The House by the Cypress Trees

by Elena Mikalsen

  “No, wait,” he called out after her. “Don’t walk away. I want to talk about this. Are you going to stay tomorrow? Can we start over?”

  “I changed my mind. Nothing to talk about. It’s over.”

  Julia slammed the door behind her as she entered the house and ran all the way upstairs despite the increasing nausea. This was humiliating. She had practically thrown herself at him, and he flat out turned her down. Was she so unattractive? No, it must have been her forwardness that turned him off. He romanced her with Shakespeare and kissed her sweetly, and she ruined it. Well, she didn’t have months of dating time, did she? His loss. They would’ve been great in bed, she was certain. He knew it too—that kiss was incredible. Her legs went weak just thinking about it now. His hands going up her back, his breath on her neck… They would have been amazing at sex. His loss.

  Julia tried to throw up, but her anger was burning through the wine, making her less drunk. She packed her belongings, gathering things from where she had thrown them about on the chairs. She’d have to leave first thing in the morning, before he was up. Tonight was embarrassing enough—she would not face him again. Surely, she’d be able to ask Mandy for a ride to town in the morning.

  Her heart tugged. Lizzy. She might not be able to say goodbye to Lizzy. Well, this was all for the best. A clean break. This house in the sky, this mansion in the clouds, made her forget who she was. Made her hang her head in the clouds instead.

  Time for reality. Back to her plans. Where gorgeous British men didn’t kiss her on top of spectacular balconies of Italian Renaissance mansions. She gasped as a stifled sob came to the surface, and she collapsed on her bed, her heart aching.

  Shakespeare didn’t write enough words for what she felt at the moment.

  Chapter 17

  Julia slept restlessly and woke as soon as the sunlight streamed into her windows. She made the water in her bath extra hot to help wash away the memories of Daniel’s lips pressing against hers, his hands stroking her arms, his warm lips pressed against her neck, his thighs under hers… Oh, God. She leaned her forehead against the tub. Her legs went weak anytime she felt his body near hers now. This had to stop. Her staying was a terrible idea, but not as terrible as the rejection she’d gotten from him last night.

  It was infuriating. Embarrassing. Humiliating.

  She finished washing, turned off the water, and wrapped herself into a large terrycloth towel. What if it wasn’t even Daniel she wanted? Maybe her dad had been right and all of what was happening on this trip—Lizzy, and Daniel, and staying here at this vineyard—all of it had to do with Mom dying? Perhaps she was only desperate not to be alone.

  She got dressed, finished packing, and was about to close her suitcase when Daniel poked his head in.

  “Ever heard of knocking?” she asked. She’d have to face him, and she was not looking forward to it.

  “I feared you’d try to leave,” he said.

  “I’ve overstayed my welcome.” She avoided looking at him.

  “You haven’t. I badly want you to stay.”

  “You?” She finally looked at him and raised her brows. “You definitely would rather I leave.”

  “You are wrong. Please stay.” He came closer, lifted her chin with his forefinger.

  “I don’t think it’s a good idea.” She removed his finger. “It’ll get even more complicated. You made it clear last night.” She looked straight at him, daring him to deny what he had done.

  “I’m so sorry. I was only thinking of not rushing into things, but I wish I could explain to you how much I regret last night.”

  Daniel leaned down, and brushed a gentle kiss on her lips. She opened them as if to say something, and he took advantage of that, exploring her mouth, letting her know how much he didn’t want her to leave. The kiss sent familiar sparks through her body, making it impossible for her to be angry with him. He was warm and smelled heavenly, and when he let go, she struggled to pull away, wanting more. He did want her. She wasn’t wrong last night.

  “I won’t make the mistake again,” he whispered. “I should be so lucky to get another offer from you.”

  “You won’t,” she protested quickly before her body betrayed her again.

  “I don’t deserve it. But you’ll stay?”

  Julia was torn. Lizzy was here and she hadn’t said goodbye to her. Against her best judgment, she was drawn to this man and his kisses like a moth to a flame.

