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A secret he’d shoved to the far recesses of his mind

A secret he’d held on to for too long

Enzo paced back and forth across the spacious balcony A frown pulled at his face as a stress headache settled in his forehead and wrapped around his head, tightening like a vise

He’d known for s wasn’t a true Bartolini by blood His chest tightened just like it did every time he replayed the tumultuous events in his —never aditi

He raked his fingers through his hair as he blew out a breath He’d totallythat had happened with hisof his parents’ will, he still hadn’t gotten his act together

His h it had been weeks since the Paris trip, Enzo was still kicking hiet out of control with Sylvie And rightly so Sylvie had been a virgin A virgin The word echoed in his mind

She should have saved that specialshould have included flowers and chane as well as a bunch of other romantic platitudes

Guilt settled on his shoulders like a big soggy cloak Instead, the evening had been all about him and the vineyard It should have been about her and how special she is How had heto recall if she’d told hiin But he was certain she hadn’t mentioned it

And yet, their night of passion had happened and now he could barely face her He felt like she was expecting so to offer her His life was a mess

And to top it off, tomorroas his birthday

Nothing about this week felt festive And that was fine by hi else

Enzo stood on the balcony of his farand estate, which had recently been remodeled into a boutique hotel It was hard to believe that it had been less than a year since his parents stood in this very place Now they were gone and with them went his illusion of the family he’d been a part of

Since their deaths, the changes were falling like do was like it had been Everyone wasdecisions And noas his turn

It should have been the biggest decision of his life And yet, it felt predestined The decision should have taken ti to make a momentous decision like this so quickly However, this decision had been made for him before he even knew there was a question

One evening was all it’d taken to change everything That wasn’t s However, he’d drug his heels aboutit official