Mia stared at Vittoria for a second longer than polite, eyes flicking from her face to her coat and back again, as if her brain needed time to catch up.
Then she stepped aside.
"Come in," she said, still smiling, still looking curious.
Vittoria nodded, staying just behind Leo as they crossed the threshold.
The warmth of the apartment hit them right away, along with the smell of food that had clearly been cooking for hours.
Before Leo could say anything else, Sofia appeared from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a towel, eyes already fixed on the guest.
"Oh," she said, stopping short. "Oh, wow."
Leo groaned quietly.
"Aunt Sofia."
Sofia ignored him and stepped closer, looking Vittoria up and down with open admiration.
"You're gorgeous," she said without hesitation.
"Leo never mentioned having a gorgeous friend like you." She paused, then added, pointedly, "Friend."
Leo shook his head, lifting his bottle of water to hide his face.