  “Well…” Julia looked out the window. “It’s a beautiful day, and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to afford to stay at a place this magnificent ever again.”

  “Yes, ladies and gentlemen!” Daniel clapped his hands. “The lady will stay. What shall we do first, then, this fine day?”

  Julia smiled. “I’d love breakfast.”

  “On to the kitchen we go, then.”

  “Hey, how is the situation with the museum?” Julia asked as they walked.

  “Heading back to Rome Wednesday for a dinner with the board.”

  “So you’ll try again?” Julia asked, pausing at the entrance to the kitchen.

  “Why not? You had a great idea.” Daniel set two plates on the table and piled them high with pastries, ham, cheese, and fruit.

  “Where is everyone else eating breakfast?”

  “They’re done. It’s a busy day, I believe. Many guests are on the schedule, and Mia is coming home. Oh, there she is,” he said, looking out the window.

  There was honking outside and a rush of voices. They went out, beating Francesca and the others from the house, just as Mandy and Gian pulled into the circular driveway.

  “Thank God,” Daniel said with relief.

  The car stopped, and Gian jumped out, opening the back door and carrying a small body wrapped in blankets.

  “Daniel,” the little girl cried out, raising her arms.

  Daniel ran to his niece while Julia stayed back, letting him have a moment. She saw Louisa wiping away tears, and then there was a mad rush from the rest of the family to hug Mia and her parents, and it took a while for everyone to settle down and proceed to the garden.

  “Julia, come on. My niece wants to meet you,” Daniel called to her.

  Her heart warmed. He wanted her to come. She was part of this. She called for Lizzy, lounging in a flowerbed, and they followed Daniel to the back. “Are you sure I should be here? Maybe I should let you do your family thing.”

  “Nonsense. Of course you should be here.”

  “Un cane!” Mia exclaimed seeing Lizzy. “Can I hold it, please, Daniel?”

  “You have many dogs, my darling,” Mandy said. “And it might pull on your stitches.”

  “It’s a special dog, a baby,” Mia replied. “It will be gentle, right, Daniel?”

  “Right, honey. Just please be careful.”

  “May I?” Daniel asked Julia, but she already held Lizzy out for him.

  He placed the puppy next to Mia, and the little girl’s face lit up in joy. Julia exclaimed happily, and Daniel looked back at her, smiling.

  “Grazie,” Gian said to Julia.

  “Prego.”

  Later, Julia busied herself helping set up for lunch. She couldn’t bear to think of what it meant for her now that Mia had fallen in love with Lizzy. She always knew she’d have to give up the dog. Mia was a sick child, and there was no way for Julia to keep Lizzy. But it still hurt.

  Mia asked for Julia and Daniel to sit next to her, and Daniel kept his hand on Julia’s for most of the lunch. She tried to shake it off, but gave up about half way through. He stroked her fingers, sending tingles up her arm and sufficiently distracting her from the pain of losing her dog, as well as from any lunchtime conversation.

  It was at the end of lunch when Julia noticed Mia falling asleep on her stuffed rabbit, a halo of exhaustion visible on her face. She pointed at the child and caught Daniel’s attention.

  “You should let her take a nap, Mandy. She’s spent,” Daniel said.

  “I can see that, thank
you.”

  “I don’t want to sleep, Mommy.” Mia turned her pale face to Mandy, then to Daniel, complaining.

  “If you have a good rest, I’ll buy you a present at the festival tonight,” Daniel said.

  “What festival?” Mandy asked.

  “I want to take Julia to Monteriggioni. Do you still have the costumes we wore a few years ago?”

  Mia perked up and tried to sit up, color returning to her face. “Can I go? Take me, please.”

  “You rest up, and then you can go another day, all right?” Daniel looked at the waif of a child with sadness. “But I promise to pick up a present for you. Julia will help me.”

  “I don’t want a present. I want to go to the festival.” Mia’s eyes teared up.

  “When you feel all better. How about I surprise you?”

