I awoke the next morning to the smell of strong, hot Monterran coffee and fresh croissants just out of the oven. I was ravenous. Mama, Emma, and I had talked for hours until we fell asleep, the three of us holding each other. When I opened my eyes, they were gone.
My nose told me where to find them.
“I’ve been watching you and your magician boyfriend,” Mama said, buttering a croissant. “He’s hot.”
I exhaled a loud groan. “He’s not my boyfriend, Mama.” In my heart he was, but I didn’t tell her that. “Besides, he’s gone. I’ll never see him again.”
That elicited a tight hand squeeze to get my attention. Mama had her own opinion about what I should do. She had decided it was her maternal duty to get us together.
“You’re my daughter, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“You’ll find a way to get him back.”
We sat in the kitchen hostel, talking. Mama, Emma, and me. Late morning chitchat. Everyone else was either packing or doing last minute sightseeing so we had the cheery nook to ourselves. I was grateful for that. I’d been too hot under the collar last night to take it all in.
Not to mention kicking myself for letting Ricco go. Maybe he was right. Maybe I could be like Kat. Marry a royal and have a bunch of little royals.
The sad part was, I’d never know.
“Y’all was right, Afton,” I heard behind me. Savannah. Now I knew where the fresh croissants came from. “Signor Freddie told me they determined the lights went out when lightning struck a power line.”
“What about the dove?” I had to ask, wondering if Ricco found his pet bird.
“It’s still a mystery how she made her way back home,” Savannah said, grabbing a croissant and biting into it. “Um, perfect.”
“The dove, Savannah?”
“Sorry, y’all,” she said. “Seemed the clowns knocked her cage over by mistake during their rehearsal and she escaped. Well, gotta go. I’m meeting with Prince something-or-other about my bonbons. Should be fun. He’s a total hottie. Ciao!”
I had to smile. I’d miss Savannah and her y’alls. The other girls, too. And Ricco? I didn’t want to go there. I’d made my bed, though I ached like a princess with a pea under her mattress. Not very happy. I thought about what he said about us and I realized how much I wanted to be with him. Things seemed clearer in the daylight, though by the looks of the dark clouds gathering outside, the storm wasn’t over. I wanted to find him, tell him how I felt, but I didn’t know if he’d even listen to me.
“If I had a man who wanted me as much as he wants you,” my mother continued, grabbing her second croissant. “I wouldn’t be sitting here chewing the fat with an old circus has-been like me.”
“You’ll never be a has-been, Mama. You’ll always be Corrina Pova, queen of the air.”
She smiled. “Thanks, baby, but I’m happier being the mother of the best aerial silks artist on the circuit.” She kissed me on both cheeks. “Now go find that count of yours and tell him how you feel. If things turn out like I think they will, I could be a grandmother in the near future.”
“Mama, please!” I cried out, wishing she was right. “I have no idea where to find him. I don’t even know where he lives.”
“Didn’t you say he lived in a castle?” Mama said.
“A big castle,” Emma chimed in, smiling like an elfin who’d been peeking through keyholes.
“How do you know it’s big?” I said, suspicious.
Emma pressed her lips together. I had the feeling she and Ricco’s sister, Marianna, hung out there and she never told me. She hadn’t yet shared why she stopped speaking. She would when the time was right. Till then, I didn’t press her.
“It doesn’t matter to me if he lives in a shoebox,” I said, jumping up. I was close to tears now. “I love him, but he’s gone.”
“Then wish, child, with every ounce of you that you can get him back,” Mama said in a low voice, “because it won’t come around twice.”
I couldn’t help but think that Sloan said the same thing. She’d given up the duke and now she was miserable. Mama had also found the man of her dreams, then lost him.
I hadn’t gotten much sleep last night, going over the true story of who my real father was, tossing and turning all night. It all made sense to me now. Why the man I thought was my father drank, why we never seemed in sync. He was a good dad. We just weren’t close. My real dad was a flyer. Like me. And he adored my mother. Their love lived on in me.
“I’m going to finish packing,” I said, eager to leave. Too many memories that wouldn’t fade for a long time pinged my heart whenever I thought about the handsome magician. How his big strong hands felt wrapped around my waist. “How about we go back to Philly and start over as a family?”
“I’d like that, Afton,” Mama said, fussing with her floppy hat. I told her she didn’t need it anymore, but she insisted on keeping it. My heart warmed at seeing her eyes dance with hope. It would take time for me to trust her again, but like Ricco said, the heart can heal if you can learn to forgive.
“Me, too, Mama,” I said, pulling a pink camellia out of the vase on the table. Freshly cut from the garden. I shook my head. Leave it to my mother to leave her mark. “We’ll leave as soon as possible.”
“I have a few things to settle here before I can go back to the States,” she said, plopping the hat on her head. I wondered if that was true or she was just trying to get me to stick around. “You and Emma can stay with me here. I took a small apartment so I could be close to you. Okay with you, Emmie?” she asked my sister, hugging her. I so loved seeing that. “We have a lot of catching up to do.”
