Nora laughed. “If this is your reaction now, wait until we reach my flat’s building. It’s on the ground floor of a former palazzo dating back to the sixteenth century. Not to mention we’re but a stone’s throw away from the Palazzo Pitti and the scenic Giardino di Boboli.”
“Amazing.” Sabrina shook her head.
* * *
“You have a private courtyard?” Sabrina said, dumbfounded.
Nora secured the latch to the gate from the street. Sabrina drank in the sight of the red brick pathway leading to an outdoor firepit at the courtyard’s center. She could just imagine herself and Nora enjoying a conversation, lounging about on one of the two deck chairs. There was a white marble statuette of Diana, the Roman goddess of the hunt, and a planter box containing flowering shrubs. A string of small lanterns added to the cozy ambiance.
“This is our communal courtyard. I share it with the other two residents of the building. Vanessa, who lives in the second-floor flat, always ensures there is firewood for us, but it’s an awful lot of work to get a fire going. Usually, it’s Lorenzo’s job when he visits.”
A dull throb ran though Sabrina’s body at hearing his name.
I have to get over him. Focus on some else, like the scenery. I am staying in a palazzo. An actual palazzo. Which noble family might have once owned this building? No doubt they would have been high-ranking nobles. I never thought Nora’s flat would be so grand. I’m never going to want to rent a flat with a façade less than two hundred years old after my stay here.
“Oh my?.?.?. what do we have here?” Nora stopped in her tracks.
Sitting in front of an arched doorway was a box of chocolates and a thick bouquet of pale pink and white tulips wrapped in lavender paper. A string attached a white card to the flowers. Typed on the outside of the envelope was Sabrina’s name.
“They’re for you.” Nora bent over to pick them up. “These are expensive chocolates.”
Sabrina’s stomach performed a series of somersaults. Her throat grew dry. Carefully, she removed the card from the outside.
Ripping the envelope open, she read:
Forgive this fool for acting so cruel. For making you sad and getting you mad. I hope we can still be friends.
-Lorenzo
Her hands shook.
“May I see the card?” Nora asked.
Silently, Sabrina exchanged the card for the bouquet of flowers. She inhaled their fresh scent.
You’re not going to go from my life easy, Lorenzo, are you? If you were trying to soften me and my resolve, it’s working. Flowers are one of my weaknesses.
Nora’s eyes roved over the card. “It’s certainly, um?.?.?. a unique poem.” She cleared her throat and muttered to herself in Italian. “Let’s get you inside. Then you can decide if you’d like to keep them, toss them, or whatnot.”
Nora led them through the arched door.
“I’m keeping both the flowers and the chocolate, but I hope he doesn’t expect a reply. I’m still angry, and if we lived in the Regency era, I’d still wish to give him the cut direct.”
Sabrina placed her tote bag and backpack on the ground. They slid off their shoes.
“You have every right.” Nora tapped the light switch, hung her keys from a set of iron hooks, and took the flowers from Sabrina’s hands. “There are some slippers for you over there. I’ll put these in the kitchen for now. Welcome home.”
A glass chandelier had flooded the room with bright light. Sabrina noticed how it reflected the bright ivory walls and red-checkered ceramic floor tiles. There was a cool gray couch with blue accent pillows, a pair of glass side tables adorned with bouquets of pink tulips, and a stack of sheet music sitting atop the glass coffee table. Elegant landscape paintings were tastefully framed in gold on the two walls opposite the three central windows, which were bringing an airy feeling to the room.
Nora guided her farther into the apartment. The living room opened into a kitchen with dark cherrywood cabinets and a large, sleek black quartz island and matching black dining table. A bowl of fruit, combined with the pink and white tulips, added a splash of color and cheer to the room.
“The layout of the apartment is a little strange. We must walk through the kitchen to reach the guest en suite.”
Sabrina grinned. “Not a problem. I would be happy to sleep on your sofa. This place is gorgeous. It’s minimal, yet elegant.”
Nora’s cheeks flushed bubble-gum pink. “You won’t say my flat is minimal when you see my room. I didn’t have much time to clean, so the piles of books and other odds and ends I have shoved into my office slash practice room.”
Sabrina put a finger to her lips. “It doesn’t exist if I don’t see it.”
