Scandal

by Grace Kagni

  She saw a garment bag on the bed and walking over to the bed, she sat down before opening the bag. She was curious to see what he'd selected for their evening. Inside the bag was a beautiful cream coloured gown that had a tight bodice top and a long flowing gown. It looked like something Grace Kelly would have worn. She stared at it a moment and felt the softness of the chiffon material before zipping the bag back up and turning her attention to Alessandro's bedroom again.

  She saw there was a sliding door in the back corner so pushing open the door she saw it led through a small corridor leading to the bathroom - but what a bathroom! It had a huge tub fitting two people easily, a large sauna Turkish bath shower fitting two people, a long counter with a double sink, separate his and her toilets and bidets. The bathroom was open space but it was made in a way that part of it was for a man's use with the large shower and the other part was for a woman's use with the large bathtub. She grinned at the thought of soaking in that large tub!

  She turned to go back to the bedroom and noticed there was another sliding door in the middle of the corridor and so after pushing the door open, she walked into what she thought was the biggest walk-in closet she'd ever seen. It was the size of a living room - literally! In the middle of the room sat a couple of sofas and all around the room against the walls were floor to ceiling custom made wardrobes. She went to push one open and saw Alessandro's shirts hanging nicely spaced out, perfectly ironed. Below the shirts were drawers that when she opened, she saw his silk ties folded perfectly in each slot. She closed the door and opened another to find his suits hanging perfectly spaced out on two levels. The top had a bar to pull down and not resisting her instinct, she pulled the bar, making the suits on the top come down to eye level. She smiled as she touched his suits and then pushed the bar back up to put the suits back in place. Sliding the door closed, she went to sit on one of the sofas to enjoy the moment. She pulled out the necklace from her bag and looked at it a moment before putting it down on the little table beside the sofa.

  She'd always wanted to have a walk-in closet and never thought that her lover would have such a grand room. If she had the possibility, she would have a room just like Alessandro's. She wondered if he'd filled all the closet space and went to open the doors on the other side of the closet and was surprised to find women's clothing inside.

  She stepped back a moment and suddenly wondered if he was married or had a full time partner. Was he having an affair with her? Was she his mistress? She suddenly had to sit down feeling weak in the knees at the thought that he may have another woman in his life - someone who was more important to him. She suddenly couldn't sit in that room any longer and needed to get some air, so she ran out of the master suite and down the steps to the front door. Pulling the door open, she ran out and down the garden until she reached the street where she got on the bus just as it was passing.

  She sat on the bus while it passed through the busy streets and she lost track of time until she finally got off near her place and walked the short distance to her apartment building. She walked up the steps to her apartment, dragging her feet as her legs felt really heavy until she finally stepped into her living room, sat on her sofa and started to cry. Why hadn't she thought of it before? She felt so stupid for falling for him. All she was to him was a free prostitute!

  Her phone suddenly chimed from a text message. She knew who it would be but she couldn't resist reading his message.

  I'll be home soon. I hope you've read the instructions I left on my night table - if not, you'll be punished when I get home.

  Minister Medici-Veronesi

  She flung her phone against the sofa, anger seeping through her veins, not knowing if she should scream or cry. She took her phone and responded back.

  Stronzo! Trovati un' altra! (Bastard! Find yourself someone else!)

  She hit send and threw her phone down onto the sofa. A few seconds later, her telephone rang. She looked on the screen and saw Alessandro's name but didn't answer. He hung up and rang again but she didn't answer. Her phone chimed with another text message.

  What did I do? Please call me!

  Alessandro

  She threw her phone onto the sofa and walked into her bathroom to have a shower. She could hear the phone ringing from her bathroom but she really didn't care anymore. The phone continued to ring insistently but she refused to respond. She didn't want to speak to him ever again. Tomorrow she would go to HR and demand they move her to another office. She was through with His Excellency Alessandro Medici-Veronesi. What a mistake! She hit her head repeatedly with her hand as the tears started to fall uncontrollably. She sunk to the bottom of the shower, feeling lonely and used, drained of all energy since Alessandro took her heart and her soul when he walked into her life. How was she going to cope with life now that he wouldn't be in it anymore?

  She eventually got out of the shower, dried herself off and put on her housecoat. Looking at herself in her mirror, she saw that she looked exactly how she felt - a complete wreck!

  She went back to the living room and turned on the television but she simply lay there for hours staring at the screen without focusing on the programmes. She had no life or interest left inside and she just wanted to crawl into a hole to protect herself from the cruel world outside.

  While she was in a state of semi-comatose on the sofa, there was a knock on the door but she ignored it, not wanting to speak to anyone. Then there was another knock and then a third; always more insistent until there was pounding on the door.

  "Go away - there's nobody home," she shouted.

  The pounding continued to the point that she couldn't stand it anymore and so she got up and flung open the door. Standing before her was Alessandro, holding a bouquet of red roses. She went to slam the door in his face but he put his foot forward blocking the door.

  "Speak to me," Alessandro said as he put his head through the crack that was still open.

