He pulled back, just far enough to stare in her eyes. ‘I’d started to hope these past twenty-four hours,’ he said, his voice thick with emotion. ‘But I wasn’t certain. That last day...you didn’t say anything.’
‘I couldn’t. You were so adamant you would never love me back.’ She grimaced. ‘I grew up watching my mother throw herself at men, desperate to be loved. It made me angry at her for a long time—like you were angry at Eva, I suppose. I was determined to never be weak like that.’ Annah had thought a lot about her mother over the last few weeks. Little by little, her bitterness towards Rachel had ebbed. In its place had come sadness and even compassion for a woman who’d spent her life searching for love when what she probably needed most was to learn to love herself.
Luca tucked his fingers beneath her chin. ‘You are not weak, cara. You are strong. You raised our son on your own for over four years and did an amazing job.’
She tried to smile but her lips wobbled. ‘Doing it on my own hasn’t felt very good these last three weeks,’ she confessed. ‘I missed you.’
He swept a strand of hair from her face, brushed his knuckles down her cheek. ‘You don’t have to do it alone any more.’ Shifting suddenly, he set her down on the sofa and got up. He went to his jacket, which hung on the back of a dining room chair, and returned with his hand closed around something.
Annah’s heart quickened when he dropped to one knee in front of her and opened his fingers to reveal a black velvet box and, when he lifted the lid, a stunning platinum and diamond engagement ring nestled inside.
‘I love you, Annah,’ he said, his gaze fixed on hers. ‘I want to be your husband and I want to be a father to our son. I want to love and protect you both for the rest of my life.’ He paused. ‘Will you marry me?’
Fresh tears filled her eyes, but this time she didn’t bother fighting them. Didn’t care when they slipped down her cheeks and dripped off her chin. ‘Yes,’ she said, and then watched him slide the gorgeous ring onto her finger. She leaned in to kiss him.
The cat flap in the kitchen door rattled and a loud meow pierced the air.
She pulled back, eyes widening. ‘Mister Pickles!’
Leaving a trail of muddy paw prints in his wake, the cat trotted across the room and leapt onto her lap, nudging his furry body between her and Luca. Annah laughed at the less than impressed look on Luca’s face. She stroked the cat’s head, relieved to see him alive and well. ‘You have terrible timing, Mister Pickles. But a certain little boy is going to be very happy to see you in the morning.’
With a gentle hand, Luca scooped the ginger tabby off her lap, shooed him away, and then tugged her back into his arms. ‘Where were we?’
Annah took his face between her hands, her heart swelling with love and irrepressible happiness. They still had things to discuss, details to iron out, but right now all that mattered was they were together—Luca, her, and Ethan. A family.
‘I think we were about here,’ she said, and pressed her mouth against his.
EPILOGUE
Fourteen years later
ETHAN CAVALLARI RAN a lazy hand over his dishevelled hair as he sauntered into the breakfast room to join the rest of his family.
‘Ethan!’ Letting out a high-pitched squeal, his youngest sister leapt off her chair, ran across the room and launched into his arms.
He grinned, swung seven-year-old Aria onto his hip, and planted an affectionate kiss on her cheek. ‘Hey, squirt.’
She grinned back. ‘Mamma said I could stay up till you got here last night, but I fell asleep.’
‘I know. I went up to see you and you were snoring.’
She giggled and slapped her palm against his chest. ‘Was not!’
Leo, three years Aria’s senior, joined in from the breakfast table. ‘You were. I heard it all the way from my room.’
‘It was so loud the windows rattled,’ said twelve-year-old Siena, not to be outdone by her brothers when it came to teasing their little sister.
Aria poked her tongue out at Siena and Leo, but she was laughing and so were her siblings.
From opposite ends of the table, Luca and Annah locked eyes with each other and smiled. On mornings like this, when Ethan was home from university and her family was gathered around the breakfast table, Annah felt as if her heart might burst it was so full of happiness.
‘Uh-oh,’ Ethan said in a loud stage whisper as he set Aria back on her chair and took the one next to her. ‘Don’t look now, but Mum and Papà are making eyes at each other again.’
The children giggled and snickered, except for Siena, who slanted her older brother a sly smile. ‘I saw you and Lili making eyes at each other at the New Year’s picnic.’
Annah watched, amused, as a bright flush crept over her son’s face. He and Liliana had been friends from the day they’d sat together in the courtyard of her grandparents’ restaurant with crayons and colouring books. Now they were older, it wouldn’t surprise Annah if their friendship deepened into something more. Mario and Mia’s daughter had blossomed into a beautiful young woman and, given his blushing reaction, Ethan wasn’t unaware of the fact.
Reaching for a pitcher of orange juice, he changed the subject. ‘When are Nonna and Alberto arriving?’