“I would suggest we make it a trifecta, but I know your thoughts on the matter,” he teased, kissing her full lower lip.
“Cris,” her heart turned over in her chest. “We’re different. We’ve known each other for years.”
His dark eyes were smouldering. “Does that mean you would accept my proposal?”
She laughed, but her heart was sending her strange messages. The certainty she’d had that she wanted to wait, to take things slowly, was being replaced by a desperate ache to grab Cristiano with two hands and make their love official and legally binding. She had sworn after Angus that she’d never marry; she on her own had to be enough. But now? What did she want? “Ever the opportunist,” she demurred softly, unable to resist nuzzling into his neck. He smelled so good; of sunshine and sand.
He shrugged. “Of course.”
Ava kissed him back, her hands moving up to his hair. What did she want? If only she could put words to her feelings. “It means that I want to marry you – one day. But maybe we should just let the dust settle on Olivia and Sophie’s hasty nuptials first, huh?”
He groaned and pulled her to him, wrapping his arms tightly around her and lifting her clear off the floor. “Do you remember that game we played once?”
She nodded, incapable of speech.
“Perhaps I can torture an acceptance out of you?”
She nodded again, her eyes bright. “Or have fun trying,” she agreed.
“Forever and ever,” he carried her into their bedroom and kicked the door shut. Forever and ever, his love, his life.
Three weeks later, the questions that had been building up were finally answered.
A convoy of black four wheel drives arrived first, carrying a glowing Olivia and a clearly devoted Sheikh Zamir Fayez, exalted leader of Dashan.
“Call me Zami,” he said disarmingly in his foreign tone, extending a hand to Cristiano. “You must be Ava?” He kissed her on both cheeks. “Liv has told me so much of her sisters; it is a pleasure to finally meet you.” He gestured to the following vehicle. “This is my brother Ra’if.”
If Ava was a little over-awed by the royal presence, Cristiano was not at all.
“Cris!” Olivia broke into a run and threw herself at Cristiano, her arms around his neck, her face just an enormous smile. “Thank God you too finally came to your senses. I can’t believe it. Ava never said that things worked out for you.”
“Didn’t she now?” He teased over her head. “And here she’s been complaining about her non-communicative sisters.”
“Ah, yes, well,” Liv grinned, “I thought this news was better explained face to face.”
“Definitely,” Ava giggled. “Cris, why don’t you show Zami and Ra’if around. Liv and I have some catching up to do.”
The sisters linked arms and began to walk towards the house. It had changed so little over the years that Olivia was struck with certainty that she was stepping back into a piece of her history. Not her present, nor her future, but her past. And a cherished piece of it, too.
“Where’s Soph?”
“Not here yet.”
“Sophie! Sophie!” It was Milly, at the door, pointing towards the drive. Sure enough, another vehicle was approaching. No convoy this time, just a sleek silver sports car that had dust plumes in its wake.
“Our catch up will have to wait,” Ava said, dropping Olivia’s arm so that she could move quickly back into the driveway.
The man who stepped out of the car gave the sisters a bemused smile before sweeping around to open Sophie’s door. She stood with her usual grace, and then broke into a run, towards Ava and Olivia.
“Oh, girls, I have missed you so much.”
They embraced for several moments, each unwilling to break the contact.
“Ava,” Alessandro interrupted, finally. “It is lovely to meet you finally.” He kissed her cheek and then turned to Olivia. “And to see you again, Olivia. Or must we now address you as Her Royal Highness?”
Her laugh was like bells in the breeze. “I’ll always be Livvie to my family, I promise.”
“Good, excellent.”
He looked past the sisters towards the house.
“Oh, you won’t find anyone in there. Zami and Ra’if are getting a tour from Cristiano. They went that way.”
“I shall catch up to them,” he said with a wink, and moved off with easy athleticism.
They watched him go, and then Olivia spoke. “I think it’s time to crack out one of mum’s special bottles and have a proper talk, don’t you?”
