Gambler's Folly (Bookstrand Publishing Romance) (11 page)

“I just finished some bread and soup a little while ago. My stomach feels fine, except I’m still a little hungry.”

“Why don’t you ask for some fruit or maybe a different soup with some vegetables in it?”

“I don’t want to be a bother. I know Dante will take care of everything for me, but I’m sure he has other things to do.” She sighed, and then smiled at Damiano.

“No, he has nothing else to do,” Damiano told her. “Those are his orders, to take care of your meals. If you want something, get it. He will make sure it is safe for you.”

“What do you mean, that’s all he has to do? Doesn’t he work for the hotel?”

“No, cara. He works for me. While I own the hotel and, technically, everyone there is in my employ, he is on my personal staff, not the hotel staff. A watchdog if you will.”

“Okay. I’ll probably order something else after we talk. Really I feel fine now.”

They talked for a little while longer until Damiano was sure she was going to be alright.

“I’ll be home in three days, cara. Have you decided what you want to do?”

“Three days? I thought you were going to be longer.”

“I was, but the meetings are moving quickly and I’m worried about you. So three days and I’ll be home. Alright?”

“Yes, of course! I’ll try to decide on our vacation.”

“Ciao, cara.
Arrivederci
.”

So, what would she like to do? The only parts of this world she’d seen so far were Damiano’s suite, his hotels they’d visited, and the shops she’d visited with Marco. All of which told her nearly nothing about what else was available, besides gambling.

Grabbing a cup of tea, she sat on the sofa and switched on the viewer. Entering her query, she was soon reading about this world, which was now her home. Because of the distance from its sun and the nearly nonexistent axial tilt, the climate changed very little during the year. Most of the world was fairly temperate, except for the planet’s equator, which was miserably hot. The poles of the planet were extremes in the opposite direction.

While there were oceans, they weren’t as large as the ones on Earth, but lakes were plentiful. There were thousands of island resorts, offering everything from a completely relaxing vacation, to adventure diving, sailing, swimming, parasailing—you name it, we’ll find it.

Something relaxing might be nice, she thought. But when she really thought about it, she’d done nothing but relax since she’d been with Damiano. Her workouts excluded, and, of course, sex with Damiano, she’d spent a lot of time just relaxing in the suite.

What else was available? Did this world have any mountains? Yes, it did, and some of them were quite high, with year-round snow. Before she had married Trae, she and some of her friends had enjoyed skiing, and at one time, she’d been pretty good. Not expert, but more than just okay. Besides, a little cold weather might be nice after the heat here in Speranza.

But would Damiano like something like that? He hadn’t given her any guidelines. He seemed fairly active, and while she was sure he could take time to relax, she thought he might be happier doing something physical.

Ordering another search, she found several places with excellent skiing. She didn’t have any equipment or clothes to wear for such an adventure, though. Maybe she should pick an alternate, just in case.

How about swimming? Dam liked to swim. Did she want to go to the ocean, or to someplace inland with fresh water? There were some gorgeous islands in the more temperate areas, which offered all kinds of treats. From diving excursions to view the wildlife, to underwater cave exploration, there was something for everyone, divers and swimmers alike. And of course there were the water parks for families. She didn’t like the idea of all those people just now. Someplace more private and off the beaten track was more to her liking. After all, this was really their honeymoon.

After searching, she found a couple of places to propose. Of course, Damiano might know of someplace else he would like better, but which offered similar attractions. And that would be fine either way. Snow or surf. At least she could get out and see a little bit of this world, where she would spend another year and a half.

* * * *

Late in the afternoon, four days after he’d gone, an anxious Damiano entered the suite. Clutching her to him, he apologized for leaving her alone and insisted she must rest.

“No, really, Dam, I’m fine,” she told him once again. “Dante has made sure everything is right before it comes up to the room. Marco says the kitchen staff is jittery from him poking around all the time, peering into things.”

Damiano chuckled at the thought, and finally accepting her assurances, grabbed an apple from the dish. “Such a world I was on. They had no apples, can you believe it?” he said, taking a large crunchy bite.

