by L. M Anthony
But I still wanted to.
“I don’t understand some of these things,” Laura said sheepishly as she looked over the menu.
There would be time enough to think about this later. I leaned forward and Laura tilted the menu so that I could see it too. For now, I would just focus on Laura and the time we were spending together right at this moment.
Then maybe, if I was lucky, I would finally come up with the right things to say to persuade her that we could continue having a relationship.
Chapter Nineteen
The next few days flew by and, before I knew it, it was the day before Laura was due to leave. I woke up that morning with a dark pit in my stomach, wondering if it was even worth getting out of bed.
Would Laura tell me now that she was leaving tomorrow? Or would she take this one last night with me and tell me right before she left? Which would be easier?
Honestly, neither option would be easy.
Even harder was the fact that I had to pretend I knew nothing. I rolled over and looked at my clock. It was just after six in the morning. I glanced at Laura, who was sleeping beside me. Laura, of course, definitely wouldn’t be awake yet; she wasn’t much of a morning person. I wanted to just close my eyes and go back to sleep, but I wouldn’t be able to now that I was awake.
Reluctantly, I pulled myself out of bed, being careful not to disturb Laura. I had nowhere to be today, so I found some comfortable pants and a shirt before leaving my room, running my hand through my hair. Guilia was in the hall, and she smiled before getting a closer look at me.
“Is everything alright?” she asked.
I tried to smile at her. I’m not sure how I looked, but the concern in her eyes grew.
“Everything is fine,” I assured her.
I turned and walked away before she could ask anything else. I didn’t want to be questioned any further lest I inadvertently let slip some of my actual feelings. I couldn’t afford to seem different today, not if I didn’t want Laura to question my behavior.
It occurred to me, as I went downstairs, though, that maybe that was the out I was looking for. If Laura asked me why I didn’t seem as happy today, it would be the perfect start to the conversation, one where she might actually tell me that she planned to leave tomorrow and how she felt about both her departure and our relationship.
Because surely she wouldn’t leave without saying anything, right? Or did she plan to simply sneak off while I wasn’t looking, hoping to make a clean break now that she could return to America? Once she left Italy, the chances of finding her among millions of people in America were pretty slim.
I shook my head and headed to the kitchen, needing coffee. No, she wouldn’t leave without at least saying goodbye and telling me what she wanted. Even if it was at the last minute, she would no doubt find the time to tell me today.
Today… which was the last day we had together.
I paused at the thought. If Laura went home tomorrow, today was all we had. If we broke up due to the difficulties of having a long distance relationship, the memories we made today would be all that we had left.
“Sir?”
I looked up bleakly. I hadn’t heard Pietro approach. The older man was surveying me quietly, not looking surprised to see how upset I was.
“Coffee?” Pietro asked quietly.
I nodded and followed the butler into the kitchen. Gabriel was humming in the kitchen as he cooked, unaware of what today was. The only one of my staff that I had told about Laura’s impending departure was Pietro.
“Guilia said she thought you seemed down,” Pietro commented as I sat at the table. A steaming cup of coffee, already prepared, was set in front of me.
“Hm,” I hummed, avoiding his eyes.
“Laura hasn’t yet told you her plans?” Pietro asked.
“Not yet,” I said, trying my best to sound unconcerned.
It didn’t work. My voice wavered slightly as I spoke, and I stared at the table, tracing the lines in the marble.
“I see,” Pietro said. “Do you have any plans for tonight?”
I looked up sharply.
“Plans?” I asked blankly.
“It is Laura’s last night,” Pietro pointed out. He was busying himself folding freshly washed dish towels and wasn’t looking at me. “I’d assumed you had a plan for the night.”
I hadn’t even considered it. I had been so caught up in wondering what would happen tomorrow, that it didn’t occur to me that tonight was special. It was my last chance to make a good enough impression that Laura would want to continue our relationship after she left for America.
“Right… you’re right…” I murmured.
Laura was not the type of woman who liked huge, fancy displays of affection, I had discovered. While she had enjoyed Osteria degli Spiriti, she had seemed far more relaxed at the tiny pasta place we had stumbled on after the business gala, desperate for proper food. It suited her down-to-earth attitude.
So, if I was going to take her out to celebrate our last night together, something simple would be best. Something meaningful.
Then, an idea struck me. I sat up straight in sudden excitement.
I knew exactly what to do.
***
From the way she suspiciously eyed my staff running back and forth all day, Laura obviously knew something was up, but I refused to answer any of her questions. Tonight was going to be a good night, and I wanted to give Laura a memory that she would always carry with her, even after she left.
“Can you dress nicely?” I asked Laura half way through the afternoon.
“Are we going out?” she asked.
I smiled slightly.n“In a way,” I said vaguely.
Laura searched my face and then laughed, looking pleased.
“Alright, mystery man, I’ll let you surprise me,” she said teasingly.
I smiled and watched her walk up the stairs. I really loved Laura. It wasn’t hard to admit it anymore. She was beautiful, caring and practical. I wanted her to stay with me. If she went back to America, I would spare no expense in giving us both the opportunity to visit one another.
Somehow, I had to make this work, and to make Laura believe it would work, too.
