Chapter Fifteen
1037 Words
I just sat basking in the sunshine and surroundings. Waiting while Luca poured two glasses of wine. I was slightly surprised when I realised it was of French origin. He didn't get any food out. It was too early for that, but it was clear he had packed a picnic. He had gotten Isabella out of the pushchair and laid her on the blanket in front of him. I couldn't decide what was more beautiful, him playing with our daughter as though she was the most fascinating thing in the world or our surroundings. I couldn't get over how he had tailored every single day towards me. Not one element had been Luca centred.
I felt slightly guilty. He hadn't even snuck off to cook with Timothée, which I had been certain he would. "What are our plans for tomorrow?"
"I'm not telling, yet you keep asking."
"Are we still going to be in Paris?"
"No." I wanted to organize something for him, but when he had everything preplanned and booked it was impossible. I would have to come up with something once we were home. I would be a little sad to leave Paris. It was such a welcoming city. I took the opportunity to message Julia while Luca was preoccupied.
Rylie: You really should come and visit soon. We can discuss Rome more when you do.
Julia: I'm really tempted. Going to speak to my parents about it later on, before you guys get here.
Clearly, Luca hadn't told Julia of the top-secret nature of his plans. I wondered if that was going to be something more chefy and more Luca too. I relaxed a little knowing we were going back to the restaurant. Leaning back on my elbows and losing myself in the peaceful nature of the day. Luca seemed to have thought of everything and had purposefully squeezed in time for us to relax into his schedule.
I had no idea how long we had just sat there, but before I knew it, Luca was unpacking the picnic onto the blanket. There were stuffed olives, which I started snacking on immediately. "Hey, you have to share, you know?"
"Sorry. You would think I would be sick of seeing olives, but I've become somewhat addicted to them." Next he pulled out a baguette, but it was pre-sliced. A wave of relief passed over me that he hadn't brought one of his ridiculously sharp knifes with him. Definitely not something I wanted him pulling out in the middle of a park. "What's that?" Not that I really needed to ask.
"Paté. Don't look like that. I brought salmon because I knew I had no hope of you eating anything with liver in it." At least he knew me well enough. When he pulled out the little baggie full of sliced cucumber, I couldn't hold back the laugh any longer. He looked like a mum on the school run pulling out healthy snacks for her little ones. He didn't look pleased at my hysterics, but I couldn't help it. The thing about Luca was he never lost the ability to surprise me and make me laugh at the extremes he went to for the perfect dish, even when that dish was in the park.
"Is that everything?"
"No. I'm not getting anything out yet."
"Because?"
"It needs to be eaten in the right order and if I get it all out you won't eat it right."
"Well, I'm sorry. Before we met, I never knew there was a right way to eat."
"Mock all you like, you will thank me later. You are such a commoner when it comes to food." He was certainly right about that. His food was great, but I still would have been just as happy with a frozen pizza. Luca often joked that I had lazy taste buds. It was the only option for me to willingly eat what he considered to be cardboard.
The food was amazing. I couldn't pretend it wasn't. I could see why he had made so much effort to bring the cucumber along. It added a perfect refreshing note to the smoked salmon paté. It was that moment when I realised he was rubbing off on me. I pondered on the idea that I might have been becoming a food snob like him as he started unpacking the next round of food. It felt like forever since I had last had anything remotely frozen, well except gelato, which was not at all the same as convenience food. I had seen Mamma make it and it was quite a process.
Everything seemed to be just as delicious and perfect for the weather. The tomato tart was particularly lovely and worked well with the fennel salad he had included. I couldn't help but salivate at the idea of pudding as I waited for him to announce what he had prepared for it. I wondered where the food had all come from. If he had got it from the restaurant and somehow snuck it passed me. Then it dawned on me, Julia had been in on it. Dessert was a mixture of strawberries, raspberries and fresh pastries. There was something about French pastries, you just never got sick of them.
"So, now we've eaten, tell me everything you've been dying to tell me." He took in my blank expression. "I know you know loads about this place. There's a book about it in the living room."
"The most interesting fact for me is that when Germany invaded during World War Two, this was home of the German Airforce."
"Really? How is that the most interesting thing?"
"Mainly because of the idea of such an evil agenda living in such a beautiful place. It's a real oxymoron. All that darkness in the building and it never managed to corrupt the beauty of the place."
"Sometimes, I really wonder about you. You have a view of the world that is so unique. It's like you don't see the same world the rest of us see. Most people would be horrified about such a thing, yet you somehow find beauty in it."
"It's a talent. I can see beauty in anything really."
- Writer
