Chapter 4
4
ROSE
‘I honestly think you’d be more comfortable if you were in the passenger seat,’ Rose said again, shifting so she could see Aurora, who’d insisted on sitting in the back of the Citroen with Coco’s carrier balanced on her knee.
They hadn’t been able to put the dog on the seat because Aurora’s suitcase was too large to fit into the boot, so Ben had squeezed it in beside her – but it had taken up almost three-quarters of the space.
That did, however, mean Rose had been able to leave her wet linen trousers draped over Ben’s bag in the mostly empty boot – which meant they’d probably be dry by the time they arrived in Bellemilia.
So at least there was going to be one win.
‘I’m okay, bella ,’ Aurora soothed again, patting her red fingernails on the carrier, eliciting an odd purring sound from Coco, who’d totally fallen for the older woman.
Rose’s mouth pinched.
She had no clue why the dog hated her so much, while she seemed to be having a lovefest with everyone else in the car.
Surely animals were supposed to adore the people who took care of them – and wasn’t she the one who’d been feeding and watering the demon for the last three weeks?
Ben drove over a bump and Rose’s stomach pitched.
She immediately shifted to face the front, ignoring the tingles of fear as they vibrated across the surface of her skin.
She’d been twelve when her father and mother had been arguing during a family holiday in Paris.
They’d been driving around the Arc de Triomphe.
Distracted, her father had gone the wrong way and someone had hit them, making the car roll.
Her parents had filed for divorce a few months later, putting an end to the turbulent marriage.
Rose wasn’t sure why she hadn’t been able to get over the accident.
But every time she got into a vehicle abroad and the driver headed onto what she considered the wrong side of the road, her whole body began to tremble.
From that point onwards, Rose had tried to avoid being in a car at all.
When she went abroad, she opted to stay in locations as close to an airport as possible, then travelled on trains.
So until today, the phobia hadn’t been a big problem.
She gritted her teeth and squeaked as a car swung out of a side road ahead, forcing Ben to slam on the brakes.
‘You should go right.’ Aurora pointed a finger towards a turning in the distance and tapped Ben vigorously on the shoulder.
‘That sat nav says left,’ Ben muttered, pointing to the colourful monitor on the dashboard which was ordering them to do something in Italian.
Rose didn’t understand the words, but the arrows on the screen were telling them to take the next fork on the left.
‘Aldo says right is the better way.’ When Rose twisted around to look at the older woman, her eyes were shut and she was muttering in Italian.
‘Yes, right and then left. He says it should add –’ her forehead creased, ‘– no! cut, at least an hour off our arrival time,’ she promised.
‘Aldo,’ Ben said carefully.
‘I wasn’t expecting him to join us on this trip.
The thing is Aunt A.
’ He paused, clearly searching for the correct thing to say.
‘We’re already going to be four hours late to Bellemilia.
I’m not sure we want to risk another detour.
’ His tone was all reason, and Rose wondered if it would work on the older woman, guessing that Ben was used to getting his way with the opposite sex.
‘I texted Marco and the family are going to delay the engagement celebrations. We don’t want to be too late, or we might miss them completely.
’ Ben’s tone was pleading now.
Rose sighed – Luna had told her something similar when they’d texted earlier, but she’d hoped to catch her friend before the wedding celebrations progressed any further.
An engagement party filled with friends and family would only make it more difficult for her friend to back out or delay.
If they were late…Well, it was going to be awkward enough, and postponing their conversation was bound to cause even more upset.
Rose was all about creating a win-win solution.
The Marino family would surely understand where she was coming from if she approached the situation calmly and without emotion – sticking with a head vs heart approach.
It was the best way to avoid chaos.
‘All the more reason to take my cut short then, no?’ Aurora asked, getting the words muddled again.
Rose saw Ben’s shoulders stiffen and waited for him to argue.
She knew in the same position her father would have insisted he knew best and her mother would have exploded, choosing the opposite route because she couldn’t bear to agree with him.
The whole thing would have caused a silent rift that would have lasted for days.
