it.
‘That—was—divine—’ she said, sitting back. ‘I was really hungry.’
‘Talking of things divine,’ Sam said, as he topped up Lily’s glass with the rest of the wine. ‘Who was the bloke you came off the plane with? Drop-dead gorgeous, or what? He seemed very…attentive as he helped you with your stuff,’ he added.
Lily looked away, forcing herself to keep the ever-ready blush from her cheeks.
‘Just the man who happened to be sitting in the adjoining seat on the plane,’ she said casually.
‘Really? There was something…something that suggested a certain familiarity, I thought,’ Sam said, looking at Lily curiously. ‘I really thought there was something going on there.’
‘Don’t be silly,’ Lily said, picking up the menu to see what else she’d like. ‘I’ve never met him before. He was just someone…interesting to talk to, that’s all.’
Sam said no more—he knew from his short acquaintance with his sister that when she decided a subject was closed, it was closed.
Thinking about it, Lily admitted to being surprised at how short the flight had seemed. She and her neighbor had managed to make light, undemanding conversation for much of the way—during which he’d mentioned that he had three children. He’d also spent some time absorbed in his papers, and she’d been careful not to interrupt him. She’d been genuinely surprised when their approaching landing had been announced.
After a minute, Sam said, ‘Is there anything else you’d like, Lily? A cappuccino will do me, but choose away. I want to spoil you.’ He paused, thinking how beautiful Lily was. ‘I don’t get the chance to do that very often, do I?’ he went on. ‘We really must make an effort to get together more—twice a year is nothing, and now that we’ve found each other we mustn’t waste it.’ He leaned across and covered her hand with his briefly. ‘Promise that we will manage it somehow, Lily.’
Lily looked back at him, her large eyes warm and moist with almost-tears. Putting down the menu, she turned her palm to hold his fingers tightly. ‘You’re right, Sam,’ she said quietly. ‘We must make some dates and stick to them. It’s not good enough to let work come first all the time—and, speaking of which, how’s the hotel going?’ she asked. ‘You look very affluent.’ She smiled, noting his well-cut trousers and designer open-neck shirt, exhibiting his tanned skin.
‘Work’s good,’ he said. ‘A bit too good. That’s why Federico and I don’t have time to go chasing girls—or sisters,’ he added.
Sitting there with her long-lost brother—two years older than her, attractively open-faced, with his brown hair bleached golden by the Italian sunshine—Lily felt her heart soar, and she felt so ridiculously light-headed she wanted to laugh out loud, to jump up and tell everyone how happy she was. Of course it had to be the wine—or was it simply Rome, with its perfect weather, its magical fountains and warm-hearted people, and the scent of jasmine in the air which had filled her nostrils as they’d wandered along the streets earlier? Or was it because at last she belonged to someone—really belonged to the good-looking man who was holding her hand?
‘Do you realise that two years ago neither of us knew of each other’s existence?’ Sam said. ‘All that wasted time when we could have been together,’ he added quietly.
Of course Lily realised it. And it was thanks to her seeking out her past—with help from the Salvation Army—that she’d eventually discovered she had a sibling. Their now-deceased mother had borne them both before she herself was seventeen years old.
Lily was honest enough to admit that her ignorance of her early life was probably her own fault… She’d been a rebellious, difficult child, passed from one home to another, one foster family to another—and she’d run away twice. It was no wonder everyone had got confused, including the agencies responsible for her welfare. Her personal details had seemed permanently lost somewhere in the system, and by the time she’d reached sixteen and gone on to train at catering college everyone had been glad to be shot of her. But Lily had an instinctive sense of survival, and had worked hard at the course, and at the jobs she’d subsequently got, finally revelling in the purchase of her tiny flat, her first very own private space, where no one could tell her what to do. At last she was in charge of her own life, her own destiny. And that was how it was going to stay. Always.
Sam, apparently, had been different. He’d told Lily how happy he’d been growing up, behaving himself and always doing as he was told by his foster carers. But he hadn’t known, either, that he had any family. When he and Lily had come face to face at last their blood tie had swallowed up those lost years and they’d fallen into each other’s arms with hardly any self-consciousness.
‘I think a coffee is all I can manage, too, Sam,’ Lily said now. ‘I don’t think I’ll be able to eat another thing for the rest of the day.’
‘Oh, you’ll make room for supper later,’ Sam assured her. ‘No one eats here until nine or ten o’clock in any case. There’ll be plenty of time for you to work up an appetite.’
After lunch they sauntered back along the sun-hot pavements, searching out the cool shade of buildings to walk beneath whenever they could.
‘I think I’ll pamper myself and have a siesta this afternoon,’ Lily said.
‘Good idea. And I’ve some paperwork to go through with Federico, so that’ll suit us both,’ Sam replied easily.
The small hotel—with a mere four bedrooms—was situated in a narrow lane just off Piazza Navona, and Lily had been allocated a chic room at the front. It was well-appointed and comfortable, and she flopped down on the bed, kicking off her sandals and laying back languidly. She’d changed out of her suit as soon as she’d arrived, and was wondering whether the small amount of clothes she’d brought was going to see her through her three-night stay. She shrugged happily. If she ran out of clothes she’d buy some more! She’d never been an extravagant shopper—she’d never had the money—but, hey, she was on holiday, and she was in Rome! There were no frontiers, nothing to hold back her glorious sense of freedom.
To her amazement, when she woke up Lily realized that she’d been asleep for nearly three hours! She hadn’t come here to sleep, she thought. She’d come here to enjoy herself, to explore Rome—as well, of course, as meeting up with her brother.
Sliding off the bed, she went into the bathroom to shower. Although Sam’s hotel was air-conditioned, there was a distinct sense of the pervading sultry heat outside, so choosing what to wear would be easy. She’d put on the cream cotton sleeveless sundress with the low neck, she decided. It wouldn’t matter if it was still a bit creased—although she’d hung it up as soon as she’d arrived—because who was going to notice her, anyway?
She dressed and brushed out her hair, tying it back in a ponytail. Then she moisturised her face, adding sunblock but no make-up. She knew she was lucky with her complexion which, although fair-skinned, seemed to have an olive under-layer which saved her from burning or freckling. She added just a touch of blusher and lipstick and went downstairs.
There was no sign of her brother, but Federico was on duty, and he came over at once to greet her with the typical approach of the Italian male when meeting a woman. He took her hand and kissed it gently, looking down at her appreciatively with his dusky, bedroom eyes.
‘Ah…Lileeeee,’ he murmured in his heavily accented English. ‘What a charming pleasure to ’ave you
