The Complete Legacy Series: Books 1 - 6

by Paula Kay

  The kitchen windows were open and the morning breeze coming in was just the right temperature for thick robes and coffee. Blu pulled her robe tighter around her, then reached for a coffee cup as she noticed Lia sitting outside watching the ocean.

  The sight of her nearly took her breath away. It was impossible not to be reminded of Arianna whenever Blu looked at Lia. The resemblance was really amazing, and whenever Blu saw Lia now, she reminded her so much of the best friend that she’d lost. Not that it was bad. It wasn’t.

  It had been rough going, especially, that first year after Arianna died. She’d had a hard time herself, and Jemma, being pretty young, cried herself to sleep many nights, not understanding where her friend had gone. They’d both gone through a lot, with the help of a good therapist and their friends; things were much better, and it seemed they all had a healthy perspective on the things that Arianna had brought to their lives, in terms of the memories and the legacy she’d left to each of them.

  Blu poured her coffee and noticed Lia motioning to her from outside.

  “Good morning, early bird,” Blu said as she walked out onto the deck to sit opposite her friend at the table.

  “I know. I’ve been up since four o’clock, actually. Jet lag does it to me every time.” She laughed. “How ’bout you? Why are you up so early? Normal for you?”

  Blu nodded her head. “At least lately it seems to be. My schedule’s been a little messed up too, I guess. Plus I’ve not really been sleeping very well.”

  Lia looked at her, brow furrowed. “Are you okay? Something you wanna talk about?”

  “I do want to talk you, yes. But first I want to hear all about you. Before the others get up, and by others I mean Jemma wanting all of your attention.” The two women laughed.

  “Oh, it’s so good to be around her. To be here. I miss you all a lot.”

  Blu knew that she meant it but also knew that Lia seemed more content than she’d ever seen her, something she’d noticed even in the short time since her arrival.

  “Well, you certainly do seem very happy.” Blu said. “I assume everything is going well with the restaurant and with Antonio?”

  “Yes, Carlo and I are like a well-oiled machine at Thyme. The restaurant practically runs itself, we’ve got such great help right now.” She laughed. “Well, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but Sofia has become our manager now that she’s out of school, and she’s got a wonderful staff working for us right now. I couldn’t be more pleased.”

  “That’s so great to hear. Just talking about it is making me miss those delicious Italian feasts.” She laughed. “Not that last night wasn’t great—and by the way, that dish was fantastic. I think Chase was well pleased with himself, don’t you?” Blu smiled.

  “I have to say, Blu. I really like that man of yours. He’s a keeper.” She looked at Blu with a question on her face. “I hope you do realize that?”

  Blu laughed, feeling her face grow a bit hot. “I do, yes. As of lately, there’s nothing I want more than to make this relationship work with him. I think it’s worth it.”

  “Well worth it.” Lia said. “And he adores you. I can tell.”

  “Speaking of adoring boyfriends…” Blu laughed. “How’s everything between you and Antonio?”

  Lia’s face seemed to light up across from her at the mere mention of Antonio’s name. “He’s so great. We’re so great, actually. Something I wasn’t ever sure that I’d be saying.”

  Blu nodded, remembering the rocky start the two had had to go through after their initial reunion in Italy a few years earlier.

  “And what exactly do you mean by so great?” Blu teased with a wink. “Is there talk of finally moving into the vineyard villa with him? I can’t believe that you’ve been keeping two places for this long.”

  “Yes, we’ve been talking, in fact. Up until now, it made sense to keep my place, which is so close to the restaurant, but lately I’ve not been going in every day; and really, Antonio’s only a short drive away. And, well—”

  “Spill it. Are you getting ready to tell me what I think you are? Are we getting wedding invitations soon?” Blu grinned broadly at her friend.

  Lia blushed, nodding her head. “It’s not official yet so I’ve not told the others—or anyone really—but yes, I think there’s a good chance that you’ll be invited to a wedding at the vineyard—maybe late summer or early fall—so do keep that in mind when it comes to your travel plans.”

  Blu got up to come around the table and hug her friend, genuinely very pleased for her. “Wait.” She released Lia from her hug, stepping back a bit. “You are going to let me make your dress, aren’t you?”

