I wouldn’t have expected her to since she couldn’t have been much older than I was. She couldn’t have worked here while Dahlia was alive. Also, if Romeo was anything to go by, the Cavetti men did not often openly discuss the woman who had been so dear to them. I didn’t know about Romeo’s little sister Natalia since she made herself so scarce all the time—Romeo had mentioned that she rarely sought out her family except for Savio—but since her mother had died giving birth to her, I imagined the subject to be a sore one for her, too.
Philippa blinked and focused back on me. “Someone must have mentioned it when I was doing my duties. Did you need anything else,signorina?”
But I didn’t want her to dismiss herself. I padded closer to her. “Philippa, I’m not trying to pry, but I hope you know that if you need to talk about anything, I’m here. You’ve helped me so much, and I’d love to reciprocate if you’ll let me.”
She lowered her gaze to her hands. “Thank you,SignorinaLucia. But I am fine.”
“Are you sure?” I prodded her, certain that she wasn’t fine at all.
“Yes.” She smiled at me, but it looked painted on. “I have much to do.”
My maid bustled out of the room then, as if anxious to put some distance between us.
“How long has yourfamigliaemployed Philippa?” I asked my husband as I lay half on top of him in bed that night.
Romeo furrowed his brow with his eyes closed, one of his arms slung around my shoulders while the other cupped my naked belly. We’d made love just a few minutes before. “For two or three years now, I think.”
“That’s what I figured.”
“Are you dissatisfied with the service of your maid?” he inquired of me, and I sat up a little.
“No, not at all. I was just surprised when she knew your mother’s name.”
That made him open his eyes. “You two were discussing my mother?”
“Not really. We were talking about your choice for a girl’s name for the baby, and she mentioned that she knew Dahlia was what your mother was called.”
He jutted out his lower lip in contemplation, and feeling amorous, I sucked it into my mouth. The pregnancy hormones had made me not only crave Romeo sexually, they made me feel bold enough to initiate things I never would’ve dared before. We became distracted for a good twenty or thirty minutes before returning to the topic at hand.
“I like that Dahlia is a flower, too,” I said. “Perfect for a little girl.”
“It’s interesting that the maid knew, though,” he said, absently rubbing my upper arm. “I doubt staff members who’ve been here longer than she has would know it, except for the ones who’ve been here for twenty plus years.”
“So your father and your siblings don’t talk about her much, either?” I guessed.
“No.”
His confirmation of my theory held a distinct tone of finality. He’d loved his mother, and I understood that discussing her could still be painful for him. I could tell that the other members of his family probably followed the same logic. So that he wouldn’t be taken out of his current state, I changed the subject.
“Do you have any boy’s names in mind?” But before he could answer, I interrupted myself. “Wait, what’s your middle name?”
“Dante.”
“That’s pretty.”
Romeo chuckled, squeezing me against him. “Boy’s names aren’t supposed to be pretty. They are supposed to exhibit strength so he can one day lead hisfamiglia.”
“Is that what Dante means? Strength?”
“It means enduring.”
“What about Romeo?”
“That one depends on your source. Some say it means passionate seducer.”
I laughed. “That’s appropriate.”
He tickled me, then playfully nipped at my collarbone. “Others say it just means pilgrim from Rome.”