Karianna laughed. “You and your apples. You must be in withdrawal after four days without them.”

“There is no withdrawal…” he said frowning. “Oh! You make a joke, cara. Yes, I am nearly in need of medical attention from lack of apples.”

“So wherever we go for our trip, we must be sure there are apples, right?”

“You are so funny, cara. Of course there will be apples, as long as we stay on this world.” Finishing up his last bite, he asked, “Have you decided what you want to do?”

“Well, I’ve got a couple of ideas. It depends on what you like to do. I don’t want to insist on something if you won’t like it.”

“Karianna, I like most things. Whatever you choose, I’m sure will be fine.”

“I used to go skiing every winter at home. I haven’t been in a long time, and I’m probably kind of rusty. And I know I don’t really have any equipment or anything, so if you’d rather do something else…” It all came out in an apologetic tumble.

Laughing, Damiano shook his head. “Cara, cara,
per favore
! I like to ski. It’s fine. We can buy you some clothes and some skis. I have a lodge up by Monte Calvo. It is beautiful, lots of trees, evergreens. Wonderful for skiing, the snow is
polvere
, how you say, powder.”

“Are you sure, Dam? I mean we could go and swim…” she began.

“Do you want to ski or swim, cara?” he asked.

“Well, ski, if you don’t mind buying everything I’ll need.”

“Then we’ll ski. When do you want to leave?”

“I don’t know,” she said, confused. “I don’t know what your plans are.”

“My plans are your plans, cara. Why don’t we leave day after tomorrow? Tomorrow we can have the equipment sent to the lodge, so we don’t have to travel with it. And we can leave it there when we come home, for another time.”

The rest of the afternoon became rather involved. Though a little later than usual, they dined upstairs in the restaurant, their meals brought to them by the dashing and vigilant Dante. After a leisurely tour of the gaming tables, they turned in for some good old-fashioned sleep.

Early in the morning, Karianna and an excited Damiano went to have her measured for ski gear. With Damiano, there was no shopping. He knew exactly what he wanted her to have, and just where to get it. “I order all my ski equipment here,” he told her. “I’ve known these people for several years, and they’ve always given me good service.”

His enthusiasm over their trip was nearly too much for Karianna. He was like a little boy in a toy store. With jacket, mask, hat, gloves, skis, boots, and everything else finally ordered to measure, they went to lunch in a little hole-in-the-wall place, which was completely independent from his establishments.

“I thought it would be a nice change for you, cara,” he told her. “You haven’t been out much and don’t know anything about Speranza. And Dante can take the afternoon off.”

“That will make the kitchen happy,” she responded with a smile.

“Yes, Dante can be a little, um, intense?” he said. “He does the job I pay him to do.”

The lunch was very different from what was served at Stella d’Oro. Both were fantastic in their own way, just different. After a relaxed and enjoyable afternoon around town, they made their way back to the suite.

“Now, we need to pack for our trip,” Damiano told her on the way back.

“What should I bring?” she asked him.

“All of your cold weather things will already be at the lodge,” he said. “Anything else you might want you should take. We will probably be gone for a week,” he said with a smile.

“A week, Dam? Really?” she asked, excited at the prospect.

“Yes, a week. So you should bring some evening things, for dinner out a few times. Also, some casual clothes for around the lodge and to go sightseeing. Maybe you can bring your flute and play up on the mountain.”

Watching to see what he was taking, Karianna tried to pack along the same lines. She wanted to keep it down to one bag, but wound up with one large bag and a medium-sized one stuffed to capacity.

“Well of course, cara,” Damiano told her. “Women have more to pack, with all the accessories to go with everything. It is no problem.”

Their trip hadn’t been publicized, and when they left, they took one of the smaller vehicles, not the limo. With his personal jet ready and waiting at the private airstrip, their baggage was stowed while they got settled into the most comfortable seats Karianna had ever seen in a plane. Minutes later, they took off for Monte Calvo.

