59. Lars
Sunlight filters through the tall windows of our bedroom in pale streaks that stretch across the floor.
I lie still for a moment, watching the light shift across the ceiling while Neomi sleeps beside me.
Her blonde hair spills across the pillow in tangled waves, soft against the sheets. She looks peaceful.
Last night sits somewhere between memory and reality in my mind.
Dinner, conversation, the quiet rhythm of the restaurant around us—and then the moment outside when Gabriel pulled me into that kiss.
I can still feel it, the confidence in the way he touched me, the certainty in the way his mouth moved against mine.
Neomi shifts beside me, the movement pulling my attention back to the present. Her eyes open slowly, soft with sleep.
“Morning,” she says.
“Morning, Bella.”
She studies my face for a moment before pushing herself up onto one elbow.
“You look like you’re entirely too deep in your thoughts for this early in the day,”
I glance over at her and give a small shrug. “I do that sometimes.”
“Not like this.”
There’s amusement in her voice, the kind that tells me she already knows exactly where my mind has gone. I push myself upright against the headboard, dragging a hand through my hair while the city slowly wakes beyond the windows.
She watches me for a moment longer before speaking.
“Are you thinking about Gabriel?”
“Possibly,” I answer.
Neomi pulls the sheet around herself as she shifts closer, her expression thoughtful but calm.
“Tell me what you're thinking.”
I lean back against the headboard again, exhaling slowly. “Did you have fun last night?”
She nods. “I did, I feel comfortable with him.” She studies my face again before continuing, softer this time. “That’s not what you’re worried about.”
I raise a brow. “What do you think I’m worried about?”
Neomi’s gaze sharpens, the way it does when she’s reading someone across a poker table.
“You’re trying to decide if you trust him.”
She isn’t wrong.
“I don’t think he was lying about anything,” I say after a moment.
“But?” she asks gently.
“There’s still a lot we don’t know about him.”
The sunlight catches the curve of her shoulder as she shifts beside me, her fingers absently drawing circles on my chest.
“I like him, Lars.”
“I know.”
She gives me a look. “I think you do too.”
“Is it that obvious?”
“I watched you all evening. You went in with your guard up—and rightfully so—but by the end of the night, something changed.”
The memory of the kiss flashes through my mind again.
“He doesn’t feel like a stranger,” I admit.
Neomi nods slowly. “That’s exactly it. He doesn’t feel like one to me either.”
The quiet stretches before she reaches for my hand, her fingers threading loosely through mine.
“What if we stopped pretending this was just a one-time thing?” she says.
I look down at her.
“What are you suggesting?”
“I’m suggesting we see where this goes,” she replies. “We don’t have to rush anything or make it complicated. We could just…spend time with him.”
Her thumb moves slowly across my palm.
“You’re talking about dating him,” I say.
Her smile widens slightly. “Something like that.”
“And you’re sure that’s something that you want?”
“I’m curious, Lars,” she says honestly. “And I think you are too.”
“Yeah, I am,” I admit.
“Yeah?” Neomi’s brows lift slightly. “Good,” she says, leaning over to kiss me.
The kiss is gentle, lingering just long enough to make my chest tighten before she slips out of bed.
“I’m making coffee.”
I watch her disappear to the kitchen. For a moment the room is quiet again. My mind is filled with everything that could go wrong. I’ve lived a life where survival relied on planning for the worst and my past experiences only reinforced that in love.
But I don’t feel like I have to have my guard up with Gabriel. Something inside me is yelling jump again. Just like the night I married Neomi.
“Fuck,” I curse to myself.
I need perspective. I run a hand through my hair, and I swing my legs out of bed, knowing there’s one person whose opinion I want before this goes any further.
It’s midmorning when I pull up to the estate, and the grounds are already alive with quiet activity. Security rotates through their shifts while staff move between the main house and the gardens, the entire place running with the quiet precision of a machine that has operated this way for decades.
I find my aunt in the kitchen, standing at the marble island with a porcelain cup of coffee between her fingers.
She’s wrapped in a pale pink silk robe that drapes effortlessly over her frame, the kind of garment most people would reserve for late evenings, yet on her it looks perfectly normal for morning coffee.
Her hair is styled precisely as if she’s about to host a formal dinner, and her makeup is immaculate—every detail in place despite the early hour.
Violette Marchetti has never been the sort of woman who allows the day to catch her unprepared.
She glances up when I step into the kitchen.
“Lars.”
Her eyes narrow slightly as she looks at the clock on the wall behind me, then back at my face.
“It’s ten o’clock on a Friday morning,” she says, lifting her coffee cup. “Shouldn’t a married man be somewhere making money for his wife to spend?”
I pull out the chair across from her. “I do that most days.”
“Or,” she continues smoothly, ignoring me, “you should be in your bed giving her orgasms and keeping the marriage interesting.”
I stare at her. “You’re unbelievable.”
She smiles into her coffee cup. “I’m experienced.”
I sit down, leaning back in the chair. “That’s a sentence I never wanted to hear from you again.”
Violette watches me over the rim of her cup, amused.
