Page 92 of Redemption
“Brother, lovely Keira, and the luckiest little girl in the entire world. I have never been happier to welcome you all to a new day in the most beautiful place in the world. I hope you slept some.”
Lachlan releases my hand to place his free one on his brother’s shoulder. “We did. And you?”
“Like a baby. Never better.”
Lachlan squeezes his shoulder and then asks, “Do you think Mother would enjoy her surprise at this hour?”
“Mother would enjoy a surprise at any hour. Especially one from you. The crate is in the hallway. Let us take it to her.”
My curiosity is off the charts, but I know it’ll be satisfied soon enough. “I’ll take Rory,” I say, reaching for our baby girl. With her snuggled against my shoulder, I follow the twins—something that will still take me time to get used to—as they grab a large rectangular crate and lead the way into the conservatory.
Not only do we find Francesca there, but also Alessandro. He’s been near her side every moment I’ve seen them since their sons left for America. Clearly, he’s making up for lost time, and I, for one, think it’s wonderful.
“Mother, Father. Good morning,” Marco says as we enter the room.
Francesca’s brush hovers midair as she takes in her tall, dark, and handsome sons.
The joy that sweeps over her is tangible in its effect. Her entire being becomes lighter and brighter as she sees them together.
She drops her brush into the water and rises, rushing toward them.
“We have been waiting for you to awaken. I could not breathe easily until I saw you both together, standing in front of me.” She throws her open arms around her sons, disregarding the wooden crate they carry between them.
After a few long moments, she pulls back and looks from one face to the other. “You’re both even handsomer than when you left.”
“And we come bearing a gift, Mama,” Marco says, lifting his end of the crate.
“No gifts are necessary. I have everything I could ever want. What more could I possibly need?”
“Do you remember when I told you about the painting from my dressing room?” Lachlan asks her.
Francesca gasps and presses a hand to her heart. “You have brought it home? One of my babies?”
Alessandro gestures to a glass-topped table. “Put it here. Let us see.”
Marco and Lachlan lower the crate to the table, and Marco pulls a screwdriver from his pocket. In moments, the crate cracks open, and Marco moves aside the padding to reveal a cloth-wrapped canvas.
He glances at Lachlan. “Would you like to do the honors?”
With a smile that I hope becomes a permanent fixture on my husband’s face, Lachlan lifts the painting from its nest and carefully unwraps it. I can’t stop myself from gasping, along with Alessandro and Francesca. Although I saw the painting daily for years, I’m stunned to see it again here.
Francesca bursts out laughing.
“My beautiful conservatory. Right there in paint and right here in reality. I was here in this room, all these years, painting, and you had a painting of me painting, in this room, in your home. How wonderful are the twists and turns of life?” she asks with tears tracking down her cheeks.
Alessandro points at the painting. “I bid on that over twenty years ago. I lost to a bidder in London, who was robbed shortly after. I never heard the painting was recovered.” He looks at his son with a question in his gaze. “Did you steal it?”
My husband chuckles. “No, but it made its way to my fence, and when I saw it, I had to have it.”
Alessandro nods in approval. “Clearly, it found its way to its rightful home.”
“Just like our family,” Francesca adds, reaching for my hand to draw me and Aurora into the family circle. “We are all home—finally. Once and for all. The Giordanos are complete, and our happily ever after begins right now.”
Epilogue
Leo
I didn’t know what to expect from the key that Mount left me, but as I open the safe deposit box in this little private room, I’m glad I’m sitting down.
