Perfect by Design

39: Luca James

Gianna

I didn't know at first.

"Don't leave! Not yet." I whined as Luca tried to quietly leave the room for his morning run, thinking I was still sleeping.

That was just a few short hours ago, so please help me understand how I went from snuggling in bed beside him to packing his luggage; surer than not that we've already written the last page of our story.

It's hard to believe that just last night, we laid up on the rooftop talking about our dreams— the life we wanted.

Luca tugs on my arm just as I manage to get out of bed. "Where have you been sneaking off to every night?"

"You've noticed?" I chew nervously on my bottom lip.

"You're not as sneaky as you think, Bella."

"I— I wasn't sneaking. I just didn't want to wake you. You're always up so early."

He sits up in bed and tugs on my arm until I fall back onto the mattress right beside him. "Still haven't answered the question."

"The roof," I whisper. "Dante loved the roof."

"Show me," he smiles, his soft, invasive smile that infiltrates every fiber of my being. His voice floats in my direction, becoming butterflies in my stomach.

I grab his hand and make a show of pulling him out of the bed. He scoops me up, ignoring my screech as he throws me over his shoulder.

"You don't even know where you're going." I tease.

"It can't be that hard to get to the roof," he leans down and whispers.

True, I guess.

He heads to the elevator, pressing the R once inside. I suppose it is a pretty straightforward process. Once the doors open and he steps out onto the terrace, he finally sets me down. I smack his chest, which only elicits a chuckle out of him, before walking over to my favorite spot in the corner. It doesn't take long for Luca to join me.

I find my way to the ground, lying on my back to look up at the stars.

"I, uh... I found the goggles." I turn to Luca, who smiles softly at me.

"Yeah, I wanted to test them out on you, but they still need a few tweaks." He looks briefly at me before refocusing on the sky.

"You're afraid they'll fail. You aren't the persona you present. You're brilliant and effortlessly talented, but you don't trust it. Why?"

"Wow, Bella. You sure know how to set the mood." He pulls me into him, holding me close.

I lean in close, pressing my lips slightly to his cheek. "I know how to set the mood just fine. Tell me what's scaring you, and I might just show you how good I am at setting the mood."

He turns to look at me, and there's a fire in his eyes.

"My code, for the software I sold to Google... it should've failed. I have no clue why it worked—why it continues to work. I feel like a fraud."

I cup his face in my hand, and as my eyes settle on the sparkle in his, everything hits me. And I feel that familiar ache in my cheeks. I didn't know at first, but now I realize in every full room, when there is him, I always gravitate toward him.