“Do I want to hit you? Yes.”

A passing man looked at Joy when she said that. Tony gave him an awkward grin.

“But believe it or not, I’m not angry.” Joy chuckled. “I’m awake. Wide awake. I now see you for who you really are. Others saw it, but not me. I remained asleep to the fact that you haven’t changed.”

Tony tossed up his hands. “Joy, look, I can explain everything if you would just—”

“And I now know you will never change, Tony.” She ran her hands along the wrought iron railing of the bridge. “You, Tony, will never change. And like that old saying goes, when someone shows you who they really are, believe them.” She walked off down the other side of the bridge.

But Tony grabbed her arm. “Joy, don’t do this. Don’t ruin what we have. Don’t just throw away all that we experienced here in Venice. Think of Jaime.”

She stared at his fingers wrapped around her bare arm.

He slowly released her.

“I am thinking of her, Tony. What we experienced here in Venice? It was just an illusion, Tony. I see that now.” Joy shoved his hand away. “I didn’t ruin anything. You did. As usual, you ruined everything.”

As she walked off, Joy could feel the weight of his stare on her body. The pull of it was strong, but she could be stronger. She knew she had it in her to keep walking and sever that power he had over her forever.

Yes, their time in Venice had been lovely. Perfect. Romantic.

But Joy didn’t come to Venice for romance. She came for adventure. At least that’s what she had told herself. Over and over again. But what was an adventure? Engaging in the usual? No. Adventure meant engaging in exciting activity, especially exploring unknown territory. And standing up to Tony—resisting Tony—was definitely unknown territory for Joy.

And she did it.

Joy finally experienced the adventure she had longed for, though it wasn't quite what she had envisioned when she first arrived in Venice.

Soon the lights of the piazza came into view, as did the Campanile Tower, guiding the way like a lighthouse. Joy walked across the piazza alive with tourists and locals. An empty bench beckoned her, so she sat thinking about what happened.

Across from her was the florist shop, closed for the day. Alessandro’s kind face came to mind. Joy leaned over and wept as she remembered how fun it was at the farm in Caorle and how welcomed his family had made her feel. Why didn’t I stay and enjoy my time with Alex and his family? The music, the food, the friends . . . why didn’t I just stay and embrace it all? Joy rolled her eyes and scoffed, because she knew the answer.

Tony.

She blew air between her pursed lips. “It’s always Tony.” Her shout startled a few pigeons into the air. “Sorry.”

A voice echoed inside her head.

Edith’s warning.

“Ugh,” Joy grunted, scaring off a few more pigeons that had landed by her feet in the cool evening. “Why didn’t I listen to her?” she asked the pigeons as they flew away.

Passersby jerked toward her as they passed with curious looks on their faces.

“Sorry.” She covered her eyes in embarrassment.

Her phone vibrated, and she knew it was probably Tony, so she avoided it.

But what if it’s Jaime? Joy’s heart raced. She removed the phone so quickly, she almost dropped it. It was Edith calling. Joy wept even more, knowing this call was a kind gesture from God.

“Hello?” she said in a small voice.

“Just calling to see how . . .” Edith paused. “Joy? Are you all right?”

“No.” She sniffled. “No, I’m not.”

“What’s the matter?”

“You were right, Edith.” Her voice cracked. “You were so right.”

“Oh no.”

Joy nodded and cried into the phone. “Yep. You were right about Tony.”

Edith let out a long sigh. “What happened? What did he do?”

“It doesn’t matter. None of it matters anymore. Just know that you were right. And now I am wide awake.” Joy sniffled again and looked up at the violet twilight sky. “Ironically, it’s nighttime, yet I am wide awake for the first time in my life.”

“Oh, Joy. I get no pleasure in being right about this. You understand? Absolutely no pleasure.”

“I know.” Joy rubbed her throbbing forehead.

“What are you going to do now?”

“Head home tomorrow. Back to New York for the wedding, and then I’ll figure things out from there.”

“If there’s anything I can do, don’t hesitate to let me know. We’ll be at the wedding and we can talk, all right?”

“All right.”

“Joy, just know that your intentions were so pure, so loving. Your mother’s heart led you along. I know you wanted the best for Jaime, and that’s why you thought about reconciling with Tony. I admire that, Joy. I truly do. But as one who has loved and lost, then found love again—romantic love and not just safety and security—I can attest that it’s worth putting yourself out there again and trusting in love. True love, okay? Don’t ever compromise or sell yourself short of it. You deserve nothing less than this kind of love.”

Joy wept as she listened. “I’m afraid it’s too late for me.”

“No, it isn’t. Trust me.” She could almost hear Edith smile.

And that’s when Alessandro’s smiling face came to Joy’s mind. She had said goodbye to him forever. She’d let him go. Perhaps he was the man who could give her that kind of love. Now she would never know.

It was too late.

“Thank you, Edith. The timing of your call is incredible. It has to be a God-incidence.”

Edith laughed. “You sound like Millie.”

“I know!” Joy tossed her head back and laughed from her belly. “And that’s a good thing. She rubbed off on me.”

“True. Get some rest, friend. Okay? Once you’re back home, it will all work out in the end.”

“It sure will. Good night.”