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‘Colish, ‘there is so much to do, and so little time But, oh, the result will be favoloso!’

She beckoned to her sly ‘Rafaello we send away—he is quite useless here, and I have no wish for his opinions’ She glanced at him huestures with her hands

Magda finally found her voice ‘Please—what is happening?’

The woman’s dark eyes sparkled mischievously ‘A surprise!’

Magda looked anxiously at Rafaello, hands clenching each other over the worn strap of her bag His face was unreadable, but abruptly he said so nod, headed out through a door at the rear of the rooda a moment as she stood there, visibly anxious

‘There is nothing to worry about,’ he said His voice came more tersely than he had intended ‘Just place yourself in Olivia’s hands and you will be fine’

‘I don’t understand,’ she said stiffly

He looked down at her athe words difficult, he said, ‘If I could undo what you heardI would do so But I cannot All I can do,’ he finished, ‘is disprove it’

Her face stilled It was like aover her face—the way it had been when he had taken her back into her roo her a wall to hide behind—a wall to shield her from what she had heard his father tell her

Only the eyes gave her away He could see the hurt in them

‘But you can’t disprove it,’ she said quietly, her voice quite expressionless ‘Because it is the truth, isn’t it? What your father said? I was…am…the perfect insult to throw at hi your family could possibly welcome as a bride And that’s why you married me That’s exactly why you married me and not someone from your oorld To insult your father’