There was no time to worry about it, and no opportunity to turn it around. Clio and Guillermo needed to plead their case to the bank.
In the morning, woozy after an amazing, breathtaking, passionate night of lovemaking, during which they'd shared much laughter and tears, Clio drove with Guillermo to meet Senior Belloggi at the bank. Both she and Guillermo had completed and signed the final paperwork committing to their respective roles as directors, and had gone over their pro forma once more.
Clio had wanted Pia, Bianca, and even Jacopo to come with them, to express their commitment and beg. They were all stakeholders, after all. Guillermo disagreed. In the end it was deemed a bit desperate to drag the entire family along, so they went alone. Guillermo seemed determined to try to persuade Belloggi to approve their loan anyway, on the strength of the funds that were committed, as well as their passion for the project. His enthusiasm and commitment left no doubt in her mind, or in her heart. Hopefully Belloggi agreed.
A revision to the proposal had been hastily drafted outlining a phased approach, which would give them additional time to drum up support. It would be harder, it would be tight, but they could make a case.
"Buon giorno, Senior Belloggi," Guillermo said, striding into the man's office. "Allow me to introduce my colleague, Signorina Clio Sinclair McBeal."
The loans officer greeted them warmly. Clio shook the man's hand, and they sat. Guillermo took the lead, since he was familiar with the banker. He seemed a gentle, jolly man, and so she remained optimistic he would be sympathetic.
Guillermo pulled a stack of papers from his briefcase and pitched their argument. Disconcertingly, Senior Belloggi sat back, his small eyes blinking rapidly, and rummaged amongst the papers on his desk. He didn't seem to be paying attention to Guillermo's words.
Not finding what he wanted Senior Belloggi opened a desk drawer and shuffled through his files there, at last pulling out a sheaf of paper.
When Guillermo paused, Senior Belloggi said, "I am very sorry for the confusion, Senior d'Aldobrandin. Seniorina Sinclair McBeal." He coughed and scratched his thinning pate. "It seems you are missing some information?"
Guillermo attempted to jump in and clarify what they were asking for, but Belloggi put up a hand to stop him.
"No, no. Please. Wait." He lifted his papers and shook them. "You are not aware of this?"
Clio squinted at him, then looked to Guillermo, who was shaking his head, obviously as confused as she was. What is he talking about?
"You called me last night, to tell me–" Guillermo began.
"No, no, no, no." Belloggi shook his head. "This was awaiting me when I arrived at my office this morning. You don't know what it is?"
They stared at him, confused.
Belloggi laughed. "Oh, my." He chuckled. "Oh, this is delightful. This…" He waved the papers before them, but all they could do was wait for his explanation. "This is a new donation, from… he peered at the paperwork. "From a donor by the name of Senior Cleveland R. Richmond." Belloggi's brows lifted, and he leaned forward, regarding them expectantly.
Clio frowned and glanced at Guillermo. He appeared just as baffled. They shook their heads, muttering their incomprehension.
"You were not expecting this?"
Tell us already. How much is it?
"This is a cash donation to your trust of three hundred thousand dollars. American," he added, his face splitting in a wide grin. "All I need is your signature, Senior d'Aldobrandin, and we can accept the transfer of these funds, and, ecco!"
Still, it didn't make sense. How could they receive a donation from a private individual that they didn't even know. "Is he the manager of some foundation we forgot about?" Clio said.
Belloggi frowned and squinted at the letter. "I don't believe so. If you like, I can telephone the agent. Uno momento." Belloggi picked up his phone and dialed a number, waiting.
"Ah, si, hello, senior." He introduced himself and explained that he had Guillermo and Clio in his office, and they were looking for an explanation for the donation. He listened a moment, nodding, then pushed the phone receiver toward Guillermo.
He took it, scowling and put it to his ear. "Buon giorno, Guillermo d'Aldobrandin." Then he listened for a moment, running a hand through his hair. "What? Wh–?" He shook his head with an incredulous expression, and burst out laughing.
A quick, light fluttering in the pit her stomach left her dizzy and shivering. What was this all about? Something good, apparently. She leaned closer, trying to catch Guillermo's eye, and tried to ask the question with her expression.
"Yes, I will. Tell him grazie mille, grazie infinite, from all of us. This means the world to us. You have no idea… si. Good bye." He handed the phone back to Belloggi, his expression stunned.
Guillermo turned to Clio, his face split with a wide grin, his eyes sparkling with laughter and joy. "That was QTip. It turns out Senior Cleveland R. Richmond is Mad Richie's real name. He has found a way to pay me for his new villa design after all."
Epilogue
An atmosphere of celebration filled the warm night air. His family gathered for an al fresco dinner on the large terrace at Villa Cielo Incantato. Everyone who was important to Guillermo was present: Jacopo and Valentina, who had reconciled, and their children. Pia and Paulo and their children. Bibi, Marcella and Martino. And of course, his Clio. His heart swelled with happiness, overflowed with a sense of joy and contentment.
