“I’m too late, aren’t I?” he said, his face stricken with heartbreak. “I wanted to see you earlier but I wanted to make some head way with my therapy before I did. I wanted to come to you as a whole man –and offer you my whole heart. But I can see now…,” he looked back towards the door, “that I’m too late.”
Abruptly, he turned from her but Gaby caught his arm, “Luca. No. You’re not too late. You could never be too late. And if you were …, I’d wait. I’d wait for you forever.”
“You would?” he exclaimed in surprise.
“You idiot. Don’t you know I still love you too,” she replied with shake of her head.
And then his lips were upon hers. Taking possession as they never had before. This was right, Gaby thought as she kissed him back with abandon. His arms tightly gripped her as if he were afraid to let her go now that he had her at last.
“I love you so much my Contessa,” he murmured with a smile.
Gaby quickly pulled away. “What did you say?”
Luca chuckled; he was almost giddy with happiness. “I said Contessa. You’ll marry me of course.”
Taken aback by the sudden notion of what marrying Luca would entail, Gaby cringed with the prospect. “Oh, I didn’t think about that. Contessa? Luca, I’m not sure I can be a Contessa.”
He smiled and waved it away, “You’re not going to let a little thing like a title keep us from being together, are you?”
“But what about your family name? How could you possibly marry someone who’s Grandfather was a thief?”
He pulled her back into his arms and kissed her deeply in response, then lifted his head and muttered against her lips, “But you’re no thief.”
“Until recently your opinion wasn’t so stellar of me,” she remarked with a raised brow.
Luca kissed her again. “Oh Gaby. The only thing you’ve stolen from me is my heart. Nothing matters except you and me. I was wrong not to believe in you. Not to believe in us. And I’m so sorry about the things I said and did to hurt you.” He gave her a lopsided grin, “But I plan to spend my whole life making it up to you.”
Gaby ran her fingers along his jaw, “You make it sound so easy ..., and might I add, irresistible.”
“It is easy. Marry me and become my Contessa. I know that Carmina would be thrilled to have you for a sister-in-law. And as for myself –why you’d make me the happiest man on earth.”
A beam broke out across her face, “Well, when you put it like that, how can I refuse.”
Table of Contents
PROLOGUE
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN