My Italian Doctor

Chapter Eight

I hated driving Pop's truck, but I had little choice. I needed to replace my stupid phone. Throwing it had been a real bonehead move. As I drove up the hill towards the vineyard, I couldn't help but bask in the peace that existed up there. I guessed it must have been the narrow roads that made it so secluded. I had driven the whole way and not seen another car, although it was late in the day. I had been in the office with Aurora all day, organising her filing system. She didn't even want it done, but part of me felt guilty knowing what George and I had gotten up to in there.

I spotted Pops as I pulled up and jumped out, tossing him the keys. "Did you get what you needed?"

"Yeah, thanks, Pops, you're a lifesaver."

"I'm not sure I would go that far, but you can borrow it any time. It's not easy being stuck out here without a car."

"It would be one hell of a walk into Verona, though." He chuckled in response. I wouldn't mind walking there, but walking back would absolutely kill me with the steep nature of the climb. It was odd because there often were walkers heading up, but it wasn't something I would ever be doing.

I headed inside and ran up the stairs, walking straight past my room. With Rylie in there on bed rest, I couldn't get any privacy. The terrace had become my own little hiding spot. Sitting down at the table and looking out over the scenery, it really was heaven. I wasted no time in pulling the phone from the box and putting my sim card in.

"Phones sorted."

"Good, you never said how you had broken it."

"The vineyard can be a dangerous place, apparently."

"You free tonight? Drinks? You could stay over, then you don't have to worry about getting back to the vineyard." I couldn't say I wasn't surprised to have heard from him. I had half expected him telling me to message him to be just something he said. I was even more shocked by the invitation. I couldn't help but be hesitant. It was meant to be fun but with his moods, it was hardly a bundle of laughs. Despite that, it felt like I didn't have any choice in the matter. Before I had even considered it further my fingers had a mind of their own.

"Yeah, alright."

"Don't sound too happy about it. I'll pick you up at the warehouse at nine, seeing as you seem to be desperate to keep us a secret."

"See you at nine." I refused to dignify the rest with a response. He knew why I was keeping us quiet, but it was hardly a secret, I wished it was. I had done a particularly poor job at keeping our meeting from anyone.

I snuck into my bedroom and started going through my wardrobe. I really had nothing to wear. I was about to sneak back out and go and find Aurora in the hopes of borrowing a dress when Rylie stirred. I stood stock still and hoped she would settle again, but no such luck.

"What are you doing?"

"Just considering getting changed into something more comfortable."

"Em, you're wearing joggers. What is going to be more comfortable?"

"I know but these are all dusty. I've been working with Aurora all day."

"So which is it? Do you need something more comfortable or you're dirty? You really suck at lying."

"I'm going out with the doctor, but I really don't want to talk about it. It's not a big deal, just drinks." I knew Rylie well enough to know that she would respect my privacy, but would be not so secretly annoyed with me about it. She never pried into my life, just waited for me to tell her when I was ready.

"You best hurry up and get ready then. Hope you have fun." I headed over to her and laid a kiss on her forehead. She never failed to remind me why I loved her so much.

"I'm going to borrow a dress from Aurora. When you are feeling better, we really need to go shopping. Despite your objections, I didn't pack nearly enough clothes." She laughed heartily, then winced. "Right, I'm going before I cause you any more pain."

When I got into Aurora's room, she was nowhere to be found. I didn't have time to mess around finding her.

Emily: Hey hun, can I borrow a dress, please?

Aurora: Yeah, help yourself. I've had to go back to the office.

I cursed out loud. Typical. If she was there for long, she would be there when George turned up to collect me. It really was the last thing I needed. Aurora's taste was nothing like mine. I picked a simple white bodycon dress and hoped it would fit. Aurora was ever so slightly bigger than me, so the bodycon was my best option for a good fit. I pulled it on quickly and grabbed a gold-coloured chain from the top of her drawers.

I slipped back into our room and grabbed a pair of white stilettos. Tiptoeing back out because Rylie had slipped back into a peaceful sleep. I stood in front of the bathroom mirror and released my hair from its plait. It had left my usually straight hair with just a faint curl. I didn't have the energy to get overly dressed up, not after being hard at work all day. I applied pale pink lipstick and grabbed my bag.

I waited until I got out of the door before slipping my shoes on. The fewer people who knew I had left the house, the better. I wasted no time slipping around the house and out of sight. Walking along the chalk path in my heels wasn't the easiest, and I half wished I had chosen flats.

When I saw him already sitting on the bonnet of his car waiting for me, I increased my pace. Even more, reason to have worn flats. I watched in horror as Aurora stepped out of the open warehouse door and extended her hand to George. I was already walking as fast as I could without taking my shoes off and that wasn't happening.

"... I know I said the same thing."

"Said the same thing about what, Aurora?" I was on edge. I had no idea what they had been talking about, but I did know it was nothing good.

"Oh, nothing. It's unimportant. I was just keeping your handsome gentleman company." As I got within reach of George, he pulled me towards him and kissed me. It was nothing spectacular, just a greeting, but I could feel the blush reddening my cheeks. PDAs just weren't my thing. It seemed to be commonplace in Italy, but the English tended to be more reserved. Aurora didn't seem to be even remotely affected by the display. "I will head back to work and let you two get on with your night."

"Night Aurora."

"It was nice meeting you at long last, Aurora." He offered her his hand and shook it. Turning to me and taking my hand and using it to lead me to the passenger door. As he opened the door for me, I rolled my eyes, but acquiesced.

I waited till we were out of sight of the vineyard before I spoke again, as though the occupants would be able to hear our words. "Care to fill me in on what you two were talking about?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"I still want to know."

"We were discussing soccer, football to you, I suppose." He was right. I didn't believe it. Aurora had shown zero interest in football, and neither had anyone else in the family. I decided to let it go. If he was lying, he wasn't going to suddenly decide to tell me the truth.

"So, where are we going?"

"Brenzone. There's a hotel there with the best cocktail bar and it's right on the shore." I had assumed we were going into Verona. I knew Brenzone was on lake Grada. I recognised the name from the searches I had done for Rylie. Before we left England, we had been looking for her father and that had led us to the lake. That was all I knew about the place, other than that it was smaller than Verona. The idea of going somewhere smaller appealed to me, but no doubt it would still be busy. The lake got a lot of tourist traffic.

"Do you go down to the lake often?"

"I like to sail." He shrugged his shoulders as though the idea of sailing was nothing. I had never even been on a boat, let alone sailed one myself. Somehow, he made me feel slightly inadequate between his sailing, flying and highly skilled job. It was as though I had barely experienced anything in my life. I couldn't help but think that going forward I needed to try more new things, to put myself out there more. I decided that there was no time like the present.

"Maybe you could teach me to sail sometime."

"Really? You don't exactly strike me as the sailing type."

"And what type am I exactly?"

"The type to be laid on a yacht enjoying the sun in peace, rather than the person hoisting the sails." I didn't know whether to take it as an insult or a compliment. Either way, I felt like he had gotten me all wrong.

Before I could quiz him more about his misconceptions, we pulled up at the bar. It was a beautiful location. The peach-coloured building had small sections of exposed brickwork and a glass conservatory that ran around the outside. The hotel paled in comparison to the view of the lake. It was nothing less than breathtaking.