‘That’s not true.’ Rose’s stomach bunched and she worked hard not to appear affected by the clairvoyant’s observation. She trusted people – she couldn’t think of any examples right now, aside from Luna. But she did.
Aurora nodded as if she knew exactly what Rose was thinking. ‘Perhaps you’ll believe in a little more after this trip. Don’t you British often say that there are more things to heaven and birth…’ she added mysteriously.
‘I think you mean there are more things in heaven and earth,’ Rose corrected.
‘Exactly.’ Aurora smiled before leaning forward and staring into the shiny glass ball. ‘I see great things for you…’
‘A tall, dark and handsome stranger?’ Rose quipped, aiming to lighten the mood, as her mind flashed up an image of Ben with his sharp jawline, haunting eyes and kissable mouth…She cleared her throat.
‘Sì.’ Aurora’s eyes widened. ‘Perhaps you have a little of the gift too?’
‘I’m sorry, I don’t think…’ Rose wafted a palm at herself.
‘I know, but you will,’ Aurora said with a grin, then she cocked her head as if listening to something. ‘Aldo says we should leave soon or we’re going to get caught up in something on the roads.’ She stood suddenly and Rose got up too, watching as Aurora turned towards the wall on her left and tugged out a hidden drawer.
She grabbed a large canvas bag, a pack of what looked like tarot cards and a pair of reading glasses before popping them all inside the bag. Then she gathered up the crystal ball and placed it inside too, topping it all off with a bottle of water and a red lipstick.
‘Come on,cara,’ she said briskly. ‘Let’s go and find Ben. Your future awaits.’
Rose followed shaking her head. Her future involved persuading Luna to postpone her marriage to Marco, then getting them both back to England before her friend could change her mind. Then her life would return to normal.
There were no tall dark or handsome anythings in her future, she was sure of that.
4
ROSE
‘I honestly think you’d be more comfortable if you were in the passenger seat,’ Rose said again, shifting so she could see Aurora, who’d insisted on sitting in the back of the Citroën with Coco’s carrier balanced on her knee. They hadn’t been able to put the dog on the seat because Aurora’s suitcase was too large to fit into the boot, so Ben had squeezed it in beside her – but it had taken up almost three-quarters of the space.
That did, however, mean Rose had been able to leave her wet linen trousers draped over Ben’s bag in the mostly empty boot – which meant they’d probably be dry by the time they arrived in Bellemilia. So at least there was going to be one win.
‘I’m okay,bella,’ Aurora soothed again, patting her red fingernails on the carrier, eliciting an odd purring sound from Coco, who’d totally fallen for the older woman.
Rose’s mouth pinched. She had no clue why the dog hated her so much, while she seemed to be having a lovefest with everyone else in the car. Surely animals were supposed to adore the people who took care of them – and wasn’t she the one who’d been feeding and watering the demon for the last three weeks?
Ben drove over a bump and Rose’s stomach pitched. She immediately shifted to face the front, ignoring the tingles of fear as they vibrated across the surface of her skin.
She’d been twelve when her father and mother had been arguing during a family holiday in Paris. They’d been driving around the Arc de Triomphe. Distracted, her father had gone the wrong way and someone had hit them, making the car roll. Her parents had filed for divorce a few months later, putting an end to the turbulent marriage.
Rose wasn’t sure why she hadn’t been able to get over the accident. But every time she got into a vehicle abroad and the driver headed onto what she considered the wrong side of the road, her whole body began to tremble. From that point onwards, Rose had tried to avoid being in a car at all. When she went abroad, she opted to stay in locations as close to an airport as possible, then travelled on trains. So until today, the phobia hadn’t been a big problem.
She gritted her teeth and squeaked as a car swung out of a side road ahead, forcing Ben to slam on the brakes.
‘You should go right.’ Aurora pointed a finger towards a turning in the distance and tapped Ben vigorously on the shoulder.
‘That sat nav says left,’ Ben muttered, pointing to the colourful monitor on the dashboard which was ordering them to do something in Italian. Rose didn’t understand the words, but the arrows on the screen were telling them to take the next fork on the left.
‘Aldo says right is the better way.’ When Rose twisted around to look at the older woman, her eyes were shut and she was muttering in Italian. ‘Yes, right and then left. He says it should add –’ her forehead creased, ‘– no! cut, at least an hour off our arrival time,’ she promised.
‘Aldo,’ Ben said carefully. ‘I wasn’t expecting him to join us on this trip. The thing is Aunt A.’ He paused, clearly searching for the correct thing to say. ‘We’re already going to be four hours late to Bellemilia. I’m not sure we want to risk another detour.’ His tone was all reason, and Rose wondered if it would work on the older woman, guessing that Ben was used to getting his way with the opposite sex. ‘I texted Marco and the family are going to delay the engagement celebrations. We don’t want to be too late, or we might miss them completely.’ Ben’s tone was pleading now.
Rose sighed – Luna had told her something similar when they’d texted earlier, but she’d hoped to catch her friend before the wedding celebrations progressed any further. An engagement party filled with friends and family would only make it more difficult for her friend to back out or delay.
If they were late…Well, it was going to be awkward enough, and postponing their conversation was bound to cause even more upset. Rose was all about creating a win-win solution. The Marino family would surely understand where she was coming from if she approached the situation calmly and without emotion – sticking with a head vs heart approach. It was the best way to avoid chaos.
‘All the more reason to take mycut shortthen, no?’ Aurora asked, getting the words muddled again. Rose saw Ben’s shoulders stiffen and waited for him to argue. She knew in the same position her father would have insisted he knew best and her mother would have exploded, choosing the opposite route because she couldn’t bear to agree with him. The whole thing would have caused a silent rift that would have lasted for days. Instead, Ben shrugged, proving he was even more laidback than she’d first imagined. Was it real, or would his gentle geniality turn out to be a mask?
‘Turn right here,’ Aurora ordered as they drew closer.
