Gambler's Folly (Bookstrand Publishing Romance) by Mellie E. Miller Page B

suite. Clutching her to him, he apologized for leaving her alone and insisted she must rest.
    “No, really, Dam, I’m fine,” she told him once again. “Dante has made sure everything is right before it comes up to the room. Marco says the kitchen staff is jittery from him poking around all the time, peering into things.”
    Damiano chuckled at the thought, and finally accepting her assurances, grabbed an apple from the dish. “Such a world I was on. They had no apples, can you believe it?” he said, taking a large crunchy bite.
    Karianna laughed. “You and your apples. You must be in withdrawal after four days without them.”
    “There is no withdrawal…” he said frowning. “Oh! You make a joke, cara. Yes, I am nearly in need of medical attention from lack of apples.”
    “So wherever we go for our trip, we must be sure there are apples, right?”
    “You are so funny, cara. Of course there will be apples, as long as we stay on this world.” Finishing up his last bite, he asked, “Have you decided what you want to do?”
    “Well, I’ve got a couple of ideas. It depends on what you like to do. I don’t want to insist on something if you won’t like it.”
    “Karianna, I like most things. Whatever you choose, I’m sure will be fine.”
    “I used to go skiing every winter at home. I haven’t been in a long time, and I’m probably kind of rusty. And I know I don’t really have any equipment or anything, so if you’d rather do something else…” It all came out in an apologetic tumble.
    Laughing, Damiano shook his head. “Cara, cara, per favore ! I like to ski. It’s fine. We can buy you some clothes and some skis. I have a lodge up by Monte Calvo. It is beautiful, lots of trees, evergreens. Wonderful for skiing, the snow is polvere , how you say, powder.”
    “Are you sure, Dam? I mean we could go and swim…” she began.
    “Do you want to ski or swim, cara?” he asked.
    “Well, ski, if you don’t mind buying everything I’ll need.”
    “Then we’ll ski. When do you want to leave?”
    “I don’t know,” she said, confused. “I don’t know what your plans are.”
    “My plans are your plans, cara. Why don’t we leave day after tomorrow? Tomorrow we can have the equipment sent to the lodge, so we don’t have to travel with it. And we can leave it there when we come home, for another time.”
    The rest of the afternoon became rather involved. Though a little later than usual, they dined upstairs in the restaurant, their meals brought to them by the dashing and vigilant Dante. After a leisurely tour of the gaming tables, they turned in for some good old-fashioned sleep.

Chapter 15
     
    Early in the morning, Karianna and an excited Damiano went to have her measured for ski gear. With Damiano, there was no shopping. He knew exactly what he wanted her to have, and just where to get it. “I order all my ski equipment here,” he told her. “I’ve known these people for several years, and they’ve always given me good service.”
    His enthusiasm over their trip was nearly too much for Karianna. He was like a little boy in a toy store. With jacket, mask, hat, gloves, skis, boots, and everything else finally ordered to measure, they went to lunch in a little hole-in-the-wall place, which was completely independent from his establishments.
    “I thought it would be a nice change for you, cara,” he told her. “You haven’t been out much and don’t know anything about Speranza. And Dante can take the afternoon off.”
    “That will make the kitchen happy,” she responded with a smile.
    “Yes, Dante can be a little, um, intense?” he said. “He does the job I pay him to do.”
    The lunch was very different from what was served at Stella d’Oro. Both were fantastic in their own way, just different. After a relaxed and enjoyable afternoon around town, they made their way back to the suite.
    “Now, we need to pack for our trip,” Damiano told her on the way back.
    “What should I