by Paula Kay
Blu had long since made peace with the tougher times, forgiving Jemma in the part she’d played that had caused such a burden on her heart. Jemma had put them through it, that was for sure. It had seemed as if overnight, she’d gone from being this sweet little girl who loved to play for hours with her mother, to someone who’d just as soon walk out of their lives forever.
Blu smiled as a memory played through her mind. It was a memory of a young Jemma on Chase’s shoulders—the first time they’d met Chase, actually—so silly and carefree, so taken with Arianna and their very first stay at the beach house.
“Ari, look at her now. Can you believe your little bean is going to be a mother?” Blu laughed at herself for saying the words out loud, but she couldn’t help it. She always had more memories of Arianna when they were all together like this. She thought it was that way for the others as well.
And then a darker memory—a memory of Jemma in the hospital bed—and how close they’d come to losing her and how oblivious the defiant teen girl had been. Yes, things could have turned out so differently for all of them. And one would never even imagine looking at Jemma today, so healthy and full of life, that she’d nearly thrown her life away back then—back when she was too young to even understand what her future could be.
Blu said a little prayer inside her head, as she often did these days, thanking God for Gigi and Douglas in their lives back then to help—thanking God for the bigger plans he’d had for them all.
She smiled as she heard Isabella’s voice coming up the driveway.
And she thanked God that a young woman called Arianna had walked into a small bar so many years ago to befriend her and introduce her to a family that would come to mean everything to Blu.
Chapter 22
Isabella took her time getting ready. As of that morning, the house was filled with people. The men had all arrived, including Thomas, and Isabella’s reunion with him had been sweeter than any they’d ever had before. They hadn’t really had much alone time yet that day, but the next day would be devoted to just the two of them.
Tonight, Antonio had made reservations for their whole crew at one of the best restaurants in town. And Isabella was focused on what she’d wear to dinner—how she wanted to see Thomas’s eyes light up when he next saw her.
She thought about the shower that Jemma had hosted for her the night before. It has been so perfect in every way. The garden had been beautiful, the food delicious, and the company around the table was every woman in Isabella’s life that meant something wonderful to her.
They’d talked a lot about marriage and asked her a lot of questions about the things she was looking forward to the most. When it came time for the gifts of lingerie, Isabella didn’t bat an eye in embarrassment, which surprised even her just a bit.
Everyone around the table knew how special the wedding night was going to be for Isabella. They knew that Thomas would have never seen her in lingerie before the big night. It was special. Everything about the party was bringing her one step closer to that day when they would become man and wife.
All the boxes had been checked off, the traditions upheld, and any nervous jitters talked out.
Isabella looked at the time on her phone and realized that she’d missed a video call from Lucas. They’d been playing phone tag the past few days, and Lucas and the family were due to arrive in Tuscany the next day.
Isabella clicked on his number to call him back. She still had a half hour before it was time to leave to the restaurant. She’d make time for a quick chat.
“Hi. How are you?” She grinned when she saw that the face on the screen was her sister, Annie’s.
“Hi, Bella! Bella, we’re coming tomorrow. I can’t wait to see you and I can’t wait to see my dress.”
“Hi, sweetie. Oh, You’re going to love it. And it looks just like Jemma’s. You’re going to look like a princess.” Isabella saw Lucas and his wife Kate coming up behind Annie to talk.
“Hi, Bella. Can you believe it’s almost your big day?” Kate said.
“No, I’m actually almost having to pinch myself to believe it. It seemed so far away and now it’s almost getting to be a matter of hours. I can’t wait to see you guys.”
“Me too. Annie, blow your sister a kiss, and let’s let Daddy talk now for a minute.” Annie obeyed and Kate gave a final wave as Lucas took over with the phone.
“Hi, honey. Now tell me how you’re really doing…”
They both laughed.
“Are you nervous?”
“No. Not really.” Isabella smiled. Was she nervous? Maybe she would be the day of the actual wedding, but at the moment she couldn’t wait for the day to get there.
“So, we’ll see you guys tomorrow night then?”
“Yep, we’re going to get into Florence around three; we’ll pick up our car and we should be there with you all for one of Lia and Chase’s famous dinners.”
Isabella laughed. Lucas adored good Italian food and always kept the compliments flowing whenever they stayed at the vineyard, which had become quite a regular occurrence over the past few years.
“Listen, I know how busy it has to be around there and I was the first one to tell Lia not to bother—that we’d happily take everyone out to dinner—”
“Say no more. I know.” Isabella laughed. “Lia is definitely the hostess with the mostest. She loves it though.”
“Well, honey, I sure am looking forward to seeing you.”
“Right before you give me away?” Isabella smiled.
She’d first had a talk with her mother—to see what she thought about having both her father and Lucas walk her down the aisle. Emily had felt so sure that it was the right thing to do that she’d encouraged Isabella to talk to her father, who’d wasted no time in saying that absolutely he would share the honor with Isabella’s birth father.
