Venetian Masquerade (13 page)

He went even paler, clearly deeply shocked. “He did
what
? And you just took his word for that, did you?” he stormed at her. “After three months of practically living with me, loving with me, sharing every intimate thing two people can share, you just took his word? You never gave me a chance to explain or give my side of the awkward situation I was in. How could you do that, Amy? Not only did you destroy our relationship, but you robbed James of his father for the first five years of his life, and we can never retrieve that!”

As they stood staring furiously at each other across the kitchen table, they became aware of a snuffling noise, and both turned to the lounge door, where James stood watching them. He had wet himself, and tears streamed down his face.

Amy rushed to him and swept him into her arms. “It’s all right, James. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“James, I’m so sorry,” began Alessandro, moving towards them, but the little boy buried his face in Amy’s neck, refusing to look at his father.

“I think it would be better if you left, Alessandro. Call me later.”

Without a word, he picked up the papers from the table, turned on his heel, and went out of the house, closing the door quietly on the way out.

“Now you’re not friends anymore,” sobbed James “and my papa has gone again.”

“Darling, we just had a quarrel. It’s over now, and Ales…Papa will come back.”

“No, he won’t… I bet I don’t see him again.” He laid his head on her shoulder and howled.

“Shh…James, I promise you, you will see Papa tomorrow,” she told him, rocking him gently, “and…well, how would you like to go to Rome?”

“With you…and Papa?”

“Yes.” She gulped at the commitment she was making. “With me and Papa.”

“When?”

That was a question she hadn’t resolved yet. “I’ll talk to him, James.”

“Will he take me to the football?”

“If there is a game on while we’re there, I expect so.”

James cheered up, so she changed his damp clothes and persuaded him to return to his TV program. Amy poured herself a glass of wine and sat, wondering whether she was making a huge mistake, but now it must be done. Wearily, she rose to answer the ringing phone and was not surprised to discover it was Alessandro, calling from his mobile.

“Amy, I ’m so sorry—”

“It was my fault as much as yours. He’s never heard me quarrel with anyone before. He’s all right, but I hope you meant what you said about us coming to Rome.”

There was a small silence before Alessandro cleared his throat.

“Yes, of course I meant it.” She could hear the restrained joy in his voice.

“Then, when school breaks up for Christmas at the end of next week, perhaps we could come for a couple days. He wants you to take him to a football match.”

“It’s a promise.”

“I wondered…if you could book us into a hotel?”

“Leave it to me. I was afraid you would tell me to stay out of his life after what happened this evening.”

“That isn’t what he wants or needs. Come tomorrow and take him to the park…if you have some football boots on hand.”

Chapter Eleven

G
abriel came around the next day. “I wanted to check the furniture had arrived safely,” he said, and together, they admired the way Amy had arranged the new acquisitions in the dining and conference room. “It’s going to look stunning,” he said with satisfaction.

“I have someone coming to measure for curtains tomorrow. I thought plain cream with tie backs and swags… What do you think?” asked Amy.

They were deeply engrossed when Sonya and Donna knocked on the door. “We just wanted to see how things went yesterday with Alessandro and James,” said Sonya, casting a shy smile at Gabriel.

Chattering happily, they all retired to the kitchen, where Amy busied herself making coffee and drinks for the children. The next tap on the door revealed Carmela and Antonio, who were enfolded into the group. James ran to Antonio, dragging him out to the garden to watch him ride his bike.

Finally, Alessandro appeared. They didn’t see him at first as he stood in the open doorway, watching the crowd of friends laughing and talking, but Amy suddenly glanced up and caught such a look of longing and sadness on his face, she could barely stop herself from going to him and putting her arms around him.

“Come and join us.” She smiled at him, and he came to sit beside Carmela and accepted a cup of coffee. “James is in the garden. I’ll call him.”

The little boy appeared a moment later and stood for a moment, looking anxiously at Alessandro. There was a small silence as the gathered friends watched James nervously approach his father, who picked him up and sat him on his lap.

“Are we going to play football?”

“Yes, as soon as we’ve finished our drinks.”

“Can I come?” asked Donna.

“Why don’t we all go?” suggested Amy. “Snoopy needs a walk, and come to think of it, so do I—and as there is rather a lot of food here which is going to get wasted, you can all stay for lunch.”

Carmela and Antonio elected to stay behind to set the table and organize the food, so the rest of them set off in the December sunshine.

Gabriel and Alessandro soon had James and Donna running round, with an excited Snoopy trying to join in, while Amy and Sonya watched from the park bench.

“He doesn’t behave much like a millionaire property tycoon, does he?”

“Fatherhood seems to suit him. He’s so different here. To be honest, having met his parents, I can’t imagine that he had a very happy childhood.”

“You’re still in love with him Amy—it shines out of your eyes.”

Amy could hardly deny it. “Yes, but he’s married, Sonya. It’s something I have to live with for James’s sake.”

“So, what about poor Gabriel?”

“Sonya…I love Gabriel dearly as my friend, as he does me. But he’s not in love with me.”

“Are you sure?”

“Very sure.”

“But…well, I wasn’t eavesdropping, but I heard him propose to you.”

“Oh…yes, well he did. But that is only because he knew how scared I was of losing James to Alessandro. He offered to marry me and adopt James, which was an amazing thing to do, but we both knew it would have been a disaster. Gabriel is one of the most wonderful people I know, and I can’t tell you how often I have wished I could fall in love with him, but the chemistry isn’t right between us.”

“I see.”

