Leila's POV
Later in the afternoon, I went for a walk around the garden, just to get some air in my head.
I saw Luca standing over by the first gigantic red oak that had presented itself in my line of vision, my heart leaped, and then it stopped in my chest, and I turned into stone. It was as if his face were doing this to distill one pathetic, pleading expression and compact it, brim-full of despair, at the absolute opposite of his usual stupid, vacant look.
I took a shuddering breath to try and keep what was quickly becoming roiling emotions at bay. Anyway, why did I want to go toward him? I should have just held my head up high, gone past him, ignored him, and felt like an i***t all the way.
I stepped closer, looming cautiously hesitant foot by foot. "Luca?" I said his na