Instead, Ben shrugged, proving he was even more laidback than she’d first imagined.
Was it real, or would his gentle geniality turn out to be a mask?
‘Turn right here,’ Aurora ordered as they drew closer.
‘Turning now.’ Ben steered them into a narrow road framed by lofty golden buildings which ran parallel to one another.
Most had washing lines, which were full of colourful clothes that had been pegged out in the sunshine, strung between the high up windows.
The socks, pants and T-shirts looked like odd-shaped flags.
‘I hope Aldo’s right about this shortcut,’ he said gloomily.
Aurora chuckled. ‘Trust me, cuore mio – my heart,’ she translated for Rose.
‘I trust him more than your Google Maps. Besides, he’s being most insistent – I think there’s going to be some kind of delay on the route you were going to follow, and we don’t want to be late, do we, pulcino ?
’ This time, Aurora spoke into the carrier which was still perched on her lap, and Coco made a cute chirping sound Rose had never heard.
‘Does that mean dog?’ she asked.
‘No. Little chick,’ Ben explained.
‘Aurora likes to give everyone their own unique nickname.’
‘Once I get to know them properly,’ the older woman told her.
‘This one’s feathers get ruffled easily.
’ She smiled as she reached into the carrier and gave Coco a gentle stroke.
‘But underneath she’s as soft as one of your English runny eggs.
’
‘Right,’ Rose murmured, drawing out the word.
As far as she was concerned, the demonic shih tzu was more hard-boiled than soft to the core, so she’d stick with her nickname.
Ben nodded. ‘Aurora’s names are usually perfect.
I don’t know how she gets it so right.
’
‘The spirits guide me,’ the older woman said mysteriously.
What had Aurora called Ben back at the villa?
Bello . Rose picked up her phone and searched, noticing the battery was fading.
She’d spent too much time fielding emails on the plane.
The word meant handsome, which she probably should have expected.
Unfortunately, the moniker didn’t tell her anything new about him.
She stared out of the front window at the empty road.
If a car was travelling the other way, there’d be no chance of avoiding it.
Her heart thumped against her chest, registering her growing anxiety.
‘Tell me more about yourself,’ Rose croaked, aiming to distract herself as Ben took a left onto another narrow street.
She could see wide fields of vibrant green grass and rust-coloured mountains in the far distance and hoped that meant they’d leave the village soon.
Hopefully, away from civilisation, the roads would be clear.
For a moment, Rose wished she’d said yes to the glass of wine Aurora had offered her back at her villa.
If she had, she’d have been able to probably sleep all the way to their destination, or at least it would have been easier to relax.
‘You know I’m a clairvoyant, but I used to work in Vegas in my younger days,’ the older woman told her.
‘I began as a magician’s assistant, but after a near-death experience when I was almost sawn in half, I began to hear my ghostly friends on stage, so I started to perform alone.
’
Rose shifted her gaze to Ben and pulled a face, wondering if Aurora had fabricated the story, but he didn’t look at her.
‘You hear lots of voices?’ she asked carefully.
She’d had a client once who’d said he could hear his mother talking to him – which had been a huge problem for his wife.
Especially when he’d insisted on criticising her cooking before telling her the comment had nothing to do with him.
After months of therapy, he’d finally admitted that he’d lied.
So they could eat less vegetables, apparently.
The marriage hadn’t survived the revelation.
‘I have Aldo with me always, and a few who appear from time to time when they’re needed.
’ Aurora waved a hand as if talking to random voices was the most normal thing in the world.
‘Did you know these people when they were alive?’ Rose asked, curious as to whether the older woman really believed her story, or if the fairy tale was simply an attempt to deal with a trauma from her past.
‘ Sì , some. Aldo is my husband.’ She tapped a hand to her chest as her expression darkened.
‘He accidentally fell into a well and passed away on our fourth wedding anniversary.’ She cocked her head as if listening to someone.
‘Aldo thinks he was pushed by our postino because he was in love with me.’ She flushed.
‘But—’ She tutted. ‘I think he just had too much Chianti that afternoon.’