“Damn straight,” Ava began to move towards the house.
Milly jumped into Sophie’s arms and dear Sophie, who had always been such a soft touch with children, had tears in her eyes. “We have so much to talk about,” she said in a voice that was slightly tinged with sadness.
One of Meredith Henderson’s first vintages of wine later and the girls were tripping over themselves to share the details of their lives. How much had happened between their last encounter! Some good, some great, some bad. Poor Sophie, despite the time that had passed, was still mourning the loss of her baby. It had brought her and Alex together, but these things could not easily be forgotten, nor recovered from.
“I’ve been thinking about mum so much lately,” Sophie confided finally. “There was a time when I would have said she had all the answers. Remember how she used to speak about love? That it was something to be feared and wary of?”
“Yes,” Olivia nodded jerkily. “I’ve been thinking this too. All my life I felt like men were looking only to break our hearts. That loving someone would weaken me somehow.”
“Well, her heart was certainly broken,” Ava said, jumping unnecessarily to Meredith’s defence.
“Yes, and our father – whoever he might be – was a bastard. But Cristiano isn’t. And Alex isn’t. And Zami isn’t,” Olivia stressed urgently. “Mum wanted to protect us, but I think she was wrong in this.”
“Me too,” Sophie said, but her smile was forgiving. “But she did the best she could. She truly believed that we would become prey to just the same kind of man our father had been. She meant to warn us against that. How could she know she’d go so far that we almost missed our opportunities for true love?”
“Missed your opportunities?” Ava prompted, an odd sense of nervousness tingling through her.
“Yes. I mean, I wanted every reassurance under the book when Alex proposed. I was so wary. And part of that was me, but a lot of it came from mum.”
“Look at you and Cristiano,” Olivia picked up the thread of conversation. “You are so obviously meant to be together. And yet you let him go three years ago because he was just the kind of man mum had described.”
Sophie laughed and imitated Meredith’s voice, “Tall, dark, handsome with far too much charm and money.”
“And look at how it’s ended up… all of us have gone for just that kind of man. And they’re the best men in the world.”
“Yes,” Ava said, angling her head to the window that overlooked the vines. She couldn’t see the men anywhere. “You have an excellent point.”
Impatience gnawed at her gut. She waited and she waited, and she listened to her sisters without properly contributing anything sensible. Only when the four men appeared at the door, and her eyes locked with Cristiano’s, did she let out a sigh of relief.
She stood, not noticing her brothers-in-law, and walked towards him. “May I speak to you privately?”
He nodded, his expression quizzical.
“What’s going on there?” Alex whispered loudly as they approached Olivia and Sophie.
Sophie smiled serenely up at him. “You’ll see.”
Outside, with the sun setting over the vineyards that Meredith had loved so much, Ava turned to face Cristiano.
“I love you,” she said simply, her eyes wide and her cheeks flushed.
“And I love you.”
She linked hands with him. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”
“I know this,” he smiled at her contentedly. She always made him feel that – contented.
“I’ve been carrying around this last vestige of worry that my mum taught all of us girls to feel. That when things are too perfect, they’re often about to unravel.”
He frowned. “That’s very pessimistic.”
“I don’t blame her for that. She had a rough life. She made the best of it but that worry was there. She was terrorised by her experiences. But I don’t want to feel it anymore. I trust you completely. I know that married or not, living with you, and being with you, is all I want in life.”
He pulled her to his chest, his heart racing. “Then marry me. Marry me now, while your sisters are here. Let me promise the women who love you so much that I deserve you; and that I will always honour and cherish you.”
She nodded against his chest, and when she spoke, there was not a tear in sight. Just giddy, irrepressible joy. “Yes, please!”
Epilogue
“I can do that you know,” Marie called out from the top of the stairs, her hair coiled into two buns that beautifully emulated Princess Leia’s style.
“Why does everyone assume that I’m incapable of working because I’m getting married in a couple of days?”
