"Should we come with you?" Evie asked.
Lucy nodded. "My legs feel like water. I don't even think I'll be able to make it to the door." She gave a nervous smile. Evie could see poor Lucy's hands trembling.
"Come on let's go."
They walked with her to the door. Lucy rang the bell, and they waited for what seemed like forever for the door to open, but it was actually less than a minute.
Lucy wobbled, and Gage held her up as the door opened revealing a tall elderly man with short white hair and a neatly kept full beard the same color. He saw Gage first and looked at him curiously, but as his eyes landed on Lucy they widened, and held her gaze. Evie watched the realization form in his eyes, along with disbelief.
Lucy opened her mouth to talk, but no words came out. Gage released her arm as she attempted to reach into her purse. Her hands were shaking so much Evie had to hold her bag for her. Lucy offered her a grateful smile and retrieved one of her letters. She held it up to Angelo and smiled.
"I just got your letters." Her voice shook, thick with emotion as she spoke. "I'm so sorry I'm late." She told him.
Evie looked at Angelo and watched a lone tear run down his cheek. Seeing his reaction got to her and she felt very close to tears herself.
"Lucy?" He brought his hand up to his head and pulled in a deep breath. "My Lucy."
The energy of love drew Lucy into his awaiting arms. It was so beautiful to watch, showing that love could last. It didn't matter how much time passed because if something was true, it would always be true.
"I'm so sorry I'm late," Lucy repeated.
"Don't worry. You made it," Angelo replied stroking her head.
He released her and looked over at Gage and Evie. Lucy looked back too.
"This is Gage, my dearest grandson." She pointed at Gage. When she looked over at Evie she paused and sighed. "And this is my..." She paused again. "What can I call you dear?" Lucy's eyes widened.
Evie's breath caught as she looked at the woman who meant so much to her. She wouldn't know what to call Lucy either. Aside from her mother, no one had meant as much to her as Lucy did. There wasn't a fitting definition to fully describe her greatness.
Lucy reached out and touched Evie's cheek. "You have been my student, my muse, my friend, my everything. You are like a daughter to me. Thank you so much for believing in this."
Evie nodded. "You are extremely welcome."
Lucy turned back to Angelo and said, "this is my Evie."
Evie smiled at that.
"It's a real pleasure to meet you both." Angelo smiled. "Please come in."
* * *
They went inside where they were immersed in art, and tales from the war and life that had gone by.
When the time felt right, Evie and Gage left Lucy with Angelo, feeling it was right to give them some time by themselves.
They went for a walk by the pier and around the docks enjoying the scenery as they talked. When they returned, they sat out in the garden where Lucy joined them. She looked the happiest Evie had ever seen her.
"What happens now, Grams?" Gage asked.
Lucy smiled at him. "All sorts of things my darling."
"You ... aren't coming back are you?"
Evie looked from Gage to Lucy. Although it was glaringly obvious it actually never occurred to her that Lucy would stay. It was silly to not factor that in.
Lucy shook her head. "Angelo's asked me to stay. So I will."
Gage nodded understanding. Lucy turned to Evie and tapped her head, then looked back to Gage.
"I know you two are seeing each other." She smiled.
While Evie could feel her face turning red, Gage started to laugh.
"I was going to tell you,"Gage stated with a sheepish shrug."Me too," Evie added. Amongst everything she'd been thinking about that was definately on the list. She just wanted to find the right time. She also wanted to celebrate the happiness that came with Lucy finding Angelo, and not dampen it with her own good news.
"I'm very happy that you both found each other."
"You are?" Evie asked cautiously.
"Of course." She smiled again. "But a few words of advice. If you feel the way you look to me, then don't waste time."
"How do we look?" Gage asked.
"Like a couple in love," she affirmed quite bluntly. "I'm sorry, but I know more than most that there's no point in trying to deny something that's perfectly obvious. If I'm right, please..." she looked at them both. "Don't waste time. Don't beat about the bush. And please, take care of each other. I'll leave you with that thought."
She gave them a soft smile as she backed away. Evie watched her until she went back in the house and closed the door behind her.
Gage was already looking at her when she looked back to him. She held his gaze for a few moments before he reached for her and pulled her onto his lap.
She slipped her arms around his neck while he held her waist and stroked the skin there.
He looked up at her and smiled. "You should probably know that taking care of me involves a lot of baking. I love pumpkin pie."
She laughed and reached out to touch his face. It was just like him to say something like that.
"I like baking. While we're on the subject of care, to take care of me, you'll have to put up with me playing my violin for hours."
"Newsflash baby, in case you didn't notice I love listening to you play. You can play forever if you want."
She leaned forward and kissed him.
"So, um..." He sighed and smiled. "I have a wild plan brewing in my mind." The wildness flickered within the depths of his eyes.
"How wild?"
"Very."
"Let's hear it." She caressed the firm line of his jaw.
"Okay. So in the spirit of not beating about the bush, my plan is, first of all, to try to get you to stay in Italy for an extra week and take you back to Rome. We can start our adventure from there."
"In the spirit of not beating about the bush I'm totally saying yes, but that's not a wild idea."
He grimaced at her and tweaked her nose playfully. "I'm not finished yet. It's quite a big plan."
"Okay, still listening."
He gazed deep into her eyes and held her hand at his heart. "I love you, Evie. In the spirit of not beating about the bush, my plan is to make you fall in love with me, and then in the extremely near future I plan to ask you to marry me."
Her heart sang with delight, overflowing with love as she looked at him. He couldn't have surprised her more, and she didn't even have to think about what her answer would be.
Her smile couldn't have been brighter as she said, "I love you too Gage. So you don't have to try to make me fall in love with you, I already am. I'll definitely be saying yes when you ask me to marry you, in the extremely near future." She laughed.
He brought her hand up to his lips, kissed it and held it to his cheek.
"Thank you, Miss Evie." He beamed, exhaling a long sigh of contentment. "Looks like I just found Mrs. Gage."
"Yes, Mr. Evie you certainly have."
She smiled back at him feeling blissfully happy and fully alive as she met his lips for the sweetest kiss.
Thank you
Thanks so much for reading Hearts Entwined. If you enjoyed it please leave a review and connect with me at www.khardinegraybooks.com
Wishing you a beautiful week.
Thanks again.
About the Author
Khardine Gray is a contemporary romance author who lives in England with her husband, two kids, and three crazy ferrets.
She is well traveled, cultured, and a woman with a passion for dancing and ice skating.
When not writing you can catch her shopping, indulging on pizza and hot chocolate, or hanging out with her family and friends.
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