ballot
The ballroom went silent the moment Leonardo Romano pulled the hotel coordinator onto his lap. / Chapter 6 / 6

Chapter 6 - The Unscripted SeatThree months later.

The spring sun shone brightly over the rolling green hills of the Napa Valley, painting the vast vineyards of the Romano Estate in brilliant shades of gold and emerald.

The air was soft, smelling of crushed grapes, lavender, and warm earth—a world away from the cold concrete and blood-stained marble of Manhattan.

On the grand outdoor terrace of the private estate, a small, elegant luncheon was being held.

There were no reporters. No politicians. No camera flashes. Just forty close friends, family members, and trusted associates sitting around a long, beautifully decorated wooden table beneath a canopy of white roses and green vines.

At the head of the table sat Meline Brooks.

She wore a breathtaking cream silk dress that caught the gentle vineyard breeze, her dark hair styled in soft, elegant waves around her shoulders. She looked radiant, her eyes sparkling with laughter as she chatted with Dante, who sat across from her wearing a simple gray suit, looking far more relaxed than he ever had in New York.

A pair of warm, strong arms wrapped gently around her shoulders from behind.

Leonardo leaned down, pressing a soft kiss against the side of her neck, his dark amber eyes filled with a profound, unreserved tenderness.

"Are the arrangements to your satisfaction, Miss Brooks?" he murmured softly into her ear, his warm breath tickling her skin.

Meline laughed—a light, beautiful sound—and turned her head to look up at him. "The wine is three degrees too warm, the tablecloths are linen instead of cotton, and the head coordinator seems to have completely forgotten the seating chart."

"Is that so?" Leonardo smiled—a rare, brilliant smile that still made her heart skip a beat every time she saw it.

He stepped around her chair, reaching into his inner jacket pocket, and pulled out a single sheet of heavy cream paper. He laid it gently on the table beside her plate.

Meline looked down at the paper.

It was an official, beautifully hand-calligraphed seating chart for the estate.

At the top of the page, in bold gold ink, was written:

TABLE ONE

Seat One: Leonardo Romano

Seat Two: Meline Romano

Meline felt a sudden, wonderful warmth bloom in her chest. She looked up into the eyes of the man who had pulled her out of the shadows and into his world—a man who had traded his empire's dark violence for a life of peace beside her.

"Seat Two," she whispered softly, her fingers trailing over the gold ink. "You know, that chair used to be very dangerous."

"It was," Leonardo agreed, leaning down to capture her lips in a deep, passionate kiss that made the entire terrace break into warm applause.

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