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NICO HEARD HIMSELF stop speaking, although he was in the middle of a sentence, the words he should have completed saying to Mr. Travers lost on his tongue.
The young lady he saw the day before, only this time without a squirming child in her arms, stood in front of him, her mouth open, but not as wide as her eyes were.
“Here they are. Nico, this is my niece, Faith Davenport, and my nephew, Thomas Duncan. Faith, Thomas, this is Nico d’Amici. I told you he would be visiting and assisting with the plans for his family’s restaurant.”
As Nico extended his hand and stepped closer to them both, he noticed that the gentleman at the door inched a little closer to his cousin, who tilted her head as her lips curved into a small, almost bewildered smile.
She was absolutely charming, but it was obvious that she didn’t know it.
“I am very pleased to meet you both.”
Faith removed her hand from Thomas’ arm, and Thomas frowned as she reached out and shook Nico’s.
“I am pleased to meet you as well, and excited to learn about your project."
She smiled more openly now, as if she had relaxed a little, and as he held her hand, he realized that she didn’t seem to want to let his go any more than he wanted to let go of hers.
Mr. Travers cleared his throat, and Faith turned towards her cousin.
“It will be interesting to have a new point of view as well as new plans to consider, won’t it, Thomas?”
Nico felt his eyebrows rise as her firm tone came out as more of a statement than a question.
Was Thomas not happy to have Nico there? They hadn’t even met before, and he already seemed put out by his presence.
As if Thomas could sense that everyone was looking at him expectantly, he stuck his hand out and lifted his chin, his light gray eyes finally focusing on Nico.
Nico had never seen eyes so pale and intense, but he kept himself from staring into them too long as he took Thomas’ hand and they shook once, firmly.
“Good to meet you. I understand you live in Manhattan, so how often do you intend to visit while Uncle Will is working on your plans?”
This man couldn’t have been more clear, Nico considered. Perhaps he wasn’t fond of strangers, and while Nico came from a large and friendly Italian family with a busy grocery, he had met many people who preferred to keep to themselves as much as possible.
To each his own, his mother always said, right before she hugged each and every customer who came through their doors, whether they liked it or not.
He smiled as he thought of his mother, who would be able to read every gesture and expression that was passing between the three of them right now.
“I’m staying at a hotel here, and will most likely go home once a week, depending on how long this process takes.”
Faith smushed her lips to the side a little, just like Nico’s little sisters did when they were confused or frustrated. But then her smile returned and she stepped over to her uncle, who wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
Thomas watched her, his lips in a thin line, then slid his gaze back to Nico.
They were clearly a very close family, and Nico began to wonder if Thomas was only being protective of Faith. He certainly understood that, with little sisters of his own for whom he felt the same.
But Nico was sure he hadn’t said or done anything offensive. After all, they had just met.
At least, he and Thomas had just met.
“Have the two of you been assisting your uncle for awhile?”
Nico wandered over to the table where a stack of papers and finely sharpened pencils rested, hoping that creating a casual conversation might make Thomas feel more at ease.
He didn’t want to cause any problems for anyone, but his interest in the plans for his family’s restaurant were serious, as he would inherit the business one day and had his own ideas for how the expansion should work.
“Oh, yes. He’s let us come over and watch him, and answer all of our questions, for about four years now, isn’t it, Thomas?”
Thomas tucked his hands in his pants pockets and looked up at the ceiling.
“I’m sure you’re right, Faith.”
Mr. Travers nodded along with her assessment.
“I think they both would be wonderful architects, but I’m not sure that is what they will end up doing. Still, it doesn’t hurt to learn, especially when there are so many facets to the job that could carry over into other professions.”
Nico couldn’t imagine his parents allowing his sisters to spend their days away from the family business, and he wondered what Faith’s parents thought of her interest. Surely it made a difference that Mr. Travers was her uncle, but what would potential suitors think of how she spent her time?
He had noticed yesterday that she wasn’t wearing a wedding ring, but only after she explained that she wasn’t the child’s mother.
The way she had struggled with the boy should have made that clear. With so many younger brothers and sisters, Nico had spent plenty of time caring for little ones in every regard, including bathing, feeding, and soothing when they became fussy. Faith had seemed so uncomfortable with the child, so she must not have been around them often.
Thomas was suddenly beside him, a little closer than Nico would expect someone who hadn’t seemed to want him there to be.
“You’ll find that Newport isn’t like Manhattan, and we have certain standards of behavior here that you may not be accustomed to.”
