The Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley

Author:Lucinda Riley
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, azw3
Publisher: Macmillan

28

When I woke up the next morning, I took Yara’s letters out of the safe and reread the ones that Bel had sent to Loen from Paris. This time, instead of desperately searching for clues to my own heritage, I revisited them as Floriano – the historian – had. And I understood why he was so excited about them. I put the letters down and lay back on my pillows, thinking about him and his pretty daughter, and the mother, who, to my eyes, had seemed at the very most to be in her early twenties.

For some reason, I was surprised that Floriano had chosen such a young woman as his partner. And if I was honest, I’d felt the tiniest prick of jealousy when mother and daughter had appeared in the apartment last night. Sometimes it seemed the whole world was in love except for me.

I showered, dressed and went downstairs to the lobby to meet Floriano. For the first time, he wasn’t there, so I sat down to wait for him. He arrived fifteen minutes later, looking uncharacteristically harassed.

‘My apologies, Maia. My meeting at the school went on longer than I’d anticipated.’

‘No problem at all,’ I assured him as we climbed into the Fiat. ‘Did it go well?’

‘If being told your precious child has a problem can ever go “well”,’ he sighed. ‘At least the dyslexia’s been identified at an early stage, so I hope that Valentina will be able to get the help and support she needs. But obviously, as I’m a writer, it’s sad and ironic that my child will have a lifelong struggle with words.’

‘I can see that must hurt. I’m sorry,’ I offered, not sure what else to say.

‘She’s such a good girl and she hasn’t had an easy life.’

‘Well, from what I saw last night, she certainly has two loving parents at least.’

‘One loving parent,’ Floriano contradicted me. ‘Sadly, my wife died when Valentina was a baby. She went into hospital for a simple operation, returned from it two days later and the wound became infected. Of course we sought immediate medical help and were told it would heal in time. Two weeks later, Andrea was dead of septicaemia. So you can understand why I have so little regard for the Brazilian health service.’

‘I’m so sorry, Floriano. I thought last night that . . .’

‘That Petra was her mother?’ Floriano shot me a grin as his features relaxed a little. ‘Maia, she’s not even twenty, but I’m flattered that you think an old man like me could attract such a young and beautiful woman.’

‘Oh,’ I said, blushing. ‘Sorry.’

‘Petra is a university student and she has a bedroom in my apartment in return for some childcare, especially during the school holidays. Thankfully, Valentina’s grandparents live not far away and have her to stay often, especially when I’m writing. They offered to have her live with them permanently when my wife died, but I refused. It can get complicated sometimes, but we seem to get through somehow.

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