Seduced by Innocence Read Online Free Page B

think of yourself?” he asked curiously.
    “I don’t really know,” she mused. “I feel very English, I’ve been reared English. It’s just—it’s just that I’ve taken too long coming back to my roots.”
    Astonished, she wondered why she’d said such a thing. The words had come from her mouth as if of their own accord, with no thought to prompt them. It was only after she’d spoken that she discovered the thought was there. And it was true. “Too long,” she repeated softly.
    Maurizio was looking a little surprised, as though her words had touched a spring within him. “You were bound to come,” he said. “Surely you realize that? Whatever your rearing may have been, blood speaks. And Italian blood does more than speak. It sings. Your roots will amaze you with their power to hold.”
    “I think Leo felt that,” she said slowly. “Italy called him.”
    “You spoke of a brother—”
    “Yes, Leo is my twin.” Terri’s heart began to beat faster as she came to the moment when she must decide just how much it was safe to tell. “He came to Venice, but his hotel closed for the winter and he moved out without telling me where he was going.” She gave a little laugh that she tried to make sound natural. “He’s such a wretch, always moving about, disappearing and reappearing suddenly. When I realized he’d taken off again, I got jealous. Why should he have all the fun of Italy? So I packed my bags and followed him here. Perhaps I’ll get on to his trail. If not, I’ll still have enjoyed myself.”
    It was a plausible story, and she finished it with a chuckle, meant to convey the impression that her search was a lighthearted matter.
    “And also you will have discovered who you are,” Maurizio said.
    “Well—I think I know who I am. But I’ll discover more about my roots.”
    “Isn’t that the same thing? You may find you’re more Italian than English, after all.”
    “I shouldn’t think that’s likely, not after the way I was raised.”
    “Don’t be too sure. Italy is a jealous mother. Her children are hers alone, no matter who else has nursed them.”
    “I wonder,” she said. “I really wonder.”
    Maurizio became absorbed in watching her face. It had an inward, untouched quality that puzzled him. She was so different from what he’d expected that for a moment he forgot his purpose and concentrated on watching the shifts of thought and feeling over her delicate features. She had an air of candor and warmth that touched his cynical heart like a spring breeze and he was almost tempted to take her farther along the path they’d started—or let her take him. He wasn’t sure which. But then he remembered that spring had been over long ago. The early darkness that had fallen on the city was proof of that, and what was true of Venice was true of himself. What was done was done and he could afford no distractions.
    With an effort, he forced himself back to reality. “Tell me about your brother. You said you’re twins. Are you close?”
    “Yes, we’ve always been closer to each other than to anyone else,” Terri said with a reminiscent smile. “As long as I can recall, I’ve looked after him.”
    “You looked after him?” Maurizio asked in surprise. “Not he after you?”
    Terri chuckled. “He’s just a kid in many ways. Although we’re the same age, I’ve always felt years older. Whenever he got into trouble, I talked him out of it.”
    “And if you were in trouble, didn’t he come to your rescue?” Maurizio’s face lit up with sudden humor. “Or were you never in trouble? Yes, that was it. I see you as one of those terribly neat little girls with every hair in place and an air of natural authority.”
    “What a dreadful picture,” Terri said, laughing. “I was never like that. I was a tomboy, always in mischief.”
    “Now, I find that very hard to picture. You, a tomboy? You seem so—sedate.”
    “I was a tomboy when I was a child,” Terri insisted. “Reckless,