Be Brave With Me

Chapter Twenty-Three

The flames consumed Aura.

Not literally, of course.

It only looked like they did from his vantage point at the other side of the bonfire pit. With the day's work done and at Nonna's insistence, they had joined the handful of guests still gathered around the bonfire in the garden this late at night. Beth was sharing a bottle of wine with Ruth and Anna. Katie had fallen asleep in Charles' lap. Jack was resting his head sleepily against Dad's arm as he kept watch over the fluffy bread dough that Theo had twisted around a twig for him so he could roast it over the fire.

Theo was keeping silent watch over Aura.

The fire reflecting in her eyes, the light dancing in her hair and illuminating the graceful slant of her nose... she was burning bright.

He envied the fire.

He wanted to be the one to warm her up. He wanted to burn for her, with her. Until the heat became almost unbearable. Until it scorched their skin and sparks ignited. Until they both went up in flames, together. Until they left nothing behind but their ashes from which they could be born again.

Aaaaaall right.

It was clearly time for him to go to bed. It had been a long day, a long day in a row of long days in the week they'd been here. His thoughts always turned weird when he was overtired.

Theo brushed off his thighs, ready to get to his feet and stretch his arms over his head with a yawn - Aura's and his subtle-not-so-subtle sign to ditch everyone for their nightly shenanigans.

But he caught the sound of her laugh.

Squeezed between William and Foster on the big log on the other side of the fire, she was listening and nodding along to the animated conversation going on between the two men. She was clearly having fun. He would never want to whisk her away from that.

Determined to keep his eyes open long enough until she was ready to head to bed, too, he settled back into his low beach chair. Romeo showed up and plopped himself into the chair next to him with an exhausted sigh. The Italian - God bless him - handed him a fresh beer.

"Thanks, bro." He toasted Romeo and took a refreshing swig from the bottle.

"You're welcome, bro." Romeo took a pull from his own beer with a big grin. "Did I say that right?"

Theo laughed and nodded. He'd been helping Romeo to brush up on his English whenever they found some spare minutes together, and Romeo was making the most out of every one of those.

But soon enough the two men were falling back to Italian. It was easier for Romeo to discuss his various ideas for improving the Vista that way. None of which Nonna wanted to hear about, as it turned out. Apparently, she had finally made her decision to close the Vista's doors for good this winter. It would set her grandson free, she had said. Free from the burden to stay in Ravello and carry on her legacy.

Theo listened and nodded and listened some more, although he couldn't even begin to wrap his mind around Nonna's decision.

She didn't want Romeo to take over for her? She didn't mind that all of her hard work would crumble to dust? She didn't care that her legacy would be carried away by a gust of wind into the branches of her lemon trees, to be forgotten in time?

How... weird. How... freeing.

Would would happen if he got Nonna on the phone with his Dad?

Theo chuckled to himself. Again, his thoughts always turned weird when he was overtired.

"He's Fitzwilliam Harrington, no?" Romeo asked out of the blue, as if he'd been reading along in his mind. "You're Theo Harrington. From The Harrington in the Hamptons? Google told me."