Page 124 of The Deal

Giovanni’s sweet, smiling face turns from mine and glances up at his father standing beside him. When he notices the emotion on his face, he instinctively wraps his little arms around Alexander’s leg in a gesture of comfort. The sight blurs my vision with tears.

These two have become so important to me.

As soon as I’m close enough, Alexander reaches for me, wrapping me tightly in his arms. “Smi togli il fiato,” he whispers.

“You look pretty, Chlo. Like one of those princesses on the Disney channel,” Giovanni adds, joining in by wrapping his arms around my legs, but his tiny body gets swallowed up by the layers of fabric in the skirt of my dress.

“She’s no princess … she’s my queen,” Alexander states. “Always and forever.”

I smile through my tears. “Ti amo tanto,” I tell him.

“Your love is all I’ll ever need,bella.L’amore vince sempre.”

He’s right; love does conquer everything.

“Luna Mezzo Mare”, sung by Patrizio Buanne,blares through the speakers. Our hands are clasped in the air as we move around in a circle, smiling, singing, and dancing. I’m pretty sure we’re all a little tipsy—everyone except Giovanni, who’s still as sharp as ever.

The wine and food flowed freely at our wedding reception all day, and the atmosphere has been pure joy. The happiness I feel in this moment is euphoric.

My wedding has far exceeded anything I could have ever dreamed of. Just a year ago, I was barely holding on, struggling to stay afloat, going through the motions of each endless, miserable day, feeling like there was no future to look forward to.

Now, here I am, back in Italy, standing on the pristine grounds of a castle overlooking the Ionian Sea and living my best life. It feels almost unreal.

I look around at the people I love, and I can hardly believe it, but it’s true.

Alexander slides his arms around my waist and spins me effortlessly. “Are you happy, Mrs Mancini?”

I’m still trying to wrap my head around the reality of beingMrs Alexander Mancini.

“So happy, Mr Mancini,” I reply, cupping his face and pulling him in for a kiss.

He smiles against my lips, his voice low and full of warmth. “Sei un sogno diventato realtà.”

You are a dream come true.

And he is mine, too.

I feel a slight tug on my dress and glance down to find Giovanni looking up at me. His eyes are wide and full ofcuriosity. “Chlo,” he says, his voice soft but serious. “Now that you’re married to my dad, does that mean you’re my mum?”

My heart skips a beat, and I smile down at him, feeling the weight of his question settle in my chest. The love and tenderness in his eyes overwhelm me.

“Kind of,” I say softly, glancing up at Alexander with a questioning look. He smiles back, his gaze full of warmth as I crouch down to Giovanni’s level, my heart swelling. “Your real mum will always be your mum,” I say gently, placing a hand on his shoulder. “But now that I’m married to your dad, I am technically your stepmother.”

Giovanni nods slowly, processing my words with a seriousness that feels much older than his years. A bright smile spreads across his face, and before I can react, he launches himself against me, wrapping his little arms around my neck so tightly that I almost lose my balance. But Alexander’s quick to steady me, his hand warm on my back.

“I love you, Mummy,” he whispers in my ear, his soft but sincere voice catching me off guard. My heart swells as I hold him close and give myself a moment to let those words settle in.

How will we survive when it’s time to give him back?

We only have three more days left in Italy before returning home. I’m going to be sad to leave this place, but Alexander assures me we can come back any time we like.

My parents are visiting family while we are here. Antonio and his wife flew back to Australia last week. Dante has been coming and going regularly—where he goes, I have no idea—but the way Alexander frowns whenever he leaves the house tells me it’s not somewhere good.

Alexander, Giovanni, and I are on our way to meet Sophia. I’m not sure how I feel about it. When we arrived, Alexander texted her a couple of times, but we didn’t hear back until yesterday.

He wanted to do the right thing, allowing her to see her son while we were here if she wanted to. I know he’s doing this for Giovanni, but it doesn’t make it any easier.

Alexander’s been quiet the entire drive, so I can only guess he’s as uneasy about this as I am.

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