"I can't believe I'm back to the castle," Valentina said as she walked arm in arm with her mother through the hallway towards the big living room.
"I still remember when your father built this place," Bianca smiled dreamily. "He said we might not live here yet but he wanted to build something for his princess. It was you," she laughed.
"What was he like?"
"Misunderstood," she answered in a heartbeat.
"I heard he stole you from Italy."
Bianca burst out laughing. "I see that story is still being peddled," she said through her laughter.
"So it's not true?"
"Wellll, he didn't really need to steal me. I would have gone anywhere willingly with him. The first time I saw your father, it was on an outing with your grandfather. Matteo had invited him to his ship and he brought me along."
"Matteo Alvarez. Luciano's father?"
"Yeah. He was married to a woman slightly older than I was at the time, but we were friends. Luciano was still just a boy. Aurora was in the womb. Life was good."
