When a knock sounded on her door, Ginny thought Nico might have come to speak to her in private and her spine stiffened. Thoughts of their kiss in the Venetian garden popped into her head, and her body flooded with nerves. Was he standing on the other side of the door, thinking about their kiss, too?
She smoothed down her dress and her stomach leaped as she twisted the door handle. She opened it to find Edna standing there instead.
“Well, you’ve done a U-turn,” the elderly lady said. “Are you sure about this?”
Ginny’s lips flattened and she felt her spirits shake. “I thought you might say something like that. Come inside.” She opened the door further and gestured for Edna to sit down on the bed.
“I just want to make sure you’ve not been brainwashed,” Edna said. “You came here because you were heartbroken.”
“Adrian’s my husband, not a kidnapper.”
“For the last few weeks, he’s been your enemy.”
Ginny’s shoulders fell and she sat down on the mattress beside Edna. The older lady had a way of offering advice that was both practical and challenging at the same time. She was probably the closest thing Ginny had to a confidante in Italy. “Things have been really tough,” she admitted. “Adrian’s really sorry and wants to make a go of our marriage.”
“And what do you want?”
“When you promise to spend your life with someone, it’s an intention rather than a guarantee. You said yourself that measuring heartbreak isn’t an exact science, and marriage isn’t either. You must have gone through ups and downs with Desmond, too.”
Edna sucked in her cheeks as if she’d tasted something sour. “We’re talking aboutyou, not me.”
Ginny stared at her, waiting for something more. “I’m kind of expecting a story about cars or trees, or super skills you might have...”
Edna shook her head and glanced at the framed photo of Ginny and Adrian. “It’s your life. You must make your own decisions...and mistakes.”
Ginny chose to focus on the first option and to ignore the second. She’d grown fond of Edna and knew she had her best interests in mind, even if it didn’t always come across that way. “Will you be there this afternoon?” As she asked the question, she was surprised by just how much Edna’s presence meant to her. She also really wanted Eric, Heather and Curtis to be there, too.
“Yes.” Edna nodded. “We’llallbe there to support you. Well, everyone except for Nico. I think he’s...busy.” She cleared her throat. “It’s Loretta’s birthday, after all.”
“Of course.” Ginny understood that Nico might not want to see her remarry her husband, though she felt sad he wouldn’t be there.
Edna reached into her bag. “I know it’s notexactlyyour wedding day, but I’ve brought along a few things to bring you luck. There’s something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue. Heather wants you to have a new scarf she bought and Curtis only has one blue item to give you, a baseball cap. Eric says you can borrow his penknife...again.” Edna held it out and flipped open the blade.
The two women blinked at it. “I’m not sure I’ll need it,” Ginny said. “Or the cap.”
“You never know,” Edna said. Her hand shook when she reached into her bag again and took out a necklace, a simple silver daisy pendant on a chain. She looked at it for a while and swallowed. “This is old and belonged to my daughter. I’d like you to have it.”
“Me? Oh, gosh.” Ginny pressed her fingers to her collarbone. “It’s beautiful... I really can’t...”
A tear shone in Edna’s eye as she fumbled to unfasten the clasp. “Yes, you can,” she said firmly. “I don’t wear it and have no one else to pass it on to. It’d be nice to give a new lease on life to something that belonged to Daisy.”
Ginny turned around and allowed Edna to fasten it around her neck. Emotion swelled in her throat. “Thank you,” she whispered.
Edna went quiet for a few seconds. “It suits you,” she said.
The two women sat together for a while without talking.
“How will you get to Castello?” Ginny eventually asked. “Shall I book a taxi for you all?”
“You just worry about yourself for once and leave the rest to us.” Edna stood up and headed toward the door. “Good luck today.”
Ginny placed the cap and penknife in her handbag and tied the scarf around the strap. She applied lipstick and looked out the window to see Gianfranco pulling up outside in a shiny gray Mercedes. He’d fastened a wide cream ribbon to the bonnet.
The car looked like something from a fairy tale and Ginny was briefly transported back in time to her wedding, twenty-five years ago.
She and Adrian had chosen something classy and simple, holding the ceremony in their local church and hiring a nice room above a pub for their reception. Ginny had worn a vintage cream silk dress and a fresh floral crown and Adrian had been handsome in a cobalt blue suit. They were in love so there was no need for showiness, an ostentatious cake or chiffon bows on chairs because they had each other.
“This is about you and me getting married, and having our friends and family with us to celebrate. Nothing else matters,” he’d said. And she’d felt the same way.
