Ginny watched everyone file back into the dining room. Edna sat on the sofa, and Eric curled up with Biscotti. Curtis spread out on the floor. Could there be a stranger sight than five people aged eighteen to eighty, wearing their pajamas together to watch a film? Yet, somehow it all felt natural, as if it was a ceremony to mark the end of their holiday.
The mozzarella was still bubbling as Nico handed out slices of pizza. He switched off the light and, when he sat down beside Ginny, she noticed how noble his nose looked in the shadows.
He resumed the film and the camera swept across Vigornuovo, giving a bird’s-eye view of the river and village square before settling on Sharon Sterling running her fingers through water in the fountain.
Ginny hadn’t seen the film before and was quickly hooked by all the costumes and romance. She watched Edna’s lips moving as she recited words from the movie. Nico draped his arm across the top of the sofa, so Loretta could nestle under it.
For the next couple of hours, Ginny let her mind escape into the fiction of the film, away from Adrian and her life back at home. Her heart soared when Tim Vincenzo and Sharon Sterling first locked eyes across the village square. She swooned at their first kiss and tears rolled down her face when they said goodbye beneath the medieval archway. Soon, Ginny would have to say goodbye to everyone, too.
As the credits rolled, Edna turned to Nico. “You have made me see the film through different eyes. In some scenes, Vincenzo towered over Sharon. He must have been standing on a box.”
“I don’t know why he lies about his height. It is better to be truthful.”
“He is still magnificent,” Edna sighed.
Nico shook his head. “I saw him in the village once. He smoked and stared at Loretta for too long.”
Loretta turned to face him, wearing a frown. “You never told methis...”
“You were young and I was trying to protect you,” he said.
“I don’t need protecting.”
“You may be eighteen, but you’ll always be my little girl and—”
His words were interrupted by a snore. Eric and Biscotti had fallen asleep together.
Edna pulled the blanket up to Eric’s chin and flipped a corner to cover up the dog.
Ginny showed Loretta how to make friendship bracelets until the village clock struck two in the distance. The three women fastened them around each other’s wrists and held up their hands to admire them.
“It is no longer your birthday,” Nico said to Loretta. “I think it’s time for bed.”
She stretched out her arms and yawned. “It has been perfect, thank you.”
Edna gently shook Eric to wake him and they both went to their rooms, leaving Biscotti asleep on the floor.
“G’night,” Curtis said to Ginny and Nico. He was about to say something else, then smiled and left them standing alone in the dining room.
Ginny felt a little weepy. It was hard to believe they’d all be leaving the day after tomorrow. She turned to Nico, wanting to say so much to him and unable to find the words.
“I should also go to bed,” he said. “I may not see you tomorrow. I will be spending the day with Gianfranco at his hotel, so he can teach me some things. Loretta will stay here to look after you all. It will be good experience for her.”
Ginny bit her lip to help cancel out her disappointment. “Will you be around to say goodbye when we leave?” she asked hopefully.
“Yes. I will be there,” Nico said, as he switched off the light. “I would not miss that for anything.”
34
Sandwiches
Everyone was too tired to move the next day. After helping Loretta tidy up and make breakfast, Ginny, Edna and Curtis lounged around the hotel and courtyard. Curtis worked on his blog, Edna sewed and Eric threw sticks for Biscotti in the field. Loretta sang as she washed the bed sheets in the sink and hung them on the line to dry.
Ginny felt restless, knowing that Adrian, Phoebe and Pete were in the castle on top of the hill. She had to stop herself from taking a taxi to go and see them, to make sure they were okay. Through a brief exchange of text messages with her daughter, she learned that she, Pete and Adrian were traveling back home the day after Ginny.
She returned to her bedroom intermittently throughout the morning and afternoon, to pack up her things. She openedThe Power of Twoand scanned through the book until she reached the final chapter.
Stage Seven. Acceptance and hope.
