Chapter 59
Wake me from this dream.
Wake me now, or I’ll never recover.
The ride back to the mansion was silent.
Not the heavy silence of strangers but the kind that thrummed with every word left unsaid.
Dominic’s hand never left mine. Every few minutes, I caught him looking at me like he still couldn’t believe I was real. Like touching me was proof that death had failed.
When the car stopped at the gates, the guards froze. One of them nearly dropped his weapon.
“B–Boss Moretti?”
The name rippled like thunder through the estate.
I stepped into the mansion first. Asvika was already running down the stairs, ready to scold me, a smirk playing on her lips.
“I was about to send special ops to come find you,” she teased—
until Dominic stepped in from behind me.
Her smirk fell. “What the—Dominic?”
He smiled faintly. “Missed me?”
She blinked, disbelief flickering in her expression. “Vee… he’s—”
“Alive,” I whispered. My voice cracked on the word. “He’s alive.”
He pulled her into a brief hug before letting go.
If only Sanaa could have come down the stairs too. If only she could’ve seen this.
Mama appeared behind Asvika, still in her silk robe, phone in hand. When her eyes met Dominic’s, she covered her mouth and whispered something in Italian under her breath—a prayer or a curse, I couldn’t tell.
Dominic inclined his head. “I owe you my life,” he said quietly. “You took care of her when I couldn’t.”
Her eyes softened, but her tone stayed steel. “Then don’t waste it, Figlio.”
She pulled him into a brief, motherly hug, whispering something I didn’t catch.
“It must have been difficult,” she said.
“It was,” he admitted. “But I set the path right. And I’m here now.”
We moved past them, hand in hand, until we reached my office.
The moment the door shut, he pulled me close, forehead pressed to mine.
“I should’ve come sooner,” he said, voice raw. “Every day, I wanted to. But they were still watching, my uncle’s allies. They wanted to finish what they started. I couldn’t risk them finding you.”
“So, you made me bury you,” I whispered. “You made me mourn you.”
His jaw tensed. “It was the only way to keep you safe. Aurelio knew. Renaisa too. Everyone played along, because the moment you knew, they’d have seen through it. You’ve never been good at hiding your heart, Versace.”
I wanted to hate him for that. But my anger drowned in the sound of his voice.
He cupped my face, thumb tracing the corner of my lip. “You’ve changed,” he said softly. “Colder. Stronger.”
“You did that.”
He nodded, regret shadowing his eyes. “Then I’ll spend the rest of my life undoing it.”
And then he kissed me—slow, deep, the kind of kiss that rewrote grief into breath.
When we finally pulled apart, I pressed a hand against his chest, feeling the beat that had haunted my dreams.
“I have a surprise for you,” I said.
He arched his brow. “After thirteen months, you still think you can surprise me?”
I smiled faintly. “You’ll see.”
My heart raced the entire walk. What if he didn’t want them? What if he looked at the twins and saw chains instead of blessings?
The nursery lights glowed soft gold. Mama stood near the cribs, humming a tune that had survived generations. When she saw us, her gaze met mine, sharp, knowing—and she quietly slipped out of the room.
Dominic followed me in; confusion laced across his face.
And then he saw them.
Two small bundles wrapped in white.
A boy and a girl.
His breath caught. “Vee…”
I turned to him, tears blurring everything. “Meet your children.”
He went utterly still. Then his knees gave out, the sound of it echoing through the quiet room.
“They’re—” His voice cracked. “Ours?”
I nodded, smiling through tears. “Yours, Dominic. Ours.”
He reached into the crib with trembling hands, touching their tiny fingers like he was afraid they’d disappear.
“Renaisa and Aurelio never told me any of this.” He muttered still in shock.
“It wasn’t their secret to tell, and I guess they also wanted you to find out for yourself.” I silently thanked them in my heart.
“God,” he whispered. “They look like you.”
Then, shaking his head, “No… he has your eyes. She has mine.”
I laughed softly, wiping my cheeks. “No, Shiloh has my eyes. And Sienna—she has your stubborn jaw.”
He looked up at me, eyes glassy, voice breaking. “You named them already?”
“Shiloh Ambrose Moretti,” I said quietly. “And Sienna Aureline Versace.”
A ghost of a smile curved his lips. “Ambrose. Aureline. You always had a thing for beauty.”
“They’re your legacy,” I said, crouching beside him. “And mine.”
“Another reason I cut my hair was because Shiloh loved pulling on it and he has a strong grip.” I chuckled, memories of me groaning in frustration every time he caught my hair. “Now it’s not long enough for him to grip, it slips out.”
He leaned in, resting his forehead against mine again. “I thought I lost everything that night,” he whispered. “But you… you gave me a future I didn’t deserve.”
I cupped his face, thumb brushing his scar. “Then don’t waste it, amore. Live it.”
He kissed me again, softer this time, trembling, tears mixing with laughter, grief folding into love.
“I’m sorry I was late again,” he murmured. “I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you—and to them.”
“So, you accept them?” I asked, searching his eyes.
He looked at me like I’d insulted the sun. “Why would I not accept my children?”
“I may be a devil, but God is always on my side,” He said and I furrowed my brow in confusion.
“Why do you say that?”
“Because he saved you during your critical time and he let me have you, an angel.”
And for the first time since the fire, since the blood, since the heartbreak—
I believed in beautiful beginnings again.