Page 53 of Wish I Were Here
And then I realize she looks familiar. “Ginny and Angelo?”
Luca nods. “I came up here and drew that one on the day he was born.”
“Has Ginny seen this?” My voice grows hoarse. I swipe a palm at the moisture gathering under my eyes.
Luca shakes his head. “I haven’t really shared these kinds of drawings with anyone, except my grandpa. And now you.”
“No wonder your grandpa was proud of you. These are stunning, Luca. They take my breath away.” I look up, and the lights from the distant buildings shimmer in his eyes. I’ve never been so drawn to someone in my life. He takes my breath away, too. And he’s looking at me like I do the same to him.
Luca slowly takes the sketchbook from my hands, setting it back in the bin and sliding the whole thing to the ground. We’re facing each other on the chair, our knees just touching in the middle. He reaches out, cupping my cheek in the warmth of his palm. I lean forward, closing the distance between us. Our lips meet, gentle, hesitant. We pull apart, and then Luca gives me that smile. The crooked one that makes me feel like there’s nobody else but the two of us, right here in this moment.
He pulls me in again, and I meet him halfway, more urgently now, my palms fisting his shirt to hold on tighter. We fall back against the lounge chair, me leaning against the headrest, Luca propped over me, one hand woven in my hair. With the stars winking overhead, his mouth finds mine, and we stay here, tangled up together until my lips are swollen, cheeks raw from his unshaven face, and the black sky begins to glow on the horizon.
Finally, Luca pulls back, but I can tell he’s reluctant. “It’s five in the morning.” He slides a hand to my cheek. “You’ve had a long day. I should get you to bed.”
“Um,” I mumble.Yes, please.
He gives me a grin that tells me he knows what I’m thinking. “I meant tosleep, Moonstone.”
I sigh. As much as I’d love to stay here with Luca on this magical rooftop, or to crawl into bed with him and forget about everything else, I have an identity to save and a dad to track down in a couple of hours.
We climb back down the fire escape to the eighth floor and slip in the window. And then we’re standing in front of my door just as we were before, but somehow in the span of a couple of hours, my night has been completely transformed. There’s still the shock of finding out about my mother, but it feels less heavy now. I feel less alone. “Thank you,
Luca.”
“For what?” He cocks his head.
“For sharing your drawings with me. For turning this night into something wonderful.”
He presses a gentle kiss to my lips. “You’re going to be okay?”
I nod. “I am now.” I take a step back and open my door. On the floor is the red file folder, right where I left it before we climbed to the roof. I bend down to pick it up.
Luca eyes it for a second. “You know, that file lists your mom’s name. But it also lists an address in Pittsburgh, right?”
I flip open the folder and scan the first page. He’s right, there’s an address for Melanie Jankowski. In my shock at learning her real name, I forgot about the address. “I think it’s a street in Shadyside.”
“Maybe we should drive over there and check it out.”
I take a shaky breath. The address is so close, we could almost walk. “Do you think someone might still live there?”
“It was thirty years ago, so I know it’s a long shot. But worth a try.” He leans in and cups a hand against my cheek. “Get some sleep and then meet me in the lobby at five o’clock this evening.”
I nod, still staring at the address. “Okay,” I whisper.
Luca heads toward the elevator, and I quietly close the door and then lean back against it, still feeling the pressure of his mouth against mine. Though I’m completely exhausted, a thrill runs through me. Whatever this is with Luca feels completely right. And in about twelve hours, I might finally have answers to questions about my mother that I’ve been carrying for my entire life. It’s almost too good to be true.
I push away from the door and head to bed. I have a big day ahead of me.
Isleep for a few hours and wake to find that Dad hasn’t responded to any of my texts or voicemail messages about the birth certificate bombshell. I guess I’ll have to go find him in person. The elevator appears to be on the fritz again, so I take the stairs. In the lobby, I find Mrs. Goodwin sitting on a bench.
“Hi,” I say. “Are you waiting for an elevator? I think it’s broken again.”
Mrs. Goodwin’s eyes widen, and she puts a finger to her lips, indicating that I should be quiet. “You don’t want to wake him,” she whispers.
“Wake who?” I ask, but in a lowered voice.
She waves at the front desk. I don’t see anything unusual, but then it comes to me. Of course. I round the counter and find Luca asleep on the floor. He’s still wearing his janitor costume from the night before. Under his head, he’s tucked his black hoodie and wrapped one arm protectively around it. His dark hair flops over his forehead, and long eyelashes cast shadows on his cheeks.
