‘Marriage wasn’t something I’d thought about before, but when Georgia left Geneva to return to London, I knew that for the first time, I’d met someone that I could spend the rest of my life with. It was as if I’d been let in on a secret, only it took me a little while to understand what I was supposed to do.’
‘Luca,’ she said, squeezing his hand, her eyes damp with tears again.
‘I know we’ve only known each other a short time, but I’ve never felt this way about anyone,’ he said, facing her now. ‘You changed my life the day I met you, Georgia, and I cannot wait to spend the rest of our lives together.’
She stood as everyone raised their glasses.
‘To Luca and Georgia!’ Sam cried, visibly blinking away tears.
And as everyone cheered for them, Georgia slid her arms around Luca’s neck, admiring her ring over his shoulder before staring into his eyes.
‘It’s not a sapphire from the royal tiara,’ he told her, ‘but I thought it would remind you of what brought us together.’
‘I love it,’ she said, as his lips met hers in a kiss that tingled all the way down her spine.
‘It’s an antique pink diamond,’ he whispered. ‘Similar enough to remind you of a sapphire, but different enough for?—’
‘It to be our stone,’ she said. ‘I love it. It’s perfect.’
Was this how her great-grandmother had felt, looking at the sapphire that was to be her engagement jewel?Georgia had thought about Delphine a lot lately, but right now, knowing how desperately in love she was with Luca, imagining a life growing old together, she couldn’t bear to think what it must have been like finding out that the man she loved had died. Before they’d even begun their lives together.
‘Do you know who will never forgive me for not being part of this?’ Luca said quietly.
She sighed. ‘Your mother.’
He groaned. ‘She is going to kill me.’
‘Then let’s have an engagement party at your home for her. Celebrate with your family, too.’
‘She would adore that.’
Georgia reluctantly sat, wishing they could stay wrapped in each other’s arms for the rest of the night. But she knew she needed to be grateful for everyone around her, not just for Luca. Because they’d been there for her through the happiest moments of her life, and also the saddest, and this was as much a celebration for them as it was for her. They’d raised her with the same love they’d shown to their biological family, taking in an orphan, Sam’s best friend, and not hesitating in making her their own.
She reached into her bag then and realised her phone was vibrating. She’d just missed the call, but it was a number she didn’t recognise, so she wouldn’t have answered it anyway. But when a text came through before she put her bag back down, she quickly read it.
Dear Georgia,sorry to be putting this in a text, but I received your letter, and I’d like to meet. We had no clue our grandmother Delphine had had a daughter adopted, so the news of your grandmother has all come as quite a shock, but we’re open to meeting you and hearing more. Any chance you’re visiting Lake Geneva again soon? My daughter and I would love to meet you, so please do let us know if you’re ever in town. Anna
Georgia’s hand shook as she looked up at Luca and then Sam. They were in Geneva. All the time she was there, searching foranswers, trying to understand her past, she was in the same city as members of her biological family. Family who were open to meeting her.
‘What is it?’ Sam asked, leaning across the table.
‘Georgia, you look like you’ve seen a ghost,’ Luca said. ‘Is it bad news?’
She turned her phone around so they could read the screen. ‘I reached out via a lawyer to the descendants of my great-grandmother, Delphine. I wasn’t going to, but after I got home from my first trip, I was overcome by the feeling that I needed to at least try to tell them that my family existed, and about the story of my great-grandmother.’ She shook her head. ‘After all this time, I presumed they didn’t want to communicate with me. I never thought I’d hear from them.’
‘Maybe our wedding will be larger than expected then,’ Luca said, his arm extended behind her chair, his thumb gently caressing her back.
‘Are you going to say yes? To meeting them?’ Sam asked.
‘They’re my family,’ Georgia said, looking at the people around her. ‘I love the family I have, but if there are aunts and cousins out there with a connection to my father? Then I think I’d never forgive myself for not meeting them.’ She took a breath and watched as Sam’s parents and grandparents laughed and talked, their happiness contagious. ‘No one will replace this family, mytruefamily, but I’m still curious, I suppose, just in case they’re like my dad.’
She swallowed as she glanced back up at Sam and Luca. ‘There’s something else, too, another reason I want to connect with my family.’
They both looked back at her, expectantly.
‘During my search, I came across someone who knew my grandmother. For the very first time in my life, I have some understanding of why she turned her back on my father and thenme. I always knew she didn’t approve of my mother, but it turns out that she held deep regrets for how she’d treated my father throughout his childhood and in the years before he married.’ Georgia cleared her throat. ‘Apparently, she never wanted to have children of her own, and felt that she wasn’t capable of showing me the love and care that my parents had. She felt it was better to cut ties with me, rather than jeopardise the chance for me to find a loving family to take me in, and she knew that my mother wouldn’t have wanted her to be the one to raise me in her absence.’
Sam put her arm around her, and Georgia leaned in. ‘Well, maybe now you can start to forgive her. I, for one, am very grateful she made that decision.’
