Sophie Moreno is shockingly disheveled. Her usually immaculate ensemble is replaced by faded shorts and a grass-stained T-shirt. Never in her fifteen years, has Bessie seen Ash’s mother in such a state. Her hair needs a trim and a wash. Her lovely dark skin is devoid of makeup. The polish on her nails is badly chipped.
When the woman opens her front door, however, her dark eyes light up. “Oh, Bessie, I’m so glad you’ve come to see us. Gianni, look who’s here!”
A stocky Italian, displaying more gray in his hair than Bessie can remember, peeks his head around the doorframe. “So good to see you, sweetheart.”
Sophie opens the door wider, beckoning the girl in through the living room and out the sliding doors at the back to the patio where a table is set up with iced tea and glasses. “We wer
