Chapter 14 #2
“No thanks for your ‘generous’ offer to resurrect my long-lost dreams or help me upgrade from my so-called shabby apartment. But if I wasn’t clear the first time, I don’t want your help.
You need to stop showing up like this. You can’t keep walking into my life and trying to unravel everything I’ve stitched back together.
” My voice trembled, but I didn’t stop. “I forbid you from coming to my house again. Or anywhere near me or my son. Ever. We need to keep things professional now, because, in case you’ve forgotten, I’m planning your wedding. ”
I pressed a hand to my face, dragging in one shaky breath. Then another.
“You need to leave, Luca,” I said again, quieter this time. “Please.”
I didn’t wait. I walked to the door and opened it.
“And take your folder with you. I’m not interested.”
He stared at me for fifteen seconds, maybe more. I saw it all in that look. The storm in his eyes. The sharp edge of regret. His jaw flexed like he had a hundred things to say. But he didn’t say a single word.
He just picked up the folder, turned around, and walked out.
It was another Saturday. I always looked forward to these days as Ollie and I got to spend time at the park, away from the house, just the two of us, breathing easier, laughing louder.
Our little ritual. The park was filled with its usual weekend energy—families spreading blankets for picnics as children’s laughter echoing from the playground.
“Mommy, why don’t you like Uncle Luca?”
The question slapped the air right out of my lungs.
One second, we were debating the latest LEGO expansion pack, and now this?
My eyes widened. “Who said I don’t like him, baby?”
“You do that thing with your face when you see him,” Ollie replied, casually licking his spoon.
I narrowed my eyes. “What thing?”
“The thing where you pretend to be angry, but you’re not really angry,” he said, looking up at me with those sharp little brows pulled together.
There it was. The curse of raising a perceptive child—they noticed everything. Even the feelings you thought you’d buried behind a smile.
I gave a soft chuckle, then smiled down at him. “It’s not that I don’t like Luca, I just…”
My words faltered. What could I say? That I was keeping Luca at a safe distance because being close to him meant risking everything I’d finally managed to patch back together? That I didn’t trust him not to break me all over again?
I shrugged. “Why are we suddenly talking about Luca?”
“Because I saw him. He waved at me, but you didn’t wave back.”
I blinked. “You saw Luca?”
He nodded. And suddenly, the ground felt a little less steady beneath my feet. My eyes darted across the crowded park.
“Where?”
Ollie pointed to his left, and my gaze followed, straight to Luca.
My breath hitched.
He was leaning against an ice cream vendor’s cart, looking maddeningly at ease.
His eyes were locked on us, steady and intense, as he scooped a spoonful of ice cream and licked it slowly.
And God…that one simple act sent fireworks racing down my spine and a whole circus of butterflies somersaulting in my belly.
He wore a plain white T-shirt and black cargo jeans—a striking contrast to his usual lineup of immaculate, custom-tailored suits.
And I could admit it, just this once: he looked so damn good.
His hair fell forward slightly, hanging just above those piercing steel gray eyes—eyes that stormed with a familiar emotion. Need.
I blinked out of the trance just in time to see him drop the empty cup into a bin, push off the cart, and start walking. Toward us.
Shit.
I took Ollie’s hand quickly. “We’ve got to go.”
“Are you not going to say hi to Uncle Luca?”
“I will. Some other time. Preferably when I see him at work. I just remembered I, uh…forgot to turn off the oven.”
Ollie’s eyes narrowed. “You never forget to turn off any electrical appliances. You always say saving power cuts the electricity bill.”
Damn. He was right. I did say that. Often. Too often.
Before I could come up with a decent lie to cover the first one, I noticed it: Luca’s scent. Clean, sharp, expensive. It wrapped around me, invading all of my senses.
When I looked up, he was standing just a few feet away, that signature smile tugging at his lips. A smile I wanted to slap clean off his sinfully handsome face.
“Luca,” I greeted him, lifting my chin and pasting on the tightest smile I could manage. One that made it clear I was not even remotely pleased to see him. “I could never imagine you in a thrift market…or any market, for that matter.”
He grinned. “Me neither. But I’m trying to learn the habit of prudence.”
I almost choked on my own laugh. Luca and prudence? The man once bought an entire restaurant because they refused him a last-minute reservation. Prudence, my ass.
Then he turned to Ollie, bending slightly to ruffle his hair. Ollie giggled.
“How’s that puzzle coming along, buddy?” Luca asked. “Any progress?”
Ollie shook his head. “Not since the day you came over. I can’t figure out where the pieces of the headlights go.”
Luca clicked his tongue. “If only your mommy would let me come by, we could finally finish it together.”
He looked at me then, pouting—actually pouting—like he expected that alone to melt all my defenses and make me say yes.
And maybe…it almost did.
“That won’t be necessary. I can help him with the rest of the project.”
“But you’re not good with stuff like that. You said so yourself,” Ollie countered, frowning up at me.
Damn it. I had said that, too. Puzzles and building things were both annoying. Those kinds of projects were often infuriating and only ever made me want to flip the whole board over. They weren’t a challenge. They were a recipe for frustration.
“Please, Mommy,” Ollie said softly, tugging on my hand. “Can Uncle Luca come over and help me finish my LEGO car?”
And just like that, my heart cracked open. Because I couldn’t tell him no. But Luca coming over…that was a risk. A big one. If they spent more time together, he’d start noticing things. The resemblance. The mannerisms. Everything. Luca was many things, but stupid wasn’t one of them.
If he figured it out, if he realized Ollie was his, he could take him away from me. So many things could go wrong.
