Oceans Between Us (A Cinderella Romance) (11 page)

She embraced Chris as well and while they chatted, Maria helped her dad get the suitcases into the house.

As her mother shepherded the twins inside, Chris grabbed Maria's arm and pulled her aside. She was smiling fit to burst, her eyes sparkling. "I knew I'd seen your Italian before. Look at this." She pulled a CD case out of her purse and thrust it into Maria's hands.

Maria turned the flat plastic case over. The front design showed a picture of Dino and a beautiful blonde woman. Her heart leaped at the sight of him. Across the image in gold letters it read:
Dino Rossi Sings Show Songs
. Dino had said he was an opera singer. She didn't understand. Had Chris somehow made a mock-up CD as a joke? "What is this?"

Chris released an impatient breath. "Isn't it obvious? Your Italian's famous. He's a singer." Chris grabbed the CD from Maria's hands and opened the case. She extracted the small booklet inside that contained lyrics and flicked through the pages so Maria could see the pictures of Dino and the blonde woman. "The blonde bimbo is Rachel Tanner. She won that singing contest a few years ago. You must remember."

Rachel! Shock raced through Maria. Was this the woman who had given birth to Dino's son and put him up for adoption? Maria swallowed hard as she examined the photographs of Rachel Tanner. In a glittery sheath dress with cascading waves of honey-blonde hair, she was glamorous and beautiful. If this was the sort of woman Dino dated, Maria had no hope he would remember her.

"Well?" Chris prompted, her voice high with excitement. "Didn't I tell you I recognized him? I could hardly believe it when Tina brought this over."

"Thank you," Maria said, not knowing what else to say.

"Did he tell you he was a singer?"

"Sort of." Dino hadn't exactly lied to her, but he'd definitely been economical with the truth. "Can I borrow the CD?"

"Of course. I'm sure Tina won't mind. I listened to it before I came over. He's really good, you know."

Maria tried to smile but Chris looked disappointed. Obviously she'd expected a more enthusiastic response. Maria tucked the CD into her handbag and followed Chris inside.

She struggled to focus on what her mum said about their cruise. Her mind kept slipping away into a dark pool of confusion over Dino. They all drank tea and sampled the blueberry muffins Maria had baked earlier. Then her dad yawned and headed upstairs. A few minutes later, her mum saw Chris and the girls off and returned to the kitchen where Maria listlessly washed up cups.

"I'm worried about you, Mari. Last time I saw you like this was when you came back from Austria. You know you can talk to me if there's something wrong, don't you?"

"I know, Mum."

"By the way, where did that bunch of twenties in the bureau come from?"

Heat flared in Maria's cheeks. She had intended to bank the money Dino left, but forgot. "I had a friend to stay for a few days. He gave me a contribution towards the food."

Her mother's eyebrows rose. "He must have eaten an awful lot. There's nearly four hundred pounds there. Who was this friend? It wasn't Tom, was it?"

"Tom…gosh, no. Tom's history, Mum. Ancient history." She never wanted to see Tom again after the way he'd allowed his friends to treat her.

"It's just the last time I saw you moping like this, it was over him."

"Look, I'm fine. Can we forget the subject for now?" Maria grabbed a tea towel and a wet mug and gave it her full attention.

For long moments, her mother scrutinized her, then she sighed and pressed a kiss on Maria's cheek. "I'm off to bed. I doubt you'll see me or Dad until tomorrow morning. Good night, love."

"Night, Mum. It's great to have you back. Sleep tight."

Maria kept drying mugs until she heard her mother's footsteps on the stairs, then collapsed into a chair at the kitchen table. The exact chair Dino had sat in so many times while she cooked and they chatted. She pulled the CD out of her handbag and stared at it. "Dino Rossi." She whispered the name to herself. Rossellini was a bit of a mouthful. He must use Rossi as a stage name.

