Fragile Longing

I flushed, my eyes darting to Danilo, who must have heard Samuel’s use of my embarrassing nickname. Samuel chuckled but sobered immediately when the next guest congratulated him in a less-than-honest way.

I stepped back and allowed the other guests their turn. Danilo was talking to Dad and Uncle Dante, so I snuck away toward Anna. She used the distraction to grab a flute of champagne. I clucked my tongue. “Your parents don’t want you to drink alcohol.”

She took a deliberate sip. “Hmmm . . . delicious.” She flashed me a grin.

I rolled my eyes at her. “You’ll get in trouble if they find out.”

“It’s a special day.” She nudged my shoulder. “Are you mad that they turned your engagement into a double announcement?”

Why did everyone think that? I wasn’t generally keen on being the focus of everyone’s attention, I only wished for Danilo’s attention. Or had wished for it. “No. I’m actually relieved.”

Anna nodded, but her expression told me she was mulling over something else.

“What?”

“When did they decide to give Emma to Samuel?”

I shrugged. “I think Dad, Dante, Danilo, and Samuel made the arrangements yesterday. They had a meeting then.”

Anna pursed her lips. “Could be. They didn’t waste any time to announce it, that’s for sure.”

Something in her voice was off, but I didn’t get the chance to ask her about it because Danilo appeared at my side. “We need to take a few photos.”

I put my hand in his outstretched palm, giving a polite nod in return. Despite my best intentions to give him the cold shoulder, I felt the familiar flutter in my belly as he closed his fingers around mine. I couldn’t switch my feelings off, even if Danilo wasn’t quite the prince I had hoped he was. I followed him through the French doors to a spot on the terrace that had a beautiful view of the gardens.

Danilo wrapped an arm around my hip and presented my hand with the engagement ring to the camera. The photographer snapped one photo after the other. I risked a peek up at Danilo, and his eyes met mine for the briefest moment. He didn’t look angry anymore. He looked almost confused. Too soon, the moment was over, and we turned back to the camera, playing the dream couple that we’d hopefully one day become.It was the last summer before I’d be married. I’d seen Danilo only once since our engagement, last December at the Cavallaro Christmas party. He’d commented on my brown hair, which almost made me regret my choice to dye it back, even if I’d missed my hair color. Apart from that, our interactions had been sparse like before, but I managed to distract myself with schoolwork and the preparations for our wedding. Most importantly, I stopped searching for articles about Danilo and his blonde conquests. In my mind, he’d stopped, and I wasn’t keen on finding images that would prove me wrong. I wanted to enjoy my life without constantly worrying about Danilo.

“So, you really can’t stay longer than the weekend?” I asked Samuel again as we drove along the narrow road that led to the Cavallaro lake lodge. Anna, Emma, Leonas, and I would spend a few weeks of the summer holidays up there. It was the first year Anna and I would be at the lodge without our families. Anna’s younger sister was staying in Chicago with her parents, and Samuel had business to attend to, so he’d only drive me up and spend a night before returning to Minneapolis.

Danilo was driving Emma to the lodge, which was why I hadn’t chosen my usual lake style of shorts and a top. Instead, I was wearing a beautiful summer dress to impress him. He would also be spending the night before returning to Indianapolis for work.

Of course, we wouldn’t be staying in the lodge unsupervised. Anna had her bodyguard Santino with her who’d guard her and Leonas, Emma would have one of her own bodyguards, and Carlo was accompanying me. He’d barely left my side since Danilo made him my personal bodyguard years ago.

The forest finally opened up before us, giving way to the beautiful timber lodge situated next to the lake surrounded by firs. The sun was glittering on the blue water.

“I can’t wait to take a dip,” I said. The temperature was in the high nineties, and I desperately needed to cool down.

“The others probably won’t be here yet. Plenty of time to go swimming before dinner.”

I nodded, then slanted Samuel a curious look. “Are you excited about seeing Emma again?”

He’d blocked every attempt to talk about his engagement to Emma so far.

“I won’t be spending time with her. I’ll only spend the night because I don’t want to drive right back.”

“You don’t seem happy about your bond.”

Samuel let out a short laugh. “Sofia, arranged marriages aren’t about happiness, they’re for tactical purposes.”