“Yes! Thank you for meeting me.”
“With pleasure! With pleasure!” her accent was thick and I liked her immediately. Her name was Maria and she was the caretaker of the massive palace. We began the tour. Upon walking into the building it took my breath away. It was a massive space with high ceilings that looked like a cathedral. There would be ample space for a ballroom dance floor surrounded by plush furnishings and lots of food and entertainment. I was impressed.
Off the main ballroom were large halls that led to smaller more intimate rooms. They were perfect areas to stage dinner tables and lounge areas. I was in heaven. Maria loved that I was so blown away by the space. She gave me a blueprint layout and I was on my way out the door.
I decided to walk back through the streets of San Marco instead of the gondola ride. As I walked I passed shops with beautiful ball gowns in the windows. I still needed to get a gown. I laughed as that thought ran through my mind. I never thought I would actually say that. I was happily walking when my phone rang. It was Clay’s assistant Max.
“Hello Eva. How’s Venice?” he asked.
“It’s amazing. I just toured the event space and everything is going smoothly.”
“Perfect. I just wanted to give you a heads up on Clay’s schedule. It seems he still will not be able to join you in Venice. His girlfriend has some sort of emergency. If you need anything just give me a call. I can come out if you need me as well.”
“Of course, thank you.”
As I said goodbye to Max and hung up the phone, I tried my utmost to pretend that the word ‘girlfriend’ hadn’t hit me like a blow to the solar plexus.
7
I stood there motionless. Suddenly everything made sense. Clay had a girlfriend.
Which meant our time in the garden together meant he was cheating. I was hurt, jealous, and confused. How could he?
I needed to get back to my room. I needed to be alone. I walked fast and as I looked around I started to notice all the couples walking hand in hand. The romance of Venice was suddenly like a thorn through my heart.
I got back to the palazzo and hurried to my room. It felt good to be alone and to process the information that I learned. It seemed obvious now that a girlfriend must be the reason he rejected me in the garden. It must be the reason he was so cold to me in my apartment. It was relieving to know that it wasn’t because there was something wrong with me. But it made me furious. Clay obviously had some sort of sense of entitlement to do that sort of thing to me in the first place. Even if he did stop himself, to me, intimate is intimate.
I slept restlessly that night, completely unprepared for what awaited me in the morning.
I woke up to a loud knock at the door. I sleepily made my way over and opened it. In rushed two loud women followed by the maid, Sofia who profusely apologized for the intrusion.
Suddenly I was in a whirlwind of measuring tape and fabrics.
One woman, who clearly was the boss, ordered another to bring in the gowns. The gowns? I thought. Within seconds gorgeous ball gowns were scattered around my room along with masks and magnificent shoes.
Being still half asleep, I thought I was dreaming.
She informed me that Mr. Roth ordered their services to provide me with as many gowns as I needed to get through each day of Carnivale. I was astonished.
The dressmaker acted as if I knew what was going on. I did not. I managed to grab my phone and check my email while the women set about measuring me and pressing various colors of fabric against my skin.
I had an email from Max stating that Clay had ordered my wardrobe to wear to Carnivale events and that it was part of the job.
I smiled at the perks coming my way and then worried that I had truly messed up this wonderful job by being intimate with the boss. For now, I had to put that out of my mind.
The maid, Sofia, came in with an assortment of pastries and espresso drinks. I felt like a princess as I tried on dress after dress allowing the dressmaker to make the alterations to suit my body and height.
The masks ranged from delicate antiques to ones that were freshly made for this year’s festivities. I was in wardrobe heaven and I could really imagine as though I was living in a past century.
She chose ten elegant ball gowns of silk for the evenings. I had them in many shades each with their own unique design. There was a rich yellow gold silk dress that reflected the light and made me look like I was glowing. A matching gold mask was covered in sequins so it sparkled when I moved. A pale mint green gown of taffeta and silk gave me a softer appearance. It was perfect for the garden parties or a smaller ball or evening dinner. A fuchsia pink dress went perfectly with my complexion with pink satin heels to go with it. I also had gowns in purple, blue, white, peach, red, and silver.
For the daytime the dressmaker gave me seven outfits that were perfect for less formal occasions or just walking around Venice. These were in solid colors and made from lighter fabrics like cotton and linen. They were also beautiful with intricate patterns and lots of lace.
After the fitting, my closet was bursting with sexy dresses and corsets and my vanity was full of magnificent costume jewelry and masks. I was now ready for Carnivale. I was beyond excited.
Before the dressmaker left she helped me pick my wardrobe for the daytime. I was now wearing one of those daytime gowns. It had all the right designs of a vintage dress circa 1800s, but was more modest and simple for the daytime activities. It was a deep magenta made from soft cotton with intricate lace details. I piled my hair on top of my head into a messy but elegant up do, my favorite thing to do with my long hair.
The matching mask was a very slim piece of white lace made to cover just my eyes, like a cat mask. I tied it around my head with ribbon and was happy to not have to hold a mask with a stick like the more traditional ones.
I opened the shutters to my window that over looked the canal and the sights below were incredible. People lined the canal for the boat parade and almost everyone was in costume.
Within minutes the parade started and boat after decorative boat floated down the canal. I had a perfect view from my room. People everywhere were filled with excitement and an energy that promised romance and magic. I once again could not believe this was actually my life.
After the parade, I prepared to leave. My first event of the day was a lunch masquerade party. I was going in order to meet up with the caterer. This particular caterer was the one I’d hired to do the charity ball and I wanted to watch him work and make sure the work and food was to my satisfaction.
Of course, I would also take every opportunity to enjoy myself as well.
I told Sofia, I would be leaving and she mentioned that the gondola and gondolier, Ernetto, were at my disposal for the duration of the festivities.
It was basically like having a private car and chauffeur. He was an employee of Clay’s palazzo. I would have much preferred to walk but the pedestrian traffic was at an all time high. So I agreed to go by boat.
Through the canals we floated and I saw the most amazing costumes and happiness on people’s faces. For a minute I longed to have a group of my own to enjoy this festival with, but I had to remind myself that I was here for work first and foremost.
Ernetto pulled up to a water staircase that led up to a large stoned wall covered in green vines with purple flowers. It smelled heavenly.
“Here you are, bella. The Garden of Kings.”
“Thank you,” I said as he helped me out of the gondola.
Garden of Kings? I thought to myself. I thought that was the name of the party, but maybe I was wrong and it was the name of the location.