Chapter 51. The Proposal

They returned to Tuscany in early September, drawn not by nostalgia or by a longing to recapture the thrill of their first visit, but by the clarity of its light and the promise of quiet—far from the ceaseless hum of the city.

The villa welcomed them exactly as they’d left it: ivy clung more stubbornly to the stone walls, its tendrils weaving a deeper green tapestry; the weathered wooden shutters bore slight warps from the fierce summer sun; and beneath a curtain of fragrant, wild rosemary, the low retaining wall had become a bow to nature’s persistence.

Inside, Alyssa unpacked with deliberate calm. She laid her sketchbooks beside the bed, their pages slightly dog-eared from previous flights of inspiration. By the door, her soft, well-worn shoes found their place on the terracotta floor tiles, still warm from the day’s heat. Most telling of all, she tucked her phone deep into a drawer, silencing the world beyond these walls.

Max, arriving a full day before her, ha