And Lucas had been so sweet, really—always so considerate of not stepping on any toes. It had been that way since the first day that Isabella had met him, and their relationship with one another and the two families had only grown stronger over the years.
Lucas was laughing at her. “Oh, I can’t wait, my darling girl.”
“Me too. And on that note, I probably should get going, as I have a whole group of people waiting for me here downstairs. Have a great flight tomorrow.”
“Thank you. We love you and we’ll see you soon.”
“Love you too.”
Isabella clicked off the phone and walked into the bathroom to give one quick dusting of powder across her cheeks before she made her way downstairs.
She could hear the laughter in the living room long before she was even in the hallway leading up to it. As she got closer, she smiled as she was able to make out bits of the conversation.
“Thomas, she’s absolutely going to go wild. I’m sure of it. If you can pull this off…”
It was Jemma’s voice that Isabella heard as she rounded the corner and stepped through the doorway into the room, all eyes turning toward her and quite a few nervous glances that told her she’d walked in on a conversation that she wasn’t meant to hear.
She looked at Jemma and grinned. “So now am I to understand that everyone knows about our secret honeymoon except for me?”
She walked over to give Thomas a quick kiss on the lips. “Don’t worry, I know how you like to surprise me, so I’m not even going to bother trying to get the information out of them.”
Thomas grinned and looked around the room. “You heard that here, everyone—straight from her mouth—so I expect there to be no caving.”
They all laughed, and Jemma came over to link arms with Isabella as Antonio motioned for them that the cars were there to pick them up.
Chapter 23
Isabella felt Thomas’s arms come around her from behind at the same time as she felt his hot breath against her neck. They were alone together hiking one of the paths not far from the villa, and the view was even more breathtaking than the first time Isabella had seen it
. She smiled as she had the thought that everything seemed better with Thomas by her side.
Thomas nuzzled her neck with a kiss. “What’s that delicious-looking smile for, my love?” He gently turned her face toward his, and the feel of his lips on hers nearly caused her to lose her breath.
She turned her body so that she was tight against him, reaching up to wrap her hands around his neck. This was what she wanted. She wanted Thomas for the rest of her life. She wanted to be his forever. And in this place—this beautiful magical place—she could have been right in the middle of a dream that she never wanted to wake from. But it was real. Thomas kissing her was the most real thing that she’d ever felt.
She laughed as he tickled her side lightly—playfully. She loved the way he teased her. She always had, and it had been the first indication that she’d ever had that he might like her, even though she’d scoffed at the suggestion when her parents had pointed it out to her when they were very young. “Boys always tease the girls that they like, you know?” her father used to say.
And Isabella had thought it was all ridiculous. Of course he liked her. She was his best friend. She didn’t even understand what her father meant back then, nor did she care. She only wanted to spend time with the boy who made her laugh—and the boy who just as quickly would dry her tears.
“Iz?”
“Yes, my darling?” She spoke the words into his neck, her breath just barely grazing his ear, which she knew drove him a little crazy.
She felt his arms grow tighter around her and she breathed his scent—fresh soap that she loved mixed with just the slightest hint of sweat from their evening excursion along the path.
“I missed you so much. Do you have any idea how good it feels to be holding you in my arms right now?” He tilted her chin up as he kissed her on the lips and looked deep into her eyes.
“Do you have any idea how good it feels to me to be held in your arms right now, my darling fiancé?” She grinned back at him.
He kissed her on the nose. “And in just a few days, I’ll be your husband.”
A few days. She still couldn’t quite get her head around it. Now that the days in Positano were ending, everything seemed to be moving at hyper-speed. Lia had assured her that Antonio had everything situated back at the vineyard—that all they had to do was return feeling wonderfully rested. But now with her arms around Thomas, she could hardly believe that she was going to be a wife—Thomas’s wife—before the week was over.
“Thank you for coming early.”
“Wild horses wouldn’t keep me away from you a day longer. It was much too long this time. Let’s agree not to do that again.”
“But look at you now.” She smiled.
“Look at me what? Do you take pleasure in my torment?”
“No. Never.” She playfully tugged on his lip with her teeth. “Well, maybe only a little—if it results in you being extra special nice to me when you see me.”
“Is that right?” He swatted her playfully on her backside and she reached down, catching his hand in hers and bringing it to her lips.
“Thomas.” She felt her voice catch as she spoke. She was serious now.
“Yes, my love.” He squeezed her hand.
“I can’t wait until I’m really yours—all of me, I mean.” She knew she was blushing. She could feel it in her face, but it was important to her that he knew this.
He’d been so patient with her over the years—they’d both been patient—and strong—honoring a commitment that he’d made to her when she told him that she wanted to wait until they were married before they crossed that boundary of intimacy. He’d respected her for it and though it hadn’t been easy—not for either of them—they’d done whatever it took to make sure they could keep that promise to one another.