They had plenty to celebrate.
The bank loan had been approved, the heritage designation finalized, the trust assembled and set up, the foundation established. It was a bit slower getting the Instituto di Arte I Architetturi di Rinascimento d'Aldobrandin going, but it was well underway. Clio had been officially hired by Cornell to run it, and the program was in development.
In any case, the first order of business was the renovation itself, which Guillermo closely supervised. First the public rooms gently restored and upgraded with new electrical and data communication systems, under a healthy new roof membrane. The first bank of guest rooms with new ensuite bathrooms for visiting faculty and students were underway. And more ambitious, a new stainless steel commercial kitchen, about which Pia and even Marcella, after some reluctance to change, were ecstatic.
Sated from their extravagant meal and ample wine, everyone sat back, satisfied smiles on their faces, quiet conversations murmured up and down the long table. The children had long ago slipped away from the table to race up and down the stairs, squealing and laughing.
He had only one note of tension to sour his stomach. One yet-to-be-determined detail that prevented him from relaxing completely. And that involved Clio. He stole a glance at her, reveling in her glowing pre-Raphaelite beauty. She wore her vibrant fiery curls down around her shoulders, and relaxed in a simple, light floral sundress that bared her golden freckled shoulders to his hungry gaze.
His groin tightened in a familiar longing. Ah, Bella. He smiled, feeling warmth suffuse his core, and seep outward through his limbs, like a banked fire, waiting to be stoked into life. But that was for later. Now, it was family time.
Guillermo had passed around small floor plans, showing everyone his new layout for the family suites. One wing of the second and third floor had been set aside to accommodate the family, and would be maintained as private quarters. There was a large, luxurious apartment with private sitting room, terrace and kitchen, and several bedrooms, as well as a few separate bedroom suites. This way, Guillermo, or whoever took his place as director in the future, would have a complete and comfortable residence, and other family members could continue to come and go as they wished. All this, separate from the workings of the foundation and institute.
These were accommodated in another wing, with adequate offices for Guillermo, Clio, faculty and any support staff they might hire over time. Downstairs, there were seminar and meeting rooms, with state of the art presentation technology planned.
Later, once this work was complete and operations underway
, perhaps in another year or so, work would begin on upgrades to a series of crofts and barns across the home farm, to accommodate holiday rentals.
Under the veil of excited chatter that followed his brief presentation to the family, Guillermo dipped his head close to Clio for a private word, his stomach clenching. How would she respond? He was so afraid of scaring her away with his ardor.
"Come with me a moment, Bella?"
Her brows pulled together gently, curious. "Hm?"
He rose, slipped his hand into hers, and pulled her away from the table. He led her under the canopy of the sheltering chestnut tree, down the staircase, between oleander and olive leaves that shimmered black and white in the moonlight, to the grotto below. The burbling sound of the fountain masked the hum of voices from the terrace above, and the foliage screened them from view, creating a bubble of privacy.
Guillermo led Clio to the edge of the fountain, where the geometric stone wall inscribed its formal edge. Light from the moon, its image fractured into jewels, danced on the surface as the stream of water fell, splashing softly. Urging her to sit, he settled beside her, their backs to the three muses at the fountain's centre, and gazed out at the darkened gardens and fields below.
"I imagine you are wondering about your own accommodations," he said.
Her shoulder rose and fell. Of course she would be curious, perhaps even worried. But she wouldn't complain, trusting him to sort it out.
"I have not forgotten you, cara. As institute director, you will of course want to be here at the villa most of the time. But then…" he hesitated, "…sometimes you will need to be in Firenze, for meetings and perhaps research. Si?"
Clio nodded. "That… seems… reasonable." She spoke tentatively, as though she anticipated some catch.
He smiled to himself in the dark. His dinner rolled over in his stomach. He swallowed through the tightness in his throat, and dragged a hand through his hair and across the back of his neck.
"I imagined that I would stay here, also, as I said before." He cleared his throat. "Em. I would live in the largest suite, of course. It would be my principal residence. But I would keep my apartment in the city. It would be necessary for me to be in town a few days a week, to keep my architectural practice going. To meet with clients. Um."
He felt her turn toward him. She set her hand on his arm, squeezing gently, and he felt the heat of her seep through his sleeve, into his skin. "What is it, Memmo? What's troubling you?"
Stronzo. He was behaving like a school boy. "Clio, I… I don't want to assume… uh. I'm asking if you would be willing, interested, in living with me. Both here, and in Firenze. We could make a home together, Bella." He stole a glance at her face, uncertain.
"Guillermo. Of course I would. I love you. I want to be with you. Haven't we already talked about this?"
