The crowd around her ebbed and flowed as though she sat on a beach watching the waves. Not being able to understand what people were saying around her gave her a feeling of invisibility. Like she was alone in the world and could do or say whatever she wanted without worrying about consequences. That had been one of the hard parts of being in the Rain family: whatever she said or did inevitably got back to her brothers, parents, Betty, or all three.
She glanced across the crowd, watching the interactions, and a bright blue pair of eyes caught hers. They belonged to a little girl with long golden hair walking with her dark-haired mother. She looked to be about six years old. The little girl smiled, her cheeks dimpling. Aja was touched, because children didn’t usually notice her. She glanced behind her, thinking the girl must be looking at someone else, but there was no one close by. She waved her hand and Aja waved back.
Aja sipped her coffee and watched the girl and her mother. She imagined Mia having a daughter.
A tiny Mia would be adorable.
The little girl grabbed her mother’s arm, babbling to her and tugging her in Aja's direction. The mother drew near with a smile. The golden girl stood in front of her and held out a hand. In it was a cookie. Aja looked at the cookie and then back at the little girl. She was dimpling again.
Her mother spoke. “She want you take.”
Aja reached out a hand and took the cookie. The little girl clapped her hands, delighted.
Adorable.
“I, Bella.”
“Your name is Bella?” Aja asked, surprised. It was the name every male she encountered gave her. Aja now knew the name meant beautiful. It fit the little girl perfectly.
Bella nodded, her curls bouncing on her shoulders. She wore a pretty pink sundress that set off her golden skin. “I Bella,” she said again then pointed at Aja.
“I’m Aja." She pointed a finger at herself.
“Aja,” Bella tried it, rolling the unfamiliar sound on her tongue. It had a sweet sound coming from her tiny mouth.
Bella's mother spoke up again. “I Julianna.
Piacere
.
Uh, nice meet you. Bella friendful.”
Her smile was lovely. She had dark hair, very different in color from her daughter, but alike in every other way. It hung to her waist in soft waves. She was small, but shapely. Her eyes took up most of her face and were a chestnut brown. Aja felt drawn to her. She reminded her of Mia.
Aja smiled at them both. “Thank you for the cookie, Bella.”
“Tank you,” she said.
They waved and left. Aja felt lonelier than before. Bella and her mother were beautiful. She found herself wondering about them; what they did with their day and why they were in the square. Not many people will walk up to a stranger like that. Bella seemed like a special girl. She also made Aja feel a little less nervous about having to take care of the babies the next day. It would be wonderful if they were all like her.
Her coffee had gone cold. The pictures in the magazine couldn’t hold her interest, and she couldn't read any of it anyway, so she got up and started wandering again. Aja's stomach growled. She decided to find a place to eat. Italy was nice, but the novelty of being there alone was wearing off. If only Mia wasn’t getting married.
They’d always dreamed of being at each other’s weddings. By the time they were ten they’d planned them out in minute detail, all the way down to the going away outfits. Mia was going to be Aja's maid of honor and Aja would be hers. They had even planned to marry brothers. If only Brad had a brother.
They had both wished Mia had a brother for Aja to marry and then Mia could marry one of Aja's. Olly of course, though Mia would never admit to her crush. That was the way they did everything; in pairs. And now she was getting married alone and Aja was halfway around the world without her.
Life is not only unfair, sometimes it’s downright cruel.
A beautiful smell up ahead stopped Aja in her tracks. She followed the scent like a starving person. It was heavenly. The smell led her to a tiny
ristorante
with a gorgeous sign hanging over it.
To Aja's shock, it was run by the woman she'd just met. Julianna. She beamed at Aja as she walked in the door. It was as though she were a witch luring Aja with the scent of her food. Julianna held out a platter heaped with aromatic pasta and Aja dropped into the nearest chair. After delivering the food to a customer, Julianna came to take her order.
"What food you like?"
"Whatever you just gave him." Aja pointed at the man seated kitty corner from her table. The look on his face as he ate was recommendation enough.
Julianna let out a tinkle of a laugh.
She studied Aja for a minute, then shook her head. “No. You have someting else. I get for you.” She turned on her heel and left.
The tiny restaurant was quaint, and designed more for the enjoyment of food than anything else. The tables were large and well-spaced. Aja agreed with the designer. There was nothing worse than trying to enjoy a good meal crammed up against your neighbor. The tables were covered in pretty floral cloths and there was a fat candle in a vase on each. The walls were covered in landscape paintings, apparently all done by the same artist.
Before long, Julianna was back with another plate of food. It smelled more amazing than any smell Aja had ever experienced. She put her face close to the plate and breathed in deeply, with great drama. Aja flopped back in her chair, pretending to swoon. Julianna grinned at her. Aja's dramatic nature was good for something at last. She could communicate without knowing the language. She took a bite and knew they were going to be the best of friends. “If I were a man, I’d ask you to marry me.”
Julianna beamed and babbled something in Italian, then flew away from the table again. Within seconds she was back dragging someone vaguely familiar behind her.
“No. You marry heem.” She thrust Pietro at Aja causing her to nearly choke on her food.
Pietro pounded her on the back while Julianna brought a glass of water and tried to force it down her throat.
“Okay, okay!” she gasped. "I’m okay."
The other customer had taken his eyes off the amazing food and was watching them in amusement.
Julianna and Pietro both stepped back and beamed at her. “My brother!” she said with obvious pride.
Of course he would be Julianna’s brother. He was starting to become like the proverbial bad penny. Or was this just the way her new life was going to be? No matter how hard she tried to be good, temptation was there to lure her.
