Bonus Chapter Ricco De Lucca Moretti
Ricco De Lucca Moretti
Tuscany - Italy
I glance at my watch, wondering how much longer I’ll have to wait for the guest of my vineyard to arrive.
It isn’t my job as the CEO of Italy’s largest wine company to personally greet tourists. But a perfect storm of circumstances, combined with my sense of duty, wouldn’t let me leave the woman—well, the girl, really—waiting indefinitely until someone managed to reach her.
A tree fell, blocking the main road. We’ve already notified everyone else arriving today, redirecting them to nearby hotels, but apparently, this girl left her phone turned off.
I’m pissed as hell as I watch the crowd streaming through the airport.
They rush past, not really seeing each other. Blind to one another’s needs and fears.
On the surface, everyone looks happy, just like I once thought I was.
Now, I know it only takes a fraction of a second for your entire world to vanish.
The arrival doors slide open, and faces start to appear . . . smiling, eager, searching. I feel a little ridiculous standing here, holding a sign with her name on it.
People who greet tourists are supposed to be cheerful. I haven’t smiled in years.
Then I see her.
A lone blonde head among the stream of travelers. And somehow, I just know it’s her.
She walks slowly, taking everything in, probably looking for whoever came to pick her up.
And then our eyes meet, and I lift the sign a little higher, the black letters spelling out her name:
Luna Cox.