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“You don’t have to talk about it if it’s too much,” I say gently. Sometimes I forget—he’s still carrying that grief, a wound that never truly healed, just learned to stay quiet.

He shakes his head. “You deserve to know.”

“You know I’m not trying to replace her, right?”

He looks over at me, a soft smile touching his lips. “I know. And no one ever could. I’d never compare you to her—never pit you against her. You’re two very different women… but somehow, you share the same kind of fire.”

I tilt my head. “What do you mean?”

His smile deepens, laced with memory. “It’s in your warmth. That quiet strength that doesn’t need to shout to be felt. You both love with your whole hearts, but when you’re angry—when you’re pushed—you burn with a fury that can level anything in your path. It’s beautiful… and terrifying.”

A soft laugh escapes me. “And how are we different?”

He pauses, the smile fading into something quieter. “With you, it’s… different. There’s this pull—like a thread that’s always been there. I felt it the moment I saw you at Antonio’s funeral. I shouldn’t have looked at you the way I did, but I couldn’t help it. It was like… gravity.”

My heart stutters. “Like we were meant to collide.”

He nods. “Beatrice opened my heart. She changed the way I saw the world. She gave me my son. But you—” he takes my hand, gaze burning into mine, “—you feel like everything was leading to this. To you. With you, it feels like… destiny came full circle.”

I blink, breath caught in my throat. “So what you’re telling me is… I’m your destiny?”

His lips lift. “The inevitable kind.”

I mean to say it as a joke, but my husband suddenly pulls us to a stop and turns to face me. His eyes—molten autumn and full of fire—hold a gravity that roots me in place. There’s something in his gaze I can’t quite decipher, something that makes the air between us feel too heavy, too still.

My stomach lurches. The teasing tone vanishes from my throat.

The intensity of his stare has my heart pounding like war drums in my chest. Every instinct tells me to brace myself—for what, I don’t know.

Then his voice drops, low and certain.

“Sei l’inizio della mia fine, amore mio. E quando questo mondo finirà, farò in modo di trovarti nel prossimo.”

You are the beginning of my end, my love. And when this world ends, I will make sure to find you in the next.

“Matteo…” I can’t find the words to say it. So, instead, I lift onto my toes and press my lips to his. I pour all that I have into that kiss and hope that he feels it within him.

He is the beginning of my end and all the things in between. I am falling in love with him, and I am helpless to catch myself. I don’t know what the future holds for us with all this chaos that surrounds us, but I know that as long as his hand stays in mine, we will make it out alive.

After a short walkaround the park, his meeting time arrives, and we head back to the penthouse.

“Come, my love.” He opens the door for me. “You will be fine while I’m gone.”

I walk in, but before I can respond, a familiar voice calls out?—

“Surprise.”

Ginny steps forward with a wide smile, her arms already open. There’s a sparkle in her eyes, but she’s more graceful than frantic.

“I’ve missed you,” she says as she pulls me into a warm hug. “You have no idea how good it is to see you in one piece.”

I hug her back, my chest tightening with affection.

“I talked to you on the phone last night. What are you doing here? I thought you and Dario would be in Washington.”

She pulls away and smiles. “That was all a lie. We were coming here to New York to see you. Dario has business with your husband, and I thought, why not drop by? Hello, Matteo.”

“Ginny, lovely to see you.” Matteo gives her a polite greeting. “Amore, I am leaving. Stay in the house, please, and if you must leave, make sure you go with Tony and text me.”