“However, at the moment, I am allowing Alessandro to believe that Gabriel and I are a couple. He will find out soon what the real truth is, but I need a breathing space to let him and James get to know each other before he turns his attention to me. I really couldn’t cope with all that at the same time.”

“Oh, I see.” Enlightenment dawned in Sonya’s eyes.

“You like Gabriel, don’t you, Sonya?”

“I think he’s wonderful. You won’t tell him, will you?” she added anxiously.

“No, it will be our secret, if that’s what you want.”

“It is, because if he can’t feel the same way about me, at least I want to keep him as a friend.”

Amy watched as Gabriel scooped Donna into the air and heard the little girl shriek with delight. She hoped with all her heart that the three of them might find happiness together one day.

Exhausted, the party finally meandered back to the villa and sat drinking chianti over lunch. Amy was aware of Alessandro’s every move and often felt his dark eyes upon her as she sat next to Gabriel, talking and giggling. “Do you remember, Gabriel, when I came here with my parents when I was fifteen,” she said, prodding him in the ribs, “and you threw me in the pond?”

“I didn’t throw you in, Amy; I just stepped out of the way when you charged towards me on your roller skates. It wasn’t my fault you couldn’t stop in time. You came up with tadpoles wriggling out of your hair, covered in black mud, and had a tantrum to end all tantrums.”

“And I had to wash her hair.” Carmela laughed and clapped her hands at the memory. “It took nearly an hour to clean her up.”

“And you said you were in love with me then, Gabriel.”

“So I was…but I was still young enough to enjoy the prospect of seeing you fall in the pond.”

“Horrible man.”

After lunch, everyone except Alessandro rose to leave. They all knew he wanted to spend some time alone with James, so they made their farewells and drifted away into the early evening darkness.

“Are you still prepared to come to Rome?” he asked Amy.

“Yes.” He was standing too close to her, and her pulse was rising.

“Then I will book the flights for next Friday? I can take James to see Juventus on Saturday, as they’re playing in Rome.”

“All right. We’ll stay until Tuesday so we can be back here in time for Christmas,”

“You’re spending it with Gabriel?”

“And Sonya, Donna, Carmela, and Antonio; I shall invite Constanzo and Simona, as well. They are moving just after Christmas to a sheltered flat. Where are you spending Christmas?”

“At home as usual, I expect. Amy, is small talk the best we can manage now?”

“What else is there, Alessandro?”

“I’m sorry. May I put James to bed and read him a story?”

“Yes, of course.”

He disappeared into James’s bedroom with the little boy, and a while later, Amy heard him reading Red Riding Hood, James’s current favorite story. She stood outside the door until she heard James say, “Goodbye, Papa. I can’t wait ’til I see you in Rome,” before creeping back to the kitchen.

Alessandro appeared a few minutes later. “Can we talk?”

Amy turned to look at him, her eyes wide and apprehensive. “About James?”

“About us.”

“There is no
us
, Alessandro. There never really was; it was one of your illusions.”

“You really believe that?”

“Yes.” She raised her chin and looked at him, her heart, as always, pounding unbearably, and she was shaken by a longing to be in his arms.

He returned her gaze, looking deeply into her eyes, and finally turned away.

“I will go now. I’ll confirm the flight times and see you in Rome on Friday.”

“And you will book a hotel?”

“Everything will be arranged. Goodbye, Amy.”

She watched him go and then sank into a chair, exhausted by her feelings. She wondered in despair if the ache would ever go away.

Work on the hotel had progressed quickly, and she was delighted with the building. Curtains were ordered. The furniture had arrived for the ten bedrooms, and she and Sonya spent a lot of time arranging the rooms so they were each unique. Framed Art Deco posters graced the walls, nineteen-thirties taps and reproduction fixtures completed each
en suite
bathroom, and rugs carpeted the planed, original wooden floors. The chrome banister rails gleamed, and the multi-colored Tiffany-style lampshades made in the glassworks at Murano, the Venetian island world famous for its glorious glassware, were all in place.

“It looks fantastic,” said Gabriel with satisfaction.

“Largely thanks to you.” Amy gave him a hug. “Your vision’s come to life.”

“Now we need to promote it in time for your grand opening. I have a friend who designs websites who has contacts at the Venice Tourist office…”

“You do have some useful friends, Gabriel. Architects, builders, website designers…”

“Absolutely.” He grinned. “And now we have to devise a list of services you can offer. Bed and breakfast, of course, but what about making the restaurant the most
de rigueur
on the Lido? It has the style and class, and we could seat about forty. All you need is the chef.”

“Sonya is going to work for me, and she is certainly happy to do breakfasts and lunches, but she wouldn’t be able to do evening work because of Donna. You don’t have a friend who’s a chef, I suppose?” she chuckled.

“No…but I know a man who does,” he mused. “Leave it to me.”

“The new computer has arrived, and it’s in the office in a mountain of boxes. I can use the horrible things, but I can’t set them up… Would you mind?”

“Women. So independent until something important needs doing.”

They wandered back to the kitchen, and Amy poured them both a glass of wine. “We’re going to Rome on Friday for the weekend,” she told him.

“I’m glad, Amy. It’s good for James.”

“We’re just going to look at an old hostel which could be converted to shops and offices, and Alessandro is taking James to football,” she said defensively.

“Why don’t you just stop fighting it? You adore the man, and you only have to look in his eyes to see he feels the same about you.”

“I won’t be his mistress,” she snapped at him.

“Okay, okay, lead me to the computer…”