  "I don't want to," she said trying to push the door closed but he was stronger and so she gave up and walked over to her sofa to sit down.

  He walked in and shut the door quietly behind him, then he walked to where she was sitting on the sofa. Sitting down on the coffee table before her, he sat there a moment looking into her eyes.

  She tried to avoid his blue eyes, but he kept them directly in front of her face making it hard for her to avoid his gaze.

  "What's wrong? What happened that you're suddenly angry with me?" he asked softly.

  She didn't respond and tried to get up off the sofa but he held her down.

  "Alessia, I'm not going to leave until you tell me what's wrong. Did I hurt you or offend you in any way?" he asked patiently.

  She felt her anger come up and couldn't look at him anymore so she tried to get up again but he held her down. She started to hit him and scream out her pain while he sat there and let her repeatedly hit him until she had no more strength and started to cry from heartbreak.

  "Are you going to tell me what happened?" he whispered softly waiting for her to say something.

  "How could you?" she said through her tears.

  "How could I what?" he asked.

  She looked at him through her tears and tilted her head to one side as she whispered, "What am I to you?"

  "Amore, you're the most important person in my life. Can't you tell?" he asked feeling hurt that she didn't realize how much he cared for her.

  "Well then whose clothes are hanging in your closet at home?" she asked through her tears.

  He hung his head down and stared at his hands a moment before looking back up.

  She could see there was pain in his eyes and she suddenly felt she crossed a barrier that she didn't realize existed.

  "They belonged to my wife, Isabella, who passed away from cancer six years ago," Alessandro said softly.

  Alessia suddenly felt her heart break more, not for herself but for Alessandro. She'd jumped to the wrong conclusion when she saw the female clothing and rather than asking him about i
t, she doubted him which made it worse.

  "I wish you'd asked me about it rather than think I had another woman. How could you doubt my love for you?" he asked, as he looked deep into her eyes.

  She didn't know what to say and since she felt like an idiot now, all she could say was sorry as the tears rolled down her cheeks for what she had done.

  He sat on the sofa beside her and pulled her close, kissing her on her forehead as the tears continued to flow.

  "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner it's just that you're the first woman that has found a way into my heart since my wife died and I didn't know how to tell you about her," he said while he gently stroked her back.

  "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been looking through your things to start," she said.

  "Alessia, I've opened my heart and my life to you which includes everything that goes with it, so you have nothing to be sorry for."

  They sat there a long time cuddling until Alessia felt better and then she looked up into his blue eyes. "I'm sorry I've ruined your evening."

  "That's ok. I can reschedule it to another night. Are you hungry? Shall we order some food and stay here tonight?" he asked realizing that she probably still felt as run down as she looked.

  "I'd like that. There are great restaurants nearby that deliver so decide what you'd like to have and I'll call to order," she said as she got up to get the menus she had in the cabinet near the front door.

  He got up and looked around at her small apartment for the first time and noticed although it was very small, it was comforting and inviting. "So are you going to give me a tour of your apartment?" he asked grinning.

  "Sure but there's not much to see," she said as she showed him the kitchen, her bedroom and then the bathroom. Returning to her living room he took off his suit jacket and they pulled out the restaurant menus to decide on what to have for dinner.

  "Hey, by the way; how did you find out where I live? You've never been here?" she asked.

  He raised an eyebrow and asked, "Do you really need to ask?"

  "Right, I forgot - you probably have access to just about any information on anyone in Italy if you need it," she said.

  He grabbed her and kissed her passionately on the lips before pulling away to order food. "Let's leave that for later. What have you decided for dinner?" he asked.

  She pulled out the Chinese restaurant menu and grinned at him hoping he would agree.

  He laughed and then said, "Ok, Chinese food it is!"

  They relaxed on her sofa talking while they ate their Chinese food until he couldn't stand it anymore and put aside their take away containers. He picked her up into his arms and carried her to her bedroom where he took off her bathrobe. His eyes went wild when he saw that she had nothing underneath.

  "I don't think I could have waited this long if I'd known that you had nothing underneath that bathrobe," he said as he quickly started to strip his clothes off while his eyes danced with excitement at her naked body.

  She laughed and felt good again now that Alessandro was back in her life; knowing that he cared for her as much as she cared for him.

  He took his time showering his love while he made love to her to show how much he loved her. He pleasured her several times and found his own release deep into the night until he kissed he sweetly on the forehead and said he needed to go home. She felt a sense of loss when he left her bed and got dressed to go. He must have felt it because he turned to her and kissed her passionately.

  "Take the day off and then prepare an overnight bag because I want you to spend the weekend with me. We'll relax in bed and sleep into late morning," he said again as he kissed her one last time before leaving. "I'll call you during the day. Get some rest."

  Her life had suddenly taken a different turn and now she knew that what she and Alessandro had was more than just sex. It was worth celebrating but not now, she was too tired to think so she closed her eyes and slumbered off to sleep feeling completely content.