After nearly six hours, their plane landed at another small airstrip. It was nighttime and really cold compared to Speranza.

“Aren’t you glad you have your coat, cara?” Damiano teased. “You must get used to flying with me instead of on public transport. Luggage isn’t a problem.”

While Marco and Paolo put their luggage in the car, Karianna gazed up at the stars twinkling brightly in the thin mountain air. Never having been out after dark, except in the city, she was amazed at the multitude of them.

“Have you never seen stars before, cara?” Damiano asked her.

“Well, yes, on Earth. But not since I’ve been here. They’re hard to see from outside the hotel.”

“Hmmm, yes, that is correct. With all the lights of the city, they aren’t really visible. Up at the lodge, there is even less light than here. We’ll spend one night just watching the stars.”

The air was crisp and clean on their drive to the lodge, and the trees were a wonder. She had seen evergreens on Earth, like the pines and spruces near where she had lived, but these were quite different. The shapes in the dark weren’t the typical cone shape she was used to.

“No, cara, these are more of a dome, sometimes more like an
ombrello
—umbrella. And the color is more blue than green. Sometimes tinted with violet. You will see, cara.”

They arrived at the lodge close to midnight. Damiano had called ahead and had the kitchen stocked and the heat turned up for them. She saw a small stack of firewood next to the door.

“Yes, Karianna, we have a small fireplace inside. Not so much for warmth as to watch. It is very restful, no?”

The lodge was cozy in a grandiose sort of way. Just like his suite was larger than most houses she’d lived in, the lodge was more like a house than the cabin in the woods she’d been expecting.

“Why should I be uncomfortable, just because I’m on vacation?” he asked, amused. “There is no need to be cramped when I can relax and stretch out.”

As late as it was, they went to bed almost as soon as they got in the door. Where Marco and Paolo were staying she didn’t know, but they left the lodge after making sure everything was secure.

The next morning after some breakfast, Damiano suggested a walk so she could get an idea of the area and acclimatize to the altitude. From the front door, she looked over a cliff and down onto the small village below. Those evergreens she’d seen in the dark were quite exquisite in the early morning sun. Blue green, but more blue than the blue spruce at home, one variety was like a series of disks, or umbrellas, stacked one on top of the other, diminishing in size as they neared the top of the tree.

Another variety was a darker blue green than the first, the needles coated with a thin layer of lavender powder. These trees were closer to the traditional pine look, only slightly rounded in shape, like they’d been squashed by a giant hand. All the blues, greens, and lavenders gave the purple mountains a crisp, clean, pristine look against the snow.

“This is marvelous, Dam,” she told him as she looked out over the world. “So pretty and peaceful up here.”

The next day, Damiano felt she was ready to try skiing. “Where do we go to ski from here?” she asked.

“Where do we go? Outside, of course.” Damiano seemed confused.

“I know outside, but is there a resort near here or something?”

“Have you never skied in nature?” he asked.

“In nature? What do you mean, in nature? Where else would I ski?” Now they were both confused.

“I think, maybe, we are talking about different things, cara,” he began. “When I ski up here, I go to the front door and put on my skis. Then I go wherever I like.”

“From here?”

“Si, cara, from here. What do you do?”

“Well, at home, I would take my skis, drive to a ski resort, pay an entrance and lift fee. Then, once I got to the main lodge, I would put on my skis, find the lift to take me to the slopes, and go from there.”

“So much trouble. Here it is much easier. No fees, no lift, no worries. Can we go now?”

“This should be interesting,” she said. Locking her boots into the bindings of her skis, she checked to make sure everything was in order and followed her very eccentric husband down the mountain.

The air was cold, crisp, and thin, so they kept to a moderate pace. The scent of the evergreens in the wintry air was a wonderful pick-me-up. Invigorating even, as Karianna breathed in deeply to catch her breath.

After an hour or more, they were pretty far from the lodge. “Now, how do we get back up the mountain without a lift?” Karianna asked.

“Follow me.” He chuckled. Racing on down the mountain, they came to a little road, which led to the town she’d seen from the mountaintop.