**“GET ON YOUR KNEES AND PICK IT UP, YOU IGNORANT LITTLE MAID! YOU DON'T EVEN UNDERSTAND ITALIAN!” THE MAFIA BOSS'S FIANCÉE HUMILIATED HIS 25-YEAR-OLD HOUSEMAID IN FRONT OF FIFTY DINNER GUESTS—BUT WHEN THE MAID REFUSED TO HIDE A SMALL SILVER FILM CANISTER, AN ITALIAN BUSINESSMAN STOOD UP AND ASKED WHY VANESSA WAS KEEPING A DEAD MOTHER'S LAST MESSAGE FROM HER NINE-YEAR-OLD SON.**

I stared at the envelope in my hands.

My heart was beating so loudly I was sure Luca could hear it.

I slowly broke the seal and pulled out the delicate, aged paper.

To the woman who comes after me,

If you are reading this, it means Luca has found love again. It means my son has a mother figure again.

For a long time, the thought of another woman holding my husband and raising my boy terrified me. I was so jealous of the time you would get with them that I didn't get.

But as the end gets closer, that fear has changed into hope.

I don't know your name. I don't know your face. But I know Luca. He is a fiercely protective, stubborn, deeply loving man. He would never let anyone into our son's life unless she had a heart of pure gold.

So, whoever you are, thank you.

Thank you for making Luca smile again. Thank you for packing Noah's lunches and kissing his bruised knees. Thank you for listening to his stories about a mother he barely remembers.

Please don't ever feel like you are standing in my shadow. You are the sunlight that came after the storm.

I give you my blessing. Love them fiercely for me.

Forever, Claire.

Tears spilled from my eyes, dripping onto the paper.

I covered my mouth with a trembling hand, utterly overwhelmed by the profound grace of a dying woman.

Luca reached out and gently wiped a tear from my cheek with his thumb.

“She knew,” Luca whispered, his voice thick with emotion. “She knew I would need someone incredible to save me from the dark.”

I looked up at him. “Luca, I... I’m just Emily.”

“You’re everything,” Luca said, his voice dropping to a rough, honest whisper. “You saved my son from a monster. You saved my wife’s memory. You saved me.”

He stepped closer, closing the distance between us.

“I’ve spent the last four years building a fortress around my heart,” Luca confessed, his dark eyes searching mine. “I let Vanessa in because she was a transaction. She was convenient. I didn’t have to love her, so she couldn’t break me.”

He gently cupped my face in his hands.

“But you,” Luca breathed, his forehead resting against mine. “You broke down every wall I had without even trying. You loved my son when it wasn’t your job. You fought for my family when you had everything to lose.”

My breath hitched.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed violently in my back pocket.

The jarring sound shattered the moment.

I pulled back, startled. I grabbed my phone.

It was my mother.

“Mom? What’s wrong?” I asked, answering quickly.

“Emily,” my mother sobbed through the speaker. “It’s the landlord. The rent check bounced because the bank put a hold on the settlement funds. They’re locking our apartment in an hour. We have nowhere to go.”

The color drained from my face.

“I’ll be right there, Mom. Pack whatever you can.”

I hung up, panic gripping my chest.

“What is it?” Luca asked, immediately on alert.

“My mom,” I stammered, grabbing my purse. “The settlement money hasn’t cleared yet, and our landlord is locking us out. I have to go help her.”