“So, why are you here this early, looking like someone rearranged your life overnight?”
I exhale slowly. “Neomi and I met someone.”
She doesn’t look surprised. “Well, that would certainly explain the dramatic entrance.” She sets her coffee down on the counter and folds her arms. “Tell me about him.”
“His name is Gabriel Santori.”
“And?”
“He’s a trader. Stocks. Moves around a lot.”
Her head tilts. “Does he plan on maintaining his vagabond ways?”
“I’m not sure.”
Her eyes narrow. “So, we don’t know if this would be long term.” She sighs. “Lars, I know you’ve been prone to surface level relationships in the past, but how would this work within your marriage?”
I run a hand through my hair. “Neomi was the one who brought up the idea. Yes, I like Gabriel as much as she does, but we’re just settling into our relationship and now we’re thinking about bringing another person into it?”
Violette studies my face carefully, the corner of her mouth beginning to curl. “Your girl has an adventurous streak. Good for you, Lars.”
I cringe. “Please keep this conversation just between us.”
She waves me off. “You know I’m a vault when it comes to something as serious as this.”
I rise from my chair and start pacing around the kitchen. “I’ve kept myself safe for years and now suddenly, I have a woman I’m falling in love with and a man that I am far too curious about. I feel like I’m out of my mind.”
Violette stands and walks to the coffee maker to refill her mug. She turns back to face me and a cheshire grin is spreading on her face.
“You’re falling in love with her?”
I didn’t mean to say it out loud, but that doesn’t make it any less true.
I am falling in love with her.
What started between us was chaotic, reckless and unplanned, but slowly, it’s became something real.
She’s in my home now, in my bed, woven into my routine in a way I didn’t see coming.
When I’m away from her, I miss her. Not just the physical pull, but the sound of her voice, the way her presence settles something in me I didn’t realize was restless.
She’s driven, honest, and so goddamn beautiful.
And for the first time in a long time, I can see something ahead of me that doesn’t feel temporary.
I drag my hand down my face and let out a breath. “Yeah, Vi,” I say, quieter this time. “I am.”
She sets her mug on the counter, and she wraps her arms around me in a hug, “Oh, Lars. That makes me so happy. You need someone who’s your equal and I think you found her.”
Violette squeezes me tighter and I exhale, the tension in my shoulders easing.
She’s been the closest thing to a mother I’ve had since I was ten years old.
She expects a lot from Enzo and me, but she loves us just as fiercely.
After my mother—Enzo’s father’s sister—was killed by her boyfriend, Violette took me in without hesitation.
My life before this house had been chaos, the kind of instability that leaves a young child waiting for the next disaster.
But here at the estate she gave me strength, structure, and the peace of a home that wasn’t filled with fighting and tears.
From the moment I moved into a spare bedroom across from Enzo, she treated me like one of her own.
Over the years she became the one person I could always come back to when things went sideways.
When the mess with Leilani blew apart more than just my pride, when I spent too long trying to figure out where I fit inside the family organization, Violette was the one who listened.
She never judged me for the mistakes I made, even when they were spectacularly stupid.
She loved me through every bad decision and never hesitated to give me an earful when I deserved it.
We tease each other constantly, trading sarcasm the way some families trade affection. But beneath it, there’s never been a question about what we mean to each other. I might joke about her meddling, but the truth is simple.
I owe her my life.
“What am I going to do?” I whisper over her shoulder.
She releases me and looks up, brushing my hair from my forehead.
“Your focus is your wife until you both decide that changes. But Lars, don’t do anything you don’t want to do.
If it’s too soon, that’s okay. But…” She pauses, becoming serious.
“Just make sure you keep a clear head and set clear expectations—with them and yourself.”
I nod and look around the kitchen, letting her words settle.
“At least he’s not a foreign diplomat, and Enzo won’t get any calls from government officials this time.” I smile, trying to lighten the mood.
She swats my chest. “I can’t believe you did that on your trip to Europe. Fuck, Lars, we can fight wars here, but you almost started an international crisis with that one.”
“Yeah, not my best moment.” I chuckle and then I look into her eyes. “Thank you, Vi. Not just for this, but for everything. Thank you for loving me.”
She pats my cheek. “Bambino, I’ll always love you. You’re my favorite person in the whole world and I’ll move mountains to see you happy.”
I give her a suspicious look. “I thought Zara was your favorite?”
She waves her hand in the air. “I just say that so she’ll give me more grandchildren.” She leans toward me, whispering, “But you’re my true favorite.”
“Poor Enzo.” I laugh.
“That boy knows I love him. But speaking of Enzo, if you’re planning on keeping Gabriel around, you should tell him about this man. Not only because he’s your brother, but because you could be bringing him into the fold.”
I nod. “I know.”
She sighs. “Okay then, I’m sure you have work to do, and I need to get dressed for the day. Calvin is going to drive me into the city for a bit of shopping.”
“How you’ve managed to retain Calvin as your driver for the past ten years, I’ll never understand with the way you boss him around.”
She laughs. “At this point, I’m pretty sure he likes it.”