And Alessandra put her hand on Emilia’s arm.
They shared a brief look, but neither of them spoke.
Alessandra squeezed Emilia’s arm and gave her a wistful smile, then walked slowly towards the door.
What was THAT all about?I wondered.
Everyone else filed out of the room in silence.
Valentino was the last. As he passed me, he put a hand on my shoulder. “I heard what you did today. Good job.”
“Thank you,” I said –
And then he walked out, leaving just me and Emilia in the kitchen.
“Hey,” I said gently.
“Hey,” she whispered back –
And I crossed the space between us and wrapped her in my arms with a kiss.
She kissed me back fervently –
Which not only felt good, but was a tremendous relief.
She can’t hate me TOO much if she kisses me like THAT.
I pulled away and looked down into her eyes. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” Emilia said quietly. “I mean… yes,considering.”
I grinned. “Considering. Yeah.”
Emilia’s brow furrowed. “Can we go home now?”
“Not yet,” I said gently. “They’re expecting me.”
“Giorgio…please,”she begged in a whisper.
I caressed her cheek. “As soon as the meeting’s over, I’ll come and find you, okay?”
She stared up at me, her eyes filled with pain…
But she nodded in resignation.
“I’ll see you soon,” I said. “I promise.”
I kissed her lips before I left…
But I noticed that she didn’t kiss me back nearly as passionately as before.
87
Lucrezia Caproni
After a five-hour drive the night before, we finally arrived in Tuscany at dawn.
We’d brought along nearly two-thirds of our men. The rest had remained in Naples to guard the Amatos’ castle.