  “Va bene. Can I have my puppy sleep with me?”

  “Sure.”

  Julia’s heart tugged. She was used to Lizzy sleeping with her, but the little girl needed the puppy more than she did.

  “The costumes are in the trunks in the guest villa,” Mandy said, picking up Mia in her arms. “When did you grow so big, la mia piccolina?”

  Daniel gave Mia a kiss. “All right, Julia and I will check what shape they’re in. I will help Vittorio with the lavender after, and then we’ll be off for the evening. Don’t wait up for us tonight.”

  “Remember what happened last time you went to Monteriggioni without me.” Mandy pointed a finger at him.

  “I was fifteen and didn’t know how to drink wine then. Julia will watch over me.”

  “Sure.”

  When lunch was over, Julia helped clean up and found herself once more alone with Daniel while washing dishes. She didn’t at all mind when he wrapped his arms around her and kissed the back of her neck until she lost all ability to speak and her body melted and became all heat and scent of him, lavender mixed with honey and a slight hint of rosemary.

  “Come to my room. I have a little time before I have to deal with lavender,” he asked, moving away, still holding her fingers but pulling her now, willing her to follow him.

  Her eyes shone at him. “I can’t.”

  “Why not? I have a comfortable bed, and I’d like to kiss you properly, with no one looking at us.”

  “No.” She shook her head, unclasping her fingers. “Go deal with the lavender.”

  “Don’t worry about that. You asked me to make love to you yesterday. What changed?”

  “One-time offer.” She smiled.

  “I was an incomprehensible idiot,” he said, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her neck, his breath heating up her shoulders and chest.

  She moaned again and pushed him away. “Stop. Someone will see us.”

  “I don’t care. Kiss me again.”

  “I think you’ve had enough kissing.” Julia turned and walked toward her room.

  “You are driving me crazy,” he called after her.

  The door next to them opened. She spun around.

  “You won’t listen, will you,” Mandy said to Daniel.

  “Mandy, were you spying on us?”

  “Wouldn’t you?”

  “It’s not like that with us,” Daniel said.

  Julia wondered what this was all about. Daniel’s sister was bossy, that was for certain.

  “Shouldn’t you be helping with the lavender?” Mandy asked.

  “Fine. Give me a minute,” Daniel said. “Julia, I’ll find you when I’m done. There’s a medieval festival nearby. We’ll go dress up and join the feast.”

  She laughed. “Who do we dress up as?”

  “You as a princess, me as your jester or lowly serf. Which should I be?”

  She gestured dramatically. “Be my knight, then.”

  “I will be. Anytime. I’ll bring you a lavender crown.” He gave her a mock bow.

  She watched Mandy shake her head and walked away to her room to call her dad and catch up with her friends. Although she wasn’t sure how she could explain anything that had been happening to her.

  Chapter 18

  Daniel was quite certain he had made the greatest mistake of his life last night, but he had absolutely no idea how to get it sorted. He almost lost all control kissing Julia’s velvet lips, wishing for nothing more than to pick her up, run upstairs to his room, and ravage her until dawn. The words to refuse her came from a place he couldn’t identify. It was not what he wanted, evidenced by his hard-on. He was sure it was not what she wanted either. But it was what he knew was the right thing to do.

  He felt Julia’s hurt through all the walls that separated them. Daniel was in agony himself, not sure if he should have apologized immediately or gone to her room to make love to her gently. Or maybe not so gently? He spent the night pacing and furious at himself, frustrated with this battle between his mind and his body, until he passed out, still wearing his clothes.

  Daniel ran to her this morning and saw the pools of grief in her eyes. He’d hurt her. He needed to hold Julia just then, feel her heart against him. But he restrained himself. She was hurt and angry; he needed to go slow.

  When she forgave him, his relief was so enormous he didn’t even care that Mandy was angry with him or that he had to help with the lavender. Or that he still had to finish his museum presentation, which he had totally forgotten about.