‘Your ex gives you advice?’ Rose steered them expertly towards a new topic.
She didn’t want to get caught up in a marital disagreement about cause of death.
‘He is not my ex,’ Aurora said archly.
‘But sì , he does give me guidance, he’s very perceptive.
’ Aurora glanced at Rose and her eyes glittered as she moved her gaze to the back of Ben’s neck.
‘ Very perceptive.’ She sighed.
‘So have you ever been married?’ The older woman waved a finger at Rose.
‘No,’ she said firmly.
She couldn’t even imagine it.
Probably because the right person had never come along.
Aurora nodded. ‘I was twenty-three when Aldo won my heart.’ She grinned.
‘He says I was bellissima , and impossible to resist. How old are you?’ the older woman pressed.
‘It’s not me.’ She tapped a fingertip to her temple, her forehead creasing.
‘Aldo is asking. Forgive him, he’s nosy.
’ Her smile was affectionate.
Rose widened her eyes.
She wasn’t used to being on the other end of questions and wasn’t sure if she liked it.
Especially when she was being quizzed by a so-called spirit.
Then again there was no harm in telling Aurora more about herself.
Perhaps if she did, she could get her on side with her plans.
Maybe Aurora would talk to her nephew and convince him not to be in so much of a hurry?
‘I’m thirty-one.’
Aurora hummed.
‘And our Ben, he is thirty-two, so you are perfectly matched.’ She smiled and Rose decided not to rise to the comment.
‘What do you do?’
‘I’m a relationship psychologist. A Love Doctor,’ Rose told her.
‘I give couples and single people advice.’ She waited for the older woman’s reaction.
She was never sure how people would feel.
Some tried to quiz her, others laughed.
Many told her she was too young to have enough life experience to guide anyone on a romantic path.
Especially since she’d never been married.
Little did they know her whole life had been about giving relationship advice.
Acting as a buffer. She’d probably been the only seven-year-old in history to be used as an emotional sounding board.
To have spent more of her life soothing and advising her parents on their various relationships than the other way around.
‘Aldo, I think that’s, what do you say?
Too merciful ,’ Aurora muttered, her cheeks pinking underneath her makeup.
‘Do you mean personal?’ Ben asked.
‘What does he want to know?’ He sounded amused.
Aurora tutted. ‘Aldo wants to know if Rose has had any serious relationships. It’s okay if you don’t want to answer.
It is fine, Aldo,’ she added in a stern voice.
Rose considered the question.
Did she want to share?
Was she giving away too much insight into her life?
Then again, she doubted Aurora meant any harm; she was just being friendly, getting to know the family guest. ‘I’ve had a few,’ Rose admitted.
If you counted going out on sixty dates with someone as serious.
Which was entirely dependent on how good the dates were.
Not very, it had turned out.
For an uncomfortable moment, Rose caught herself hoping Aldo couldn’t read her mind before she dismissed the notion.
He obviously wasn’t real.
‘A few?’ the older woman queried, leaning forward, still balancing Coco’s carrier on her lap.
‘Yes,’ she said tentatively, breathing in the scent of cherries.
‘I mean, I haven’t found the one yet.
But I know what I want, and I believe in taking relationships one day at a time.
There’s no hurry. That just leads to chaos and bad decisions.
’ Something she knew a lot about.
Did she sound defensive?
Rose schooled her expression into one of tranquillity.
Aurora nodded and her attention drifted back to Ben.
‘ Sì .’ Her forehead scrunched.
‘But sometimes taking things slowly leads to mistakes anyway.’
‘Aunt A,’ Ben warned, and Rose wondered what she was trying to say.
Had Ben got himself into a bad relationship and been hurt?
She studied his profile, but his expression remained blank.
It was unlikely a man like him would take love seriously enough for that.
Aurora shrugged. ‘You have –’ She waved a palm and put her other hand on Coco’s carrier to stop it from toppling.
‘– rules?’ The skin on her forehead smoothed as she found the correct word.
‘Forgive me. Sometimes, I don’t understand everything I’m being asked.