I didn’t get a chance to respond.
I didn’t know it happened, but in a blur, someone rammed into me, and without bothering to apologize, skipped forward. I lost my footing and…I would have hit the ground—should have—if not for the arm that caught me. Firm. Strong. Familiar.
Luca.
One hand wrapped around my waist, the other slid instinctively around my arm to steady me. My breath caught in my lungs. I forgot how to breathe. How to move. The world didn’t just pause—it vanished.
My face was inches from his, and his scent wrapped around me like a second skin. My body betrayed me. My pulse spiked. My stomach flipped. And for one stupid second, I forgot everything. The pain. The heartbreak. It was just this heat between us, pulsing like electricity I couldn’t contain.
We hadn’t touched. He hadn’t touched me. Not since that night in his sheets five years ago. The memories hit me all at once—what it felt like when those hands roamed all over my body, tracing every invisible line, pleasuring me until I was screaming his name…
“You okay?” he asked, his voice low and rough, his gaze dark with desire—like he was thinking the exact same thoughts. Feeling the exact same thing.
I suddenly lost my ability to speak. I simply nodded.
I don’t know if he did it on purpose, but his hand dipped lower, to my hip…
God.
Why was this happening? Where the hell was my resolve?
My gaze shifted, and I caught sight of two women standing behind Luca, pointing at us and whispering something. And to my right, another set of people. Also staring.
The awareness struck like a lightning bolt. My chest tightened. My hands shook. I staggered away from Luca’s grip, like the distance might fix something. It didn’t.
Heat crawled up my neck. My skin prickled. The eyes. The whispers. The feeling of him. I needed to get out of here. I needed to get away from him.
“Mommy,” Ollie said, tugging at my sleeve, his voice small, “I need to use the bathroom.”
Relief crashed into me. I couldn’t be more grateful for the timing.
“Of course, baby,” I said, my voice thinner than I liked. “Let’s go.”
I didn’t wait.
I took Ollie’s hand and walked off toward the quiet side of the park near the rivers where the bathroom stalls were. Ollie slipped inside, and I used the time to pull myself together.
My heart was hammering so hard it rang in my ears.
The feeling of Luca’s arm around me wouldn’t leave my skin. It lingered like my body was still caught in that moment. I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.
I bent forward, bracing my hands on my knees as I gasped for air, trying to calm the wild pounding in my chest.
Then I felt it.
A rough hand snaked around my waist from behind.
My reflexes took over. I shoved hard and spun, ready to claw, but froze when I saw who it was.
Blaze. Of all the damn people.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I spat, still breathless, still shaking.
His shameless gaze dropped to my chest, lingering far too long as he took in the rise and fall of my frantic breathing.
“It’s already been a week, Leila,” Blaze drawled, the corners of his mouth curling in that sleazy way that made my skin crawl. “But I’m feeling generous today. You come with me to my truck—I’ve got it parked out back—and maybe I’ll buy you a few extra days.”
The implication hung in the air like rot, thick and suffocating.
I recoiled, disgust swirling in my stomach. “Can I just get a few more days, Blaze? I had to sort out my son’s school trip. Please.”
He chuckled, low and mocking. “The boss doesn’t do extensions. You know that.”
Then his eyes dropped to my chest again. “But I can talk to him for you…if you just follow me to my truck. I promise—you’ll love it.”
He stepped closer.
God, he reeked. Like cigarettes, sweat, and cheap liquor, all blended into something vile. I turned my face away as he reached out to touch it, and I smacked his arm. Hard. But then his hand clamped down on my waist, and no matter how hard I shoved, he wouldn’t let go.
“I said I’ll pay you soon! I just need a few more days! Let me go, Blaze!”
Before he could say another word, Luca launched out of nowhere and landed a punch straight to Blaze’s jaw. The crack echoed like a gunshot. Blood spurted from Blaze’s nose as he staggered backward, clutching his face in shock. Then his eyes turned red with rage when he saw blood.
He lunged at Luca, but Luca met him with another brutal blow that knocked him flat to the ground.
“Luca, stop!”
He didn’t hear me. Or maybe he did and didn’t care.
He climbed on top of Blaze and unleashed a storm of fists, relentless, merciless, one after the other, until Blaze was groaning, barely able to lift a hand in defense.
“Luca, please! Stop!” I cried, my voice cracking with panic.
He didn’t stop until he was satisfied.
Finally, he stood, glaring down at the wreck beneath him. “The next time I see you near her again…it’ll be the last time you use those eyes.”
Blaze didn’t respond. He couldn’t. He was a bloody mess on the ground, twitching weakly.
I stared at him, my heart sinking at what all of this meant. Blaze would twist the story. Make me pay for this. Come after Ollie.
“You shouldn’t have done that, Luca!” I whirled around, fury pulsing through my veins.
He didn’t flinch. “Was I supposed to stand there and watch that piece of shit put his filthy hands on you?”
“I had it under control!” I snapped. “I didn’t ask you to jump in like some hero! You just made things worse!”
His brows drew together. “Made things worse? What the hell are you talking about?”
I turned away, but he followed.
“Leila, what’s going on? Is that man threatening you? I will—”
“You’ll do what?” I spun back around, eyes burning. “Haven’t you done enough, Luca? What more do you want from me? Why can’t you just leave me the fuck alone?”
My voice cracked on that last word, and I hated it, hated how broken it sounded.
“Just stop, Luca. Just leave me alone. You’re making everything worse in my life.”
This time, when I turned and walked away, he didn’t follow.