  The afternoon passed on in a sweaty haze of hard work and thoughts of Julia. Would she change her mind about having sex with him? He understood her refusal of his invitation to his bed. He didn’t blame her. Did he dare ask again? She would be within her rights to refuse him forever.

  Daniel showered, then passed time working on his presentation, but struggled to concentrate, his thoughts occupied with plans for the evening with Julia. He didn’t deserve to be so lucky. It was all lining up perfectly. A romantic evening at a medieval festival in a castle with wine, dancing, and fireworks. He couldn’t have planned it better. He borrowed a shirt from Gian that wasn’t so white, for once, and went to find her.

  His heart had a moment of panic when Daniel couldn’t find her by the pool or in the garden. Then he heard her laughter from the kitchen. He rushed in and stopped at the door. Julia was folding the edges of a crostata, her hair tied into a loose bun in the back. As she heard him enter, she turned, smiled, and wiped her face with her hand, leaving smudges of flour on her forehead.

  “Daniel, hi. I’m finishing up the baking. Give me a few minutes.”

  He swallowed and found he couldn’t bring himself to say anything just yet.

  “Are you hungry?” Aunt Louisa asked. “We have fresh bread.”

  “Daniel?” Francesca slapped him on the back, and he snapped out of it. She shook her head at him, but her eyes were full of laughter.

  “No, thank you, ladies. Julia and I are going to the festival at the castle. We’ll find dinner there, I’m sure.”

  “But Julia made you a plum crostata,” Aunt Louisa exclaimed, displeasure clear.

  “It’s all right, Louisa. He can eat it tomorrow,” Julia said.

  “We can eat it when we return from the festival,” he proposed. “We won’t be too late.”

  Julia smiled, placing the crostata in the oven. “I’m ready now. Thank you for teaching me how to bake, Francesca. Tomorrow, I teach you to make tortillas.” She gave Francesca a kiss, washed her hands, and took off her apron. He swallowed again. Julia wore a white layered skirt with printed flowers, reaching to her ankles. Her top was also white, but it was entirely too short, baring her midriff by about two inches, making it impossible for him to look at anything but that sliver of exposed skin. He began to sweat and wiped his neck.

  “You said we’d wear costumes?” she asked.

  “Oh, yes, I forgot.” He remembered the costumes. Maybe he could find her a cloak to cover up the exposed area, so he wouldn’t drool all night.

  “Thank you, darling,” his aunt called out after Julia. “You’ve been a great help.”

  “Your aunt is
a lovely person,” Julia said. “I could stay here forever, learning how to bake from her and Francesca. I’ve forgotten how much I enjoyed cooking and baking. I haven’t had time to enjoy being in the kitchen in years.”

  “Yes, those two are quite a contrast to my mother. No wonder Mandy came to stay here.”

  They crossed the terrace and took the stairs to the garden. It was still hot, and most of the guests were by the pool, the garden deserted by everyone but butterflies.

  “When is your mother coming anyway? Maybe I should leave before she gets here, the way everyone has described her.” Julia laughed, splashing her hand in the fountain.

  “Who knows? She likes to pop in unannounced and make everyone miserable.”

  “Well, I must judge your mother for myself. I’m a tough judge of character,” Julia said, continuing down the path.

  “Are you really?”

  “I am, and I still don’t trust you.”

  He stopped and turned her around, holding her by the shoulders. “And why not?”

  “I’m not sure what your motive is for helping me.”

  “How about no motive?”

  “Not possible.” She made a sound in her throat, letting him know she didn’t believe him in the least.

  “Come on,” he said. “Let’s see if we can find those costumes.”

  He led her to the guest villa, on the other side of the garden. The door creaked as it opened, unhappy with the intrusion.

  “Who lives here?” Julia asked.

  “My mum stays here when she comes.” He looked around. “Looks like no one’s been here for a while. Quite dusty.”

  He walked over to two large trunks standing near the window. He kneeled down and opened both, with some effort.

  Julia gagged and turned away. Daniel closed the lids, pinching his nose. “Well, this is a disaster.”