Chapter Twenty-four
RONAN
Present Day
ITALY
“Push back the jet for five hours.” My voice came out quieter than I’d planned as I stared at Nina’s door, hesitating. I had been in Florence longer than I had planned, debating whether I should go.
Rachel took a beat before responding. “Of course. Is everything… alright?”
“Just something I need to take care of first,” I murmured, fingers brushing the wood grain as if I could reach her through it.
She paused, then asked, “Does this have to do with your crocheted snowflake?”
A bitter chuckle escaped me, sharp in the silence of the hallway. “Yeah, actually, it does.”
Rachel’s gentle sigh reached me, laced with the kind of encouragement only she can manage. “The jet will be here in ten hours, and good luck, sir.”
I ran a hand through my hair, forcing the tension from my shoulders. “I’ll need it.”
My heart raced as I held a bouquet of peonies and the crocheted snowflake. The night, bathed in moonlight, made each breath heavier as the weight of my vulnerability pressed down on me.
Why was I here?
What was I doing?
Did she even want to see me?
I knocked, the sound echoing down the silent street. My heart pounded so loudly I was sure she could hear it. For a second, I almost ran, but my feet stayed rooted, heavy with everything I was about to risk.
Time stretched, thick with regret. I wondered if this was a mistake, if showing up would only push her further away.
Then the door opened.
Nina stood there.
She looked even more beautiful under the streetlamp’s glow, the night breeze stirring her braids. Moonlight caught in her eyes, soft and familiar. She wore a loose pink satin nightdress, the fabric shifting as she stilled in surprise.
We were frozen, staring at each other.
Her face held shock, confusion, and maybe… a trace of what we once were. Her lips parted, as if she wanted to speak, but no words came.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, her voice breaking the silence. Annoyance laced her words, but beneath it, I caught a flicker of curiosity and longing.
I swallowed hard, feeling the words stuck in my throat. “I wanted to see you.”
“How do you even know where I live?” she demanded, crossing her arms over her chest. The motion caused a braid to fall across her face, and she tucked it behind her ear with a quick, almost impatient gesture. Her eyes still narrowed, studying me as if I were a puzzle she couldn’t quite solve.
“I know everything about you, Nina,” I replied, my voice barely above a whisper.
Her gaze pierced through me, and I felt the familiar ache of everything I had lost, mingling with the hope of what could still be. “I’m not letting you in.”
“That’s fine,” I said quickly, sensing her hesitation, my heart racing as I leaned closer, desperate for a connection. With a slight smile, I reached into my pocket and pulled out a small, carefully wrapped package. “I brought you a gift.”
Her brow furrowed, suspicion mixing with intrigue. “A gift?”
I handed her the package, watching as she took it with cautious fingers. “Open it.”
As she unwrapped the delicate paper, a snowflake crocheted from soft white yarn emerged.
“You crocheted this?” she asked, her voice laced with disbelief.
“Yeah, I’ve been doing it for years now,” I admitted, a hint of pride sneaking into my tone. “Flowers, ear covers, scarves, mitts, and everything of the sort.”
“Flowers?” She raised an eyebrow, clearly skeptical.
“Peonies to be exact.”
She examined the snowflake closely, a soft smile breaking through her defenses. “Grazie,” she murmured, her voice softer now.
I nodded, relief washing over me. “Yeah, it reminds me of winter.”
Nina chuckled, the sound lightening the air between us. “I was your winter, wasn’t I?”
“Why do you say it in the past tense?” I asked, my heart quickening at the hint of melancholy in her tone.
“Isn’t it the past?” she replied, tilting her head as if challenging me.
I stepped closer, my gaze steady on hers. “You’ll always be my winter, no matter how many years have passed.”
Her expression softened, and for a moment, the distance between us seemed to fade. I could see the inner conflict in her eyes—the pull of the past against the weight of our history.
“Ronan…” she began, but the vulnerability returned.
“I have one thing to ask.”
She sighed, her shoulders relaxing. “What?”
My heart raced. “Will you be my date to Dillon’s gala?”
She paused, her gaze softening as she thought it over. Then, with a delicate sigh, she began, “Ronan—”
“It won’t be a date,” I interjected, almost pleading. “We’ll just be there. That’s all.”
She searched my eyes, considering my words. I offered her the bouquet of peonies, my hand trembling. She hesitated, then took them, our fingers brushing. Before she could retreat inside, I gently held her hand for a moment, silently pleading with my gaze.
She pulled away, stepping inside and closing the door behind her.
