30. ENZO
30
ENZO
“Quinn has agreed to come to Italy.” Valentino’s words replay inside my head even hours after he’s uttered them. “She mentioned there’s something she needs to tell us, as well.”
Quinn.
In the flesh. Coming back here. To me.
I have dreamed of this moment for months. And now, it’s actually happening.
Tomorrow, I get to see her in person.
The thought alone fills me up with enough nervousness and excitement that I feel like I can burst at any moment.
Valentino comes back to my office, a coy expression on his face.
“What’s happened?” I stand up immediately, worried.
Could Quinn have canceled? Is she not coming anymore?
“Dad, relax. But I think you need to sit down for this one. We’ve made a breakthrough.”
I do as he asks, eyeing him curiously the whole time.
“Dad, these last few months, you gave me a very important task. To prove that Silvano has a hand on the sabotage and the fire.”
Oh, it’s about Silvano.
“Go on,” I urge, my curiosity piqued.
“It took me a while, but I managed to get someone on his side to come through for us. It’s best if you see for yourself.”
He sends off a message on his phone, and the door swings open to reveal Marcel and a face I do not recognize trailing behind him.
“Good evening, Mr. Marchetti,” the stranger greets me.
I look over at Valentino for an explanation, who’s grinning ear to ear.
“Dad, this is Lorenzo. Lucky for us, Lorenzo knows a thing or two about Silvano’s recent antics.”
The man nods. “It’s not known openly in the factory, either, but Silvano recruited a few of us to do his work for him. I was personally involved in the purchase of equipment that led to the fire, and the adulteration of the wine batch.”
“Will you testify for us?” I frowns.
“Yes, I will. Silvano’s fucking a lot of us over for his own selfish purposes. I think he needs a lesson from all of this.”
“This is big.” Micah lifts on eyebrow. “You realize how much easier this makes it for us, right, Enzo?”
I nod, but I’m not convinced yet. Can a worker’s testimony be enough in court?
Yet, this is the biggest breakthrough we have made in weeks.
“Lorenzo.” I stick out my hand. “Thank you for stepping up, for doing right side. We will make sure you are generously rewarded for it.”
He shakes his head. “I don’t need a reward. Serving justice to Silvano is enough for me.”
“Let’s sit down for a chat and see exactly what we have, so we can then take this to the police,” Micah says escorting Lorenzo from the room.
I’m left beaming at Valentino.
“You’ve done the impossible, you know that, right?” I pat him lightly on the shoulder.
“I told you that I wasn’t going to let you down.” He smiles.
“You’d never let me down, and I’m always proud of you. I hope you know that.” I pause. “In fact, starting now, I’m putting you in charge for the company as acting CEO.”
Valentino blinks, stunned.
It’s something I have been thinking about for a while now. While I was hoping to tell him more formally, I don’t regret revealing it now just to see that look on his face.
“Are you…” He opens and closes his mouth a few times and nothing comes out, so he takes a deep breath. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. You’ve shown your ability to handle things perfectly, and I was always going to pass on the position to you. It’s better if we start now. Besides…” I grin at him. “There are other things that require my attention from this point on.”
My mind trails back to Quinn as anticipation builds inside me, thinking about her arrival.
“Oh, right… of course.” Valentino beams. “She’ll be landing here early morning tomorrow. Around nine.”
I nod, smiling. “I’ll make sure to pick her up her myself.”
“I’m still not sure what it is that she needs to let us know, but I suppose it’s not long until you find out.”
“Whatever it is, I’m not going to let her go without a fight this time. That much is true.”
Valentino’s face softens. “Dad, it’s good to see you putting yourself first for a change. You’ve been a workaholic pretty much all your life.”
“It’s the sacrifice I needed to make to get this business up from the ground running.” I shrug.
I’m confident that he’ll do well as CEO, but there’re still some things he needs to learn before I give the torch to him fully.
“Don’t worry, Dad.” He grins. “I’ll do my best to make you proud.”
“You already do.”
Just then, Alessio walks into the room. The contrast between the both of them could not be more obvious.
Alessio’s drooped eyelids and unsteady gait are clear indications he’s been drinking more than he should again. There’s a young girl whose shoulders he has his arms wrapped around.
“Oh, D-Dad,” he slurs. “I didn’t see you there. Tiffany, say h-hello to my father.”
The girl nods in my direction, before exploding into a fit of giggles as Alessio whispers something in her ear.
I have to tear my gaze away.
“I’ll make sure he is escorted onto the plan safely.” Valentino shakes his head and leaves the room. “Come on, Alessio. Follow me.”
“G-goodbye, Daddy-o,” Alessio slurs.
“Behave, Alessio,” I warn him. “I might not be there to supervise you at college, but I have my ways to keep track of what you do.”
“You w-worry waaaay too much.” He laughs. “You’re scaring the lady off with your anger.”
Tiffany nods, giggling loudly.
“Just call me when you land.” I watch both of them stumble out the door, following Valentino.
I chartered the jet for Luciana and Alessio’s trip back to the states.
My mind begins to race, worrying about Alessio again when a soft hand lands on my shoulder.
“Dad.” Luciana grins, wrapping her arms around me tightly. “You need to wish me luck.”
“Luck? For what?”
“For going back to college, obviously.”
She’s in a terrific mood, and my worries dissolve away as her energy spreads over to me.
“Of course, I should be wishing you luck, too.” She winks. “I hate that I can’t be here to witness the moment of reunion between Quinn and you. I expect to hear all about it.”
“If it goes well…” I mutter under my breath.
I’m going to take a leap of faith, but there’s no way of knowing what the outcome is going to be.
She frowns. “What’s that?”
“Nothing.” I shake my head. “Listen, have a safe flight back. And please, take care of your brother for me. He’s gotten even more off the rails than before.”
Luciana nods. “Don’t worry. I’ll keep an eye on him. He’s just trying to have fun. You know how he is.”
She leans forward to kiss my cheek, and whispers in my ear, “I’m so glad that you finally got your senses back. Quinn is perfect for you.”
I’m glad that she doesn’t turn to look back before leaving, because if she did, she would have seen the goofy smile on my face.
Quinn is perfect for me.
Now, I just have to make her see that as well.