?” She frowned, wondering if an occasion had slipped her mind. “Neither of our birthdays are near.”
Knowing Dante had fulfilled the promise to his late wife, he was now finally ready to move on with his life and make a new promise. “Our honeymoon.”
EPILOGUE 2
MAKING WINE FROM SUNSHINE
About to get into the car, she saw Dante come through the Caruso family home gate.
“Give me a sec, Maria.” Nadia closed the car door instead of getting inside. “I just want to tell Dante when I’ll be back.”
Narrowing her eyes, she took note of what Dante was wearing as he stepped out of the Cadillac.
“I hoped to catch you before you left,” he said as she approached him.
Nadia didn’t miss the guilty look in his eyes as she brushed a kiss on his firm lips. “You got here just in time. Wait—why are you wearing a different suit than you left wearing a couple of hours ago?”
“Amo spilled his coffee on me. I changed into the extra suit I keep at the Casino Hotel.”
She took a few steps back from him. “That’s the third time in three weeks you’ve had to change your suits because of an accident.”
Dante gave her an incredulous look. “You don’t think I have to change because I’m afraid you’ll smell another woman’s perfume on me, do you?”
“No.” She folded her arms over her chest. “What I think is that you smoked one of your nasty cigars there, and you’re trying to hide the evidence.”