Olivia strode into the foyer munching on a crisp apple. “Because you’re the bride, and brides are supposed to be slave drivers, not slaves.”
“Not this bride,” Ava assured her sister with a laugh. “Believe me, so far as I’m concerned, my wedding day is just another day.” She finished folding the tablecloths and lifted the pile. “Besides, we have guests due any minute and I’m going to have a very busy day ahead of me checking everyone in.”
“I reiterate my offer,” Marie said, moving quickly down the stairs. “You should be off getting pampered or something.”
Ava rolled her eyes. “Sure. That sounds like my kind of thing.”
Olivia nudged her sister playfully. “A bit of time in a beauty spa is fun; you should try it some time.”
“You can be pampered for me, Princess,” she teased back. “Where’s Soph?”
“Playing with Milly, of course. Want to place bets on how quickly they’ll try for a baby.”
Ava wrinkled her nose. “I’d be surprised if that’s not already on their agenda.”
“I hope it happens for them. They’ll be great parents.” Olivia murmured distractedly, her eyes scanning Ava’s face. “But if you’re not going to go to a salon, we should at least do some facials here. What do you say? Some face masks and gossip to pass the afternoon?”
Ava couldn’t think of much worse. “Ummm,” she prevaricated, and let out a sigh of relief when the door pressed open.
“Miss Sanderson,” Ava cast Olivia an expression that perfectly expressed her pleasure at the interruption and moved towards the front desk. “How lovely to have you back again.” The woman was just as Ava remembered, though now she clutched a young baby to her chest. “And congratulations, too!” She said, smiling down at the infant.
“Thank you,” Elizabeth nodded, her manner reserved, but in a way that Ava found refreshingly honest.
“How old is she?”
“Only four months.”
“Four months? So young to have made such a long flight,” Ava cooed. “And you must be exhausted.”
“Oh,” she waved her hand in the air. “I’m fine. I had the family to help.” That, and the incomparable luxury of the elegant private jet had made the long-haul flight relatively simple.
“Yes,” Ava scanned the book in front of her. “I have a note here that you’ve reserved all of the cabins?”
“Yes, though there are only three families, I thought privacy would suit us best given our reason for coming to the area.”
“Of course,” Ava said, far too professional to pry despite her curiosity. “Well, don’t worry about filling in any paperwork now. It’s far more important that you get settled with a cup of tea and let this little one have a sleep.”
“Oh,” Elizabeth’s eyes were enormous at the unexpected kindness. “That’s lovely of you, but actually …” She cast a furtive glance at the two women nearby, and lowered her voice. “You’re Ava Henderson, aren’t you?”
Ava furrowed her brow. “Yes. We’ve been emailing.”
“Yes, yes.” She swallowed, and the baby let out a little gurgling noise. Elizabeth instinctively lifted her higher onto her shoulder and patted the little back gently. “It’s just … the rest of the family are only an hour or two behind me, and there’s something particular I wanted to discuss with you first.”
“With me?” Ava said, her surprise drawing Olivia’s attention.
Elizabeth nodded. “Do you … I don’t mean to seem untoward, of course, however, do you have time now? Could we speak privately?”
Ava couldn’t have imagined what this woman wanted with her, and Elizabeth, anxious after months of planning and fretting, mistook Ava’s silence for refusal. “It’s about your mother,” she said, shifting the baby to her other shoulder.
“My mother?” Ava’s shock was genuine. She turned to Olivia instinctively, but Olivia was already striding towards the counter.
“You knew our mother?” Olivia took over, and despite the fact she had only been Princess of Dashan for a matter of months, she had a natural air of authority.
“No, not personally.” Her nerves were apparent. “Your mother was Meredith Henderson? An American?”
Ava and Olivia exchanged a look.
“Marie,” Ava spoke without looking at her friend and helper. “Any chance you’d make a pot of tea?”
“Of course. You’ll be in the lounge?”
