Chapter Twenty — One More DayEnzo
1345 Words
I woke up earlier than everyone else.
Again.
I had barely slept.
Not because I was uncomfortable.
Not because something was wrong.
Because I had spent half the night thinking about Azul.
About the way he had rested his head against my shoulder.
It had been such a small thing.
To anyone else, it probably meant nothing.
To me?
It meant everything.
Azul could have moved away.
He could have pushed me back.
He could have taken his iPad and told me he wanted to go inside.
But he hadn’t.
He had stayed.
He had allowed me to pull him closer.
And then he had rested his head on me.
I smiled to myself.
Maybe I was reading too much into it.
Probably.
But I didn’t care.
I would take every little piece of progress he gave me.
Even if it was something as simple as his head on my shoulder.
I turned my head toward him.
He was still sleeping.
His long black hair was spread across the pillow.
His face was peaceful.
There was something almost unfair about how beautiful he looked when he slept.
I reached out instinctively.
Then stopped.
I remembered the pillows from the night before.
The boundary he had created between us.
I respected it.
So instead, I simply watched him.
For a few minutes.
Then I checked the time.
Seven in the morning.
Perfect.
I got out of bed quietly.
Today was our last full day here.
And I had no intention of wasting it.
I had already arranged breakfast.
Again.
I wasn’t sure why I enjoyed feeding this family so much.
Actually, I knew exactly why.
I liked seeing them happy.
Especially Azul.
I showered and dressed.
Black trousers.
A simple white shirt.
No jacket.
Today wasn’t about business.
It was about family.
When I walked downstairs, the resort was already awake.
Staff greeted me.
Everything was prepared.
Breakfast would be served outside again.
I looked over the arrangements.
Fresh fruit.
Eggs.
Pastries.
Bread.
Cheese.
Fresh juice.
Coffee.
Pancakes.
Waffles.
And enough food to feed an army.
I smiled.
Mateo would approve.
I was about to sit down when I heard footsteps.
I looked up.
Azul.
He had just walked outside.
His hair was tied loosely behind him.
He looked sleepy.
Beautiful.
And completely unaware of the effect he had on me.
“Good morning, my life.”
He stopped.
Then gave me that look.
The look that said, Here we go again.
I laughed.
“Come sit.”
He walked over.
I pulled the chair out for him.
He looked at the chair.
Then at me.
I raised an eyebrow.
“What?”
He sat.
I smiled.
“Did you sleep well?”
He nodded.
“Good.”
I poured him coffee.
He looked at the cup.
Then at me.
I shrugged.
“You need coffee.”
He took it.
A few minutes later, the rest of the family started arriving.
And exactly as expected, Mateo saw the breakfast.
His eyes widened.
“Again?”
I laughed.
“You sound disappointed.”
“Disappointed?”
He looked at me as if I had insulted him.
“Enzo, you are officially my favorite person.”
Azul rolled his eyes.
Luca laughed.
Elena shook her head.
Mateo sat down immediately.
“I knew I liked this family.”
“You’re already part of it?” I asked.
He pointed at himself.
“Obviously.”
I laughed.
Breakfast was loud.
Mostly because of Mateo.
He told stories.
He talked about yesterday.
He showed everyone pictures from the shopping trip.
He even showed me a video of himself trying caviar.
I shook my head.
“You really enjoyed that.”
“Enjoyed it?”
He leaned back.
“I discovered a new lifestyle.”
Luca groaned.
“Don’t encourage him.”
I laughed again.
For the first time in a long time, breakfast didn’t feel like a business meeting.
It felt normal.
Like family.
And I liked that.
After breakfast, I looked at everyone.
“So.”
Mateo immediately looked at me.
“What are we doing?”
I smiled.
“I’ve planned the day.”
Mateo put his fork down.
“I trust you.”
Everyone laughed.
I looked at Azul.
“And you?”
He gave me a suspicious look.
I smiled.
“You’re coming.”
He shook his head.
I laughed.
“Yes, you are.”
He reached for his iPad.
What did you plan?
I leaned closer.
“First, we’re going out on the water.”
His eyes widened slightly.
I continued.
“There are private boats waiting for us.”
Mateo nearly jumped out of his chair.
“Boats?”
“Yes.”
“Like yachts?”
I nodded.
Mateo looked at Luca.
“Dad.”
Luca sighed.
“Don’t.”
“Dad, we’re going on a yacht.”
“We heard you.”
“This family is changing.”
Azul covered his mouth, laughing silently.
I watched him.
That smile again.
I could get addicted to that smile.
Actually, I already was.
We spent the morning getting ready.
The staff prepared everything.
Towels.
Drinks.
Food.
Everything we could possibly need.
When we finally walked toward the marina, Azul stayed beside me.
The water was bright blue under the morning sun.
Several boats were waiting.
Mateo stopped walking.
“Enzo.”
“Yes?”
“You really know how to do weekends.”
I smiled.
“I try.”
We boarded the boat.
Azul stood near the edge, looking out over the water.
I walked toward him.
“You okay?”
He nodded.
“Beautiful?”
He nodded again.
I smiled.
“I knew you’d like it.”
He looked at me.
Then typed.
Thank you.
I stared at those two words.
Something about them hit me harder than it should have.
“You’re welcome.”
I wanted to tell him that I would do this a thousand times.
That I wanted to show him the world.
That I wanted him to experience everything he had never experienced.
But I didn’t.
Not yet.
Instead, I stood beside him.
The boat slowly moved away from the marina.
His family was behind us.
Mateo was already taking videos.
Elena was laughing.
Luca was looking out at the water.
And Azul was beside me.
For a moment, I thought about how different my life had been before him.
Everything had been business.
Power.
Control.
Responsibility.
Violence.
People wanting things from me.
People fearing me.
And now?
I was standing on a boat in Sardinia, watching a quiet man admire the sea.
And somehow, that felt more important than anything else.
I looked at him.
“My life.”
He turned toward me.
“I know you still don’t completely understand what I am.”
His expression became serious.
“And maybe you don’t need to.”
I paused.
“But I want you to know something.”
He waited.
“I don’t bring many people into this part of my life.”
I looked toward his family.
“But I wanted them here.”
Then I looked back at him.
“Because they’re important to you.”
He lowered his eyes.
I could see the emotion there.
He didn’t type anything.
He didn’t have to.
I understood.
I reached toward his hand.
This time, I didn’t grab it.
I simply held my hand near his.
Giving him the choice.
After a few seconds, his fingers moved.
And his hand touched mine.
Just barely.
But he didn’t pull away.
I smiled.
I didn’t say anything.
Neither did he.
We simply stood there together as the boat moved farther across the water.
And for once, I didn’t need more.
I had him beside me.
His family was happy.
The sun was shining.
The sea was beautiful.
And tomorrow we’d have to go back to Palermo.
Back to reality.
Back to my world.
Back to business.
Back to everything waiting for me.
But I wasn’t thinking about tomorrow.
Not yet.
Today was ours.
And I intended to make every second count.
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