Alessandro’s home was a two-hour drive away from the hotel and was much smaller than Liz expected it to be, considering she knew he had more than one servant working inside. A low, stone fence encased the building, and she pushed through a homely white gate as she made her way to the front door, passing a manicured lawn and beautiful flower beds on the way.
“Let me,” Michael said, coming to stand before her. For the entire ride, he hadn’t spoken much, only to point out a few sights he thought she would find interesting. Liz wouldn’t have minded the silence at all if she hadn’t already gotten used to his continual chatter. She had expected him to try to weed information out of her, or to get her to say yes to his proposal. But he did none of that.
Instead, he turned on the radio, allowing sweet, classical music to waft into the car. He hummed along to it, clearly at peace, keeping his eyes on the road and that tiny smile on his lips. That was Liz’s only indication that he was in good spirits.
After a few minutes in the car, she became too aware of him. Conversation, she imagined, would have been much appreciated at that moment. It would have served as good distraction from the way he looked while he drove, the way the sight of him made her insides flare. She was on the job, she told herself, but that didn’t stop her from running her eyes all over him, unable to look away no matter how much she tried.
She was just glad he didn’t mention it. But he knew. He definitely knew. He held that knowing look in his eyes the moment they arrived at Alessandro’s place.
“I think I can handle it,” she said now.
“They don’t know you. They aren’t going to receive you as well as they would me. And besides, Liz,” he said as he turned to the door, “You aren’t the most welcoming woman out there.”
She opened her mouth to retort but he was already knocking on the door, cutting her words off. She swallowed them, deciding she could save that for another time.
The door opened a few seconds later and a rosy-cheeked woman blinked at them before her eyes lit with recognition. “Michael! What are you doing here?”
“I’m here to see Alessandro,” Michael announced, that smooth smile spreading across his lips. “Is he here by any chance?”
“Didn’t he tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
The woman glanced at Liz. Before Michael could say anything, Liz took a step forward. “I’m a friend of Alessandro’s, as well. Elizabeth. We haven’t heard from him in a while so we thought we could stop by and see how he’s doing.”
The woman looked her up and down, studying her. She glanced back at Michael who gave her a confirming nod. Then she straightened her back. “Alright, come in.”
“Thank you,” Liz murmured, stepping inside.
While the house’s exterior hinted at tiny living space, the inside showed just how wrong Liz was. They stepped into a foyer and was led to a sitting room down a hall where the expansive space was filled with lush carpeting, matching couches, a fireplace and paintings on every wall. Liz’s eyes roved the room, resisting the urge to wander over to the nearest one.
“If you’ll wait here,” the woman said, “I’ll be back in just a moment.”
“Thank you, Valerie,” Michael said. Liz waited until she was gone before she headed over to the nearest painting from where she stood. It depicted a woman, half off a bed while her hand trailed the ground. The woman stared ahead of her, and Liz drew closer, wondering if those eyes were filled with vacancy or with longing.
“Alessandro painted these,” she said, half to herself. “I can recognize his work anywhere.”
Michael made a low whistle. “You have a sharp eye. I didn’t know that and I’ve been his friends for years.”
Liz looked over her shoulder at him. “How long have you known Alessandro?”
“Hmm.” Michael cocked his chin into the air as he thought. “Was it my whole life? Yes, I think it’s something close to that timespan.”
Frowning now, Liz turned to face him. “You’ve known Alessandro Ricci your entire life? And you have no clue where he might be right now?”
Michael only shrugged. “We became friends during boarding school years ago. Always kept in touch, but never enough that I would know his whereabouts at all times. Besides, Alessandro has always been a bit of recluse. He never shared much about himself unless you dragged it out of him.”
“I suppose you were pretty good at that,” Liz muttered, turning back to the painting.
“I thought I was. Until I met a sharp-eyed dragon lady who won’t even give me the time of day.”
The sigh in his voice almost made her smile. “I’m here, aren’t I?”
“Not for me. You’re here for Alessandro. I can’t believe he’s got more of a chance than I do.” This time, he sighed loudly.
Liz actually smiled, though she didn’t let him see it. “Watch it. You’re starting to sound like a loser already.”
“Yeah?” There was a pause, one Liz didn’t pay attention to until his voice sounded right behind her ear. “I don’t like the idea of losing.”