“Yes, let’s go where we can speak without interruption.” Her smile was one of formality rather than friendship. She indicated the doorway that led to the private living area and waited for Elizabeth to precede her.
Milly came tumbling through the door only a moment after they’d sat down, followed swiftly by Sophie. “Young lady, you run far, far too fast. Are you eight or are you two?” She teased, crouching down and tickling her niece until giggles pealed through the room. “Oh!” She startled at the stranger in their midst. “I’m sorry to interrupt. I didn’t know we had company.”
“Not at all,” Ava assured Sophie. “In fact, it’s excellent timing that you’re here. Soph, this is Lady Elizabeth Sanderson. She has something to tell us about our mother.”
“About mum?” Sophie scrunched her nose up and came to sit on the other side of the sofa, so that Ava was sandwiched in the middle. Milly, as if sensing the gravity of the situation, sat at Ava’s feet, still as a statue, her dark eyes intent on Elizabeth’s face.
“So it’s true,” Elizabeth said softly. “You’re triplets.”
The sisters shared a look of growing confusion.
“Yes,” Ava said, her impatience taking over any other emotion.
Marie appeared with a tray of tea; she set it down and then held a hand out to Milly. The little girl looked from her mother to Marie to the beautiful stranger and shook her head.
“That’s okay, Marie. Milly can stay.”
Elizabeth’s eyes drifted down to the little girl. “She’s very sweet,” she said, her accent clipped. “I have a six year old daughter as well, Rose. She’ll be joining us shortly.”
Sophie’s smile was genuine. “You seem to know an awful lot about us, Lady Sanderson.”
Elizabeth’s cheeks were pink. “Please, call me Elizabeth,” she instructed.
“Elizabeth, then,” Sophie corrected. “I’m sure my sisters feel the same way I do; fascinated to meet someone who claims to know our mother.”
“Your mother has passed away,” she said, her tone sympathetic.
“Five years ago,” Olivia supplied, crossing one leg over the other. Milly’s little face was drawn to the movement and she studied the spindly heel on Olivia’s shoe.
“I’m sorry,” Elizabeth said.
The triplets waited in silence.
/>
“I’m sorry again,” Elizabeth’s laugh was nervous. “I’ve been planning this for months, and now that I’m here, I have no idea where to start.”
“At the beginning,” Ava recommended, leaning forward an inch or two out of fascination now.
“Yes, of course.” Elizabeth’s hand was shaking as she reached for the pot and poured out a cup of tea. She added a dash of milk and then settled back into the chair, all without disturbing the infant she kept cradled against her shoulder. “I’ll start at the beginning, and ask only that you bear with me while I seem to be discussing matters that are of no relevance to you.”
“Very well,” Olivia agreed, though inside her tummy was in knots.
“My husband Antonio, who you’ll meet soon enough, is the reason I’m here.” She furrowed her brow. “I’m speaking on condition of privacy, of course; and in the hope that you will have as much reason as I to be discreet about this matter.”
Ava nodded encouragingly.
“My husband is one of three brothers. Antonio, Niko and Marcos were always close, growing up.” Her smile was distracted. “I’m sure you can understand.” She took in a breath. “Shortly before I met Antonio, he had learned a shocking family secret. His father, Umberto, the man who had raised him from birth, was not, in point of fact, his biological father. My mother-in-law had indulged in an affair and Antonio was the product of that. She passed him off as Umberto’s biological child and he went to his grave never knowing it to be false.”
Ava’s breath hitched in her throat. Was it possible that the same man who had fathered Antonio had also fathered them?
“We know a little about this type of mystery,” Olivia said. “Though I guess you already know that, huh?”
Elizabeth inclined her head in silent admission of that fact. “Who was the father?”
“Well,” Elizabeth said with a shake of her head. “He is not really relevant. But the reason for her infidelity bothered me greatly. You see, My husband and his brothers preferred to shut their mother out. They were furious with her for this duplicity.”