“I think I’ll take you up on that.”
“I hope you do.” He shot me a genuine smile and headed for the walk-in pantry.
“Oh, wait.”
“Yeah?”
“When we were on our walk the other day, it seemed like you remembered something when I told you about my favorite thing to do in Sicily.” His smile widened. “What was that about?”
He moved closer and lowered his voice, but his eyes danced with excitement. “When the boss first moved here, there were countless women who wanted his attention, but it was as if he didn’t even see them. As you can imagine, over time, many theories were put out there about why the boss wouldn’t date anyone.” He warmed to his story. “One night, I was working late and wanted to run the menu by Mrs. Capri when I overheard Niccola telling a story about the boss’s great love. I mean, they were right outside the kitchen.” He shrugged with an unapologetic grin and tapped his temple as a reminder that he did see and hear all.
“I know, I know.” I laughed and grinned back at him. I urged him to continue with a roll of my hands.
“Well, Niccola’s point to his story was to try to explain to another family member that it wouldn’t do any good to bring her daughter’s friend to the house to try to introduce her. He said the boss had met his love at a swimming pond many years ago and had to leave her behind. He said it was as if he was cursed to never love another.” He stopped and placed a dramatic hand over his heart. “How romantic is that?” He gave me a look but, when I said nothing, he continued. “At the time, we all wondered if it was true or if he was just bitter over what happened to his family.” He paused. “Then you arrived, and suddenly he was so different. It was almost as if the part of him that could love was reawakened.” He shrugged. “As if all those fairytales you were told as a child might actually come true if you searched hard enough.” He laughed at himself. “Forgive me, I really am a romantic. When you told me about how you loved going to the swimming pond, I connected the dots, and I was so happy for him. I genuinely care what happens to the boss. Mafia or not, he’s a good person, and so are you.”
I felt a tear slip down over my cheek, revealing how deeply his words hit me.
“I wasn’t expecting that.”
“Well, for what it’s worth,” he leaned in, “I’m on Team Sienna.” He winked then turned to the shelves and made a show of trying to select the right spices.
A small laugh escaped my lips as I stepped out and saw Anna on unsteady legs, her face a study of fury and tears. As I slipped around the corner to go look for Andrea, I let a little bubble of happiness rise through the hurt of my Anna wounds.
“Okay, where could she be?” I said to myself as I continued my hunt for Andrea. It was as if everyone in the family had disappeared, and the staff scurried about like mice.
It made me think about Elio’s loss of control. Talk about a mood change. I wondered how often he lost his cool. I couldn’t imagine it was the norm, so the staff probably weren’t sure how to handle it.
“There you are!” Mariano shouted from the end of the hall, sending my heart into my throat. His voice echoed over the marble flooring, making me cringe at the sudden intrusion. “You never texted me back.”
“I must have missed it.” I slapped on a smile and tried to act normal. “How was your day?”
“Better now.” He leaned in for a kiss, but I moved my head, sending his lips to my cheek. I felt his shoulders sag at my lack of affection. I didn’t care. I had reminded him many times that we were just friends. “Are you ready?” I loved how I didn’t even give him a yes or no, but he just made the assumption it was a yes.
“Where?” I shot him a glare.
“Drinks at my place.”
“Oh, that sounds fun.” I stepped back and called into the kitchen, “Vinni, drinks at Mariano’s?” And just like that, my perfect plan of flushing out a barely recovered Anna worked like a charm. There was no way I would allow myself alone with this asshat.
“I’m game,” she said as she cleared her throat. Mariano’s face twisted but soon smoothed out as something else seemed to come to him.
“Yeah, Anna?” He squinted at her red eyes. “You okay?”
“I’m fucking great.” She snickered.
“Great.” I made a halfhearted attempt to be cheery. “Let me grab my things, and I’ll meet you back here.”
Oh, boy, an evening with a woman who hated me and a man who would love nothing more than to get me alone. I was flirting with disaster.
Once inside my room, I ran a brush through my hair then paced the floor. I didn’t have much time, but I hoped if I could get them drinking, something just might come out. Besides, Elio’s house wasn’t far from his. I could just race up there if I needed to.
Sienna: I’m at Mariano’s. I’ll explain later.
With a plan in mind, I grabbed my sweater and purse and headed down the stairs.
“Finally,” Anna snapped, and I rolled my eyes as I followed them to the car.
Not even an hour later, Mariano and Anna were three quarters of the way into their beloved bottle of grappa. I had already tipped two glasses of wine into the planter next to me. If I was going to do this, I needed to act like I was holding up to their level of drinking. How anyone could drink as much as they did made my liver ache.