Page 189 of Claimed At First Sight

“What happened?”

“He’d tell us where we’d fallen short, or remind us what he expected from us.” I shrug lightly. “There was never any praise.”

Maximo is quiet for a moment.

“And your mother?”

A genuine smile finds its way onto my face.

“Mamma did everything she could to make up for it.”

“How did you spend your days?” Maximo asks.

“We weren’t allowed to leave the estate often, but thankfully the property stretches all the way down to the sea, and the beach is private.”

I can almost smell the salt air.

“We spent hours there. Swimming, playing badminton, reading in the shade…” I smile at the memories. “It was our little escape.”

For a while, Maximo says nothing.

I wonder whether he’s picturing it too. Five girls racing along the shoreline while Mamma watched from a sun lounger with a lemon granita slowly melting beside her.

“Your father was ambitious,” he says after a pause.

I snort. “That’s one way of putting it. Becoming consigliere had been Father’s obsession for as long as I could remember. More power was the last thing his ego needed, yet it never stopped him from chasing it with single-minded determination.”

Now we’ll never know whether Don Gualtiero would have entrusted him with the position, or whether Mateo eventually might have. If I’m being completely honest, I’m grateful neither ever had the chance.

It’s not a sentiment I’d voice out loud, but that doesn’t make it any less true.

Maximo watches the flames before turning his attention back to me.

“What did you think of it?”

I smile faintly.

“Our father didn’t raise us to have opinions.”

One of Maximo’s eyebrows rises.

“Somehow, I find it difficult to believe you don’t have one.”

I laugh, the sound surprising even me.

“Fine. He didn’t raise us to voice them. All he wanted from us was obedience.” Peeking up at him, I add, “I bet in that regard, you’re just like him.”

His eyes sparkle and the edges of his mouth twitch.

“Yes, as my wife, I’ll want you obedient, but you’re allowed to have opinions.”

“How generous of you,” I reply with a smirk.

Since that day will never come, I can laugh about it.

“Good thing then that Mamma encouraged us to think for ourselves. She taught us to pay attention, to really see the people around us.”

Maximo tilts his head so it rests on mine for a few heartbeats.