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“For your mom?” All of a sudden his accent seemed so much thicker

She nodded Her insides were twisting Part of her could tell he ot on the plane for hi on the house Or for the chance to visit Rome

She lifted her hand and paused it for the briefest of seconds before running it through his hair “I get why you did this, Matteo But things have changed You’re not a little boy anynosis and mental health services are so much better now Isn’t the way to protect your sister to tell her the truth?”

He held her gaze for the longest of ti her words “It’s just never been the right tiot sick Then we had the funeral Then there was all the fa, but then Brianna announced she was pregnant and started having problems—what kind of brother would I be to sit her down and tell her so now?” His hand reached up and closed over hers He tilted his head to the side and gave her a sorrowful expression “Why didn’t you tellbetter?”

Phoebe gave a nod “She’s well on the road to recovery with a big support system I would never have left her if I wasn’t sure she was okay” His hand reached up and stroked her cheek

“But you did,” he whispered

“I did,” she replied

She felt it The flicker low, deep down in her belly The tiny pulses e hers confir she needed to know

Her breath caught in her throat and her eyes filled with tears Finally, she could acknowledge how she was feeling

She was ready She was ready to let go and move on And she’d found the person she wanted to move on with

She didn’t care that he was her boss She didn’t care they had a s to talk about He needed her just as much as she needed him There was a reason they’d met