‘Yes, really,’ he said, before joining her on the bed and putting a tray of food between them.
‘Anything else?’
‘I’m sure there’s quite a list, I just haven’t thought of it yet.’
They both laughed, and when Florian cut a piece of succulent-looking chicken and held it out to her on the fork, she gratefully opened her mouth and let him feed her, which only made them laugh all the more.
He reached over and stroked her hair back from her face then, his touch so tender it brought tears to her eyes. ‘I love you, Delphine. More than I’ve ever loved a woman before.’
‘I love you, too, Florian.’
And as the sky turned dark outside, they sat side by side in bed and devoured the meal between them, sharing laughter and kisses, and wishing the night would never end. She was particularly interested in his collection of paintings and other artefacts that he’d told her about, and she confessed to him as they talked that her dream had always been to study art history at university. It was a dream she’d rarely shared with anyone before, but Florian listened to her and made a point of telling her more about how he chose the pieces he had, about the private collection he was so passionate about.
‘One day, when we’re free to be together, perhaps you can take over the curation of my collection for me,’ he said. ‘My godfather has done an excellent job, and I must introduce you, but the job is yours whenever you want it.’
Delphine imagined him to be joking, but when she looked into his eyes, she didn’t see humour, only kindness, and she realised that she loved him so much that it hurt. If she had to live her life without Florian…Delphine blinked away tears. Giovanni had hurt her heart, but Florian had the power to shatter it into tiny little pieces.
15
GENEVA, SEPTEMBER 1951
Four weeks later, Delphine stretched out beside the pool, her silk robe slipping from her shoulder and leaving it bare as she lay in the sun, smiling as she heard Florian’s footsteps coming closer. She held out her hand for the drink he’d promised, but instead of a glass, he slipped his palm against hers.
She opened her eyes, sitting upright when she saw his serious expression and turning to face him. In the distance the lake shimmered, the late sun reflecting off the water.
‘You look worried,’ she said, reaching out her other hand to cup his smooth cheek as he lowered himself to the seat beside her, his dark hair falling forward as he leaned in. ‘Tell me—what’s wrong?’
‘Nothing’s wrong,’ he replied, smiling as he squeezed her hand. ‘On the contrary, I have something to show you.’
Delphine smiled back, only too happy to play along. Their stolen moments together brought her such joy and made her forget all the heartbreak that had come before, and she patiently waited for him to continue.
Her curiosity was piqued when she realised he was holding a box in his other hand. ‘What do you want to show me?’ she asked.
‘This,’ Florian said, letting go of her hand in order to take the lid off the box, ‘belonged to the former queen consort of Italy. I have a feeling you might be familiar with it?’
‘The pink sapphire tiara,’ Delphine said, her breath catching in her throat as she looked up at him, hardly able to believe what she was looking at. ‘I know it well. In fact, I admired it when the queen wore it to a wedding I attended after the war. I don’t think there’s a woman in Italy who wouldn’t recognise it.’ She shook her head, leaning forward to better see the stunning jewels. It took her back to her time in Italy, of the years she’d spent going to glittering parties and rubbing shoulders with Italian nobility during the early years of her marriage. ‘How has it come to be in your possession?’
‘The family discreetly sold some unique pieces from their personal collection after they left Italy, and my personal curator made certain I was the successful buyer. Most of the other pieces were entrusted to the Bank of Italy in Rome for safekeeping, which makes the few pieces they sold even more special,’ he said, holding it up between them so Delphine could look at it more closely. ‘I’ve collected many beautiful diamonds and pieces of art over the years, but this tiara? There is nothing in the world to rival the history and the beauty of such a piece.’
It was certainly unique, and the fact that he’d been able to purchase it reminded her just how well-connected Florian was. The stones caught the light as Florian turned the tiara in his hands, the sapphires appearing the most vivid pink one moment, and then almost purple the next, made even more brilliant as the sunshine reflected against them. He was right that it was perhaps one of the most coveted and special pieces of jewellery he could have invested in.
‘This tiara was held in the Italian royal family from the 1800s,’ Florian said. ‘And now it shall remain in my family forgenerations to come. This is one of those stunning pieces that I never intend to part with.’
‘I hugely admire the former queen,’ Delphine said. ‘I recall her saying that her only regret during the war was not killing Adolf Hitler herself when she was in the same room as him, and I’ve always presumed she was capable of it. She’s one of those rare women who is both feminine and forthright, so it’s fitting that you’ve chosen her favourite tiara. I imagine it’s absolutely priceless.’
‘I couldn’t agree more,’ Florian said. ‘And you’re right, it is priceless. It is to be the jewel in my personal collection, for want of a better expression.’
‘It’s stunning, Florian. Thank you for showing it to me.’ She tucked her legs up beneath her as Florian smiled at her, his expression hard to read.
‘I showed it to you for a reason, Delphine,’ he finally said, placing the tiara beside him and reaching for both her hands. ‘I would like you to choose one of the sapphires so that I can have an engagement ring made for you.’ Florian kissed her knuckles, his dark brown eyes never leaving hers as his voice lowered to a whisper.
‘Florian—’ she began.
‘I want us to spend the rest of our lives together, Delphine. I don’t want to hide any more. I want the world to know you are to become my wife, and this is my way of showing you what you mean to me.’
Tears filled her eyes, a solitary drop sliding down her cheek as she looked away, wishing it were so easy, wishing she was free to make her own decisions in life. The tiara caught her gaze, and she wondered what heartbreak it had seen, what love it might have been witness to; what sorrow.
‘You know it’s not so easy as my simply saying yes. If it were…’ She couldn’t bring herself to finish the sentence. Whenthey were together like this, it felt as if they were the only two people in the world. But outside the walled gates of his compound, of the beautiful, secluded property by the lake that had been their private oasis these past few months, they couldn’t be seen together freely.
