Chapter Thirty-Three Luca
THIRTY-THREE LUCA
They sneak through the side door so nobody sees them coming in together.
Luca loves and hates in equal measure the sudden giddiness in her chest. It feels silly, like they’re trying to hide from Juliette’s parents.
The back of their hands keep brushing against each other as they make their way toward the rear elevator.
Luca discovered earlier that it’s the only one without a glass back wall overlooking Miami.
“Jules! Luca!”
Luca freezes and spins on her heel, pulse pounding in her ears.
It’s only Remi Rowland.
“Hey, guys, can I steal you for a moment?” Remi says as she gets closer. She has a towel thrown over her shoulder and is in a vibrant orange bikini, rivulets of pool water coursing down her body.
Luca can’t quite keep her eyes on Remi. She bounces on her toes, nervous energy radiating around her in waves, as if one touch will jolt her out of her skin. Luca has never seen her like this before, not even during a stressful match.
“Sure?” Juliette says, looking over Remi. “Are you okay?” At least Luca isn’t the only one who noticed.
Remi nods so hard that her braids fling water droplets. “Yes, I’m fine. Well, I’m more than fine.” She glances around the empty hallway with its odd flickering lights. “I wanted to tell you that I took your advice.”
Luca glances at Juliette, confused, but Juliette’s face brightens. “Really? How did it go?”
Remi takes a deep breath. Then, with a blinding smile, she says, “She agreed that we could go public with our relationship. With our family, our friends. For my birthday.”
Juliette gasps and throws her arms around Remi. “That’s brilliant!” Juliette screeches. Remi laughs as she hugs her back.
“It is! God, I’m so relieved.” Remi nods again and can’t seem to stop, making her look like a bobblehead. “So, we’re going to have a boat party. Get it all out in one fell swoop.”
“That’s a great idea,” Juliette says.
“Would you come?” Remi asks, a little loud, like she’s forcing the words out. “And you too, of course, Luca,” she adds.
Luca smiles and nods, still a little unsure of what is happening.
“Of course, Remi,” Juliette says, squeezing her shoulder.
“Thank you,” Remi says, sagging in relief.
“No problem. Plus, I won’t lie, I’m dying to know who this mysterious soulmate is.” Juliette playfully touches Remi’s wrist wrap.
Remi lightly smacks Juliette’s hand away. “Shut up.”
Juliette cackles and reaches behind her to hit the elevator button. “Subtlety is not your strong suit, Remi.”
Remi splutters, at a loss for words.
Luca enjoys, more than she should, seeing Remi struggle to find a quippy remark.
“Whatever. A couple of us are hanging out by the pool if you want to join,” Remi says, throwing her shoulders back in an effort to collect her dignity.
Luca bites the inside of her lip, worried that Juliette will suddenly abandon their plans and choose to be with Remi and her crowd of friends.
“No, thanks. We’ve been walking around all afternoon. I’ve got an early practice, so I can’t get too crazy,” Juliette says casually, and Remi’s eyes dart to Luca.
“Okay,” she drawls, giving Juliette an intense and not-at-all subtle side-eye. “Well, I’ll text you the details later. Have a good night!” She jogs away down the hall.
“So, who is your guess for who her soulmate is?” Juliette asks, her eyes sparkling with a mischievous light.
“Do you know?” Luca asks, and Juliette shakes her head.
“Nope. I was just winding her up.” The elevator pings and the doors slide open.
Luca steps inside and leans against the back wall. “I think it’s Xinya.”
Juliette’s eyes widen. “You think?”
Luca nods. “I think Remi was in her box at Wimbledon.”
Juliette considers this, a little frown appearing between her brows at the mention of the tournament. Luca reaches out and smooths her thumb across the crease. Juliette giggles, and her brows relax. “Interesting. I guess we’ll find out.”
The elevator stops at their floor and Juliette hooks her fingers through the loops of Luca’s jeans, tugging her out into the hallway painted in vivid sunset tones.
Luca feels giddy bubbles fizz to life in her stomach again as Juliette pulls her down the hall. Luca feels half-drunk even though she’s not, and she stumbles into Juliette when she stops abruptly.
Antony Ricci leans against Juliette’s door, his piercing dark eyes scanning over his daughter before lifting to Luca’s face.
“Just as I suspected,” Antony says in his thick, rich Italian accent.
His head tilts, but his gaze never wavers from Luca’s face.
He is unblinking as he stares into Luca’s soul.
