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time that had passed since his last dive.
“How have you stayed away from it so long?”
“Too much work.”
“But there are lots of marvelous diving sites in the Naples area. Surely you could have taken some time off.”
“True, but even though the office is there, I don’t live in Naples and am always anxious to fly home at the end of the day.”
That was a surprise. “Where is home?”
“Positano.”
“Oh—such a glorious spot with fabulous diving opportunities.”
“My friends and siblings did it with me for several years, but for most of the last year my sister Valentina lived with me while she was expecting her baby. That meant no diving for her. As I told you earlier, we’d just lost our mother in a car accident. I divided my time between visiting my father at our family home in Naples and staying around the villa for my sister in order to keep her company.”
Alessandra hadn’t realized he’d carried such a load. She was touched by the way he cared for his family. “Did she have her baby?”
“Si. My nephew, Vito, is thriving. The man Valentina married has adopted him. They live in Ravello with his son, Ric. Both babies were born the same day at the same hospital.”
“You’re kidding—”
“What’s really amazing was that the babies got switched. Valentina brought the wrong baby home while the man she married took home Valentina’s son.”
“What?” She almost lost control of the wheel. “How awful! Where was the mother?”
“They were divorced. At birth she gave up her mother’s rights to Giovanni. It was a nightmare after the babies were returned to their birth parents. By then Valentina and Giovanni had bonded with the children. At that point they began to see each other so they could be with both babies and they fell in love.”
A smile lit up her face. “That’s the greatest love story I ever heard. How hard to love the wrong baby, but how sweet they were able to make everything work out. The person I feel sorry for is the mother who gave her child away. I can’t comprehend it. I love my mother so much, I don’t want to think what it would have been like if she hadn’t been there for me. In fact I can’t wait until the day comes when I can have my own baby.”
He seemed caught up in his own thoughts before he said, “Fortunately she came to her senses and has now worked out visitation so she can help raise her son.”
“That’s the way it should be!” But Alessandra couldn’t help but wonder about the father of his sister’s baby. Still, she didn’t want to pry.
“I can read your mind, Alessandra. Vito’s father was one of Valentina’s engineering professors at the University in Naples, but he didn’t want marriage or children. My sister suffered terribly, but today she’s so happy, you would never know she’d been through so much trauma.”
Alessandra could relate to the trauma. Her hands tightened on the controls. She was living proof you could get through a broken heart and survive the emotional pain, but not everyone could end up as happy as his sister.
“So she’s an engineer, too.”
“Yes. A brilliant one.”
“What does her husband do for a living?”
“He’s the CEO of the Laurito Corporation.”
Alessandra smiled at him. “That’s an amazing combination. Your sister was blessed to have a brother like you to watch over her.” She was coming to find out Rini was an extraordinary man. He’d even bought that little gift for Liona.
“Our family is close.”
Alessandra could say the same where her parents were concerned. Before long she could pick out the red-and-white scuba flags from two boats ahead. “There they are!” The group had already started diving in an area near the coast. “If anything of significance is found, Dr. Tozzi will bring out the institute’s boat. Today we’re still exploring.”
Alessandra brought her boat to a stop and lowered the anchor. After she raised her flag, she looked back at Rini. He’d already slipped on his wet suit. By the gleam in his eyes she could tell he’d been anticipating this dive.
“I’ll be right back.” She took her wet suit below to change. Talk about excited. She could hardly keep her fingers from trembling before going back up on deck.
In a moment they’d put on their weight belts and buoyancy-control devices. He reminded her of the film phenomenon James Bond. She finished dressing and put her goggles in place. “We’ll be going down eighty feet. Ready?”
“Si, bellissima.”
He shouldn’t have said that to her. The deep tone of his compliment curled to her insides, disturbing her concentration. She ended up jumping in the water after he did, almost forgetting to keep her goggles and regulator in place.
The air temperature registered eighty degrees, but the water was cooler. Once below the surface she pressed the button to let out some air. The weights carried her down, down. Rini stayed right with her, watching her as their ears adjusted to the pressure. She could tell by the way he moved that he was a pro. It made her feel perfectly safe.
Eight minutes later they reached the sea floor with its clumps of vegetation and only a smattering of tiny fish. He stayed with her as she moved toward the area where she could see the group working. They all waved to her. She motioned for Rini to swim with her beyond the circle and examine a nearby area. The ridge in the distance looked promising, but as she brushed some of the debris away, it turned out to be more debris instead of a column lying on its side.
Rini found some interesting spots and waved her over to him, but every investigation came up short. She got the feeling they were searching in the wrong area. After a half hour he tapped his watch. She’d been about to do the same thing because it was time to go up and it would take a while.
They started the ascent, listening to the rhythm of their breathing through their regulators. She felt like they were the only people alive and loved this dive that had been magical for her. The sheer pleasure of enjoying this experience with him, of depending on him, could never be equaled.
Once they broke the surface, he helped her onto the transom before levering himself on board. Before she could sit down on a banquette, another boat approached them.
“Alessandra—”
“Ciao, Bruno.” She waved to him and the three others from the institute who rode with him.
“I was hoping you’d make it. Who’s your friend?”
“Bruno Tozzi, meet Signor Montanari.” The two men nodded. She refused to tell him anything about Rini. “It’s too bad we haven’t turned up anything interesting yet.”
“We’ll have to keep searching tomorrow.”
Another of the divers said, “Why don’t you join us in Crotone for dinner?”
“Thank you, but I’m afraid we have other plans. We’ll do another dive with you in the morning.”
“Bene.”
In a minute their boat drove off. Alessandra was glad he’d gone and hurried below deck to get out of her wet suit. When she came up on deck a few minutes, she found Rini already changed into his clothes. He’d organized their gear near the back of the boat and had taken down the flag.
His eyes played over her. “It’s growing dark. Do you have a place in mind where we can camp?”
“Yes. A small, secluded cove five minutes from here. I’ll raise the anchor.” She turned on the boat lights and they headed for the coast. Her heart fluttered in her chest when she thought of spending the night out here with him.