Chapter 31
QUINN
AUGUST — ONE WEEK TO WIN OVER THE FACULTY
My last class.
For an opportunity I barely wanted, this summer has been a game changer.
As always, we’re sitting in our little, cramped room for our Wednesday morning class.
But unlike the other Wednesday mornings, no one’s mind is fully here today.
The internships are done, there’s nothing else to discuss, and it feels like a waste of time.
I’m sure the students are just as anxious to get out of this room and soak in their last few days in Rome.
We have one last group dinner tomorrow night, and then the program’s officially over. Students will head off, some to the airport to go home and others to travel for a couple weeks before the fall semester kicks off back in Boston.
And I’m going to get one week in Rome with Colton. One more week to figure out if I have the guts to accept more from him.
One of the students half-heartedly answers my latest discussion question. I’m starting to wonder if I should call it for all of our sakes when Colton comes barreling through the door.
“I’m sorry for the interruption.” He turns serious eyes on me. “There’s an emergency and we need to cancel the rest of class. Professor Riley, I need you to come with me right away.”
“What’s going on?” I ask, nausea settling in my gut.
The students chime in alongside me.
“Is everything okay?”
“What’s going on?”
“Did something happen at home?”
Colton lifts his hands, mustering all the professorial intimidation he has. The students cut off immediately, and I’d have laughed at the power he holds over them if I didn’t feel like I’m going to puke.
“I assure you, there’s nothing to worry about. It’s a personal matter Professor Riley needs to attend to, so please gather your things and enjoy your last days in Rome. Professor Riley, come with me quickly.”
My heart’s in my throat, my stomach churning as I hurry after him.
We rush up behind a crowd standing at the door—Colton’s students, who he already dismissed.
“Let us through, guys,” Colton calls out.
“Dr. Miller, you don’t want to go out there right now. It’s pouring.”
Colton glances over his shoulder at me. His stern mask never breaks, but I see the glint in his eyes. The expression eases my nerves, and he sees the question in my eyes. What are you up to, Colt? He shakes his head, glancing sideways at the students.
“Thanks for the heads up, but we need to get through. It’s an emergency.”
The class parts like the Red Sea, and Colton subtly grabs my hand to pull me behind him.
“What the hell is going on, Colton?”
“Everything’s fine. Trust me. You’ll be happy if you do.”
He tugs me after him as we run through the rain, not bothering with umbrellas. The chilly water is refreshing in the Roman heat, soaking us through in seconds. He tosses me a helmet as we reach his Vespa.
“Move faster, woman, or all of this’ll have been a waste.”
I laugh, but do as he said. “I’m going as fast as I can, asshole.”
He speeds off as soon as my hands wrap around his torso.
I can feel the definition of his abs through the wet button-down shirt and fight the temptation to follow those lines lower.
Not the safest option while driving in the rain.
He flies through the streets with the confidence of a local, swerving around tourists milling about and turning corners at top speed despite the rain-slicked streets.
The world passes us in a blur as I try to get my bearings. I know the city well, but I’m lost between the rain pelting my visor and the speed of the Vespa.
I finally catch sight of something I recognize.
Largo di Torre Argentina shoots up out of the busy intersection, the ancient pillars helping me get my bearings.
I spent a lot of time at the cat sanctuary there when I went through my preteen kitten-obsessed phase, and it holds a special place in my heart.
Only in the absurdity of Rome would they turn the site of Julius Caesar’s assassination into a feral cat sanctuary.
Colton takes a hard right as it flies by us, shooting down a glorified alley. My heart stills as I realize where we’re going. How did I not realize as soon as I saw the rain?
He comes to a hard stop next to the mammoth of brick and concrete. Even the rough rear facade of the building, worn down from millennia of exposure to the elements, speaks to me like no other building ever has. Colton pulls as close as we can get before the barrier blocks off traffic.
“You didn’t,” I say as I pull the helmet off as quickly as I can.
“Didn’t what?” he answers with a brilliant smile. He pushes the kickstand down with his foot as I throw my helmet onto the seat. “Fake an emergency to get us both out of class when I saw it was raining outside?”
