“Indeed.So now both the Gisborn heirs are off the marriage mart, as they would say in England,” Nicoletta responded.“Which is too bad for you.”
Her mother-in-law, Barbara, had written to say that Randy had been “quite vexed” by his second cousin, Diana Henley, so she was relieved to learn they had married whilst the family was in Athens.Nicoletta thought perhaps she had misunderstood the meaning of the word “vexed”, for she couldn’t sort why that would be grounds for a man to marry.
What impressed Nicoletta the most, though, was learning the young lady was not only the daughter of an archaeologist, but that she was one as well.Nicoletta had never heard of a female working in the field of archaeology.“Roma is to be their last stop on their Grand Tour,” she explained, closing the door to the ornately-carved wardrobe.“So I saw to it they had invitations to this ball.”
“Well, I am honored, I suppose,” Vittoria said, turning her attention to the cheval mirror and standing where Nicoletta had been doing so only moments ago.
“I am glad to hear it.Besides, it means more young men with whom to dance.”
Vittoria blinked before her eyes widened in delight.She fussed with a couple of hairpins when another lock of hair threatened to escape her coiffure.“How isZiaArmenia?Papa said she agreed to be his hostess this evening.”
Nicoletta lifted a bare shoulder.“She invited us to stay with her, I think because she is lonely,” she replied.
Vittoria sounded an unladylike snort.“Armenia has more lovers than any other woman in Roma,” she claimed.
“Vittoria,” Nicoletta gently scolded.Her eyes suddenly widened.“How wouldyouknow such a thing?”
Holding a gloved hand behind the whorl of an ear, the young woman said, “I listen to everything that is said in this house.”A grin suddenly split her face.“You are planning to surprise your husband’s family, no?”
Blinking at the sudden change in subject, Nicoletta turned to the clock on the fireplace mantel.“Indeed,” she acknowledged.“I thought I was excited to see them again, but Donald will be over the moon happy.He is looking forward to showing off his new daughter.”
“Yournew daughter,” Vittoria corrected her.
Nicoletta grinned.“We’ll be moved out of Villa D’Avalos and back into the Villa Montblanc on the morrow.”
“Why so soon?”
Grinning, Nicoletta said, “A certain grandmother will insist her grandchildren be close at hand.IfDonnaBellingham could have another babe, she would do so.”She allowed a long sigh.“Antony is spending his days with a tutor, and Amalia has been crawling for some time.I think she will be walking before the month is done.They grow up so fast.”
Vittoria gave a start.“Papa said the same thing to me only yesterday,” she whispered.
“Because it’s true.”
A commotion out in the corridor had them turning toward the door.A knock sounded, and Nicoletta hurried to answer it.
“I guessed right,” Donald Slater said on a soft chuckle, referring to the identity of the bedchamber in which the two young ladies were ensconced.He lifted his wife’s hand to his lips to kiss her knuckles.“I came bearing news.The butler announced that the Russos have arrived,” he said, referring to an aristocratic couple they had befriended in Catania.Their daughter, Nancy, was nearly as old as Antony, and the two youngsters frequently played together.
“Maria has been looking forward to touring Roma for years,” Nicoletta remarked, referring to the Contessa Russo.
“As it happens, Russo only required an invitation to this come-out ball to finally arrange a holiday,” Donald replied, his gaze darting to Vittoria.He let out a low whistle.“It’s a good thing my brother isn’t here, or you would find yourself a married woman before the week was out,” he teased.
Nicoletta and Vittoria exchanged glances of amusement.“Remember, I haven’t told him the surprise,” Nicoletta whispered.
“What surprise?”Donald asked, bowing to his niece before he took her hand to his lips.The sound of chamber music could be heard from somewhere in the distance, the quick tempo suggesting the dancing selections had already begun.
She tittered as she curtsied.“IfZiaNikky hasn’t told you, then I shan’t either,” she replied in her stilted English.Glancing at the clock on the mantel, her eyes once again widened.“I must go down now or Papa will accuse me of missing my own ball,” she said, rushing from the bedchamber.
Nicoletta grinned as she watched her niece depart and then turned to regard her husband with an arched brow.“I am reminded of a certain night not so long ago,” she murmured.
He took her into his arms and kissed her on the lips.“While I was parted from you, it felt like an eternity,” he whispered.“But I shall never forget this gown,” he added, pulling away to glance down the front of her bodice.
“It’s too tight, isn’t it?”she asked in her accented English.
He knew better than to agree, for if he did, she would spend the next half-hour undressing to don a different gown, and they would be the ones missing the ball.“It’s perfection on you.Surely you know it’s my favorite?”He dipped his head to drop a kiss on the top of first one mounded breast and then the other.
Nicoletta aimed a teasing grin in his direction.“If you’re sure.Will you escort me down?”
“I will indeed,” he answered, offering his arm.
The two took their time descending the two flights of stairs leading to the ballroom, neither one of them aware the special guests had already arrived.
