She rubbed her hands over womanly hips in what he perceived was a nervous reaction. “Follow me.”
On the way up to the second floor, he had to stop himself from reaching out to pull her against him. Her room was the second one on the right, adequately furnished with a TV. If the owner downstairs had any idea who she was...
“Sit down, Nico.” She indicated one of the chairs at the table before she sat on the other one and crossed one elegant leg over the other. Her suitcase lay open at the end of her bed. Through the bathroom door he could see a robe hanging. The room smelled faintly of her flowery fragrance.
“You look wonderful,” he murmured.
“So do you. When I heard this was an emergency, I figured you couldn’t have driven here if you were incapacitated. Since I’ve worked with children all day and am exhausted, why don’t you tell me why you drove here so I can go to bed? I don’t think the hotel is full in case you need a room.”
“Fausta—I received a call from Enzo. He demanded I cancel the appointments with my patients and come to the castello. I couldn’t imagine what he wanted, particularly when he insisted it wasn’t for medical reasons. When I arrived there the next morning, I found him with a visitor who’d come from La Valazzura to see him.”
Her blue eyes flickered. “That’s interesting. Papa wanted to fly there for the funeral of King Carlo, a ruler he admired who died recently, but the doctor wouldn’t okay it.”
Nico couldn’t help but wonder if that admiration would influence Fausta’s father for good when the truth came out about him. “I’m sorry he didn’t get the opportunity.” I’m sorry I didn’t either.
She eyed him steadily. “You haven’t told me about your emergency yet.”
“The man who visited Enzo was Basil Bruno, the head of the secret service for King Carlo and Queen Liliane.”
Her eyebrows furrowed in a gentle frown. “What did he want with Duca Frascatti?”
“He knew Enzo was my mentor.”
Fausta sat straighter. “Why did that matter to him?”
This was it. His heart pounded extra hard. “It was Signor Bruno who placed me in the Santa’Agate Orphanage when I was two.”
A cry escaped her lips.
“My legal name is Massimo. During the beginning of their civil war, I was taken to safety and am the only living son of King Carlo Umberto Fernando di Savoia.”
The world stood still for a minute.
“Nico—” Her gasp filled the room.
“For the last week I’ve been in La Valazzura learning as much about the lives of my parents and my heritage as I could absorb before flying back. You were the one person I wanted to see, but you weren’t at the hospital. I never meant to hurt you. It killed me to learn you’d stopped volunteering because of me.”
“None of that matters.” She wiped her wet face with the backs of her hands. “Nothing is as important as knowing that in the last week you’ve found your life! You have answers to all your questions. There couldn’t be a greater gift! You’re the son of King Carlo? How absolutely fantastic. Who would have imagined?”
“Certainly not Angelo.”
“No,” she said with a laugh as more tears escaped her lashes.
“Especially when he learns I’m the illegitimate son.”
The smile slowly faded from her face. “What do you mean?”
“My father betrayed the queen during a bad time in their marriage. They could never have children. He had an affair with my mamma, who was a commoner. Her name was Nedda Corelli.”
“Oh, n
o,” she half groaned. “Did you spend time with her?”
“That would have been impossible. She was killed during the war that swept the country. To preserve my life, I was taken to the orphanage in secret by Signor Bruno.”
Fausta got up from the chair and came to kneel in front of him. “I’m crushed you never did get to meet either parent.” She grasped his hands, lifting those iridescent blue eyes to him. “Do you wish you’d never found out about your life?”
After a long pause he said, “Basil asked me the same question. I told him I didn’t know how to answer him. I still don’t.”