Don't Touch

-57-

Simone locked the men out of the main room of the villa while she prepared for their late lunch. Looking down at the two boxes sitting in her suitcase, she thought back to the night she had with Emiliano and Luca before they left for the Council meeting.

~~~

Luca had just come out the shower and was getting dressed while Simone sat up in bed with Emiliano's head in her lap as he slept peacefully. He watched the way Simone gently ran her fingers through Emiliano's hair as she looked down at him adoringly.

"You're good for him, tesoro."

Simone looked up at Luca with a raised brow. "Not the both of you?"

"You know what mean..." Luca sat down on the edge of the bed and held Simone's face. "Emiliano never knew affection until you... For me, it was different. Despite what my mamma did, I knew she cared about me. I have fond memories of her that I can still look back on and smile about. Even at the orphanage, they cared for me... I didn't know hate until I met my papa and he forced me to come here because to him, two heirs to do his bidding were better than one..." His jaw tensed and he held the scar on his stomach before continuing.

"But with Emiliano, it's different... Our papa wasn't a good person on any front and Emiliano's mamma only showed him indifference or disgust... But you, tesoro, you're the first to..." Luca looked down at his brother and drifted off.

"I know," Simone said softly, her eyes also turning down to Emiliano. She swallowed back the lump in her throat when she thought about what he must have gone through between having one parent who saw him as servant and another who saw him as nothing at all.

When he noticed the sorrow in her eyes, Luca moved his face in closer to Simone's. "You're good for me too," he muttered against her lips before pulling her in for a kiss.

~~~

After she finished getting ready, Simone put the two boxes in a purse and made her way downstairs to the poolside where Emiliano and Luca were waiting for her. They both gave her curious looks when she arrived for their meal.

"Tesoro, why do you have a purse?"

"We're having lunch here, sweetheart, remember?"

"Oh!" Simone chuckled nervously. "I know. I-uh... Wanted to go all out so I needed the purse to complete the look...?"

Confusion didn't leave the men's faces, but they were nervous themselves and they didn't press further. They took each of her hands and led her to her to the table toward the end of the yard with a perfect view of the ocean.

"Wow." Simone looked out at the white sand beach, able to see how clear the water was from where they were standing. "It's beautiful."

When she finally finished admiring the view, she looked down at the table and saw a long blue box. Her eyes grew wide before they went up to Emiliano and Luca, who she realized seemed to be just as uneasy as she was.

"Are you guys ok-"

"Sweetheart!"

"Tesoro!"

Both men blurted the titles in unison. Emiliano nervously grabbed the box off the table and opened it, presenting Simone with a diamond bracelet.

"For you," Luca gulped.

"We have something we want to tell you," Emiliano said before he took a deep breath and the two of them spoke in unison again.

"We lo-"

"No!" Simone cried, interrupting them and both Emiliano and Luca's eyes went wide as the men felt tightness in their chests. When she noticed their reactions, Simone tried to correct herself. "No! I mean- what I mean is wait! What I mean is... I want to say it first!"