Clutching my towel, I shivered in the heat. “Oh, I don’t think so.” She had this dead wrong.
“My son has been miserable these last few days. Never have I seen him this way.” Her voice was filled with wonder.
“He isn’t sick, is he? Maybe some bad fish…something that he ate.”
She waved my words away. “He is lovesick, child. And he will not admit it.”
I felt crushed. “Has Gabriella been here? I didn’t see her.”
Only the Queen Mother could snort in that regal way. “This has nothing to do with one of those girls.” And she gave the “g” a guttural dismissal. A faint smile teased her lips. “He is in love with a woman he cannot have. Nothing makes a man crazy like that, no?”
Her words broke over me like a cold wave, chilling and thrilling at the same time. What was she talking about?
Ama moved on. “Who else can help us?”
“Sofia.” The name came easily. “They are friends, right?”
She looked at me with surprise. “I never gave her much thought. After all, she is Bianca’s older sister, and Bianca, poor child, was very weak. Not at all a match for my son. You say they are friends?”
“Oh, yes, I think that Sofia is very much a friend. They share confidences.” I thought back to the party. “They even joke together.”
“Really. Joking?” Ama drew back, clutching her royal robe. “Then we must call for her. Demand that she come.”
“An invitation might be better. Sofia has her own mind.” And she might not come if Ama sent the message. Obviously the two of them traveled in different circles. “Could you say that I have asked for her? That I am ill?”
That sounded stupid and overly dramatic, but I wanted to make this right for Gregorio before I left. The awkward boy with a great mind had won my heart.
And if I were honest with myself, so had his father.
* * *
The following morning,we had just finished class when Milo appeared at the door. He was dressed in black as usual. “What is it?” I stepped into the hall. “Are we going on a trip into town?” I had so much to do.
“No, Profesora. But Sofia has come to see how you are.” Here Milo paused, confused.
Ama had acted quickly. “Give me five minutes, Milo. Then show her to my room, please.”
“Of course, Profesora.”
Did I imagine the hint of respect in his tone? I ran a hand over my forehead. Maybe this heat was making me delirious. “Early dismissal,” I told Lexi and Gregorio, gathering up my notes and books. “Why don’t you two have an early lunch?”
They looked at each other with the excitement students show when a snowstorm back home is about to cancel school. I hurried to my room, unlocked the door and set down my books. Then I paced. What would I say to Sofia? When we’d talked about Gregorio’s future, she seemed to be in Marco’s camp.
I didn’t have long to wait. A knock came on the door and I rushed to open it. Sofia bustled inside. “Whatever has happened to you, Christina?” Seeing me, she stopped. “But I expected to find you wasting away in your bed.” Her eyes flicked to the smoothed pane, every bolster pillow in place.
“Sofia, you are so good to come. Please sit.” I motioned to a chair and took one across from her.
Settling herself with her usual elegance, Sofia studied my room. “Couldn’t they have done better than this? So old-fashioned.”
I glanced around at the castle trappings that had become dear to me this summer. “Trust me, this is nicer than any hotel room I’ve ever known.”
She sniffed. “Then don’t expect me to visit you in America.”
I burst into chuckles, imagining what she would say about my modest cottage. “Ama and I are appealing to you for help.”
Her eyebrows disappeared into her dark curls. “You and Ama are plotting together?”
The words set me back. I gripped the carved arms of the chair. “Not plotting exactly. We are…hoping. We both wish the best for Gregorio’s future.”
