Chapter 5: The Price of Goodbye

The Romano estate felt unusually quiet the next morning.

The laughter from Isabella's welcome dinner had disappeared, replaced by whispers that followed me through every hallway.

Everyone knew I was leaving.

Some pitied me.

Some thought I was making the biggest mistake of my life.

No one understood that staying would have been the real mistake.

I carried a small basket into my mother's rose garden.

Whenever life became unbearable, I found myself here.

The roses had always been her pride.

She used to tell me that flowers were honest.

When they died, they didn't pretend to be alive.

People weren't nearly as brave.

I knelt beside a rose bush and began trimming the withered branches.

The repetitive movement calmed my racing thoughts.

"I had a feeling I'd find you here."

I didn't need to turn around.

I recognized Vincent's voice immediately.

"Good morning," I said quietly.

"You've been avoiding me."

"No. I've been trying to move on."

He walked closer until he stood beside me.

"You're making that sound easy."

"It's not."

"Then why are you forcing yourself?"

I cut another dead branch before answering.

"Because no one else is going to save me."

Vincent watched my hands for several seconds.

"Sophia... don't marry Alexander."

I sighed.

"You've said that three times already."

"I'll keep saying it until you listen."

"Then give me one reason."

"You don't love him."

"Maybe not."

"Then why marry him?"

"Because he respects me."

Vincent fell silent.

"He listens when I speak."

"Sophia..."

"He doesn't disappear every time another woman calls."

His jaw tightened.

"You're talking about Isabella again."

"No."

I stood up and brushed the dirt from my hands.

"I'm talking about the man standing in front of me."

For a long moment neither of us spoke.

The silence was broken by footsteps approaching through the garden.

"There you are."

Maria appeared wearing designer sunglasses and a satisfied smile.

"The Sterling family is waiting inside."

"Already?"

"Alexander insisted on seeing you before he leaves for Boston tomorrow."

I nodded.

"I'll be there in a minute."

As Maria walked away, Vincent reached for my wrist.

"Don't go."

I slowly looked down at his hand.

"You should stop touching someone else's fiancée like this."

He immediately let go.

"You're really determined to leave."

"I've never been more certain about anything."

"Even if you regret it later?"

"Regret is easier to live with than false hope."

Without another word, I walked back toward the mansion.

Alexander was waiting in the library with two cups of coffee.

"Good morning," he said with a warm smile.

"Morning."

"I hope I didn't interrupt anything."

"Nothing important."

He studied my face but wisely chose not to ask questions.

"Would you like to go somewhere?" he asked.

"Where?"

"Anywhere except this house."

I laughed softly.

"That sounds tempting."

"Then let's escape for a few hours."

Half an hour later, we were driving through Manhattan.

Unlike Vincent, Alexander drove calmly.

No speeding.

No phone calls.

No armed security vehicles following behind.

It felt strangely... normal.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"You'll see."

Twenty minutes later, he parked outside a small independent bookstore.

"Books?" I asked, surprised.

"People reveal more about themselves through books than expensive dinners."

"That's an unusual first date."

"I was hoping you'd think so."

Inside, the bookstore smelled of coffee and old paper.

For almost an hour we wandered through the shelves.

He liked history.

I preferred mystery novels.

He collected antique maps.

I loved vinyl records and classic films.

Our interests were different, but talking to him felt effortless.

"Can I ask you something personal?" Alexander finally said.

"Go ahead."

"Are you still in love with him?"

I stopped walking.

"Is it that obvious?"

"Only because I've looked the same way before."

"You have?"

"The woman I loved married someone else two years ago."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. She chose the life she wanted."

He smiled faintly.

"Now I'm trying to choose mine."

His honesty surprised me.

There was no jealousy in his voice.

Only acceptance.

"Thank you," I whispered.

"For what?"

"For not pretending we're already in love."

"That would be unfair to both of us."

"You're different from everyone I've known."

"Different is usually a compliment."

"In your case, it definitely is."

We spent the afternoon walking through Central Park before returning to the Romano estate.

As soon as Alexander parked the car, I noticed Vincent standing near the entrance.

His expression darkened the moment he saw Alexander open the passenger door for me.

"I had a wonderful day," Alexander said.

"So did I."

"Would you like to have dinner tomorrow before I fly back?"

"I'd like that."

"Then I'll pick you up at seven."

"It's a date."

Alexander smiled before driving away.

The second his car disappeared, Vincent walked toward me.

"You seem happy."

"I am."

"Already?"

"Is that so difficult to believe?"

"Considering yesterday, yes."

"People heal."

"Not this quickly."

"Maybe I started healing long before you noticed."

He stared at me for several seconds.

"Do you love him?"

"No."

For the first time all day, relief appeared in his eyes.

"But I think I'll learn to trust him."

The relief vanished.

"Trust matters more than passion."

"Sophia..."

"Passion fades."

"Stop."

"Respect doesn't."

"Enough."

"No, Vincent."

"You spent three years teaching me that love without commitment only breaks people."

"I never wanted to hurt you."

"I know."

"Then why does it feel like you're punishing me?"

I looked directly into his eyes.

"Because you're finally feeling what I've felt for an entire year."

His shoulders stiffened.

"Watching the person you love choose someone else..."

I swallowed the lump in my throat.

"It hurts, doesn't it?"

For the first time since I had known Vincent Moretti, he couldn't hide the pain in his eyes.

But even then...

He still couldn't say the three words I had waited years to hear.