My English is good, but Aldo’s is not and he’s trying to stick with it for you.
’
‘There’s no need,’ Rose muttered.
It’s not like she could hear what he was supposedly saying.
But how did the older woman know about her rules?
Rose frowned. Perhaps Ben had mentioned something when they’d been speaking in Italian?
She nodded. That made sense.
‘The word rules is correct,’ she said as the car got to the end of the narrow street and continued onwards, finally leaving the buildings behind.
Rose felt her chest release as they headed upwards, into the hills, in the direction of the mountains where the cars surrounding them gradually thinned.
Perhaps Aldo’s cut short had been a good idea?
She let herself relax another notch.
‘Tell me about them,’ Aurora said as Coco began to bark.
‘ Pulcino. You must be uncomfortable in this tiny prison . Ti lascerò uscire.’
‘ Aunt Aurora, letting her out is not a good idea,’ Ben said urgently as the older woman unzipped the carrier.
‘Ben’s right. She bites,’ Rose exclaimed as she realised what Aurora intended to do.
‘You both have so much in common!’ the older woman trilled as the demon shot from the carrier and immediately scampered onto the top of Aurora’s suitcase and barked delightedly.
Rose inched forward, away from her, aware Coco’s teeth were close to the back of her neck.
‘There, she’s so much happier!
’ Aurora said.
‘I think she might be the only one,’ Rose muttered.
Ben chuckled and she wondered if he’d heard.
Aurora smiled as Coco adjusted herself so she could see out of the window, her tiny tail flapping with pleasure.
The older woman tossed the empty carrier onto the parcel shelf and gave Rose her full attention again.
‘It’s a long journey, why don’t you fill me in on the details?
’
Rose kept a careful eye on Coco as she answered – who knew what the demon was going to do next.
‘My rules aren’t easy to understand if they’re taken out of context,’ she explained, worrying about sharing her life’s work with Ben and Marco’s aunt.
‘Don’t you have them written down?
’ Ben queried, slowing as the road narrowed and the tarmac began to get patchy, which meant the vehicle began to shake.
‘I have a folder, but it was in my suitcase. I remember them of course,’ Rose said as the car rolled over some rocks and shuddered violently.
‘Aurora, are you absolutely certain this is the right way?’ Ben sounded worried.
‘Aldo is sure, and his directions were always magnifico ,’ the older woman insisted, waving a hand.
‘Everything he does is,’ she purred, turning back to Rose.
‘Let’s start with your favourite rule if you know them all by heart, cara .
’
Rose gripped the door handle to stop herself from being thrown around the car as it went over another bump.
Her stomach did a series of slow somersaults before she steeled herself to continue.
‘I need to preface this by saying I’ve been a therapist for almost eight years,’ she said, her voice trembling.
‘My success rate with steering relationships in a more positive direction is second to none.’ Which was true – unless you counted her parents; a failure she lived with every day.
She thought about the two envelopes in her handbag and winced.
‘Aldo tells me you are very good,’ Aurora said and then fell silent, giving Rose the chance to speak.
She sighed. ‘My first rule – and the most important one – is that my clients need to have shared interests,’ she said, thinking about her parents again.
The only shared interest they’d ever had involved her, or complaining about each other, or their various divorces.
Although both of them had moaned about their new spouses with equal gusto, so she supposed that could be considered having something in common.
They’d always been the poster couple for what not to do in a relationship.
The warning that had helped her to develop and craft her rules.
Her life’s work was about ensuring no one else went through the same pain.
‘It’s what will get them through difficult times,’ she continued.
‘For instance, Luna is passionate about tea, it’s her business.
If Marco is too, then that will be an excellent start.
’ Rose knew nothing about Luna’s fiancé.
His hot drink preferences would be one of the first things she’d ask.
Ben snorted. ‘Marco thinks tea tastes like someone washed their feet in hot soapy water, then decided to drink it.’ Rose stiffened.
Her worries were clearly founded, and this would be one of the first things she’d raise when she met with Luna.
‘He’s a coffee man. Milk and two sugars.