“Oh, yes, Mama!” Emma said with a catch in her voice. I still wasn’t used to hearing her speak and my heart sang a happy tune with each word. Even though I knew now she was my half-sister, it didn’t change anything between us. It only made us closer.
“I guess I’m outvoted,” I said, pinning the camellia to my sweater. “Two to one.”
“Three to one, bella.”
Oh, God . . . can it be him?
I shot around to see Ricco put his shoulder into the doorframe, and then smile at me. That big, gorgeous smile that made me wish I could stay in Monterra forever.
“Do you always show up unannounced?” I asked, trying to keep my emotions under control.
“I can arrange for a big puff of smoke to announce my arrival, if you like.”
“Why do I know you’re not joking?” I said, laughing.
Ricco smiled, and then made a slight bow before my mom and kissed her hand. I was amazed to see the former circus queen positively giddy. “I’m honored to see you again, Signora Pova.”
“Take good care of my daughter, Count Ricco. She’s tough like me, so it won’t be easy.”
“Mama, he hasn’t asked me anything yet.”
“He will.”
Ricco didn’t refute her statement, which gave me hope. “Your daughter is almost as beautiful as you are, signora.”
“You got yourself a real charmer here, Afton,” Mama said, wearing her famous under-the-big-top smile. I swear the glow on her face made her look years younger. “He’s a keeper.”
“Yes, Mama, I know.” I looked at Ricco. I was dying by inches. My mother had me hogtied and wrapped up with a red satin ribbon and I wasn’t even sure why he was here, what his intentions were. For all I knew, he wanted me as his assistant again. A warm body he could saw in half six nights a week and a matinee on Sunday.
My mother’s boldness didn’t faze the magician.
“With your permission, signora e signorina, I shall now perform my best trick,” Ricco said, grabbing my hand. “I shall make my beautiful assistant disappear!”
* * * * *
The sunshine fairies must have dibs on Monterra because they cleared up the dark clouds in the sky before the last raindrop hit the earth. It got me instead. A big drop hit my nose as we raced over the country road on Ricco’s motorbike. Me on the back, hanging onto him and loving every minute. It felt so natural to be pressed up against him, the wind blowing in my face, the heat of his body melting away any fears I had.
I loved this man.
I kept telling myself it could work between us.
If only I believed it. I dreaded the moment I’d have to say goodbye. Without Ricco, my world had no light. Now he gave me hope if I had the courage to follow my heart.
“Where are we going?” I shouted, pushing stray hair away from my face.
“It’s a surprise.”
“Does it involve magic?”
He threw his back, laughing. “You’ll see.”
I held onto him tighter and snuggled my head against his shoulder. Now more than ever, I didn’t want to leave Monterra. When I first arrived, I swore it was the land of fairy tales. I haven’t changed my mind. The sheer beauty of what I see over the acres and acres of the surrounding countryside grabbed me. Lemon orchards, green vegetation, and running brooks so clear and shimmering I saw sparkles of sunlight tiptoeing across the waves like naughty fairies.
We zipped past garden terraces, medieval walls, and small white houses. I could smell the frying olive oil and garlic as we zoomed along a narrow road and then headed off at the fork into a deep, dark forest. A curious crawl wiggled up my spine, set my mind off in a different direction. Pulling me into deeper shadows where the future was unclear. I was standing at the crossroads of my life, looking back on a past that held secrets I never knew and facing a future that both excited and frightened me. Ricco hadn’t said why he showed up this morning.
I was dying to know what he was plotting.
When I saw the outline of a grand castle up ahead, I knew this morning ride was about to become very interesting.
I held on tighter when he skidded to stop in the gravel and then parked his Vespa under the trees. The familiar scent of jasmine made my nose wiggle. I looked around and spied a beautiful garden. I know this place. This was where he entertained the children from the clinic. Today the lawn was empty. Just us.
I shaded my eyes and in the near distance I saw the outline of the castle I’d seen before. He’d brought me here a different way this time—my God, how big was this place? The castle looked even more impressive than I remembered. Surrounded by a carpet of green so soft it masked the sound of our footsteps.
“It’s so beautiful here, Ricco,” I said, untying my hair and fluffing it out. “But I miss the children, unless you’re going to make them magically appear.”
“It can be arranged. But I have another reason for bringing you here today.” He grabbed my hand. “Come with me.”
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
I followed him along the old footpath leading to the castle, the sounds of crickets and cicadas filling my ears as I passed by lemon trees in weathered terra-cotta pots with shiny yellow fruits. Their ivory-colored blossoms smelled of honey and vanilla, teasing my nose to stop and sniff them.
Then I saw her.
We weren’t alone after all.
I couldn’t take my eyes off the tall woman heading toward us with an armful of roses. I sensed she was a woman of the earth, passionate about her flowers, and not afraid to get her hands dirty to get the job done.
“There’s that lovely woman we saw here before,” I asked, curious. The elegant figure waved when she saw us. “Who is she?”
“I met your mother, now it’s time you meet mine.”
“Your mother?” I gasped. “Then this unbelievable castle is . . . your home?”
“Si. Welcome to Castello Verdi.”