She sucked in a deep breath, resisting the urge to turn to the voice. His hot breath brushed her neck, and with his height, she knew he was leaning over her. All she had to do was turn and her lips would be inches away from his. All she had to do was face him and let him take care of the rest…
“Ahem.” Liz cleared her throat, releasing a low breath when Michael jumped away from her. She turned to see that Valerie had returned, eyes shifting from Liz to a Michael that was making it very obvious that he wasn’t really seeing the painting he studied. At the sight of it, Liz almost burst out in laughter.
“I have tea,” Valerie announced, lifting the tray she held in her hand.
“Ah, tea,” Michael nodded wisely. “It’s never too late for tea, right, Liz?”
“Right.” Liz clenched her fist to keep the laughter away, to keep her still face from cracking. She followed him to the couch, keeping her eyes on Valerie as she placed the tray on the coffee table.
Michael had a smile playing around his lips, as if he knew she was trying not to laugh.
“Thank you, Valerie,” Liz said. Work. She’s here for work. “Did Alessandro happen to tell you where he was going?”
Valerie took one of the matching seats across from them and smoothed down her skirts. She poured the tea, then handed them each a cup. Then she straightened, back rim-rod straight and said, “Alessandro hasn’t been home in weeks.”
“How come?” Michael asked after taking a sip of his tea. “He didn’t mention that in the letter he sent me.”
“Alessandro doesn’t make it a habit to let family matters get outside of family.”
“Did something happen?” Liz probed gently.
Valerie hesitated. “It’s a medical emergency. I don’t know the details, but he’s been on the other side of the country because someone he’s close to is in the hospital.”
“That’s terrible,” Liz murmured, slipping in the right amount of pity into her voice. Michael looked at her. “Do you have his number, then? Any way we can contact him?”
“Alessandro has stated that he doesn’t want to be contacted. That’s why he didn’t mention it in his letter,” Valerie said, looking at Michael. “He didn’t want you to worry about him.”
“Well, it’s a little too late for that,” Michael said. The humor in his voice was gone, serious now. Clearly, the thought of his friend dealing with such a thing alone wasn’t sitting well with him. He even set back down his tea. “Why are you telling me then, Valerie? You normally do whatever he tells you to do. If he didn’t want to be found, I’m sure you would have slammed the door in my face the moment you saw that it was me.”
“I’m as worried about him as you are.” Calmly, Valerie picked up Michael’s tea and returned it to the tray. “We haven’t heard anything from him in a while. Not since he left. As much as he thinks otherwise, at a time like this, Alessandro shouldn’t be alone.”
“Then do you have any clue as to where we might be able to find him?” Liz probed. “Or how?”
“The last thing he told me was that he was headed to Venice. That’s the only thing I know.”
“That should be enough to go on,” Michael said. “All we have to do is search every damn nook and cranny in Venice. Nothing we can’t handle, right, Liz?” He placed a heavy hand on her shoulder, paired with a wide grin.
Liz brushed it off. She finished her tea, then handed the cup back to Valerie who was smiling softly at Michael’s hurt look. “Thank you for the information. If we do find him, we’ll make sure to send word to you that he’s fine. I know how worried you must be.”
“Thank you, Elizabeth. And, Michael, dear, when you see him, don’t hesitate to give him a knock upside the head for having us here worrying over him like this.”
“It’ll be my pleasure.”
They all got to their feet, Valerie leading them out. Liz gave the room one last look before walking out slowly, hoping to be back so she could appreciate the paintings she hadn’t gotten the chance to get a closer look at.
“You two take care now,” Valerie said once they were at the door.
“It was nice seeing you again, Valerie,” Michael said, grinning wide. Liz stared at him. When was he ever not grinning? “Tell the others I stopped by.”
“Oh, they know. I had to lock them inside the kitchen to make sure they didn’t rush out here and bother you.”
“You always loved ruining our fun, didn’t you?”
“When your ‘fun’ has my girls slacking off, it doesn’t get very fun anymore.”
Michael pouted. “Only for you,” he mumbled. Valerie slapped him playfully on the arm and he laughed. “Alright, I’ll just have to stop by and steal them away at another time.”
“Don’t be a stranger now. And Elizabeth, it was nice meeting you. Always a pleasure meeting another one of Alessandro’s friends.”
Any other person might have felt a bit guilty at their lie, but Liz only smiled and shook her hand warmly, glad that she had at least gotten the servant to like her. “It was nice meeting you, too. I’ll make sure to stop by the next time I’m in the country.”
They said their farewells and Liz and Michael headed back to the car. When they were safely inside, Michael turned to her. “So,” he said. “We have two choices. Either we head straight to Venice, spending hours on a trip like that, or we spend the rest of the day relaxing and we make that trip another time.”