Aja should have remembered how Italians love to match-make. Mia’s mother was forever trying to find them husbands - although Mia had eventually found her own, Mia’s mother was still working on Aja, sending a new man over to her house every other week.
Another couple came in, and Julianna bustled off to serve them. Pietro pulled out a chair and sat at Aja's table. She looked down at her plate so he wouldn't see the dismay in her eyes. As much as she wanted to keep him at bay, she couldn't bring herself to be mean to him.
Pietro took Aja's hand and kissed it. She snatched it back with a gasp. She knew if she wasn’t careful she’d be matched up before the night was over.
“We meet again, bella.”
“My name is Aja, not Bella.”
“I know, it a compliment. You are beautiful woman.”
Aja nodded at him and turned back to her food. Pietro made her nervous. He was too male, too enticing. She didn’t come to Italy just to fall into bed with another loser. Maybe she was being unfair to him, but she had no reason to expect anything else. She had met many men like him in her life and they always spelled trouble. In capitals.
“Good food, Aja?” Pietro flashed a set of brilliant teeth.
Aja smiled back. She couldn’t help it. The food was amazing. “Yes. Your sister is a wonderful cook.”
“Yes.” He puffed out his chest.
Aja liked seeing how he loved his sister. He moved up a notch in her eyes.
Just a notch!
“I like your dress, very sexy.”
Foolish man. He just dropped three notches. Aja said nothing and continued eating.
“Aja? Do I say someting wrong?”
“Yes. I am not interested in dating anyone right now.”
“Dating? What is this meaning?” He looked genuinely puzzled.
Aja squinted at him, trying to figure out if he was hiding behind the language barrier. He looked all innocence. “It means I’m not interested in having a boyfriend.”
“Ah. You not want to be friend with me?” He looked heartbroken. Of course she felt guilty, which was precisely his aim.
“Yes, I want to be friends with you, just not...” She tried to find a word that he would understand, then she saw the twinkle in his eye and smacked his arm. “You’re teasing me!”
“Yes, teasing you. You funny to tease. Very cute.”
Julianna brought a plate of pasta for Pietro and thumped it on the table in front of him. “You have stop eat here. I lose money.” She shook a finger in front of his nose. “You need wife,” she said with a sly glance in Aja's direction. Aja crossed her eyes at her and Julianna acted innocent.
Julianna pulled off her apron and sat at the table. She rattled off what sounded like a question to Pietro who then turned to Aja. “Julianna ask where you from.”
“I’m from Canada.”
She understood and her eyes widened. “Ah, Canadese.” She seemed pleased. “I like Canada. Want go there.”
Aja was surprised to hear that Julianna wanted to visit Canada when she lived in Italy. How strange that someone who lived in an exotic place wanted to visit what she thought of as a mundane place. Then she put herself in their shoes. Italy was home. It was normal everyday life for them. Only to Aja was it different and exciting. She wondered what they’d think of Canada.
“Canada is beautiful but it’s not like Italy,” Aja said.
“No, not Italy. Italy is...” Julianna waved her hands, searching for the word, then finished with, “Italy. It is Italy. No word.”
“Yes,” Pietro said around a mouthful of pasta. “There are no words for it. It’s...um...”
“Unique?” she asked.
“Ah. Unique. Yes. But, Canada too, no?”
“Yes, Canada is unique, too. Beautiful country, wild mountains, many animals. The winters can be cold, but they have a beauty, too. Canada is an amazing country.”
They both watched her, eyes wide. Julianna turned and poked her brother, babbled something at him, then pointed at Aja.
Pietro rubbed his arm and said, “Juli want to know if you going back or if you stay here long time?”
“I don’t know,” she shrugged, not knowing how to respond. “I want to stay for a while, but I will have to go home sometime. My family misses me.”
Julianna asked, “You have husband?”
“No.”
She grinned at that.
Incorrigible woman
.
She turned to Pietro, “See!”
“Okay you two, stop trying to match me. I’m fine on my own.” Aja changed the subject in desperation. “You have a husband, Julianna?”
She shook her head emphatically and Pietro looked upset. She realized it wasn’t a good topic, so she cast around for another one and came up empty. Instead she pushed her plate back and sighed, rubbing her stomach with drama. “That was wonderful, Julianna. Thank you very much.”
She beamed. “You welcome. Come back tomorrow?”
“I’m sorry, no, I can’t. I start work at the vineyard tomorrow. I probably won’t be back into town until the weekend. I’ll come back then.”
“Okay. Pietro will see you then.”
Aja pushed her chair back and Pietro rose with her. “Thank you. I better get back to the villa.”
“I walk with you,” Pietro said. Why wasn’t she surprised? She accepted though, because she had too many bags from her shopping excursion to carry on her own.
She paid far too little for the wonderful meal, but Julianna wouldn’t take any more money. Aja told her she would see her soon and to say hi to Bella for her. The food was wonderful, but the company even more so. Aja wanted to know more about Julianna and her daughter. She found herself wondering who Bella’s father was and why Pietro seemed so upset about it. She looked forward to getting to know them all better, but first she had to get through the rest of the night without allowing Pietro through her defenses.
Chapter 16
Aja and Pietro set off down the road, alternating with him grabbing her hand and her pulling it away. He would laugh, then try again a few minutes later. He was persistent - she had to give him that. They arrived at the villa. He pulled Aja into his arms and tried to find her lips with his while she did her best to evade his seeking mouth.
“Pietro, stop!” she gasped, pushing him away with all her strength. He was a large man, but thankfully he was also somewhat of a gentleman.