33
Lago di Como, 2010
Ruby gazed at herself in the mirror, recalling how she’d looked the first time she’d met Niccolò. Did he still imagine that shapely, exuberant young woman in his mind’s eye, or had she faded into the past? She pulled her shoulders back. Today was all that mattered any more.
“Aunt Ruby,” Ariana called out, tapping on Ruby’s bedroom door. “Niccolò just arrived for you.”
“Thank you, darling. I’ll be right down. But please, come in.”
Ariana stepped inside Ruby’s bedroom.
“What do you think of this outfit?” Ruby asked.
Ruby had changed clothes three times, trying to decide the right outfit to wear with Niccolò today. They were taking the ferry to Varenna. Looking at herself in the mirror, she decided the flowing silk blouse splashed with butterflies, along with a pi
