By the time I pulled up to Luca’s estate, Monica was already gone. I wasn’t surprised—it was late, and she’d probably finished her cleaning for the day. That meant I was on my own with the unpacking, which was fine. I didn’t mind the solitude. It gave me time to think.

I spent the next hour unpacking my things, taking my time to arrange everything just the way I wanted. The second master bedroom was beginning to look more like mine with every box I emptied, though it still didn’t ...