Free Dante's Dilemma (a Dante Legacy Novella) by Day Leclaire

I’ve asked how it works, but they just laugh and wink. So, I’m not sure what causes the mark to appear, though I could speculate about various possibilities.” He smiled. “None of which are appropriate to share with you.”
    “Mmm. I think I can guess,” she retorted dryly.
    His smile grew. “To be honest, if I must choose one type of Inferno, I prefer this one since I knew the instant we touched that you were the one.”
    She had one final question, one that had plagued her from the start. “And how long does The Inferno last?”
    “Forever.”
    “Truly?” She couldn’t help the doubt underscoring her question. “Forever?”
    He nodded. “One man and one woman for all the years they live. I’m not sure I fully understood—or believed it possible—until I met you. But I understand now. I believe now.”
    “Do you also believe we’ll always feel this way about each other?”
    He gave it to her straight. “The Inferno strikes once and only once, Julietta. Dantes have a single soul mate in the whole of the world. Most of the time we are fortunate enough to find her, as I have found you. Sometimes a Dante spends his entire life looking and never discovers the woman meant to be his mate. In that case, he either spends his days alone, or settles for a pale reflection of the real thing.”
    “Is that what your mother did after your father died?”
    He shook his head. “She rarely spoke of The Inferno. She believes it’s a curse and claimed it died with my father.” She caught the underlying pain sweeping through his words, and her heart went out to him. How horrible to be told the love your parents felt for one another was cursed. “But I always thought she lied in order to protect the life she shares with Luigi. Now that I’ve experienced The Inferno, I’m even more certain she lied. There’s no question in my mind that what I feel for you will last until the end of my days.”
    Exhaustion settled over her, catching her off guard. “I’m sorry, Rom. Everything is happening so fast. I can’t think straight.”
    He tucked her close. “It’s natural to have doubts, especially when what your heart tells you is at odds with what your head is saying.”
    “Or my family.”
    “Yes. At some point you’ll need to choose between head and heart. Between what your family expects and what is right for you.” He cupped her face and tilted it up. “You’ll need to choose between me and Tito.”
    “When you hold me, touch me, the choice is so simple.”
    He kissed her, his mouth slow and delicious on hers. He didn’t rush the embrace. Nor did he deepen it, much to her disappointment. Finally, he released her. “It isn’t the choice that’s difficult. It’s what happens after you’ve made that choice. I won’t force you, Julietta. It has to be your decision.”

    Midday the next day, Rom approached the cottage the Bianchi family was using until Julietta’s wedding. He could tell the instant Julietta sensed him. She stood in front of a window box, gently prying a clump of dying roses free from their hard-packed dirt bed. Once again, she wore a simple cotton dress, faded from repeated washings and the bleaching rays of the sun. She’d tied a gardening apron around her trim waist and protected her complexion with the same wide-brimmed straw hat she’d carried when he’d first come across her in the meadow. This time she wore her hair up, the hip-length mass gathered in a heavy knot at the nape of her neck.
    At his approach, her back went rigid, and she stilled, as though taking a moment to gather him in and absorb his very essence. “You shouldn’t be here,” she said without turning around.
    He responded with simple honesty. “I couldn’t stay away.”
    She glanced over her shoulder, her reproving frown belied by the amusement in her gaze. “And what will you say if people ask why you’re here?”
    “I’ll tell them the truth,” he answered promptly. “Tito told me his fiancée possesses