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“You have nothing to worry about, cara. Not as far as your hips go—or anything else, for that matter.”
Now why had he gone and said that? He’d just warned himself to keep such comments in check. Maya’s cheeks reddened to a color that almost matched the hue of her dress. Luckily, the sommelier appeared just then to pour them more wine.
Once they were alone, Vito figured he’d better get their conversation flowing again. To get past the awkwardness of his previous comment.
“So, you never did tell me why you stay in a position which makes you so unhappy.”
Maya released a deep sigh. “I studied finance to help my uncle.”
“With his business.”
She nodded. “That’s right. He had a bookkeeper who swindled him. By the time the crimes were discovered, the man was nowhere to be found. He’d finagled the books and embezzled a staggering amount of money.”
“I see.”
“For years after that, my uncle didn’t trust anyone else to do his bookkeeping. He tried to do it himself. On top of maintaining the business. The extra responsibility really took a toll on him. He worked nonstop.”
“So you saw to it that he had a bookkeeper he could trust.”
“That’s right. I knew he could use someone he didn’t have to worry about stealing from him to help lighten his load.”
Vito leaned over the table. “It was commendable of you to assist him in that way.”
She lifted one elegant shoulder. “My uncle’s done a lot for me. His whole family has. They took me in when they didn’t have to. After I lost my parents.”
“Isn’t that what family does?”
She bit her lip. “Maybe. They could have let me disappear into the US foster care system. Some relatives would have done just that.”
“So you felt obligated to become his employee.”
Maya stilled in the process of lifting her fork. “What? No, I didn’t do it out of a sense of obligation.”
Her words surprised him. Did she not see it? “I’m sorry if I’ve made any kind of assumption.”
“I did it out of love. And respect. My uncle stepped up when he didn’t have to. He made sure I had a roof over my head and food on my plate.”
“He sounds like an honorable man.”
“He is. My aunt and my cousins, too. They gave me a family when they didn’t have to.”
Something about her history still wasn’t falling into place. Vito couldn’t explain it. There was a piece missing. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
It occurred to him just as their main course arrived.
“It surprises me that you studied finance in the first place. Regardless of the motivations,” he stated once the servers had left their table.
“Why do you say that?”
“It’s not a subject that I would think matches your personality. Or your interests. You clearly felt compelled to do it for the sake of your family.”
She quirked an eyebrow at him. “And you can tell all that after a simple sightseeing tour with me?”
Referring to a visit to two of Europe’s most historic examples of architecture and classic art as a “simple sightseeing tour” was a bit belittling. She was getting defensive. Not the direction he’d intended the conversation to take at all. He simply wanted to know more about her. He wanted to discover all that he could so that he could form a strong basis for memories once she left Venice and walked out of his life for good. He wanted to know what made her tick.
He remained silent, waiting for her to continue.
“Not all of us have what it takes to become world-renowned artists, Vito. Being able to appreciate beauty and someone else’s talent doesn’t mean one has any of her own. Some of us just need to find a way to make a living and provide for ourselves.”
Ah, no doubt she’d been told she didn’t have said talent. Most likely by the family who took her in. Or perhaps some overbearing professor whose own failings clouded his judgment. Maybe both theories were true.
“Clearly you don’t have to worry about earning a daily living,” she added. “That would make you the exception to most of the planet’s population.”
