Adeline gave Nicolo a sideways glance as she considered whether or not to forgive him. After all, she had come home to Sicily, and she had embraced her roots with both arms wide. She was not Americano. She ignored the fact that she was considering abandoning those roots to move to Spain. She had not moved yet, she was still in Sicily, and so for now at least, she was still not Americano. And that Nicolo had called her bedda—beautiful—did help to soothe the fire he had sparked within her a little, so she demurred with a Mona Lisa smile.
“Bedda, there you are!” Nicolo exclaimed, throwing his arms wide before giving her another two-cheek kiss to greet the return of the happy Adeline.
She laughed and batted Nicolo away with the back of her hand. The man was solid. She had not expected the wall of muscle her hand had met.
“It’s not me who is the Americano…” Adeline said, giving a slow, flirtatious blink of her eyes to soften her words. She wasn’t sure that she could call him Americano. It wasn’t that he had given up his roots for the sake of America. It was more that he had simply given up his roots of anywhere, so far as she could tell from what she’d heard from others or gleaned from the Internet. He was a jet setter, never staying in one place for very long. He had wanderlust every bit as bad as she did—either that or the idea of anything permanent sent him running. She wasn’t sure which.
Nicolo slapped his hand over his heart as if wounded by Adeline’s words, and then said, lifting a hand into the sky, “I am a child of the world. For that, you will have to blame my mother. But! Enough of that. I want to know why you are looking at the waters of Spain when you have the wonderful Ionian Sea at your fingertips.”
Adeline waffled on whether or not to tell him the truth—that she had been offered a position in Spain. She was still holding out hope that he would be willing to renovate the Romano del Mare rather than sell it for demolition. If he thought that she would not be there to help implement renovation plans, he might more easily turn around and walk away from one of the most fantastic resorts the island had ever known. The place just needed some TLC, some love to rejuvenate it. She couldn’t turn her back on it now when she had finally, after so many months of trying, gotten the attention of one of the resort’s new owners.
“I was considering a vacation,” Adeline answered. “Adding a little adventure to my life.”
Nicolo’s entire face registered surprise as his eyes went round and his full lips parted. “You live here,” he said with a wide sweep of his arm, “and you want to go to Spain for adventure?”
Adeline shrugged, unapologetic. “I’ve seen all of the major spots at least three times. I’ve been to Mt. Edna, the Valley of the Temples, and Palermo Cathedral. I’ve taken five different tours covering the Greek, Roman and Spanish histories of the island, just to mention a few. I don’t know how much more there is for me to see.”
“Oh… It’s so cute that you think that,” he said with a crooked smile and devilish eyes. He moved close, turned her to face the sea and draped a strong arm over her shoulder. She fit perfectly against him. Stretching an arm out before her, he pointed at the horizon in a sweeping motion. “Have you heard of Taormina’s Grotta Azzurra? Winding tunnels into solid rock with water so blue it will make you weep tears of joy.”
He moved his outstretched hand as if he could paint the images of his words, mesmerizing Adeline. His voice was a seduction in her ear and she found herself leaning into him more. Shaking her head no, she didn’t speak the word for fear that it would break the spell he was weaving.
Dipping his head, Nicolo whispered, and it gave her goosebumps. “Then there is Dead Man’s Waves
and Mermaid’s Retreat.”
“Mermaid’s Retreat?” She gave his side a playful nudge with her elbow. “Now you’re making stuff up. Don’t tease me.”
The sound of a car entering the parking lot reached Adeline’s ears, and she tucked her phone away inside her pants pocket. As easy as breathing, she shifted from play into work mode—that is, until she felt Nicolo’s large hand settle over the small of her back. It made her shiver and her breath hitch. When he spoke again, his voice had deepened and it vibrated over her. It made her have to bite her bottom lip to keep from releasing a sighed whimper of want.
“Bedda, let me show you Sicily. Its beauty goes deep, and you need an experienced guide to help you find all the pleasures it has to offer.”
Adeline’s cheeks turned pink at his choice of words, but when she twisted to look him in the eyes, all that was within their stunning blue depths was sincerity. She risked one word and one word only. To say more would give away how much his touch and his presence affected her, and she wasn’t ready for that. She also wasn’t ready to give up on living life to its fullest. Her grandparents had lived with a motto of embracing life and all it had to offer. She would too.
“Yessss,” she breathed on an exhale.
It turned out that even that one word revealed more than she had wanted, and the heat in her cheeks grew as she faced forward once more. But her heart and her body sang with the word and the possibilities before her.
Yes.
5
Nicolo
Nicolo saw the interest fade from the eyes of Adeline’s client the minute he got out of his car and took in the state of the crumbling dock. It was humbling to see it anew through a stranger’s eyes, but it was what it was and the state of the resort was why he and his brothers wanted to sell the Romano del Mare. The sooner the resort sold, the sooner Nicolo could leave Sicily behind and return to his jet-setting lifestyle. He didn’t like to be tied down.
“Nicolo, please meet Giro Di Salvo,” Adeline said. If she, too, had noticed the instant lack of interest in Giro’s eyes, she didn’t let any disappointment enter her voice.
Nicolo shook Giro’s hand. “Thank you for coming today. As you know, this property has a rich history, but it is ready to see a new chapter in its existence,” Nicolo said, starting in on his sales pitch. But five minutes later, the spark of interest in Giro’s eyes still hadn’t returned, and Nicolo was surprised that the man didn’t make some excuse for why he needed to leave the meeting early. Instead, the three of them spent the next two hours walking the hotel from top to bottom and even taking a look at the land from the roof of the hotel. The only parts that weren’t completely explored were the catacombs and many of the small storage rooms below. When the tour was done and Giro headed on his way, the goodbyes weren’t full of warmth. Instead, they were perfunctory, and Giro was in his car driving away a moment later.
“Well, we won’t be hearing from him again,” Nicolo said. “I am sorry Adeline, but your client doesn’t have much interest in this place. He couldn’t see the vision of what it could be. But the client I’ve set up will be able to see it.” He gave her his best eat-your-heart-out wink.
“Is your client early?” Adeline asked, pulling out her phone to glance at the time as a red Porche pulled into the parking lot.
“Looks that way. Perfect timing,” Nicolo said before shifting into introductions when a middle-aged man exited the Porche. He was tall and slender with pale skin and angular features. Nicolo was sure that Adeline would be able to recognize that the man wasn’t native to the island. “Please meet Adeline Peluso. Adeline, this is Thomas Novotny.”
Adeline shook his hand instead of leaning in for the customary cheek kisses of the island.
“Thomas and I have been talking about the possibilities of this property for the last month.” And so another tour began. Nicolo walked them from one end of the long deck to the other, pointing out how spots of it were crumbling. Then, inside the hotel, he showed off every frayed wire and cracked wall. The damage was extensive.