“Tell me I’m not crazy,” I said, my voice a mix of desperation and disbelief. “Tell me I haven’t lost all my brain cells.”
“That depends,” Lucio replied, his tone thick with sleep, each word punctuated by a yawn. “Why do you think you’re crazy?”
I let out a deep breath, feeling the weight of the last few days crash over me like a tidal wave. “I’ve been doing some impulsive things,” I admitted, my heart racing as I prepared to spill my secrets.
“Like what?” he prompted, curiosity piqued despite his drowsiness.
“I just bought shares in a company,” I added, half-expecting him to laugh.
“Shares?” Lucio’s incredulous tone suggested he was both amused and concerned. “The hundreds of different businesses you have aren’t busy enough?”
“Eminence,” I responded, bracing for his reaction.
“Isn’t that a modeling agency?”
I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck where tension had settled. “Yes, but they’re going into business with Nina.”
A soft chuckle escaped him, lightening the mood a fraction. “Crazy? No. In love and obsessed? Yes.”
“I feel crazy,” I countered, frustration bubbling beneath the surface.
“Ronan,” he started, a heavy sigh escaping his lips, “Just because your love story is different doesn’t mean you’re crazy. The situation is delicate, but I saw Nina at an event an—”
“Stronzo,42” I muttered, cutting him off. “You saw her and didn’t mention it?”
“Let me talk first, idiota,43” he interjected, frustration creeping into his voice.
“My first instinct was to call you when I saw her with another man on her arm. But then, as I walked closer, she gave me a look Marina describes as one of shock. It was as if she feared I’d see her with someone else, knowing you’re my twin.
When I told her I’d tell you I saw her, the blood drained from her face. ”
His words hit me like a cold splash of water, grounding me enough to feel a little less crazy than before.
“Was her date holding on to her?” I asked, my stomach churning at the reference to calling him her “date.”
He laughed again, but this time it was more mocking than before. “When I asked who he was, they both answered simultaneously. He said he was her date, and she said he’s her friend.”
“Oh,” was all I could manage in response.
Thank God.
“I say all of this to say,” Lucio continued, his voice steady, “I think by some miracle, she can’t shake you as much as you’ve shaken her.”
I took a deep breath, the resolve in my chest solidifying like concrete. “Whatever happens, I won’t stop until I get her back. Even if it takes years.”
Lucio’s expression softened, understanding flashing in his tired eyes. “That’s a long time to wait, Ronan.”
“She’s worth it.”
“Speaking of worth it,” Lucio began, shifting the focus, “I might have pissed Marina off by accident, and the end result is a call from the bank.”
“What did you do?”
He hesitated, a sheepish grin creeping onto his face. “So, you know how she’s been raving about that new interior design for the living room?”
“Yeah?”
“I accidentally told her it sounded ‘over-the-top.’”
I burst into laughter. “That’s like telling a chef their food is bland, idiota.”
He groaned, running a hand through his hair. “It slipped out. She looked at me like I had grown a second head.”
“Good luck with that,” I teased, still chuckling. “But what’s this about a call from the bank?”
“They said I need to approve two hundred thousand dollars.”
“Two hundred grand? What did she buy?” I asked, already bracing myself for the answer.
“She made a down payment on a Jeep,” he admitted, his tone filled with a mix of pride and disbelief. “I don’t mind because she’s my wife. I was just shocked.”
I shook my head in amazement, though he couldn’t see me. “I can’t wait to get married then, that sounds fun.”
“It has its perks.”
“I bet it does, Luci.”
Nina
Running on two hours of sleep, I slammed the door to my boutique and hurried to my office, avoiding everyone. I should’ve known two hours wouldn’t cut it.
This week, my head was spinning in all the right ways. The Eminence partnership was everywhere, and everything was coming together—not without hitches, but that was expected. I couldn’t wait for what was ahead. But last night? When he showed up at my door, it threw me completely off my axis.
Gosh. I’ve seen him in so many settings, but I couldn’t explain the sights the other night.
I could see the faint tremble in his hands, gripping the peonies so tightly as if they were his lifeline.
The vulnerability in his eyes was striking, a raw and unguarded look I had never seen before.
Those grayish-blue eyes, which once seemed impenetrable, now glistened with unspoken fears and deep-seated sorrow.
I plopped down on my lounge sofa and pulled the note from my purse.
“These flowers pale in comparison to your beauty, but I hope they bring a smile to your face.”
His cell number was scribbled underneath. My fingers trembled as I held it, wanting to discard it but unable to bring myself to do so.