CHAPTER 26
MAUREEN
The house was quiet the next morning. Not in a peaceful way, but in a something’s-off way. I woke up late—maybe on purpose, maybe because I’d barely slept. My limbs ached from sparring, but not as much as my pride.
I dragged myself into the kitchen expecting Domenico to be there, maybe at the counter with coffee, not saying much. Maybe pretending last night hadn’t happened.
But he wasn’t.
Neither was his black jacket.
No car in the driveway.
No scent of his cologne anywhere.
I walked into the common area where Matteo was seated, elbows resting on the table, phone in hand, biting into a slice of toast like the world wasn’t currently imploding.
“Where is he?” I asked.
He looked up, blinked once. “Who?”
I shot him a look. “Matteo.”
“Oh. He. Yeah—he left.”
My st