Liz crooked her brow at him. “We?”
“Yes, we. We’re in this together now. You heard what she said. And if I know my friend, he’s hurting a lot more than he’s letting on. He has a bad habit of keeping everything inside.”
“How close are you really with Alessandro? One second, you’re making it seem as if you two were just strangers, passers-by who met at some point during your career but with the way Valerie was talking, it looks like you two are the best of friends.”
“Do we need to be the best of friends for me to visit him at his home a few times and worry about his wellbeing?”
“To the extent that you’re going? Yes.”
Michael sat back at that, seeming genuinely surprised by her statement. She saw something flash in his eyes, something that looked a lot like concern.
He opened his mouth to say something, but then he shook his head, as if dismissing the thought. “Okay, you caught me. I don’t care that much about Alessandro. I’m just looking for more excuses to be around you. You’ve completely captured my heart, Liz Harley, and it doesn’t look as if you’re planning to do anything about it. Oh, how you wound me with your callous words and cold heart.”
Liz rolled her eyes, looking back to the road ahead. For a second, she actually thought he was going to be serious for a change. “Don’t you have shows to be at? You’re still on a tour, right? Don’t tell me you cancelled the entire thing to go on a road trip searching for your friend.” At his silence, Liz’s jaw dropped a bit. “You didn’t actually cancel your tour, did you?”
“You take me for an immature fool, don’t you?” He shook his head sadly. “Of course, I didn’t cancel the tour. I have one tomorrow. In Palermo, which isn’t very far from here.”
“Palermo is several hours away.”
“Technicalities. Point is, I can’t very well get up and race to Venice. Not even if you beg me to.”
“No begging over here. I’ll just do it myself.”
“Or, you could come with me.”
“Come with you to…?”
Michael grinned, wide and wicked. “Wherever the wind takes us.”
Liz only stared at him a while longer before shaking her head. She made a move to get out of the car as she said, “Thanks for bringing me here, Michael, but I think this is where we end this.”
“No, you can’t go,” he said quickly. It was the slight panic in his voice that made her pause. “You have to see me perform tomorrow night.”
“I didn’t come to Italy to see orchestras.”
“You were at one two nights ago.”
“Two nights ago, I was clinging to the slim chance of seeing Alessandro in the audience. I have no reason to go back.”
“Now you do. You have me. You should come.”
Liz released the door and she could have sworn she heard him release a low sigh. Of relief, maybe? Impossible. That would mean he cared if she stayed, and they didn’t know each other long enough for him to care about something like that. “Why do you want me to come?”
“Oh, there are a million reasons under the sun I could go through. You’re beautiful, and insightful, and impressively delightful in your own little way—”
“You just want to get into my pants,” she said curtly.
“There’s that, as well.” He grinned devilishly at her and Liz wanted to look away, if only to ignore the way that smile sucker punched her in the gut… and someplace else. Someplace that was beginning to override her common senses.
Really, what harm was there in being with him? It wouldn’t be forever. It wouldn’t be a constant thing like it had been with Hunter, where they had clearly laid out rules and times to see each other. What she had with Hunter was more intricate, and required as much time and energy as any other relationship—though it lacked any of the emotions such a thing required. With Michael, it didn’t have to be any of that. Michael was… fun. He was free-spirited. He was… none of the things Liz was.
He was her polar opposite.
Liz always had a plan. She was always one step ahead of everything, of everyone. She didn’t get into any situation without having an escape route, without having a plan to take everything she wanted and leave no prisoners behind. Michael was the different. He seemed like the type who would hop on a plane simply because he was passing by the airport.
Could she be like that? Could she give in to her unmistakable urge to kiss him right now, without thinking about the consequences, or about the reason she was here in the first place? Could she go wherever “the wind” took her?
“Liz? Did I lose you?”
Liz blinked, looking back into his face, into his eyes. “Okay,” she said. He blinked, too, totally surprised. And, damn it, there was no reason for him to look so cute when he did that. “Okay,” she clarified. “I’ll come with you. And we can work something out about your proposal for sex, as well. But later.”
The joy that leaped onto his face was so overpowering that Liz felt it bombard her. She had never seen him smile so hard.
“Hopefully this doesn’t make you reconsider things, but why?”
She only shrugged. “I want to have sex with you.”
As impossible as she thought it, Michael smiled even harder. “That, Liz Harley, might be the most romantic thing anyone has ever said to me.”