Page 133 of His Two Hidden Masks

“Yes,” I said. “That is crazy, right? I barely know him, but everything in my body tells me to not let him go, and for once, I feel like I know what is right for me, as scary as that is.”

“You should listen to your body, Bella,” he said. “I knew something was wrong with Sara that summer. I should have asked more questions and forced your parents to tell the truth.

“I don’t think you and I would have ended up on that altar if I had been clear about my feelings for her. I could have helped your family heal.”

“I don’t think my parents were ever going to heal. Their marriage was never built on love. It’s weird to say that out loud. It’s not my life, and if they hadn’t married, I wouldn’t exist, but I wish they had made different choices.”

I stared out across the water. As the sky grew dark, Christmas lights danced on the bow of a boat bound for the lagoon. A couple on a bridge across from us took selfies, phones flashing, trying to capture the rising moon.

“It’s funny, I love this city. I have loved my life here, but I think it may be time for me to go.”

“But your business,” Roberto said. “Lissa told me all about your orders. I am sorry I tried to shut it down. I was so angry when you left. I wanted to hurt you, to hurt your whole family. I understand now that part of what I was carrying was my grief for your sister.”

“I know,” I said. “I forgive you.” I hoped my words healed him.

He sighed and smiled. “So where would you go, and are you sure you want to walk away from your business like that?”

“I don’t know yet, and I don’t want to walk away from my business. I feel like there is a life waiting for me outside of Venice.”

“What does your husband think?” he said, bumping me with his elbow.

“Ha! You know. We have not talked about where we are going to live.” I sighed. “I may not have all those answers, but I do know one thing that I need to do.” I reached around my neck and unclasped the blue Murano heart that belonged to Sara. “This is for you.”

Roberto’s eyes widened and filled with tears. “I can’t take that from you.”

“Yes, you can, and you will,” I said. “You gave this to Sara because you loved her and you should give it to the next woman you love. Like maybe there is someone here that you love?”

I smiled at him. “Oh, I don’t know, someone with blonde hair whose cheeks flush every time you walk into the room.”

“Love,” he said. “Do you really think I’m someone Lissa could love? I have been such an asshole.”

“I know, and she still thinks you are hot.” I raised my hand. “You are one lucky son of a bitch.”

He laughed, holding the necklace in front of him. I loved seeing the Christmas lights glint through the beautiful blue heart. I picked up Roberto’s hand.

“What happened to us is in the past. You loved my sister and you loved me. The fact that we are sitting here together as friends shows you how much I love and trust you as a friend. You are a good man, and Lissa knows that,” I said. “This heart has come back to you for a reason. It is yours to gift again.”

I kissed his forehead.

He looked at me and smiled. “Thank you. That is one nice Bella Baci.”

“Oh my God. You are so cheesy.” Looking into his green eyes, I remembered hearing the ring of his laugher when he walked beside my sister. I was always a few steps behind my beautiful, older sister. And now, I sat beside her beloved. It was time for us all to rest.

That night,Dylan and I walked the quiet streets of Venice, arm-in-arm. Bundled up in scarves, my mother also insisted on giving me one of her warm, wool hats. It was as if she had bottledup decades of mothering, and now, she wanted to make sure I understood I was loved.

I knew it would take time for us to heal, but we knew the truth now, and that would have to be the foundation we poured between us. I loved her despite her faults, and now I understood the pain she carried.

I knew from experience that time would not heal all our wounds. Instead, time would shape us all into something different. Our grief broke us in places we couldn’t see and we would put our hearts back together again.

Like the Japanese art of Kingutsi where porcelain cracks are filled with gold, I hoped we would heal into something more beautiful than before.

I glanced up at Dylan as we walked. I never grew tired of soaking in the cut of his jaw, the crinkles in the corners of his eyes that gave evidence this man knew how to smile. Since the night of our “wedding,” he smiled all the time. How was it possible that this gorgeous man was all mine?

Life was so deliciously complicated, but I no longer lied to myself and said I craved simplicity. The choice to love Dylan was one of the only thoughts swirling through my head as we walked the streets of Venice.

I considered my mother’s revelations about my father and the explosion of my business. My mailing list of customers grew by hundreds in the blink of an eye, and based on the social media flurry over Dylan’s new music, and interest in his entrepreneurial wife, the demand for my candy was not slowing down. I needed to make a plan so I could scale.

“I have an idea,” I said to Dylan as we turned and walked toward the lagoon.

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