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Relief swamped Harriet at Alex not insisting that she stay at Sergio’s villa on Lake Como. Now that she’d met Jeremy, she wasn’t quite so nervous about meeting Sergio—whom she was sure would be nice to her as well—but she didn’t want to spend every minute of the next two days in their company. Besides, it was only natural that the three friends would like to spend some time together. Clearly, that didn’t happen too often these days.
‘I’ll tell you what,’ Harriet butted in before he could put his plans into motion. ‘Why don’t you and Jeremy take a taxi to wherever it is you have to go and I’ll have Lucca take me straight down to the hotel? To be honest,’ she added, ‘I feel seriously jet-lagged. You’re an experienced traveller, Alex, but I’m not. I hardly slept a wink on that flight. Now, please, don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. I’m going to go straight to bed once I check in, and sleep for hours, so don’t go calling me for ages. Tonight’ll be soon enough.’
‘Are you sure?’ Alex asked.
‘Absolutely. I’m quite capable of looking after myself, like we originally planned. Go have some fun with your friends.’
He leant forward and gave her a peck on the cheek. ‘You’re a darling.’
His sweet words sent tears pricking at her eyes.
‘Off you go,’ she said hurriedly before she could embarrass herself totally. ‘Lucca will look after me, won’t you, Lucca?’
Lucca, who was a good-looking lad of no more than twenty, nodded enthusiastically. ‘Si. You will be safe with me.’
‘Safe’ was not quite the word Harriet would have used to describe Lucca’s driving. Thankfully, the road from Milan to Lake Como was first class, but good God, didn’t they have speed limits in Italy? If they did, Lucca was oblivious to them. Once off the freeway, fortunately he did slow down enough for Harriet to take in the sights. And what sights they were! Never had she seen such a beautiful spot as Lake Como, with its surrounding snow-capped mountains and magnificent villa-dotted shores.
The boutique hotel they were heading for was once a private villa, according to its website. The pictures of it looked beautiful, and the setting peaceful, which was why she’d booked it. But flat, one-dimensional photographs did not replicate the experience of seeing the place in real life, Harriet was soon to appreciate, especially on a warm summer’s day with a clear blue sky.
When the hotel came into view, she was overwhelmed by the sheer grandeur of the ancient stone building gleaming a soft white in the sunshine. The magnificence of the grounds and the view of the lake were just as spellbinding. Harriet’s eyes were everywhere as she followed Lucca into the grand foyer with its vaulted ceiling and spectacular marble staircase. She’d been in some nice hotels in Sydney over the years, but there was nothing at home like this. It was like stepping back in time to a world of splendour, elegance and opulent luxury, a feeling enhanced when she finally lay down on her antique four-poster bed in her exquisitely furnished room.
She didn’t really want to go to sleep just yet. She wanted to wander in the garden and sit on the terrace which overlooked the lake. Instead, the excitement of the trip and the length of the flight finally caught up with her and she couldn’t stop herself from drifting off, her last thought being that she hoped Alex was enjoying himself.
* * *
Alex finally became aware of the fact that Jeremy had been uncharacteristically quiet during their trip to the tailor. After the fitting was finished, Alex suggested they go have a spot of lunch somewhere. He was curious about what was bothering Jeremy. He suspected it was something to do with Harriet; Alex wondered what she’d said to him that had rendered him unusually taciturn.
They found a café nearby which wasn’t too crowded. Summer in Milan was high tourist season, with all the cafés and restaurants doing excellent business. Alex had by then removed his suit jacket and rolled up his sleeves, but he was still on the warm side. Fortunately, the café was air-conditioned.
‘Okay, so what’s bugging you?’ Alex asked after the waitress had departed with their order of wraps and coffee.
Jeremy widened ingenuous blue eyes. ‘Why would you think something’s bugging me?’
‘Don’t try to con me, Jeremy. I know you, remember?’
Jeremy shrugged. ‘Okay, but you might not like what I have to say.’
‘Let me be the judge of that.’
‘Are you in love with this girl, Alex?’
His question stunned Alex. It was certainly not what he’d been expecting.