She didn't know what to think, what to feel. Why had he told her he was an opera singer when he was obviously far more than that? How many music CDs did he have out? She went to the small office off the hallway and booted up the computer. As she waited for the machine to boot up, she rubbed her tired eyes. Since Dino left, she hadn't slept well. She almost wished she hadn't heard the doorbell the day he turned up. If she had painted upstairs first, she might never have met him.

Once the computer started, she went to the Amazon website and typed in Dino's name. Three CDs came up—the one with show songs, another called
The Voice of Romance
, and one titled
Just Like Heaven
. She ordered all three and paid extra for next day delivery.

Then on a whim, she googled his name. The result came up with over three million hits, including photos and videos. Maria rocked back in her chair, her heart thumping as she scanned the list. She clicked on a video link and, barely breathing, watched a clip of him singing an operatic song. He had a beautiful voice. An incredibly powerful voice considering how softly spoken he was.

She went to Google Images and searched on his name. Page after page of photos of Dino appeared: Dino singing, Dino at celebrity events with a variety of glamorous women on his arm, especially the beautiful, blonde Rachel, Dino accepting awards. Maria felt as though she had fallen into an alternate reality. This was not her Dino, not the man who had danced her around the kitchen and taught her to salsa. He was famous, almost certainly loaded. He must be used to exclusive hotels, the best of the best. And he had stayed here, eaten the food she cooked. He'd worn her dad's overalls and helped to paint the bedrooms!

Unable to reconcile the two disparate versions of Dino, she stared at a photo of him on a red carpet with the ever-present Rachel at his side. Maria had thought he had feelings for her, but why would a man like this be interested in her?

No wonder he'd slipped away without leaving his phone number or e-mail address. She clasped the tiny gold heart at her throat. Dino hadn't been himself when he came here or he would never have chosen to stay at the Crow's Nest. She'd helped him during a difficult time and he'd been grateful. What she took to be affection on his part was probably just gratitude.

Chapter Seven

Maria shut down the computer and paced up and down the hall. She had to get out and walk off some of the stress and tension or she would implode.

She pulled on a thick sweater, gloves, and a woolly hat, then donned her waterproof coat and some boots. The weather had suddenly grown cold after Dino left, almost as if it mirrored her mood. After locking up, she strode down the lane heading for the coast path. Her mind roiled with thoughts, doubts, memories. She wished she could turn her brain off and have a break from the mental turmoil.

Halfway down the guesthouse drive, she met a man in a long black overcoat with a camera and binoculars around his neck. She was so absorbed in her thoughts, she nearly bumped into him. He peered at her curiously. She stepped back as a shiver ran down her spine. He had a ruddy face, graying hair, and puffy bags under his eyes as though he hadn't slept in a long time. "The guesthouse is closed," she blurted, not certain what it was about him that spooked her.

He rubbed his hands together and nodded. "I don't want to stay. I was just walking up the hill for the view." He tapped his binoculars. "I'm a birdwatcher."

He had a pronounced London accent. Birdwatchers occasionally stayed at the guesthouse, but Maria had never seen one dressed like this man. He looked as though he belonged on a city street. "This is a private lane." She hoped he would take the hint and go away.

Instead he grinned. "You own the guesthouse, then, love?"

She really didn't want to talk to him or give him any information, but ingrained courtesy made her answer. "It belongs to my parents. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to continue my walk."

"Don't let me keep you." He waved her past as though he was directing traffic. She walked on, glancing over her shoulder at him. "All right if I take a look at the view from up there, love, is it?"

Without waiting for her answer, he continued up the hill towards the Crow's Nest. Maria halted and stared at the man's back, unease trickling through her. Instinct told her he was bad news, but just how, she didn't know. She had locked up, so he couldn't get inside the guesthouse. Short of following him and telling him to go away, she couldn't do much. With a frustrated huff, she resumed her march down the hill.

