‘I do not and this is not mine,’ Rose said firmly. ‘I texted you when we arrived in Nice to say my suitcases went missing, remember? They still haven’t turned up.’ She fiddled with the soft material of the sleeves self-consciously. ‘I borrowed this from Marco’s aunt.’
After finally getting to use Ben’s charger in the car, she’d phoned the airport to see if there was any news about her luggage, only to hear the staff were still looking. They were very apologetic, but Rose suspected they weren’t confident they were ever going to arrive.
‘Of course!’ Luna blushed as Aurora stepped out of the car and, holding Coco under one arm, gave the younger woman a hug. ‘I’m Luna Kennedy,’ she said.
‘Indeed, you are. I will read your palm later,cara, but I can already tell that you are the perfect fit for my nephew. He can be a little inflexible at times, and I can tell you are going to be quite the antidote.’ She grinned. ‘My husband, Aldo, thinks you’re delightful too.’
‘He always agrees with you,’ Ben said with humour. ‘Funny that.’
‘Where is Aldo? Didn’t he come?’ Luna asked, looking towards the back seat of the Citroën.
‘He is with us in spirit,’ Aurora said mysteriously, wafting a hand as she handed over Coco.
‘Ah.’ Luna nodded as she took the dog and Rose realised that she’d probably already been tipped off about the clairvoyant aunt. ‘Of course. Nice to meet you, Aldo.’ Luna spoke into the sky and then turned back to Aurora. ‘I’d love a reading; Marco and his family have told me how talented you are.’
‘Of course,cara,’ the older woman promised. ‘You and Rose are the first on my list. We will start with my crystal ball. That’s the easiest way to tell if your marriage will last – and how passionate and fruitful it will be. Or…’ She winked at Rose. ‘If there is a new love on the horizon.’
‘We should do it tonight!’ Luna gushed.
Rose coughed. The reading sounded like a terrible idea. Yet more fictional promises when her friend needed to focus on cold, hard reality. Rose also suspected Aurora had set her sights on getting her together with Ben – and she had no intention of engaging with that fantasy. The man spelled TROUBLE in sparkly capitals.
Luna pressed her nose into Coco’s fur. ‘I’ve missed you,’ she purred to the demon, stopping momentarily to give Rose a cheeky grin. ‘Did you two make friends over the last few weeks?’
‘We have a new understanding,’ Rose said dryly. ‘Involving her ignoring me and me not turning her into a winter coat.’
‘I know you love each other really,’ Luna snorted. ‘You’re just too stubborn to see it.’ She let out a sigh as she perused the dress Rose was wearing again. ‘This is making me rethink your outfit for the wedding.’ She took Rose’s hand. ‘This is a much more feminine look for you. More like my style.’ Luna pointed to herown sheer, floaty skirt. ‘You seem more approachable – you’re more likely to find yourself a husband if you dress like that.’
‘I have no intention—’ Rose shook her head. She was used to Luna winding her up about her lack of love life.
Her friend grinned cheekily, her skin pinking under her tan. Usually, Luna looked pale – a result of all the hours she spent working on her tea business, toiling over emails late into the night. But she looked less stressed, happier than Rose had seen her for a long while. It was a good sign, but it might just be the result of time in the sun – it wasn’t necessarily Marco’s doing.
Her insides tightened as she imagined how hurt Luna would be if their romance fizzled out, or if she ended up falling for him, only to discover he was after her money – or something else. Even if his motivations were true, they could be all wrong for each other. Hadn’t Rose seen the results of impulsive weddings over and over with her parents? It’s why they had to wait, to make sure they knew each other properly and weren’t walking into a terrible mistake.
‘There’s no need for you to buy anything new.’ Aurora pointed to her suitcase in the back of the Citroën. ‘I’ve plenty of dresses forleonessain here.’
‘What does that mean?’ Luna asked, glancing over her shoulder towards the man who was whispering urgently with Ben.
She recognised him immediately from the picture Ben had showed her. He was just as handsome in the flesh, a little swarthier than Ben. Not quite as tall, or as good-looking as Ben, but Rose considered that to be a point in his favour. Dazzling people with your lucky DNA was bordering on rude. He broke off his conversation and gazed at Luna as if he knew she was looking at him – his whole face suddenly lighting up.
‘It means lioness,tesoro,’ Marco said, pacing towards her, his gaze intense.
‘And that means darling,’ Luna told Rose. ‘Lioness.’ She nodded studying Rose. ‘That fits.’
‘It is apt.’ Ben eyed her too, although his expression was more playful. ‘Mostly because you’re never sure if she’s going to ignore you or wrestle you to the ground so she can bite off your head.’
‘You already know her so well.’ Luna laughed and reached out to grab her fiancé’s hand, tugging him closer. ‘This is Marco,’ she said, skirting her arm around his lean waist and spinning him until they were facing. ‘And this is my best friend, Rose. It’s essential you love each other as much as I love you.’
Marco gave Rose a tentative smile, but it was clear from his guarded expression that Ben had already filled him in on her intentions and was concerned. She should have seen it coming, but it was still disappointing because it meant she was going to have to work extra hard to get the groom on side.
‘It’s a pleasure to meet you,’ Marco said formally, offering Rose his hand. ‘We’ve got a table set up on the terrace for the five of us. Unfortunately, the rest of my family aren’t available this afternoon. Wedding plans,’ he added, his eyes filled with meaning. ‘But we’ll see them all at the family villa later for our engagement celebrations.’
‘We’re all staying there,’ Luna gushed. ‘It’s absolutely huge!’
She grabbed Rose’s hand and propelled her until they were trotting up the steps at speed, heading towards the entrance of the restaurant. ‘You’ll get to meet everyone later and I know you’re going to love them all. Just wait until you try the food. I’ve already put on three pounds.’ She tapped a palm on her flat stomach.
Rose tried to keep up, but her foot caught in the long skirt halfway up the steps. ‘No!’ she yelped just as Ben appeared from nowhere and grabbed her elbow, pulling her upwards just before her head crashed into the tiles.
‘Thank you,’ Rose rasped, and Luna echoed her agreement.