“All set, Matteo,” Chiara said, coming up behind me.
“Thank you, Chiara,” I said to her. “Tell everyone they can have an early night.”
Chiara’s expression lit up.
“Seriously?” she asked.
“Yeah,” I said, giving her a warm smile. “You’ve all done enough. Thank you for everything.”
Chiara beamed and bounded away, presumably to pass the message on. I waited downstairs and, before long, my staff began to leave, all of them wishing my luck on their way out. Pietro, however, paused before he left.
“Are you sure you will not need me?” he asked.
“I think I have it in hand,” I said to him. “I want this to be special.”
“Of course,” Pietro said with a nod. “Good luck, sir. I will see you in the morning.”
Then he was gone, leaving only Laura and I in the house. Almost instantly, nerves began to settle over me. What if Laura didn’t like what I had planned? What if she chose tonight to break up with me?
I drew in a deep breath as I heard movement from upstairs. I needed to settle down and focus on Laura and our date. Tonight was important in many different ways.
“Matteo?”
I turned around. Laura was at the top of the stairs. She was wearing the black dress she had worn to Alessandro’s party, her feet clad in simple silver heels. She had tucked her hair into a bun, wisps of hair floating around her face, and the only jewelry she was wearing were a pair of silver dots and a delicate silver bracelet with blue stones. She was absolutely gorgeous.
“Wow,” I said as she came down the stairs. “You look beautiful, Laura.”
“Thank you,” she said with a shy smile. “I like what you’re wearing, too.”
Mindful of my plans for the night, I had ch
osen a simple pair of black slacks, a sleek dark blue button-down shirt, and a dinner jacket that I had rolled to my elbows. I held out my arm for Laura and, smiling, she took it.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“Not far,” I said.
I could almost feel her bewilderment when, instead of leading her to the garage, I took her to my smaller dining room, the one I used when it was just me or a handful of people I felt close to. As we entered, she gasped and paused.
I’d had Pietro and Gabriel help me move the larger dining table out of the room and replace it with a round table in the center, draped with a long white cloth. On the table and on the shelves, white candles burned, casting the room in a soft glow. Dinner was already set up; two bowls of soup were ready for us and on a nearby cart were several dishes preserved beneath silver lids, waiting for us to open them. A bottle of champagne was in a bucket on the table.
“This is… amazing,” Laura breathed, staring. “You did all this?”
“With help,” I chuckled.
“What’s the occasion?” Laura asked, blinking.
“You’re leaving tomorrow, and I don’t know when we’ll see each other again,” I wanted to say.
“I just felt like it,” I said instead. “Do you like it?”
“I love it,” Laura said, looking up and smiling at me. The candlelight glittered in her eyes. “It’s beautiful. Thank you, Matteo.”
I led Laura to the table and pulled her chair out for her. She smiled at me as she sat down, folding her napkin in her lap as she did so.
“What type of soup is it?” she asked.
“Pumpkin,” I said. “Gabriel’s pumpkin soup is amazing.”
“Then I look forward to trying it,” Laura said, beaming.
Sitting at the smaller table with Laura felt intimate; our knees brushed together, and our lands lay close to one another on the table. At one point, Laura wove her fingers gently through mine, and we sat holding hands until we were forced to start using two utensils.
It was all so perfect. For a moment, I could even forget about Laura’s departure tomorrow as I stared in her eyes, remembering just why I had fallen in love with this amazing woman. She was so different to anyone else in my life. She gazed back at me softly, and it was this that prompted me to stand, halfway through dessert, cutting her off in the middle of a story from her high school days, and hold my hand out to her.
“What?” she asked blankly.
I smiled and, in my pocket, pressed a button on the small remote hidden there. Music started playing from the speakers that I’d set up around the room. It was slow, romantic music that changed the atmosphere around us from light and friendly to warm and loving.
“May I have this dance?” I asked.
Laura stared at me incredulously, and, for a moment, I thought she might say no. Then her face relaxed into a smile and she laughed as she stood, taking my hand.
“Thank you,” she said courteously.
Her hand fit perfectly in mine, and her body slotted into place at my side as we wrapped our arms around each other. Then we started to sway. I knew several dances, myself, but Laura had once confessed that she had two left feet. Perhaps, in the future, I would teach her to dance. But, for now, this moment was perfect as it was.
Laura look up at me. Her cheeks were flushed with laughter, and she looked so incredibly happy. Her blue eyes glittered, and there was a wide smile splitting her cheeks.
I couldn’t resist her even if I’d wanted to. I leaned in and kissed her, softly at first, and then more passionately, seized by sudden desire. If this was the last night we had together, I wanted to make it count. I wanted Laura to be with me, at least one last time.
Then, to my surprise, Laura stepped away.
The smile was no longer on her face. Her arms lingered around my neck for a moment before she slowly stepped back.
“Sorry, Matteo, I’m tired,” she said. She tried to smile, but it wavered at the edges. “Do you mind if I go to bed?”
“No… no, of course not,” I said, trying to rouse myself.
“This was really beautiful,” Laura said earnestly. “Thank you so much for doing this. I loved it.”