I am too.’
‘Perhaps he should be marrying you then,’ Rose said darkly.
‘Sadly, I’m not his type,’ Ben quipped.
‘Too hairy, apparently.’
‘Tell me another rule,’ Aurora said before Rose could counter.
She turned around and saw the edge of the older woman’s mouth twitch as she digested their interplay.
Rose opened her mouth just as her mobile began to ring again, chirping ‘Heartbreaker’ so loudly that Coco began to bark along.
‘That’s my dad. I need to get it.
I can’t really ignore him again.
’ She shuffled through her bag until she found the phone.
She didn’t want to answer, but he’d keep calling until she did.
‘Dad,’ she said into the mouthpiece, twisting her body away from Ben and Aurora towards the window, letting out a surprised gasp as she noticed the view.
She’d been so caught up in their conversation and her fears about being in the car that she’d barely looked at their surroundings.
The sky had changed while they’d been travelling.
The deep cloudless blue had given way to lively oranges, filled with streaks of brilliant red as the sun had begun to dip lower in the sky.
It was now a vibrant semi-circle sinking into the top of one of the mountains.
The whole thing made a stunning picture, one she wished she had time to enjoy.
‘Rose!’ Her father’s wail dragged her back to the conversation.
‘Where are you?’
‘I’m in Italy.
’ Rose braced herself.
‘Why?’ he snapped.
‘It’s a long story.
’ She knew her dad didn’t care.
She leaned back in her seat and rolled her shoulders, feeling the tension that had begun to ease during the journey return.
‘You received the invite to my wedding, though?’ he checked.
Rose sighed, frowning at her handbag where she’d put the two envelopes, noticing her leg had started bouncing again.
‘I did.’
‘Then why haven’t you responded?
’ he barked. ‘You’re usually more efficient with your paperwork.
’
Rose bit her lip and shifted further around.
She didn’t want to share her business with Ben or Aurora, but it was difficult not to in such a confined space.
‘Do you realise that you’ve booked your wedding on the same day as Mum’s?
’ She pulled a face.
‘Within an hour of the ceremony and a four-hour drive away.’
Had her father realised?
Rose hoped not. But she was used to being put in the middle of their relationship, having to deal with the emotional pull from both of them.
But she had no idea what to do in this situation.
How to navigate it without hurting either of them.
‘A mistake,’ her father said sourly.
‘But you’re coming to mine of course?
’
‘Dad, I don’t know,’ she said.
She hadn’t even met his new bride – he’d barely been divorced three months, and she doubted this marriage would last any longer than his last five.
‘How well do you know your fiancée?’ she asked.
‘Enough to know she’s the love of my life,’ he gushed.
‘Rose, I know you won’t let me down.
I’m going to need you there on the day.
You always give such good advice.
’
Advice he never followed.
‘I need to talk to mum first,’ she said.
‘Is there any way you can shift the time, or date so I can go to both?’
‘Absolutely not, I’m not changing anything for that woman—’ The car made a suddenly loud crunching sound before it started to wobble, and Rose’s stomach lurched.
‘Dad?’ she squeaked as the phone lost signal, and she put the mobile down and grabbed the door handle trying not to panic.
‘Dammit,’ Ben said, steering them carefully off the unmade road onto a patch of spiky brown grass.
He climbed out so he could check the car, and Rose saw his mouth pinch.
‘Looks like we’ve got a flat,’ he said dully.
‘Aldo, you didn’t warn us about this!
’ Aurora complained, hugging Coco to her chest as she peered out of the window.
Rose got out of the car and looked around.
The sun was almost hidden by mountains now.
How long would it be until it was fully dark and how late were they going to be now?
‘Can you change it?’ She paced to where Ben was standing.
The tyre was pancake flat, and they obviously weren’t going anywhere until it was changed.
‘Yes.’ Ben wiped his hands on his jeans and went to search in the boot.
Rose followed, trying not to notice the way his T-shirt rode up, exposing some of the tanned muscle of his back as he bent so he could get a better look.
