Summer Romance with the Italian Tycoon by Jessica Gilmore

Author:Jessica Gilmore
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2018-04-06T16:40:05+00:00

CHAPTER EIGHT

‘WHERE DO I PRESS?’

‘Right there. That’s it.’ Maddie shifted slightly. For a small, skinny child, Arianna seemed to weigh an awful lot, especially when all her weight was on just one knee. ‘And then press there and there... That’s it! You’ve just finalised a booking.’

‘All by myself?’

‘All by yourself,’ Maddie confirmed, smiling at the child’s evident glee. ‘You’re a natural. I’ll have to be careful or I’ll find myself out of a job.’

‘What’s this? You’re not annoying Maddie, are you, piccola?’

They both jumped at the sound of Dante’s voice and Maddie swung the chair round, noting with a slight feeling of guilt the flare of surprise in his eyes as he noted Arianna on her knee. They had agreed to be extra careful with each other around Arianna and ensure that Luciana said nothing either, but when Arianna had shown up in Maddie’s office that morning, she hadn’t been able to bring herself to send the small girl away; something in her eagerness to learn—and the wistful loneliness in her eyes—struck a nostalgic chord. Besides, Maddie reasoned, as far as Arianna knew, Maddie was nothing but an employee, so what harm could letting her hang around do?

To her surprise she was enjoying Arianna’s company. Maddie had never spent much time with children before, had always found herself unsure what to say, but with Arianna conversation was easy, whether they spoke in Italian or whether Arianna practised her sometimes excellent, sometimes idiosyncratic English.

‘Not annoying, working.’ Arianna tilted her chin. ‘This will all be mine one day; I need to learn how to look after it.’

She reminded Maddie so much of herself at a young age that her chest hurt with bittersweet nostalgia, old, weary scars flaring back to life. Once she had had the same pride in her name, in her surroundings, in her family. The difference being that Dante laughed at his daughter’s arrogant words, swinging Arianna up in the air as he did so, whereas Maddie would have been hushed, reminded that the abbey would belong to her brother, not her. It seemed so harsh, to tell a child she was only a temporary resident, to ensure she never could feel fully at home. Harsh and useless, because Maddie had loved Stilling Abbey fiercely anyway. Part of her always would.

‘Oh, well, in that case, I’m sure there are many jobs you can do, cara; I know the gardeners can do with someone to help them weed and the kitchen can always use another washer-upper. I did every job in this house at some point,’ Dante added and Arianna stared at him solemnly.

‘Then so will I.’

‘Good girl, that’s the best way to learn.’ Maddie looked up at Dante, her heart squeezing at the sight of the tall man holding his daughter close. ‘How’s Luciana? Has her jet lag kicked in?’

‘She’s still in bed and if she doesn’t get up soon it is going to take her whole stay before she adjusts. Ari, go and see if your aunt will wake up.

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