embarrassed me. Everyone knows I'm your protector, Aimée.”
She attempted to placate him by stroking his cheek. “No, don't be angry, chérie. I didn't mean anything by it.”
“If you aren't attempting to seduce him, what were you trying to accomplish?
Were you hoping to upset Katerina by undermining her relationship with her husband?” He removed her arms from him.
“No, it was a joke,” she whined, her voice pleading.
“Well, I, for one, am not amused. I'm sure Katerina isn't either. You know, I
think I've had about enough of you. Go pack up your possessions and leave. I don't want to see you again. Goodbye, Aimée.”
He turned and left.
The beautiful soprano stared after him in shock. She had not stopped to
consider the consequences of her actions, determined as she had been to see her
perceived rival humiliated. She hadn't given a moment's thought to how her behavior would reflect on Alessandro. And now he was furious… and he was gone.
She had gone too far, she realized, and she deserved his anger. No part of her
behavior had been acceptable. She had been cruel to Katerina, and ridiculous towards the girl's husband. How stupid.
Tears streaming down her face, she walked slowly to the room she'd been
sharing with Alessandro. She wasn't ready to leave him. Perhaps she never would be, but it would be a miracle if he would forgive her now.
At the table, Katerina sat between Christopher and an Italian gentleman in his mid-thirties, whose name she could not remember.
“Excellent performance,” he told her, his dark eyes shining.
“Thank you,” she replied. After the stressful and uncomfortable evening, a simple conversation could no longer make her blush. “I'm sorry, sir, but what was your name?”
“Me? I'm Carlo Bianchi,” he replied.
“A relative?” She raised her eyebrows. “I've met so many tonight, I can't remember who is who.”
“Your uncle. Your mother was my twin sister.”
“Oh.” Her face burned. “Sorry.”
He smiled at her. “Not to worry, my dear.”
She smiled, glad he wasn't angry.
“You remind me of her. She loved music, though she didn't have your…
skill.” Carlo's eyes turned sad. “I've missed her terribly. We were very close. Did
she ever… mention me?”
Katerina looked down at her plate. “Sorry. Our life was not one to encourage
idle conversation.”
“I suppose not.” He growled. “I hated that she married him. Did he ever…
soften?”
“No,” Katerina replied without prevarication.
Carlo closed his eyes. “Did he kill her?”
“More or less,” she admitted sadly.
Carlo cursed softly. “My fault.”
“How?”
Sorrow crumpled his expression, making him look older than his years. “He
took her away because of me. I saw her after the wedding, so thin, so distressed,