“Thomas!”
Nico felt Thomas sigh deeply as his cousin reprimanded him, but before Faith could say another word or Thomas could respond, Mr. Travers cleared his throat.
Again.
“I expect we’ll all get along just fine, and Thomas, you’ll do well to remember that there are plenty of people in Newport who might not fit into the standard you speak of. You might be surprised at who you already know who has behaved badly in the past, so you would be wise to refrain from judging others.”
“That’s good advice, no matter what,” Faith added as soon as her uncle finished speaking. She slid her hand into her cousin’s, and Thomas nodded just enough for Nico to notice.
This was going to be an even more interesting project than he had expected.
He was starting to wonder if he should tell Mr. Travers and Thomas that he and Faith had already met, as it somehow felt like lying not to, but he was unsure if she wanted them to know, especially after the way Thomas was acting.
“Nico and I have already met, but only for a moment.”
When she went on to explain the previous day’s encounter, her uncle laughed.
Thomas most pointedly did not.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you with a baby in your arms, Faith.”
She frowned.
“Oh, he was much bigger than a baby, and strong, too. I thought Johnny had pulled my hair hard when we were children, but Joey . . .”
As she trailed off, she shook her head, then turned back to Nico. Her eyes were so bright with excitement, and he found himself caught up in it.
In her.
“Johnny is my younger brother. He’s named for our father, Arthur John, but we’ve always called him Johnny.”
In the silence that followed her explanation, Nico caught himself staring at her. She was quite beautiful, but he had seen many beautiful women in his twenty two years.
There was something about her that shone, like the rays of a sunrise, and made him feel warm from the inside.
“Let’s get to work before it gets too hot out to concentrate. You’ll find, Nico, that my wife likes to peek in from time to time, with lemonade and cookies, and of course we’ll have lunch before Faith and Thomas leave for the day.”
That sounded wonderful, both the food and the way his wife looked out for them all. Their closeness reminded him of his own family, how they kept each other in sight, and when they couldn’t, in their minds and hearts.
He knew that even with Thomas’ dislike of him, it was going to be both an interesting and pleasant time that he spent with the three of them.
When the knock came at the study door, Nico looked up from where he had been leaning over the table, pointing out an area of concern to Mr. Travers.
A young lady with glossy rose-gold hair pinned tightly at the nape of her neck held a tray as she peeked into the room, and Nico wondered if he should offer to help her carry it.
Any of his own sisters would take offense, as if he was implying they weren’t strong or capable, but before he could speak, she walked over to an empty table set between a small group of chairs at one end of the room and placed the tray not very gently on it.
One of the pink-tinged glasses clinked against another, but didn’t fall as she looked up with a smile, her gaze a little distant.
Whatever she was thinking, it wasn’t about any of them. Perhaps she had been occupied before she was asked to bring the refreshments in.
“Mother said the cookies are . . . sorry, I forgot. Probably sugar,” she glanced over at the tray as she shook her head. “Yes.”
When she looked at Nico, her eyes grew wide, and he couldn’t help but smile. She was obviously younger than her cousins, and so distracted that she hadn’t noticed him until now.
She backed away quickly, and as she practically ran from the room, Faith started to laugh, and Nico was a little relieved to see Thomas smile as he gazed fondly after the girl.
“My youngest, Genevieve. She usually has a book in front of her face, so she often forgets how to interact with people.”
Mr. Travers explained his daughter’s behavior in such a kind tone that Nico could tell he wasn’t the least bit disappointed in her social skills.
“Most of my younger sisters enjoy reading, so I understand. I appreciate that she took some time away from her books to bring us lemonade and cookies, whatever kind they are.”
“I’ll have to let Aunt Catherine know that you like oatmeal, Nico. Oh,” Faith pressed her lips together. “I’ve been calling you by your first name without asking, and I apologize.”
He shook his head, pleased that she had felt so comfortable around him to do so.
“Please continue, and I’d be happy if you would as well.”
He nodded towards Thomas, who was watching them but didn’t respond.
“Fine, then, and you must call me Faith. I don’t know about you, but I’m more than ready for some of that lemonade. Let me pour you a glass.”
A fine strand of her saffron blonde hair trailed to the side of her neck, and he couldn’t help but notice as she swept by him, her long braid sliding along her back.
When he looked away, he found Thomas glaring at him, those cloudy gray eyes warning Nico that he was watching his every move.