Chapter 35
I went home when Ryker went to sign the paperwork in the office.
We’d both decided that it would be smarter to let Barbie and his dad still think I was in the dark.
If they thought I knew, they might get concerned about the price they were paying, and neither of us wanted them to investigate that before the deal went through.
I was just about to head to the bathroom when my phone started ringing.
As I went to answer it, I dropped it, then quickly picked it up and answered.
I knew, before I actually knew it. I’m not sure how. I don’t think I’m psychic or anything. But when I got the call, I just knew. I didn’t say anything. I just got in my car and drove over to Nonno’s.
Parker was pissed, of course, since he’d told me to wait for him to come and pick me up.
I wasn’t going to wait for that. I couldn’t sit around in the house, just waiting.
I didn’t even cry on the drive over. I’m proud of myself for that.
I had to be strong now. It was just me. Or maybe I’d just cried too much over Ryker. Maybe that had depleted my tears.
“Mila,” Parker said, opening the door. His eyes were loving and red, and he opened his arms as he stepped forward.
“What’s going on?” I asked, feeling as if I were playing a part. “Where’s Nonno?”
“Mila,” he said, and I watched as he chewed on his lower lip.
His face looked distressed, and as I looked at him, it suddenly hit me why Lara thought he was cute.
He was handsome. And I could say that in a completely unbiased way.
I didn’t even know why I was thinking about that now. Not after the call.
“Where’s Nonno? I need to speak to him.”
“He’s at the hospital. With Mom and Dad,” he said, looking at me carefully.
“Then let’s go. He most probably wants to see me.”
“He’s gone, Mila. I told you . . .” His voice trailed off. “Mom and Dad thought it would be better for you to come here. To be with the photos and his spirit and stuff.”
“This isn’t funny.” I pushed past Parker.
“Nonno, where are you? Nonno!” I ran through the house.
“This isn’t a funny joke, Nonno,” I screamed as I ran into the kitchen.
“Nonno, come out now.” I opened the fridge, the oven, and all the cupboards, then slammed them shut.
“Nonno, come out now. This isn’t funny!” I screamed again and ran into his bedroom.
I ran over to the closets and opened them.
“Nonno, come out,” I shouted. “This isn’t funny.
” Tears started to stream down my face. “Nonno, it’s me.
It’s Mila. Please, stop it.” I ran into the bathroom and saw the water in the bathtub, where he must have fallen, and I started screaming uncontrollably.
“Nonno, you can’t leave me. Oh, Nonno, you can’t leave me.
Nonno.” I collapsed onto the floor of the bathroom, and Parker rushed in and sat next to me.
“Come, Mila. Let’s go back into the living room.”
“His blood’s still on the bathtub,” I wailed. “I didn’t even know he was sick.”
“He didn’t tell any of us, Mila.” Parker held me close. “We didn’t know. He had cancer. He’s had it for a while.”
“He’d tell me!” I screamed. “He’d tell me because he loves me.
I mean the world to him. He would never keep a secret from me.
“He loved me,” I whispered, my body shaking in Parker’s embrace.
“How could he die and not tell me? How could he know he was dying and not tell me? Why would he do this to me?” I muttered into his chest as I sobbed.
We stayed on the bathroom floor locked in an embrace for what seemed like hours, then I stood up and walked into the living room. I tried to smile. I tried to feel happy for the life that he’d had, but I couldn’t. I sat down on the couch and waited for Parker to walk into the living room behind me.
“I want to see Nonno,” I said quietly. “I need to see him.”
“Not today.” He shook his head. “He split his head open when he fell. Mom and Dad want him taken care of properly before you see him.”
“I want to see him,” I said louder. “I need to see him, Parker.”
“I know you want to see him.” He walked over to me. “But you don’t want to see him like this, Mila. You want to see him as the man that you know and remember. He wants you to see him as the man he was.”
“How could he leave me?” I chewed on my lower lip.
“He wasn’t supposed to die. Not now, not with me not even knowing.
Not with me not even being there. I didn’t even get to say goodbye.
I didn’t even get to tell him about Ryker and me.
” It almost felt wrong to be so happy about Ryker when I was so distraught over Nonno.
“What about you and Ryker?” Parker asked, his eyes narrowing.
“It doesn’t matter.” I shook my head. “But we’re in love, really in love.”
“Finally,” Parker said with a smile. “It took him a while to figure it out.”
“Yeah.” I sighed and then looked at Nonno’s photo album on the table and picked it up. “I guess he’s with Nonna now.”
“They’re dancing around in Heaven, looking down at us,” Parker said as I opened the album and we started looking at the photos of Nonno and Nonna and other family members.
“I can’t believe he didn’t tell me,” I said, tears pouring from my eyes. “I’m going to miss him so much.”
“He loved you with everything, Mila. He’ll always be here, you know,” Parker said and rubbed my back. “He’ll always be here, protecting us, like a guardian angel.”
“I don’t want him to be my guardian angel,” I sobbed. “I just want him to be my Nonno.”
“Ryker,” I said as I answered the phone, crying.
“Oh, Mila.” He sounded anguished. “I just heard the news. I’m so sorry.”
“I can’t believe he’s gone, Ryker. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I can’t believe it. I don’t know how I can survive.”
“He fought the cancer as hard as he could, Mila. He tried his hardest. He didn’t want to hurt you.” Ryker’s voice was sympathetic. “Where are you? Let me come and be with you. Let me hold your hand. Cry on my shoulder. I want to be there for you.”
“How did you know he had cancer?” I whispered. “And how do you know he fought his hardest?”
“Mila,” he said, his voice breaking.
“Ryker, answer me.”
“Mila, let me come and see you, please.”
“Did you know he was dying?” I asked, my heart in my throat. “Did you know Nonno was dying and you didn’t tell me?”
“He made me promise not to say anything. He didn’t want you living with that fear and dread. He didn’t want you to know. He thought the wait would kill you. He thought it would be agony.”
“You promised, no more secrets. We promised each other to only tell the truth. You promised me, Ryker.”
“I couldn’t tell you, Mila. I just couldn’t.”
“I loved him more than anything in the world. You knew that. He died while we were away. I wasn’t even here to be with him. I’ve barely seen him the last month because of you, and you knew he was dying.”
“Mila, I tried to get you to see him. I wanted to tell you, but Nonno—he didn’t want you to know.”
“How could you keep that from me, Ryker?”
“I love you, Mila. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“You don’t know what love is, Ryker. You lied to me again.
You have ripped my heart out. I have lost the only man who has loved me more than life itself.
How could you do this to me?” And then I threw my phone across the room and watched as it hit the wall and fell to the ground, and exploded into shattered pieces, just like my heart.