Page 66 of His Two Hidden Masks

A young man on a ladder strung colored lights from the corner of the campo to the fountain, making a tent of lights to sparkle and bathe the campo in color until Carnival ended.

Drinking, dancing, and costumes started tonight and would continue every day until the ball at Doge's Palace. As I walked through the campo, I realized that I wanted to experience the magic of Carnival with Dylan. I wanted to feel his arm wrapped around my lower back, his body pressed up against mine. I wanted to slow dance with him under a canopy of lights.

I sat frozen on a wooden bench by the fountain and closed my eyes, fighting my rising tears. Disappointment and waves of anger mixed and moved through me. I was trapped and afraid that there was nothing I could do to change things.

My phone beeped. It was Leo.

Come out tonight.

David is being a bad boyfriend. Come cheer me up.

Affe di Baco 8:30

I messaged him back.

OK. I will meet you, but I may be terrible company.

I saw three little dots as Leo replied by sending me a series of hearts and cocktail glasses. I laughed, relieved that I still could. Leo always knew how to pull me out of a spiral.

I saw no way to continue Bella Baci after my father issued his ultimatum. In fact, my father would be furious if he knew that I’d used the kitchen at Andiamo that morning to make what now seemed like a ridiculous number of caramels.

What was I going to do with all of them now? I put my face in my hands. My other problem was Dylan.

Papa forbid me to see him, which wasn’t that difficult, since we were not in a real relationship. I didn’t even have the man’s cell number. I knew it was irrational, but the idea of losing him made me ache. His touch, his kiss, his passion had changed me. What was going to happen when I no longer stood in his glow?

I stood and sighed, walking to the kitchen door of Andiamo, when I heard the soft sound of music coming from inside. Theshades were drawn, I couldn’t see inside. It was still too early for the dinner crew to be on-site, and the notes sounded different than the pop music that the kitchen crew played during prep.

I opened the door to the kitchen. Someone was playing live music. And that someone was none other than Dylan Street.

13

Dylan sat on a stool near the walk-in refrigerators. He held an acoustic guitar in his lap and strummed a melody that effortlessly shifted between melancholy and slow-dance sexy.

The tune was mesmerizing. His eyes closed, he swayed as his fingers moved up and down the neck of the guitar.

All I could think about were his hands running up and down my legs. My breathing changed as I stood anchored in the door frame.

“Sorry, Papa,” I thought. “So much for not seeing Dylan, I lasted all of ten minutes.” Watching Dylan play, I felt wholly uninspired to follow my father’s commands to ignore this beautiful man.

Dylan glanced up, giving me a nod that sent shivers through my body. With just a look, I felt undone. It was as if the world around us faded, and he was the only one in the room.

So, this was the other side of Dylan Street, I thought, the one he hid from most of the world, the one he chose to share with me.

The sound of a knife cutting into a chef’s block snapped me out of my haze. This wasn’t a private concert. This was an impromptu performance for me, Auntie Aurora, sous chef Andrea, and Vincenzo, the kitchen porter.

This was absolutely not going to go stay under the fucking radar unless I shut it down. In fact, it may have been too late.

“Good morning, Auntie Aurora, Andrea, Vincenzo,” I said as I walked past the silver work stations in the kitchen. I hoped I sounded normal; I feared I didn’t. If Dylan was in some sort of a musical fugue state, I could at least help him realize he was not alone. “What a lovely surprise,” I said, nodding at Dylan.

“Good morning, Bella,” Auntie Aurora said, in a sing-song voice. Her brown eyes sparkled as she stood beside Vincenzo, who was prepping chicken breasts while Andrea sliced onions. The air was spicy.

Dylan smiled, his eyes locking on mine, never taking his hands off the guitar that he continued to play. He nodded at Auntie Aurora, Vincenzo, and Andrea. Auntie Aurora stepped away from the prep table and motioned me over into her small office and closed the door behind us.

“I wanted to speak to you freely,” Auntie Aurora said. “He was playing when we came in. I recognized him from the board meeting, so I thought maybe he is eccentric. I don’t know. I let him keep playing.”

She smiled at me. “Was he looking for you, Bella? He certainly wasn’t here looking for me, although I can wish.”

“I don’t know why he is here,” I said, lowering my voice to a whisper, even behind the closed door. “And that isn’t James. It’s Dylan, his twin brother.”

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