3

Once we'd set a time for the showing, I hired a cleaner to clear out and throw away the personal things I'd left in the apartment. Then I took my suitcase to a hotel.

I'd barely set my bags down when my phone lit up.

It was an Instagram notification.

Avery had posted something new.

The picture was that wedding photo of the three of us from the day before.

But she'd cropped it, leaving only her and Luca standing side by side, plus a sliver of my shoulder.

Her caption read, "Some people spend their whole lives chasing a light that isn't theirs. Other people are just born standing in it. Thank you, Luca, for always saving the spot beside you for me."

I recognized some of the usernames in the comments. They were Luca's friends.

[OMG, look at them. Avery and Luca are perfect together.]

[Luca spoils Avery like always. You two have to end up together.]

Some of our mutual friends had questions, though.

[Is there a new bride? Where's Chloe? Why can't I even see her in this picture?]

I read the comments and felt strangely calm, as if I were watching a farce that had nothing to do with me.

My phone suddenly buzzed. Avery was calling.

I picked up, and before I could say anything, I heard her voice, thick with tears.

"Chloe! Come quick! Luca... Luca's..."

The call cut off mid-sentence.

I called back. No answer.

I tried again. Still nothing.

I called five times in a row. Each time, it rang until the call ended on its own.

She hadn't even told me where they were.

My heart raced as terrible possibilities flashed through my mind. Luca was heir to the Lorenzetti family. He'd survived three assassination attempts this year alone.

I didn't stop to think. I ran out wearing my hotel slippers.

First I went to Luca's office. Nobody was there.

Then I went to the Lorenzetti estate. Not there either.

I searched until sunset. Finally, I found them at a private club owned by the Lorenzetti family.

Luca and Avery were sitting out on the terrace.

Luca shucked an oyster, squeezed lemon over it, and held it up to Avery's lips.

Avery leaned in, smiling, her makeup flawless and every curl in place.

And me? After running all over town that afternoon, my hair was stuck to my sweaty face, my makeup had smeared, and I'd twisted my ankle on some stairs. I was a mess.

When Avery saw me, she broke into a dazzling smile and turned to Luca.

"See, Luca? I told you Chloe can't let you go.

"Even without us telling her where we were, she found her way here just because she loves you. Feel better now?"

Luca started to smile and opened his mouth to speak.

I walked up, took out my phone, and held Avery's Instagram post in front of him.

"The comments are right."

My voice was calmer than I'd expected.

"You two are perfect for each other. You're both shameless."

Luca's expression turned thunderous.

"Chloe, everyone was just joking. What's gotten into you?

"It's one picture. When did you get so petty?"

I looked at the man I'd loved for seven years and barely recognized him.

When Luca and I first got together, his friends had made the same "joke" about him and Avery being a better match.

Back then, Luca had angrily defended me and chewed out the friend who'd said it.

Now, when people said the same thing, he just thought I was being petty.

I put my phone away and took a deep breath.

"Luca, let's postpone the wedding."

Dead silence.

Luca shot to his feet, fury in his eyes.

"Chloe, do you have any idea what you're saying?

"The Lorenzetti family has already sent out the wedding invitations! And now you want to postpone? Do you think this wedding is some kind of game?"

He advanced on me, one step at a time.

"You think holding the wedding over my head is going to make me crawl to you? Chloe, I saw through your little games a long time ago!"

Right on cue, Avery caught his arm and spoke softly.

"Luca, don't. Chloe's just upset right now..."

I turned and left without arguing.

Once I was out of the club, I called my old mentor, Giulia Rossi.

She was the design director at one of the world's top jewelry brands, and I'd been her star student.

When I graduated, she'd wanted me to work with her, but I'd turned her down for Luca.

She'd been quiet for a long time. Then she said, "Chloe, talent like yours shouldn't be held back by anything. If you ever want to come back, call me. Anytime."

For years, she'd kept sending me opportunities she thought might suit me.

She picked up on the second ring.

"Professor Rossi, is that design position in New York you mentioned still open?"

"Chloe? Aren't you getting married?"

"Not anymore."

I looked up at the darkening Sicilian sky. The first star was already out.

"Right now, all I want is to focus on my career."

I heard her laugh on the other end.

"Wonderful. I'll email you the contract. Sign it by tonight, and you start next Monday."