“Just remember all those times youlaughed about something with Algaia,” he reminded me, althoughthere was really no need.
Birgit and Gisela were busy in thekitchen, helped by the freedwoman who was the cook in name only,and the smell of roasting meat and baking bread filled the house,even into the triclinium,which we were using. When the family was trying to scrape the moneytogether, they had been forced to stop paying her and her husband,the latter working around the villa doing repairs and things likefiring the baths, the duties that had been seen to by Chickpea, butBirgit had not had the heart to evict them from the former slavequarters, so they were both happy to be told they could now berehired. Every so often, Birgit would come in to listen to ustalking, as did Gisela, but one time she did so, she caught my eyeand beckoned to me. While I of course complied, I was a bitapprehensive, especially when, without saying a word, she led me tothe short hallway that led to the stairs, which the year before, Isaw was used to give family members a modicum ofprivacy.
She was chewing on her lip and looking downat the floor, reminding me that, while in a physical sense she wasa woman, she was still in many ways a young girl, but I wascompletely unprepared for her to blurt out, “Gnaeus, now that I’vegotten to know her, I really like Bronwen. And,” she did look up atme then, “you are blessed by Fortuna to have her love you.” I wasrelieved and a bit confused, but I did not hesitate to agree, and Iimpulsively pulled her to me to give her a hug. “I’m going to makean offering to Venus, Bona Dea, and Fortuna that you are both happytogether and live long lives, with many children,” she whispered,and I found myself blinking rapidly.
“You,” I told her when we broke ourembrace, “are going to make some man very, very happy yourself.But,” I raised an admonishing finger, “remember that he has to beworthy of you.” I grinned at her. “You don’t want me coming backdown here thrashing him if he treats you badly.”
“I’ll be sure to tell every one ofthem.” She laughed, and I looked at her in mocksurprise.
“How may suitors do youhave?”
“A few,” she answered with a toss ofher head as if it was a silly question.
Her mother called, and she returned tothe kitchen while I went back to the triclinium, where Alex was eyeing mesuspiciously.
“What’s Gisela up to now?”
“Nothing,” I assured him. “But,” Iadded soberly, or I tried to appear so, “you know she’s got a lotof young men sniffing around here.”
“How many is a lot?” He sat up now,frowning in concern, but I could not hold it in anymore and beganto laugh.
“You should see your face.” Miriam waslaughing as well. Then she patted Alex on the knee as she advised,“You need to trust your mother, your sister, and us. We won’t lether fall in love with someone who is wrong for her.”
I was a bit disappointed to see thatthis eased his mind, wanting to enjoy tormenting him a bit longer.It was not long after this when Miriam’s husband showed up, and Irealized with a surprise that I had no idea what he would looklike, but when he came into the triclinium and we were introduced, I was a bitdisappointed that he was only of average height, with an averagebuild. Very quickly, however, I saw two things: that he had a readywit and good sense of humor, and Miriam truly loved him, and heplainly felt the same. With everyone present, I went to rouseBronwen, and I had to hide a grin at the manner in which Miriamscowled behind her husband’s back when Servius practically fellover himself to kiss Bronwen’s hand. She was wearing her greengown, and her hair was pulled back and tied with a green ribbon,and as she had walked past me, I caught a scent that made me thinkof a garden of fragrant flowers…and other things.
Septimus, along with Miriam, had a surprisein store for us, but it was my aunt who announced, “Actually,Gnaeus, we were thinking that since this is our last nighttogether, perhaps Bronwen would like to see how Romans are supposedto eat.”
At first, I did not understand, but then ithit me and I gave a small gasp of surprise that made her look at mecuriously.
“You mean, on couches?” When Miriamnodded, I was about to say no, but Bronwen grabbed my arm, andasked pleadingly, “Please, Gnaeus? I have heard of this.” Sheturned to the others as she added shyly, “I thought that you werenot eating in your normal manner because you did not want to makeme uncomfortable since I have no knowledge of this.”
This produced laughter all around, andMiriam assured her, “Bronwen, I can count on one hand the number oftimes we’ve eaten in the formal dining room in the last tenyears.”
“We only do it when we have someoneimportant visiting,” Septimus agreed, “like one of theduumviri.”
Knowing I was outflanked, I offeredBronwen my arm, and we both moved to the formal dining room, whichis directly opposite the atrium from the triclinium, yet another difference with thisvilla since the triclinium isnormally used for dining, but the merchant who built it apparentlyentertained a great deal, although I personally believe he was justshowing off by making the house larger by adding rooms. Naturally,I had showed it to Bronwen when we had been here earlier, but nowit was markedly different, with the couches arranged, althoughinstead of the three sides, it was a square of couches toaccommodate all of us. The room was lit by several lamps, the lowtables polished and the pillows recently plumped, and I didexperience a pang of memory, since Quintus Volusenus had insistedthat we eat in this manner throughout my childhood. I always hadthe sense that my mother was, if not indifferent, then somewhatambivalent about this practice; it was not until last year, whenall of the truth came out that she told me that one of her fondestmemories of her time with my real father