“You’re unbelievable.”
“I know, but if we stand around talking about how wonderful I am, we’ll miss it.”
He grabs my hand, both of us sprinting down along the side of the building. Summer rain in Rome never lasts long, and this is probably our last chance. We skid to a halt, both of us slipping on the wet pavers as we reach the front of the Pantheon.
As always, the building takes my breath away.
The size and majesty. The history this building has seen over the last two thousand years.
Cement pillars the size of a redwood tree dwarf the tourists crowding under the awning to escape the rain, using one of the oldest buildings in the world as an umbrella.
This structure has seen the rise and fall of empires. And here I am. A part of it, if only in the most inconsequential of ways.
Colton’s smile grows as our eyes lock before we take off again, dodging around tourists to get into the building.
I marvel at the circular interior. At the elaborate marble floors and altar. The intricate tombs of famous artists and leaders encircling the church like the gods who once held their place, reminding us of the grandeur of Rome and the littleness of our own lives.
But none of that majesty compares to the center of the building, my favorite site in the world. Rain pours through the oculus in the roof, a gaping hole the width of two cars. It pounds the floor, driving most tourists to the edges of the building to avoid the splash zone.
The effect is magical. A 150-foot waterfall pouring into an ancient temple-turned-church.
It’s a breathtaking combination of the power of nature and what humans can achieve when motivated.
It makes me feel small in the most beautiful way.
My heart swells, awed that I’m lucky enough to experience this.
“Are we doing this?” Colton whispers from next to me.
Unable to speak, I nod.
He grabs my hand again. The two of us hop the velvet rope, and he pulls me with him under the stream of water.
The tourists watch us like we’ve lost our minds as he spins me around in the rain, our laughs echoing through the massive chamber.
He dips me, bringing our lips together before lifting me upright.
“I can’t believe you did this,” I say again.
“I know you don’t have windows in your classroom.” He shrugs, turning almost sheepish under my praise. “We only have a week left. I didn’t want you to miss it. But for appearances’ sake, let’s make sure the students don’t know we blew off class to dance in the rain in an ancient temple.”
Our eyes meet, and feelings rush through me faster than the rain through the oculus, washing away the doubts that have plagued me.
This is my best friend. Someone who has seen me at my worst and still wants me.
The man who seems to know me in a way no one else does.
My person, who makes me laugh and stands up for me when he doesn’t have to.
Who canceled his class at the first sign of rain to give me the thing I love most. Or, at least, the thing I had loved most.
“I love you,” I say, my mouth speaking before my mind can even finish processing that that’s what I’m feeling.
But I’m suddenly so certain of what this is, and certain that we’re strong enough to take on whatever challenges in life may come our way. Colton and I are partners. We always have been. And I don’t want to spend another day forcing my feelings down out of fear.
His eyes widen. It isn’t even close to the first time I’ve said those words to him, but we both know this is different. I wait for what’s probably a second but feels like days. My heart hammers in my chest and I will him with my eyes to tell me what he’s thinking.
“Signor e signora,” a sharp voice comes from behind me, breaking the moment. A priest makes his way to us with a deep frown on his face. “I must ask you to leave. This is a church. Your behavior is unacceptable.”
“Mi dispiace,” we say in unison, fighting to appear apologetic as we join hands again and speed walk out of the church. Our laughter breaks free again the minute we exit the building.
Colton tugs me through the crowd under the awning, leading me around to the side of the building. He backs me up against the rough concrete, rain still pouring over our bodies as he places a hand on either side of my neck.
“Did you mean it?” he asks, his voice low and husky.
I nod, unable to force a single word past my lips until I hear what he has to say.
Tears fill his eyes, then his dimple appears, followed by the widest smile I’ve ever seen grace his perfect face. He pulls me up to kiss me, and I feel it in every corner of my body.
He pulls back, his eyes sweeping over my face like I’m more mesmerizing to him than all the ruins in Rome. “I love you, Quinn. So fucking much.”
He kisses me again, and just like that, I’m complete.