STEFANO RUSSO'S (NERO'S) POV
After our talk by the sea, something inside me finally stilled.
For the first time in years, the noise in my head — the bitterness, the anger, the relentless ache — all of it went quiet. I felt like I had exhaled a breath I'd been holding for half my life.
Letting go of revenge didn't make me weaker. It made me… lighter.
When Zoe finally stepped back, her eyes shimmered with exhaustion, but also something gentler — peace, maybe. The sun was gone, the sky washed in deep blue, and the soft light from the cabin porch framed her in gold. Her cheeks were still damp from tears, and her hair was a little messy from the sea breeze.
"We should head back," she said softly. "Aunt Gina will start to worry."
Aunt Gina.
The name tugged at me, a little out of place in all the storm we'd just survived. "Aunt Gina?" I asked, raising a brow.
She smiled faintly. "My aunt. I came down here to stay with her for a while."