She paced along the main street, keeping her gaze down, not wanting to catch anyone's eye and feel obliged to stop and chat. She continued through the car park at the top of the harbor and up the coast path to the Jacka. When she arrived, she sat on the rock she had shared with Dino many times, closed her eyes, and imagined he was sitting beside her.

The memories of Dino were so clear and sharp they cut. She would need to do a lot of walking before she worked him out of her system, if that was even possible. In four short weeks he had penetrated to the very core of her being. She glanced back towards the Crow's Nest, and her breath jabbed with shock at the sight of a figure walking around the corner of the building. The Londoner was in the guesthouse garden.

Her parents were asleep upstairs. Had the man tried to break in? Her pulse hammered in her ears as she narrowed her eyes to see if he was carrying anything. The figure stopped, turned her way, and raised his hands to his face. It looked as though he was holding his binoculars or camera and staring right at her.

***

Freddy Short opened the e-mail from his private investigator, Gary, and scanned the message. The man had tracked down the place Dino stayed in Cornwall to a fishing village called Porthale and spoken to a bird who could be the love interest. Freddy clicked on the link to open the private page where Gary posted digital photos, and typed in his password.

He scrolled through the images one by one. The tiny village looked like the back of beyond. Freddy couldn't imagine why anyone in their right mind would visit the dead-end place. There were no shops and hardly any people. It was just a lot of grass and rocks.

Then he came to the first image of a young woman walking down the village street. She was too far away to make her out. There were a few more pictures of her, but her face was grainy, the photos obviously taken from a distance. She didn't look much to write home about. She was wearing an anorak, for God's sake. He half wondered if Gary had made a mistake, but the man was normally good at his job.

"Dino, Dino," Freddy whispered to himself. "What were you thinking, mate?" Freddy enjoyed discovering talented young singers to mold into successful professionals, and Dino Rossellini was his greatest prize. Whatever the indefinable something that bestowed star quality, Dino had it in spades. The Italian could do so much better than this ordinary girl from nowhere.

Freddy would not allow little Miss Nobody to disrupt Dino's career and cut short the very healthy revenue stream that flowed in from the Italian. If she really did have her claws into Dino, then Freddy would buy her off. But he wasn't about to pay out unless he had to. Given a little encouragement, Dino would probably forget her anyway. What Freddy needed was someone out in New York to keep Dino occupied, and he knew just the girl.

After dialing Rachel's mobile number, Freddy drummed his fingers on the desk while he waited for her to pick up. "Rachel, love," he said when she answered. "I've got a little job for you. I've arranged for you to join Dino in New York. He'll need a partner for the social functions. You can do a couple of cable television spots while you're there to raise your profile in North America."

"Did he ask for me?" she said, tentatively.

"Yes, darling. He can't wait to see you." Freddy winced at the lie. He had a soft spot for Rachel, and he knew the pregnancy and adoption had knocked her sideways. She was still in love with the Italian, and it would suit Freddy if they got back together. Having them as a couple made for great publicity. Dino and Rachel were both beautiful people. They had chemistry, which is why they performed so well together. Freddy would simply sit back and let nature take its course.

***

Dino was talking to the musical director of
La Bohème
when one of the Metropolitan Opera House stagehands came up and interrupted. "Excuse me, there's a woman waiting for you in your dressing room, Mr. Rossellini."

Maria! He had left instructions that if a British woman asked for him she should be shown to his dressing room, but he'd thought it was an impossible dream that Maria would come after him. He made his excuses and hurried along the corridor to the dressing rooms, a stupid smile fixed on his face.

He burst through the door, heart racing with anticipation, and his step faltered. Rachel sat in the seat before his mirror examining her nails. It took him a moment to mask his disappointment. He forced a smile and went forwards to kiss her on both cheeks. It was crazy, really; Rachel was the most beautiful woman he'd ever met, and he knew she had feelings for him. But he couldn't reciprocate. He'd tried. He just didn't love her.