Chapter 17 - A New Foundation
Three years later, the coastal town of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, smelled of salt water, pine trees, and baking bread.
There were no bodyguards standing at the gate. There were no armed men in charcoal suits, no whispered rumors in exclusive Chicago restaurants, and no terrifying drop in atmospheric pressure when a door opened.
It was a crisp Saturday morning, and Julian Moretti—wearing faded denim jeans and a simple cotton t-shirt—was kneeling in the front yard of a modest, beautiful Craftsman-style home, helping seven-year-old Lily plant a row of red hydrangeas in the soil.
"Careful with the roots, sweetie," Julian said, his voice warm and easy, a soft smile touching his lips. "If you crush them now, they won't bloom in the spring."
"Mom said we have to water them every single day!" Lily declared proudly, patting the dirt down with her small gardening gloves.
From the porch steps, Sarah watched them, a mug of steaming coffee in her hands. She was wearing a simple linen dress, her hair catching the golden California sunlight. Running around the porch was three-year-old Leo, chasing a golden retriever puppy that Julian had finally relented and bought him for his birthday.
Julian looked up from the garden, catching her gaze across the lawn. The harsh, razor-sharp edge of the Capo dei Capi was gone, replaced entirely by the contented warmth of a man who had fought through hell to find heaven.
He stood up, dusted the dirt off his knees, and walked across the grass toward her.
"What are you smiling at?" Julian asked, stopping at the foot of the porch steps and resting his hands on her waist, looking up into her eyes.
"I was just thinking about Giovani’s," Sarah smiled, taking a sip of her coffee. "And how you looked like a terrified mob boss holding a screaming baby."
Julian chuckled, a rich, genuine sound that echoed warmly in the quiet morning air. "And I was thinking about the crazy woman in the frayed coat who walked right past my armed guards because she couldn't stand watching an amateur ruin a child's day."
"I saved your life, you know," Sarah teased, tilting her chin up.
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"You saved my soul," Julian corrected softly.
He leaned up and kissed her—a slow, tender, perfect kiss that tasted of home, of peace, and of a future that belonged entirely to them.