"Si. But, um." He turned to her and took both her hands in his. "I want…Resta sempre con me!"
Clio smiled. "We don't have to make those kinds of decisions now, Guillermo. This is already a big step for both of us. Don't feel–"
"No!" She misunderstood. She thought he was uncomfortable with their commitment, but it was the opposite. He wanted more. He wanted her to be his.
"It won't bother you, being around my large noisy family? You are not used to it. Perhaps–"
"Absolutely not. I adore your family. I always wanted a family just like yours, Guillermo. I feel almost as though your family is my family now. We have been through so much together, and we are going forward together, so invested in a common future."
"Si!" Guillermo filled his lungs and released a long, quivering breath. Be a man. Come on. He slowly slid down to the ground onto one knee, feeling the gravel dig into his flesh through his trouser leg. It awakened his senses, fortifying him, anchoring him.
Clio drew in a short breath, staring at him. "Memmo?"
"Bella." His voice was choked, and came out as a whisper. He cleared his throat again. "I want to share more than apartments and work with you. Con te voglio passare la mia vita. My whole life, cara. I can't imagine my life without you in it. Would you, Clio, stay with me, and make a large boisterous Italian family of our own?" He drew a shuddering breath, feeling his heart beating wildly in his chest.
Above the trickle of the fountain, the murmur of conversation from the terrace above rose and fell in waves. There was a child's squeal, and a muffled shout.
Clio hadn't responded. He looked intently into her eyes, glinting with reflections of moonlight in the dimness, shining with tears.
"Stay with me here, at Villa Cielo Incantato, forever. Be my wife, be the mother of my children. Con te voglio invecchiare, se Dio vuole. With you beside me Clio I can do anything. Will you be my muse?"
He watched her smile grow wide. "Si. Yes, I will. Ti amo, Guillermo d'Aldobrandin. You are my family. You are my home."
Guillermo reached up and took her face between his hands. He pulled her closer and pressed his mouth tenderly to hers.
She pulled away, and whispered words of devotion against his lips, their breath mingling. "Ti voglio. Il mio cuore è solo tuo. My heart is yours alone and always." Her arms slipped around his shoulders, and her fingers threaded into his hair.
He pulled her into a tight embrace and kissed her again, hot and hard and possessive.
Suddenly there was applause and cheering. Gasping, they broke apart and looked up. His family stood on the steps peering between the shrubbery, moonlight illuminating their smiling faces. This time, there was no mistaking the reason. The family was cheering for them.
THE END
Acknowledgments
Thank you as always to the Mountain Mavens, Michele, Donna & Joanna, who have supported me and championed my career, and who critiqued sections of this book when it was still a rough NaNoWriMo draft. I'd also like to acknowledge the NaNoWriMo organization and all its volunteers, for creating a supportive and fun environment that allowed me to blitz this manuscript and several others in a high energy event that helps keep me productive and creative. Thank you to Kyla who patiently beta read an early version, and provided honest and helpful feedback when I needed it most, to beta-reader Holly who cheered me on, and to the many RWA chapter contest judges who volunteered their time to comment and critique early drafts. Also, a heartfelt thanks to Deborah, a fellow RWA-GVC member who beta-read the nearly-there manuscript, pointed out the million exclamation marks (!), and taught me something so important about my writing that I was finally ready to hear. Finally, thank you to Gabrielle Prendergast for designing a beautiful cover for Clio and Guillermo's story. As always, to my family, who continue to indulge my passion– Thank you.
My apologies to Renaissance Italian history and anyone who’s particular about it for any liberties taken for my story.
About the Author
M A Clarke Scott's early loves included two things: books and art. In her worldview, blank white pages, canvasses and even walls, are begging for her creations.
Neither of these passions have waned, despite all the other adventures she's had in the meantime. She wrote her first romance novel at the age of nine, but soon abandoned both writing and drawing for a career in architecture, then an academic career in environmental gerontology. Tiring of both, and still none the richer, she has returned to her first loves, writing and art.
Her geeky fascinations include wormholes and time travel, archeology, European history, French films, neuroplasticity, metaphysics, Jungian psychology, and using big words ;-)
She loves to write about young women on journeys abroad who discover themselves and fall in love while getting embroiled in someone else's problems… and professional women struggling to balance the challenge and fulfillment of their career with their search for identity, love, family and home. She also loves to weave dramatic relationships into close-to-home sci-fi adventure plots, particularly in the steampunk and cyberpunk sub-genres.
You can read more about M A, her books, and ideas that strike her fancy at www.maryannclarkesco
tt.com. If you enjoyed this book, please rate it and leave a review on Amazon and Goodreads.
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15160160.M_A_Clarke_Scott
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M A lives with a small menagerie of large men and small mammals on the beautiful West Coast of British Columbia, and though she knows she lives in paradise, still loves traveling the world in search of romance and adventure.
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