  She awoke late in the morning and was having coffee when her phone rang. She ran to get it and saw it was Alessandro calling.

  "Pronto?" she said.

  "Amore? Did you fall back to sleep after I left?" he asked.

  "Yes, I did and I just woke up about 5 minutes ago," she said as she yawned into the phone.

  "I can hear that," he said laughing. "Relax the rest of the day and then I'll have a car pass by to pick you up around 18:00 to bring you to my house. Do you still have the key?"

  "Yes, I still have you key and I'll be ready at 18:00," she said.

  "We'll have a relaxing weekend - I promise nothing stressful, ok?" he said.

  "Ok that sounds nice so I can pack jeans and sweatshirts?" she asked.

  "Yes you can. We'll do whatever your heart desires this weekend."

  They said goodbye and she went to make coffee to wake up. She had breakfast and then decided to visit her father in the seniors' home, so she went to have a quick shower before putting on a pair of jeans and a sweater with running shoes. Putting on her coat and grabbing her bag on her way out, she made it to the bus stop just in time as the bus was arriving, so she got on and took a seat.

  She had to change buses twice to get to the seniors' home but when she finally got there, she was happy to find out that they'd just finished serving lunch so her father would be free to sit with her a while before having his afternoon nap. She walked into the home and greeted the nurses inside, chatting a moment since they'd created a friendly relationship since her father arrived.

  "Hey Alessia. How are you?" asked one of the male nurses as she walked in.

  "I've been good. Busy with work but good. How's my dad?" Alessia asked.

  "He's been the same. You know, he has his good days and his bad days; let's hope that today is a good day and he recognizes you."

  "I certainly hope so, I'd be nice to talk about the past," Alessia said.

  "He's in the living room now so just go right ahead and take a seat. I'm sure he'll be happy to see you," the nurse said.

  Alessia waved and walked toward the living room to see her father. When she stepped into the room, she looked around and recognized most of the patients and their families who she'd seen gotten to know during her visits. Gazing over toward the television, she saw her father sitting on a reclining chair watching television. She took a deep breath and hoped it was a good day before walking over to say hello.

  "Buongiorno Papà," she said as she leaned down to kiss him on his forehead. He turned to look at her before raising his eyebrows. "Ma tu chi sei?" Who are you?

  Her heart sank realizing that it was not a good day and so she pulled a chair over to sit beside him.

  "I'm your daughter Alessia. Don't you remember?" she said hoping it would trigger some part of his memory but his face was blank.

  "I don't have a daughter named Alessia so go away!" he said.

  "Papà, look what I brought you!" she said as she pulled out from her bag a box of his favourite chocolates.

  He looked at the box as she pulled off the lid and held it out to him. He looked at her and the box before lifting his hand and hitting the box underneath, sending the chocolates flying through the air.

  "I don't want any chocolates from you. I don't know who you are and I want you to leave," he said as he yelled and waved his arms around.

  A nurse came to assist Alessia to calm her father but the more she tried to help, the more he became distraught so the nurse suggested she come back another day.

  Alessia got up and walked out of the seniors' home feeling like someone stabbed her in the heart. She walked to the bus stop and waited 30 minutes replaying in her head what happened with her father. By the time she got home, she was exhausted physically and mentally, and didn't have the energy to do anything so she laid down on the sofa and fell asleep.

  She woke up when she heard her cell phone ringing and as she grabbed it, she noticed it was Alessandro.

  "Pronto?" she said.

  "Alessia? Are you ok
?" he asked.

  "Yes, why?" she asked confused by his question.

  "The driver's been buzzing your intercom the past 10 minutes and when you didn't respond, he contacted me," he said.

  "Oh, I must have fallen asleep and didn't hear the buzzer downstairs," she said as she looked at her watch. It was 18:15.

  "Ok, listen take your time getting ready. I'll let the driver know that you'll be down as soon as possible," he said. Then he hesitated a moment before saying, "Are you sure everything is ok?"

  "Yes, I'll be ready in a few minutes," she said as she hung up.

  She packed an overnight bag and was downstairs in the back of the car within 20 minutes. The drive took longer than expected and when the driver passed through the gates to Alessandro's house, she thanked the driver and took out her key to open the front door.

  When she stepped through the foyer, there was an envelope with her name on the round table, so she walked over to read it. Turning it over, she smiled when she saw Alessandro's seal on the back. She opened the envelope and pulled out the note.

  Darling, please go upstairs to my bedroom and make yourself comfortable until I arrive.

  Alessandro

  She walked up the stairs slowly remembering her anger the last time she ran down the same stairs and as she walked into his master suite, she stopped at the threshold. The room was filled with red roses, sending it's perfumed scent throughout the room. She smiled when she saw the roses and walked up to the closest vase to smell their scent.

  Then she went to sit on the sofa to wait for Alessandro. She was saddened by the thought that her father didn't remember her and that he didn't want her to spend time with her. She was deep in her thoughts thinking about her father when Alessandro walked into his bedroom. She didn't hear him as he walked over to her and crouched down, sensing something was wrong.