He really was perfect – she’d never responded so viscerally to anyone like this.
Rose had experienced sexual chemistry in the past, but it had never been this strong.
She hated the chaotic churning in her stomach, the lack of control in her mind.
She could have blamed her feelings on the stress of the drive, but knew it was Ben.
Perhaps having these feelings for him would help her to understand her parents and their multiple marriages better?
Clarity on their behaviour might teach her how to deal with them in the future — and it could help when she spoke to Luna later.
Ben turned to hand her the damp linen trousers so she could hang them over her arm.
She watched him put his bag on the ground, unable to tear her eyes away as he moved to search again.
The light from the evening shadows coloured the planes of his face, making him seem almost otherworldly.
She cleared her throat and stepped away, fighting an urge to fan herself like one of the women on the aeroplane.
‘The spare will be in here,’ Ben said as he stripped the carpet away from the bottom of the boot, exposing a wheel and tools.
Rose heard the sound of a door opening, and when she turned, she saw Aurora had got out and was carrying Coco.
‘Aldo says we’re not far from a hotel,’ she said.
‘Perhaps there will be someone there who can help.’
‘We won’t need them,’ Ben said calmly, drawing out the wheel and a bag of tools, his muscles flexing in the dim light.
‘Do you need any help?’ Rose asked as Aurora drew closer.
Coco barked and leaped out of the older woman’s arms. As she did, her claws somehow caught on the edge of Rose’s trousers, yanking them out of her hands.
‘No!’ she yelled as the trousers landed on the floor with the dog touching down on top.
As if Coco knew how distressed Rose was, she began to trample on the material, driving it further into the dust.
‘She’s just playing,’ Aurora said indulgently as Rose bent to rescue her slacks.
‘She did it on purpose,’ she grumbled, grabbing Coco’s collar and moving her carefully so she could retrieve the trousers.
‘I’m going to have to wash them all over again.
’ She examined the dirty material and whimpered.
Aurora swung Coco back into her arms. ‘Don’t worry, cara ,’ she soothed.
‘I’ve got plenty more dresses in my suitcase that you can borrow.
’
‘Well…okay…’ Rose swallowed.
Dear God, she needed her suitcases to turn up now.
She watched Ben wheel the spare around to the driver’s side, before checking her watch.
They were going to be late and even when they did arrive, she’d be wearing an oversized, sparkly dress.
It would take a miracle for her suit to be wearable for the party now.
No one was going to take her seriously when her top started to fall off her shoulder or she tripped over her skirt.
Ben let out a sudden, loud curse.
‘The tyre’s flat!’
‘Which is why you’re changing it,’ Aurora said reasonably.
‘I mean the spare one is too.’ Ben sounded annoyed.
‘It can’t be,’ Rose stuttered, moving closer to Ben who was now prodding at a hole in the tyre with his finger.
‘We need to get help,’ she said.
Ben pulled his mobile from his pocket and frowned at the screen.
‘Do you have signal?’
‘I lost it when I was talking to my dad, but I’ll check.
’ Rose went back to the car and collected her mobile from her bag, then her heart sank.
‘No.’
‘Do you have a phone?’ Ben checked with Aurora.
‘I don’t need one, cara ,’ she said, hugging Coco.
‘Aldo doesn’t happen to have a direct line to whatever the Italian equivalent of the AA is, does he?
’ Ben joked wearily.
‘No. But he suggested we walk. To the hotel.’ The older woman pointed to the narrow track leading away from them in the direction they’d been driving.
‘Hopefully, someone there will be able to help.’
Ben sighed before turning to Rose.
‘I don’t think we have much choice,’ he said, before going to pick up his bag.
‘Let me get some essentials from my suitcase!’ Aurora yelled, bolting to the car with Coco still under her arm.
Then she retrieved her bag with the crystal ball and added a couple of clean dresses and some other bits.
Rose watched them as they began to walk and shook her head.
This visit was turning into a disaster.
They were going to miss the engagement party, and by the time they arrived, it would be harder than ever for her to convince Luna she was making a mistake…