Chapter 10 - The Return to the Harbor
The Mediterranean sun was dipping below the terracotta rooftops of Florence, casting long, golden shadows across the courtyard of Nora’s apartment building. When Nora stepped out of the grand arched doorway, she didn't need to look twice to recognize the matte-black town car idling by the curb.
Dante Alatorre stood leaning against the passenger door. He wore a dark tailored suit that seemed to absorb the twilight, the familiar jagged scar over his eyebrow catching the amber streetlamps. He wasn't holding a phone or checking a tablet; his eyes were fixed entirely on the doorway, tracking her approach with the absolute stillness of a predator that had found its home.
Nora stopped three feet away, a breathless smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “You said you were coming for dinner. I didn't realize your definition of dinner included crossing an entire ocean on a private jet.”
“Time zones are a minor inconvenience when you have business to attend to,” Dante murmured, his voice that deep, rich baritone that vibrated straight through her chest. He reached out, his warm, calloused fingers gently tracing her jawline. “And my most important business has been sitting in Italy for six months.”
“You left me alone for half a year,” she teased softly, leaning her cheek into his palm.
“I gave you the sunlight you asked for,” Dante corrected, his grey-gold eyes softening with a rare, fierce tenderness. “I told you when you left my estate that shadows don't belong in the light. But it turns out... I missed the dark.”
May you like
Before Nora could reply, Dante pulled her into his arms, his lips crashing down onto hers in a kiss that erased every mile, every month, and every lingering fear from her past. It wasn't a tentative embrace; it was the homecoming of two souls that had survived a storm.
“Pack your bags, Nora,” he whispered against her lips as he pulled back just enough to look into her eyes. “You’re coming home with me. Permanently.”
