He had been forced to put his daughter first. The concept of revenge had been thrust willy-nilly into the bounds of impossibility. And, even more infuriatingly, he had then found himself marrying a woman he saw as greedy and dishonest. As Mina sat there it slowly sank in that unwittingly or otherwise she had turned the tables on Cesare with a vengeance. The biter had been bit, not only denied retaliation but forced to make sacrifices and concessions of his own.
‘We’re here.’
Something in Cesare’s voice made Mina look at him first. It was a note of raw energy that she hadn’t picked up in his vicinity for three long weeks. She was even more staggered when the formerly grim line of his mouth suddenly curved into a wolfish smile. He had been so cool, so controlled for so long, it was like watching a very bland actor step down off the stage and instantaneously switch back to his own vibrant personality.
Thrown by the strange imagery assailing her, Mina might have kept on staring had not something of what lay before them stolen her attention. The limo was crawling up a steep, wooded hill to what looked like a vast stone fortress.
‘Your home is a…castle?’ Mina queried in a faint voice.
‘For three centuries Castello del Falcone has guarded this valley from all intruders. I usually fly in and out by helicopter but I believed you would find the long car journey on these sadly poor roads…shall I say…educational?’
Bemused by his sudden loquacity, Mina opened dry lips, keen to respond to the smallest olive-branch. ‘The scenery was beautiful.’
‘But this is a most isolated valley. In winter the road out is frequently impassable. You will have noticed that it is some hours since you saw a town. The nearest village is several miles away. Our staff live in.’
Amazed by the amount of information being freely showered upon her, Mina suddenly believed that she understood what had achieved his radical change in mood. Cesare was coming home, and if coming home could warm him up to this extent she was delighted! Obviously he was very proud of the castello and his family’s long association with its history. So she did not remark that those gaunt grey walls rising from their craggy heights were distinctly intimidating.
The limo passed beneath a giant gateway and into a cobbled courtyard charmingly embellished with urns of flowers. ‘How lovely,’ Mina sighed with appreciation, climbing out of the car into the lengthening shadows of evening.
‘A shame it is so far from the nightlife and the shop-till-you-drop streets of Paris and London.’
‘Yes, but as somewhere you can come to relax and unwind…’ Mina scanned her surroundings with fascination ‘…it’s wonderful!’
‘I hope that feeling has staying power.’
Mina was so relieved that he was talking to her again, she glowed. Pride told her that she ought to be cool but she loved him too much to hold spite and was painfully aware that there was some excuse for his animosity. Cesare had every right to feel bitterly angry that he had been denied knowledge of his daughter but she prayed that he was now coming to terms with what after all was an unalterable fact. Mina was more than willing to meet him halfway in the hope that a few days alone together might result in the building of a firm foundation for their future.
‘I love country life,’ she told him cheerfully.
Cesare smiled sardonically. ‘Even in winter?’
But she wouldn’t be here in winter, she almost said, and then a plump little woman in black came out to greet them and be introduced as his housekeeper, Maria. She didn’t have a word of English but her beaming smiles were sufficient welcome.
‘I’ll have to learn Italian,’ Mina laughed, feeling ridiculously bubbly but her relief at Cesare’s improved spirits was so immense, she couldn’t help it.
‘You’ll be able to learn at your leisure.’
Why did she keep on getting the impression that Cesare was talking tongue-in-cheek? She thrust the suspicion away again, telling herself not to be silly. Cesare was her husband now and for once he was being remarkably civilised in not giving way to the more volatile strains of his temperament. After all, Susie would not be happy if she sensed the dissension between her parents and presumably he had finally reached that conclusion.
‘Let Maria take you upstairs. We’ll dine at nine,’ Cesare drawled.
From the great hall wound a magnificent marble and wrought-iron staircase. Everywhere Mina looked she saw the evidence that the castello had been gently and sympathetically modernised by succeeding generations of Cesare’s family. She followed Maria up the grand stairs but then they traversed a stone passageway which was frankly medieval in its simplicity. A door was cast wide on a large oak-panelled bedroom rejoicing in the baroque splendour of a massive and extravagantly carved bed and it was like leaping forward again into the eighteenth century.
A door in one corner led into a charming bathroom cunningly contrived out of a turret room. Alone, Mina explored her surroundings, a faint frown-line etched between her brows as she registered that Cesare evidently did not intend to share this room with her. Her cheeks colouring, she reminded herself that an hour ago it would not even have occurred to her to think that he had the smallest intention of making love to her ever again. He hadn’t even kissed her since the day he found out about Susie.
On more than one occasion she had told herself that his indifference mattered to her not at all. But the truth was…the truth was that never in their entire relationship had she felt more painfully rejected or less able to defend herself. Mina had had time to search out her own failings in recent weeks and she was unhappily conscious that four years ago she had put her own pride ahead of what might have been best for her daughter. It was blatantly obvious to her now that no matter what Cesare might think of her he would always have put Susie’s needs first.
A long bath relaxed her. She emerged from the bathroom and was disconcerted to find a youthful maid laying out clothes for her on the bed.
‘But these aren’t mine.’ Mina touched a filmy piece of silk and lace lingerie with uncertain fingers and frowned at the shimmering luxury of the exquisitely fashioned black evening gown. ‘Where are my clothes?’
The younger woman looked anxious. ‘You no like, signora?’ She hurried over to one of the vast wardrobes and cast the door wide, revealing a sea of multi-coloured garments.
Startled, Mina opened another door and met a similar sight. Drawers were packed with lingerie, shelves with sweaters and on the floor were neat rows of shoes, every item clearly brand-new. Comprehension assailed her. Cesare had bought her a new wardrobe. She was astonished. Here and there she saw a glimpse of her own clothing, plain and inexpensive items which must have been carefully unpacked and hung while she had been in the bath. There was no comparison between those garments and the designer apparel which Cesare had purchased.
The black dress which would leave her shoulders bare was seductively gorgeous. After gently dismissing the maid, Mina dressed herself and swept her hair up in her favourite soft Edwardian knot. She pirouetted in front of a full-length bevelled mirror and ran an admiring hand over the rich fabric which rustled softly with her every movement. Her slim shoulders looked very white rising from the fitted bodice.
She felt like a million dollars wearing silk against her skin. She loved beautiful things but