“I understand.” Angelina sipped her wine and studied Joy with her large fierce eyes framed in black kohl eyeliner.
“And I ran into Alessandro on a walk. He invited me here for dinner.” Joy smiled, then glanced at her empty wine glass.
“My apologies.” Angelina chuckled. “Where are my manners?” She poured Joy some wine. “It’s delicious.”
Joy sipped and nodded. “I agree.”
“Is this your first time in Italy?”
“No. I was in Rome for a few days and then decided to visit Venice.” Memories of her time with Jaime in Rome raced through her mind, helping her to relax.
“Roma? The city of love.” Angelina sipped more wine.
“That’s what I’m told.” Joy nodded.
“That is a place for romance.”
Joy sighed. “Yes, it is.” She glanced around the table at the couples laughing together, staring longingly into one another’s eyes.
“Is that why you came to Italia? For romance?” Angelina turned in her chair to face Joy.
Straightening, Joy pointed to herself. “Me? Looking for ro—” Her laughter prevented her from finishing her own thought. “No, not me.” She waved her arms and laughed until tears formed in her eyes.
“I see.” Angelina remained stoic.
Wiping tears from her eyes, Joy settled down. “I came with my daughter to Rome because she won the trip in a photography contest.” She exhaled. “It was a wonderful time.”
But Angelina sipped her wine and listened.
“She found romance though.” Scrolling through her phone, Joy located some photos. When she found one of Jaime and Michael, she held it up. “This is my daughter and her fiancé, Michael.”
“Lovely couple,” Angelina said coolly.
“I came to Venice as a tourist. I wanted an adventure before I head back to New York.” Joy shrugged. “That’s the only reason I’m here.” But her eyes found Alessandro chatting with a friend and gesturing wildly as he spoke. A smile crept to her face as she watched him.
Angelina raised one eyebrow and set down her wine glass.
“Anyway, that’s why I came to Venice. To find adventure.” Joy frowned. “Not romance. Ha.” She shooed the idea away and sipped some wine. “I’m done with all that.”
“Done with romance?” Angelina turned and glanced at Alessandro, then faced Joy once again. “Really?”
Joy cleared her throat. “Really.”
Scooting her chair around, Angelina leaned in closer to Joy. “Alessandro is a dear friend of mine. I care deeply for him.”
“I understand.” Joy swallowed the knot in her throat as Angelina’s blue eyes bore into her.
“Anyone who hurts him becomes my enemy.” Angelina grinned a sardonic grin. “Capisci?”
Joy nodded as beads of sweat formed on her brow.
“Come, let’s order.” A woman touched Joy’s shoulder. “Would you like some antipasto?”
Joy jerked around. “Yes, please.”
The woman waved Angelina away, and she excused herself. Soon Angelina was at Alessandro’s side, but her eyes never left Joy.
“Whew. Thank you.” Joy stood and stretched. “You saved me.”
The woman tossed her head back and laughed. “It was my pleasure. Angelina means well. She does. But she can be a . . . Well, I am a Christian, so I will not complete that thought.” She winked at Joy.
“My name is Joy.” She held out her hand.
“And I am Carla. Alessandro is my cousin.” She squeezed Joy’s hand and motioned for her to sit back down.
“Nice to meet you.” Joy leaned over and watched the friends laugh and sip their wine. “But I have to tell you that I feel out of place here.”
“Nonsense.” Carla made the tsk sound with her mouth. “We are all humans here.” She motioned for the waiter to come over. When he did, she poured some for herself.
“You met Donella.” She pointed to her. “She is an editor at a fashion magazine.”
“Ah. I can tell. She is dressed beautifully.” Joy nodded.
“Always.” Carla chuckled. “Never a wrinkle in sight, and she always wears a dress with heels. But she is divorced, and her husband took the house. Her kids don’t even speak to her anymore.”
Joy’s eyebrows rose.
“Lenore?” Carla pointed down the table. “She’s been married five times.” She smirked. “She buried four husbands, and then the last one ran off with the maid.” She paused to drink wine. “She never had any children though.”
