“We need to go now,” Cristiano said, looking at his watch.

“We do?” Keira asked, surprised. She had gotten wrapped up in the thought-provoking discussion.

“Yes, we are heading to Capri today,” Cristiano continued. “You need to collect your case from the hotel.”

They both stood and Keira thanked Vanni for his sublime coffee and his contribution to the article. He kissed her on each cheek as a way of saying goodbye and then spoke in a hushed voice to Cristiano.

They started to walk back through town, Cristiano leading the way like a gentleman again.

“What did Vanni whisper to you as we left?” Keira asked him.

“Nothing,” Cristiano replied.

Keira wasn’t certain but she thought she heard a hint of embarrassment in his voice, a certain amount of evasiveness. She entertained the thought that perhaps Vanni had whispered something about her, about her being a good catch, and she smiled at the thought.

“Did you work with Vanni, then?” Keira asked Cristiano as they strolled languidly through the hillside village.

“Yes, many summers ago. We were both in Florence then, my home city. I was back home for the summer from university, and Vanni had chosen to spend his summer there to work and save money. We crossed paths a few times over the years. People who work in tourism often do.”

“You mean like touring the country to work and save money?”

“Exactly,” Cristiano confirmed. “For young people it is a very good way of life. Each summer you find another beautiful city to serve coffee and gelato in. You meet many people that way.”

“And many lovers?” Keira quipped.

Cristiano smirked. “Yes, and that too.”

Keira could see how the whole seasonal relationship concept might come about under such a system. Young people on their downtime from their studies exploring their beautiful country, working in easy, sociable jobs to earn some spare money to fund their degrees. It definitely sounded like a calmer way of living than grinding yourself into the ground spending every summer working internships for free, like Keira and all her friends had done.

“What did you study?” Keira asked, realizing she didn’t know a huge amount about Cristiano as a person. “And where?”

“The University of Bologna,” he replied. “Have you heard of it? It is the oldest university in the Western world.”

Keira had to confess that she had not. Her knowledge of the world outside of the US could be woefully lacking.

Cristiano continued. “I studied literature and linguistics.”

“You did?” Keira said, surprised. “I majored in journalism but took a ton of literature classes. European literature amongst them.”

“You seem surprised that we have something in common,” Cristiano said.

“I suppose I am,” Keira replied, a little guiltily. So far she’d thought of Cristiano as nothing more than a hunk with a friendly personality. It hadn’t occurred to her that he may be intelligent. “I just didn’t take you for a reader.”

“Then perhaps you should make fewer assumptions,” Cristiano relied with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.