INICIAR SESIĂNChiaraâs POV The biggest problem with my admirers following me here was something I had not fully prepared for. Back in Moonglow, I had never needed to hide who I was. Chiara and Doctor B were one and the same, and everyone knew it. But here, things were different. Paolo, Franco, and Enzo had no idea that my identity needed to remain hidden in Nightfall. Since they knew I was a doctor, it was only natural they would come looking for me at the hospital. And if that happened, it would not take long before the truth unraveled. Without thinking, I reached up and touched my mask. Piera noticed immediately. âI know you want to keep your secret,â she said quietly, even though we were alone. âBut you never had to hide in Moonglow, and everything worked out fine there. Why should it be any different here?â âIt is different,â I replied, lowering my hand. âIn Moonglow, people knew me as both Chiara and Doctor B from the beginning. Here, they are two completely separate people. Chiara is t
Chiaraâs POV Luciano De Lucaâs request caught me completely off guard, and for a long moment, I could only stare at him in silence, unsure of what to say or even what to feel. It made no sense to me that he would suddenly ask something like that, as if I had been the only woman on his mind during the five years we had spent apart. That simply could not be true. Even though Caterina had mentioned that he had remained a confirmed bachelor all this time, that did not mean he had been longing for me. It did not mean he had been thinking about me at all. What I was seeing now, the emotion in his eyes, the way he spoke, it felt real, but I could not trust it. It had to be nostalgia. Nothing more than the ghost of what we once had. If I agreed to give him another chance, it would only be a matter of time before reality returned. He would remember why he had pushed me away in the first place. Whatever he felt right now would fade, just like it had before. And there was another truth h
Lucianoâs POV My voice trailed off as I stood there, staring at Chiara. Seeing her again dragged everything back to the surface, emotions I had spent years burying under duty, pride, and regret. I had convinced myself I had learned to live without her, that time had dulled whatever we once had, but standing here now proved how wrong I had been. She looked exactly as I remembered, untouched by time, as if the past five years had simply passed her by. Her presence alone stirred something deep inside me, something warm and familiar, something that felt dangerously close to home. Even her scent wrapped around me in a way that made my chest tighten, reminding me just how empty everything had been without her. When I heard she was back, I knew there was only one place she would go. Still, I hesitated for hours before coming here, caught between longing and the certainty that I had no right to stand in front of her again. I told myself that five years might have softened things, that ma
Chiaraâs POV After Luciano De Luca left, I forced myself back into motion, as though staying still for too long would allow everything inside me to unravel. I returned to the office first, then made my way down to the lab where I buried myself in work alongside the researchers until the last of them clocked out. By then, exhaustion had begun to creep in, slow and heavy, wrapping itself around my limbs and dulling my focus. And when I was tired, my mind betrayed me. His words lingered longer than they should have. He said he was happy. If that was true, then it meant he had moved on, truly and completely. It meant I no longer existed in his world beyond a distant memory, something faint and irrelevant. Perhaps his questions earlier had only been curiosity, nothing more. A passing interest in someone who used to matter. I swallowed against the tightness in my chest and forced myself back to the present. There was progress in the lab, real progress, but it wasnât enough. Not nearl
Chiara's POV I regretted the way things ended with Giacomo, even though I knew I had done the right thing. There was a quiet kind of relief in knowing we would remain friends, but it did not erase the sting of hurting him. That part lingered, heavy and uncomfortable, like a bruise beneath the skin that would not fade quickly. The truth was simple, even if it was cruel. I could not force myself into a life that did not belong to me. Not even for someone as kind and devoted as him. He would have tried, I knew he would, to build something beautiful between us, something stable and warm. We might have laughed together, shared moments that looked like happiness from the outside, but deep down, something essential would always be missing. Because no matter what, my heart would still turn toward Luciano De Luca. That was the part I hated most. The part that made me feel weak and unfair. Giacomo could have been everything a woman asked for, and still, it would not have been enough for me.
Giacomoâs POV Even after all these years, Giacomo was still not used to rejection. You would think that five years of hearing ânoâ from Chiara would have hardened him, would have built some kind of shield around his heart, but it had not. Instead, he had done what he always did best. He had hoped. He had convinced himself that this time would be different. He believed that if she could just see him properly, not the careless man he used to be, but the man he had become, she would finally understand. Every late night, every sacrifice, every step forward in his life had been driven by the thought of her. Not just to win her, but to become someone worthy of standing beside her. But reality did not bend for hope. Reality was cold, sharp, and unyielding. And reality, once again, had chosen her answer for her. Chiara, the only woman who had ever rejected him, had done it again. Gently. Kindly. Almost painfully so. Yet strangely, he found that he was not angry. Not even truly shocked
Luciano De Lucaâs POV I went into the house fully intending to get a slice of cake for Chiara. From her tone earlier, I knew she was annoyed with meâand I hadnât done much to fix it. Iâd thought bringing up the topic of her having a child might help smooth things over, but instead, it had only p
Chiaraâs POV âLuciano,â Giulia scolded softly. âYou should be more considerate of Chiara.â âSilvia Romanoâs presence in my home has nothing to do with Chiara,â Luciano replied coolly. My home, heâd said. Not our home. That hurt more than it should haveâespecially now, after Iâd already left.
Chiaraâs POV I looked down at my dress, genuinely unsure what was wrong with it. Yes, it was more revealing than the conservative outfits Iâd worn throughout our marriage, but I didnât think it warranted the fierce glare Luciano De Luca was giving me now. Did he think I was embarrassing him? W
Luciano De Lucaâs POV The family gathering was being held at my parentsâ villa. I paced the length of the living room, my footsteps sinking into the thick carpet as I moved back and forth. The guests would arrive any moment nowâyet Chiara still hadnât shown up. My gaze kept snapping to the fro