“Fraternizing with the enemy?” His gaze narrows as he focuses on Juliette.
Juliette’s shoulders tense and Luca steps back, but not before she catches sight of Juliette’s hand reaching back for her. “Don’t be dramatic,” Juliette says, and Luca can practically hear her roll her eyes.
Antony says something in low, vibrating Italian.
“Must we rehash this again?” Juliette asks in English, which Luca knows is deliberate.
“I’ll go,” Luca says, her skin crawling under the cold, piercing stare of Antony Ricci. It reminds her too much of her own father. And while she knows this is cowardly, her hands shake and are suddenly clammy.
“Luca—” Juliette says, but Luca is already gone.
LUCA
Once back in her room, Luca rushes into the bathroom. Her mind is spinning, twisting, curving in on itself like a snake eating its tail.
She turns on the sink and splashes her face with cold water, but it doesn’t make her feel any better. Her stomach slithers with something oily, a pressure building in her head as she tries not to think about Antony or Juliette.
“Fraternizing with the enemy” is distinctly dramatic, perhaps for the effect of getting Luca to back off. Which is exactly what he got. Does Antony have enough influence in Juliette’s life to break them up?
What could he even break up?
They’re only now beginning to unravel whatever taut and fragile feelings are between them.
Adding a disapproving and overbearing father into the mix certainly won’t make their relationship development any easier.
Luca can’t lie and say she likes Antony, but he is Juliette’s father. And they could be family one day.
Luca clutches the edge of the sink as a wave of dizziness crashes over her at the thought. That is too far in the future. She stares at her reflection and draws in a deep breath, even as her own features begin to swim and rearrange oddly.
Luca sinks to the floor before she passes out, the cold touch of the tile soothing against her knees and palms. Too many thoughts, too much all at once. She leans back onto her heels and shakes her head, hoping to jar loose the thoughts that keep plaguing her.
It’s an anxiety spiral. And really, it’s over nothing. Of course Antony would want to look out for his daughter and keep her focused. But from all she’s seen of him, he’s all bark and no bite.
Slowly, she gets to her feet and washes her hands, then scrubs her damp hands through her hair. Cool droplets race down her temples and burning hot neck. “You’re fine,” she tells her reflection, even if her stomach is still twisted in knots. “This is fine.”
A knock on the door makes Luca jump, and she hates how pale and wan she still looks.
She pinches her cheeks in an effort to bring some color back, but it only achieves a strange and unnatural splotch on the top of her cheeks. Sighing, Luca goes to the door anyway.
She isn’t surprised to find Juliette standing in the hallway, cheeks flushed and her hair in a wild halo around her head, as if she’s been tugging on her curls. “Is everything okay with your father?” Luca grinds out in halting syllables.
Juliette nods. “Can I come in?” she asks, her hands fluttering around her, as if she can’t decide whether to reach out or clasp them together.
Luca steps back and wordlessly lets Juliette enter. Tension snaps in the air, and Luca wants to cringe away. “Sorry, the curtains are open,” Luca says as she lets the door shut. She hurries to close them. It gives her some space from Juliette.
“I’m sorry about him,” Juliette says in a rush, as if the words will be lost if she doesn’t say them immediately. “He’s melodramatic and he only wants what’s best for me and my sisters.”
Luca yanks the flamingo pink curtains over the vibrant nightlife of Miami and tries to steady her breathing. “It’s okay, I get it.” She turns slowly. Juliette’s eyes are huge and shimmering, a pleading in them that Luca is thrown off by.
Juliette shakes her head, manic in her movements. “No, it’s not okay. He’s trying to control my life and I won’t have him drive you away.”
“Is that what this is about?” Luca asks, tilting her head. Juliette thinks Antony would drive Luca away, not that she might be convinced to leave Luca?
Juliette stills, looking up with warm, sweet eyes. This is the first time Luca has ever really seen her look frightened.
“I thought he was going to convince you I wasn’t worth the effort,” Luca says, and Juliette blinks, bewildered. It’s oddly comforting to see all of Juliette’s emotions play out across her expressive face.
“No, he’s just being a control freak,” Juliette says firmly.
“He wants to make it clear that he thinks that you’re going to distract me.
As if I can’t focus on multiple things at once.
” Juliette rolls her eyes. “Maybe I’ll tell him to fuck off.
” She waves her hand, saying it flippantly, as if none of it matters.
“Don’t ruin your relationship with him. Set boundaries, but keep him in your life.”
Juliette’s forehead scrunches. “What? Where is this coming from?”