“That’s great,” I said. My words sounded oddly distant. “You got to bed. I’ll clear up.”
“I can help,” Laura offered.
I shook my head. I needed her out of the room. My heart was cracking in two. It couldn’t be a coincidence that she would push me away the night before she left.
But, like always, I wouldn’t show any of it. I would just stand strong and wait for what happened next.
“No, it’s fine,” I assured her. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
Laura hesitated, clearly unsure, and then she left. The room, which had previously been so warm and intimate, now felt cold and empty. Struck by sudden irritation at the sight of it all, I went around to blow out the candles, and then pushed the cart of now-empty dishes back to the kitchen. Gabriel had left a sink of warm water for me with instructions to dump everything in it for the morning, so I did this before heading upstairs.
Almost immediately, I noticed that Laura’s door was closed. She had gone to her own, rarely-used room. I closed my eyes briefly and then continued on. There was no other reason.
Laura didn’t want to stay with me.
Chapter Twenty
What?” I asked blankly.
“She feels guilty,” Chiara repeated patiently. “About last night. I think she was so overwhelmed by her secret that she left before anything more happened.” Her face fell. “So, Laura really is leaving today?”
“If all goes to plan,” I said with a shrug.
Some of my staff were only just finding out about Laura leaving. As soon as I told Chiara, I gave her the extra mission of going to comfort Laura, and perhaps finding out what happened next.
I didn’t expect Chiara to say Laura felt guilty, though.
Should I say anything? If this was our last day together, I really wanted to make it count.
I just wasn’t sure how.
***
I still had no idea what to do. The hours were quickly slipping away from me, and it would soon be time for Laura to leave. It was beginning to irritate me that she hadn’t say anything to me. Regardless of how guilty Chiara claimed she felt, it wasn’t fair to just leave without telling me after I had opened my home to her for two weeks.
It was almost at the point where I was willing to confront Laura myself.
Hearing voices at the entrance, I sighed and made my way there. Visitors? Especially today of all days? I hoped they wouldn’t be too insulted once I found a polite way to tell them to go away.
Before I arrived, though, I paused. I could hear Laura’s voice at the door, which meant she had greeted the visitors. I peered around the corner.
Dina was here, it seemed. Did she know when Laura was leaving? I almost snorted. Of course she did. She was probably here to say goodbye.
I felt irrationally jealous that Dina was the one given the chance to do so.
Dina wasn’t the only one here, though. I narrowed my eyes at the man standing behind Dina, his eyes on Laura. What the hell was Lorenzo doing here? The three of them were talking. I debated interrupting, knowing that Laura was having a private conversation with her friend.
With Lorenzo there, however, I couldn’t leave this alone. I stepped forward.
“What’s this?” I asked. I gave Lorenzo a hard look, warning him not to try anything.
“We came to say goodbye to Laura,” Lorenzo said. He winked at Laura, and I was grateful to see that she looked disgusted. “Isn’t that right, amore?”
I went cold. Lorenzo knew? My eyes snapped at the sound of the nickname that Lorenzo had bestowed on Laura, but I forced myself not to react.
Knowing that Lorenzo knew when I apparently didn’t was painful.
“Goodbye?” I asked Laura.
“Maybe,” Dina added hurriedly. “Laura’s still not sure
.”
Laura looked pale and tired. The secret she had kept from me for two weeks had just been thrown into the open. I would have felt sorry for her if it hadn’t been something that hurt me, too.
“My plane back to Chicago is supposed to be leaving tonight,” Laura finally said.
I tried to look upset and shocked. But I couldn’t manage it. How had Laura not realized that I knew after everything? So, I decided to turn the tables.
“I’m aware,” I said, and her eyes widened. “You left your tickets downstairs last week.”
Laura stared. Here it was, out in the open. She was leaving today, and I had known all along. I could almost see that realization dawning on her.
“Right,” she said, looking away. “Sorry… I meant to talk to you about it, but…”
“It’s fine,” I said. I felt a little distant now that the truth had finally been told. “I was planning to take you to the airport if you wanted.”
Laura stared at me. She looked upset, but I couldn’t work out why. I leaned forward slightly, intending on putting a hand on her shoulder.
And then an arm wrapped around Laura from behind, and Lorenzo leaned in. I was seized by the sudden desire to punch him right in his idiotic face.
“Or you could stay,” he suggested. I hated that he’d voiced what I felt. Then his other hand settled on Laura’s waist to grip it possessively. I scowled. “It would be disappointing to leave without having any real fun.”
Laura had it in hand, though, I opened my mouth to say something, but she got there first. She ducked out of Lorenzo’s arm and swung around, glaring darkly at him.
“What part of ‘no’ don’t you understand?” she demanded.
I felt proud of Laura. Was this the first time she had stood up to him without the cloud of lust that hung between them? Lorenzo snorted at her.
“Please,” he said imperiously. “Twice you came to me asking for sex. You obviously want me. You only left because you couldn’t handle sharing.”
All the color drained from Laura’s face. My world quickly narrowed to those words and a blaze of anger started to rise within me. If Lorenzo didn’t leave soon, I was prepared to hurt him.