Page 113 of Operation Sunshine
“Yeah, I missed you too,” Franco said, his throat thick.
Lexie leaned against the bar, her arms folded but with a smile tugging at her mouth. “About damn time. I was starting to think Florence had stolen you for good.”
Franco grinned, warmth blooming in his chest. “Tempting, but you lot are hard to replace.”
“Damn right,” Lexie said, but her voice softened as she added, “It’s good to see you, Franco. Really good.”
From the rear came Ollie’s shout. “Don’t hog him all to yourself!” He came barrelling through the pass, pulling Franco into a quick, rough hug. “Bloody hell, you’re skinnier than when you left. They starve you over there?”
“More like worked me half to death,” Franco said with a laugh. “But I survived.”
Raj appeared next, his usual steady calm smile in evidence. He clasped Franco’s shoulder firmly. “We kept your place warm for you.”
Mina poked her head out from behind Raj, her cheeks flushed. “I made a welcome-back batch of brownies. They’re not as good as yours, but…”
“They’re perfect because you made them,” Franco said, touched.
And then Chloe emerged from the office, clapping her hands together. “All right, enough swooning over him. Franco’s back, we’re happy, but if you don’t let him sit down, he’s going to collapse right here on the floor.”
Laughter rippled through the group, but no one moved awayfrom him. They all hovered close, as if they were afraid he’d vanish again if they let too much space open up.
Franco looked around at their faces, each one familiar, each one lit with relief and joy, and something inside him steadied. For months he’d worried whether he’d belong again, whether leaving would have broken something that couldn’t be mended. But here, in their voices and their embraces, he felt it.
This was where he belonged.
Ben leaned against the bar, watching quietly. Their eyes met, and Franco’s smile deepened. Home wasn’t just the restaurant.
Home was Ben.
The rest of the morning blurred past in a haze of chatter, hugs, and too many offers of food. Franco let himself be swept along, although his body buzzed with exhaustion. By the time the lunch prep was finished, Raj finally waved him away with a stern glance. “Sit. Drink some water before you keel over.”
Franco obeyed, slumping onto a chair in the corner of the kitchen. The clatter of knives and sizzle of onions filled the air, comforting and familiar. But his eyes kept drifting toward the figure leaning casually against the office door, watching him.
Ben hadn’t joined in the chaos of greetings earlier, letting the staff have their moment, but now he came over to sit beside Franco.
“Overwhelming?” Ben asked, his mouth curving slightly.
“A little,” Franco admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. “But in a good way. I didn’t think… I don’t know, I guess I worried it wouldn’t be the same.”
Ben’s expression softened. “They missed you. So did I.”
The words were quietly uttered, but they had weight. Warmth spread through Franco’s chest, easing some of the ache of the past three months apart. He brushed his fingers against Ben’s, a small gesture but judging by the chorus of lowawws that broke out, one that spoke volumes in the noisy kitchen.
Ben turned his hand over and clasped Franco’s properly, histhumb grazing the back of his knuckles. “I’m proud of you,” he said simply. “For going. For sticking it out. And for coming back.”
Franco swallowed hard, his throat tightening. “I only got through it because I knew you’d be here. Waiting for me.”
“About the stage… you’re happy with how it went?”
Franco stilled. “Chef Gallo said he was opening up a new restaurant in Florence. He said he was considering me for it—as head chef.” The memory of that conversation filled him with pride.
Ben’s breath caught. “And you turned him down?”
Franco smiled. “Florence is an amazing city, and yeah, at one time I’d have snapped up the offer in a heartbeat, but…” He swallowed again. “I couldn’t live and work in Florence when my heart was in Adelaide.”
“But it was your dream,” Ben protested.
Franco stared at him for a moment. “That’s true, it was.” Then he smiled. “But I have a new dream now—a future with you.”