And now, the wait was almost over. Isabella couldn’t even speak because of the lump in her throat—the way he was looking at her as she spoke to him about it. It was a look of pure love.
Thomas placed his hands on either side of her face as he gently kissed her. “I can’t wait either, Iz. I love you so much for everything you’ve given me and everything you’ve yet to share with me. I can’t imagine that I could feel any happier when we’re together, but I have the feeling that this statement will truly be put to the test.”
They both laughed and stepped apart just a bit as if on cue.
Isabella walked over to a small bench just off the path. It was getting close to the time for the sun to set, and they’d need to be heading back soon so as not to be walking along the path in the dark.
Isabella sighed.
“What’s wrong, hon?”
“I forgot something.”
He looked at her with a question on his face.
“The ashes. I haven’t done it yet. I was wondering if maybe you wanted to do it with me this time. It seems kind of fitting. Actually I want to do it at a spot on the beach, so I’ll just go by the villa on the way back.”
Thomas reached into his pocket and pulled out the small box that contained the ashes.
Isabella smiled. “What?”
He laughed and placed them into her hand. “You always keep them in your bedside table, and you also often forget to bring them with you at the most opportune times.”
Isabella laughed. “This may be true. And thank you.” She leaned over to kiss him on the cheek.
“You said that this was it, right? The last place?”
“Well, one more after this. I wanted to do it at…”
“At? Where?”
Isabella and Thomas had already said all there was to say about the house falling through. She really didn’t want to bring it up any more than necessary. She felt okay about things, but talking about it didn’t exactly make her feel better about going back to New York. And she didn’t want anything to ruin the lovely time they’d been having.
“What Iz?”
“Oh, I wanted to spread them here and then save the rest for our yard—I was going to save them for the house in Connecticut.”
“Oh.”
“But it’s okay. I’ll just hang on to the last of them. Like you said, it won’t be long—until we find our home.”
“No, it won’t be long, Iz.” He squeezed her hand and stood up from the bench.
“So you’ll come with me then—down to the beach?”
“I can go with you if you want me to, but I kinda think maybe you should do this yourself. It’s always been your private time with her—with your birth mother, right?”
Isabella nodded her head. “Yes. But I guess I just thought that with us getting married—maybe it’s something I want to share with you now.”
“You know what I think?”
“What?”
“I think you should save the last time for us to do together. And I think that if Arianna were alive today, she would have spent every moment with you here in Positano—that it would have been a special time for the two of you.”
“And it’s a good way for me to honor her—with the ashes here, isn’t it?”
Thomas nodded. He understood what the journey—the ashes and the map—had meant to Isabella. And Isabella loved him fiercely for that understanding.
He reached out his hand to pull Isabella up from the bench. “We’ll walk down together. I’d prefer you not being on your own now that it’s getting dark.”
Isabella gave him an exaggerated look of surprise.
Thomas laughed. “Not that you’re not capable of being just fine on your own, of course—just that I prefer to be with you at night. Understandable?”
“Yes, understandable.” Isabella kissed his cheek as they started to walk down the hill. “And appreciated.” She grinned as she picked up the pace a little bit. “There’s that shop you were wanting to check out earlier today. It’s very close to where I’m going to be. You can probably see me from the window inside.” She winked at him. “Will that be to your satisfaction?”
“I think so, yes.” He squeezed her hand.
“Thomas?”
“Yes?”
“I love how considerate you are of me. Thank you for that.”
“Well, then thank you too—for the same.”
“No. It’s not the same. Not really. I mean, I love you to pieces and I try to be considerate of you, but somehow it just seems to come more naturally for you. You’re just a really good guy, I guess.” She laughed and then noticed the serious look on Thomas’s face as he stopped suddenly on the sidewalk.
She kissed him, still wanting to keep the mood as light. “What, Thomas?”
“I just really want to love you well, Iz.”
She hugged him close so that he wouldn’t see the sudden tears in her eyes—tears for the almost overwhelming amount of love that she had for this man who was soon to become her husband.
Chapter 24
Isabella took a step back from the full-length mirror so she could get a full view of what the dress looked like. Blu had put the last remaining touches on all the dresses that morning and they’d sent the guys off for the day to enjoy a chartered boat ride.
“Oh, Izzy.”
Isabella smiled as she turned toward her mother’s voice in the doorway.
“What do you think?”
Emily brushed the tears from her face as she came into the room, placing something on the sofa and holding out her arms to Isabella. “Honey, you look so beautiful.” Emily turned toward Blu, who was on her way toward the door. “Blu, you’ve really outdone yourself—with all the dresses. We can’t thank you enough. I know how much it means to Isabella.”
“It’s my pleasure. Truly. I’ll just give you two a moment while I let the others know that we’re almost finished here. I’m guessing they probably want to see you in it one more time before we pack it up.”
“Okay. Thanks, Blu,” Isabella said.
Emily moved toward the sofa to retrieve the package she’d set down there.