Page 48 of The Fall Affair

A deep sadness ached inside of me, but anger burned right alongside. I wanted to scream at my father, to shake him until he admitted the truth and felt as awful as I did. Of course, there was no one to lash out at now. Instead, I sat staring at the papers, letting the printed words on the pages go in and out of focus as I drank way too much coffee. I thought about calling her—my sister. But I knew I wasn’t in the right mindset for that.

I was so lost in my head that a knock at my door startled me enough to jump from my seat. I stumbled to my feet, knocking the chair over in the process. After a sleepless night and far too much caffeine, my body was buzzing yet drained. Not even the sight of my gorgeous neighbor standing out front could cheer me up.

Matteo took one look at my face, and his smile wilted. “What happened?”

I tried to force a smile but failed miserably. “I just have a headache.”

“Can I get you anything? Some medicine from da farmacia?”

“No. But thank you.”

“All right.” He nodded. “I let you rest.”

I noticed for the first time that he was holding something in his hand—the pie pan I’d brought the spinach-and-ricotta pie in the other night. I pointed. “Did you come by to return that?”

“Yes.” He smiled and waited until our eyes met before speaking again. “But only because it gave me an excuse to stop over. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you.”

My stomach fluttered without warning, but my brain quickly kicked in, hard and cold. Ignore it. They’re all the same. “I should probably go lie down.”

Matteo’s smile faltered, but he nodded again and held out the pie pan. “Of course.”

I felt a tug watching him walk away, and for a heartbeat I almost called him back. But then my eyes fell to the scattered papers all over the kitchen table. I closed the door and turned the lock.

Chapter 15

Allegra

AT LEAST THE shop was keeping me busy.

Ten minutes after Matteo had left yesterday morning, a customer showed up. And there had been a steady stream ever since. Apparently, my grandmother’s friend Francesca had gotten the word out as promised, and over the last two days I’d sold almost two thousand euros worth of inventory. Since I had to hang around the shop and didn’t want time to think, I threw myself into organizing things and trying to figure out how to price the items stacked in the back that hadn’t yet been tagged—anything to keep my mind off the news I’d received two days earlier.

It was almost closing time on Friday afternoon when the bell on the shop door rattled. Luciana smiled and held up a bag as she entered. “Forget the others. I find you da perfetto outfit to wear tonight!”

Shoot. I’d been meaning to go next door to let her know I’d changed my mind about going, but every time I looked across, I saw Matteo outside. “I’m sorry, Luciana. I don’t think I’m going to be able to go tonight after all.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Do you have a hot date?”

“No.”

“Did someone die?”

I shook my head. “No, but—”

She waved her hand in the air. “Den you have no scuse.”

“It’s just been a rough couple of days.”

“Dat’s all the more reason to go, no? Blow off some steam.”

“I’d be miserable company. With my mood, I’m afraid that if I’m forced to speak to men, I might ‘accidentally’ stomp on their toes in my heels.”

Luciana’s eyes sparkled. “I have de perfect pair of stilettos for piercing da skin!”

That brought out my first real smile in two days. “I’m really not up for meeting men.”

“Who said anything about meeting men? We’re going to meet tequila and dance until we’re so sweaty it looks like we walk in da rain.”

“I’m not sure tequila is much better for me than a man.”