Chapter 10 - THE GOLD NECKLACE
Two weeks later.
The Chicago mansion was quiet.
The autumn sun streamed through the massive windows of the grand foyer, casting long shadows across the repaired marble floor.
Dominic was in federal custody, completely ruined by the contents of the ledger.
Vanessa had taken Leo and moved to a quiet estate in upstate New York, funded entirely by a trust Luca had established for his nephew. She had finally found peace, and Leo was safe.
Sal was recovering in the finest private hospital suite in the city. The doctors said he would walk with a cane, but he would live to see his grandchildren.
And me?
I was packing my bags.
I stood in my small housekeeper’s quarters, folding a sweater and placing it into my suitcase.
My job was done.
Sal’s secret was out. The family was safe. I didn’t belong in a billionaire’s mansion anymore.
A soft knock came at my door.
I turned around.
Luca was leaning against the doorframe, wearing a simple gray sweater and dark jeans. He looked rested. Human.
“You’re leaving,” he said softly.
“I have to,” I replied, zipping up the suitcase. “I’m not your housekeeper anymore, Luca. I’m just… me.”
He walked into the room, closing the door behind him.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small velvet box.
He placed it on the bed next to my suitcase.
“What is this?” I asked, my heart skipping a beat.
“Open it.”
I picked up the box and slowly popped the lid.
Inside wasn’t a diamond ring.
It was a delicate gold necklace with a small locket.
I recognized it instantly. It was my mother’s locket. The one she had pawned when I was ten years old to pay our heating bill.
Tears sprang to my eyes. “How did you get this?”
Luca stepped closer, his physical presence overwhelming the small room.
“I bought it back the day she pawned it,” Luca said quietly.
I stared at him, completely stunned.
“What?”
“I was eighteen years old,” Luca explained, his dark eyes locking onto mine. “Sal was driving me to a meeting. I saw your mother walking out of the pawnshop, crying. Sal was crying too. I made him tell me who she was.”
My breath hitched.
“You knew,” I whispered. “You knew who I was this whole time.”
Luca reached out, gently taking the necklace from the box.
He stepped behind me and fastened the gold chain around my neck. The cold metal rested against my collarbone.
“When Sal asked me to hire you ten months ago, he thought he was tricking me,” Luca murmured, his chest pressing against my back. “He thought I was just doing him a favor.”
He turned me around to face him.
“But I watched you, Emma. Every day. I watched you bring coffee to a father who couldn’t tell you his name. I watched you smile at my staff when they were exhausted. I watched you stand up to Vanessa when nobody else would.”
He reached up, his thumb gently tracing my jawline.
“I didn’t keep you here as a favor to Sal. I kept you here because you brought light into a house that has been dark for a very long time.”
My heart was hammering so hard I thought he could hear it.
“Luca…”
“Don’t leave,” he whispered, his face inches from mine.
“I can’t stay in this room,” I breathed.
May you like
A slow, devastating smile spread across his face.
“I don’t want you in this room, Emma.”