  Lia’s eyes filled with tears. “Oh, I was hoping you’d say that. Yes. Yes, please. And a flower girl dress for Jemma, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” Lia laughed.

  “Well, this is just the best news—and let’s try to at least sneak away at some point while you’re here to look at some magazines and do some sketching.”

  Lia nodded, still looking a bit overcome by emotion. “That sounds wonderful.”

  Blu was looking at Lia thoughtfully. She really couldn’t believe how far Lia had come since she’d met her—really since after Arianna’s death. If Lia had gone through everything she’d gone through and was, in fact, getting her happy ending, then Blu had to believe that she’d make it through this rough patch too.

  “I’m just so happy for you, Lia.” And Blu meant it with every ounce of her being. “And God, Ari would be so pleased. You do know that, right?”

  Lia nodded, fresh tears springing to her eyes. “Not a day goes by that Antonio and I don’t remember that it was Ari that brought us back together after so many years—and so many mistakes.”

  Blu nodded in recognition of the mistakes Lia referred to. She knew Lia’s story and the secrets that had been kept for a long time. But she also knew the rest of the story, which was all about what was possible after making the decision to move on.

  Blu hugged her friend again before she went back to sit across from her at the table.

  “Okay, enough about me.” Lia said wiping her eyes one last time. “What did you want to talk about?”

  Chapter 13

  Blu laughed to herself at the irony of Lia’s statement, because what they’d been talking about for the last several minutes spoke exactly to Blu’s questions about taking chances, forgiveness, and moving on from past mistakes.

  “So I was talking to Douglas yesterday about some issues—or potential issues—that I could be having.” Blu saw the look on her friend’s face and hurried to ease her concern. “Everything’s okay, so no need to worry. Well, at least I think everything will be okay—eventually.”

  Lia was nodding her head. “Go on.”

  “So anyways, I’ve recently been contacted by my mother—right after that interview with me came out. I can’t say that I was really shocked by it, but I’m not happy and I’m trying to figure out a way to keep my mother away, basically; thus my asking Douglas for advice as to what I could do legally.” Lia was listening intently, nodding her head.

  Blu had shared with Lia the rough childhood that she’d had. She knew most of the bits about her mother and the drugs and even the stuff about Harold and the abuse. She knew almost everything; and she certainly knew how Blu felt about the woman that she never even referred to except when something about her past happened to come up in conversation. Even in cases like that, she tried very hard to avoid the subject.

  “So Douglas suggested that I should talk to you about it before I made any decisions. And by decisions, I mean keeping my mother away from me and Jemma at all costs.” Blu was frustrated again just talking about it.

  “He thought that you should talk to me?” Lia looked confused, like she hadn’t quite made the connection yet, which made sense because she was probably thinking about Blu’s mother as the strung-out druggie that Blu had described to her so many times.

  “Yeah, well, the thing is, this email that my
mom sent talked about how much she had changed. That she wanted another chance, basically, to make things right between us. I dunno. I mean, I’m not really buying it, but Douglas seems to think that it might be worth considering speaking with her, at least.”

  Lia was nodding her head again. “And he thinks that I might be able to offer a perspective as someone who also took a chance reaching out to my daughter.”

  “Exactly. Oh, here, let me just read it to you.” Blu brought it up on her phone and mentally reminded herself to change the names as she read it. When she was done reading, the two sat in silence for a few seconds until Lia seemed ready to voice her opinion.

  “Okay, I can understand why Douglas didn’t want to do anything too quickly.”

  Blu nodded. She did understand that too, even though she was freaking out and wanted the whole thing over with right away, as it was really causing her a lot of stress.

  “And you know that we all—I’m sure I can speak for Gigi too—we all only care about your happiness—and Jemma’s, of course—what might be best for you.”

  Blu nodded, but in her head she was thinking about all the things that Lia didn’t know.

  “So, I can be totally honest with you about what I think?” Lia asked, treading carefully.

  “Yes, of course.”

  “What I heard you read to me—that email from your mother—sounds very genuine. Or at least like it’s coming from someone who you might want to at least listen to. I mean, is there any harm in talking to her on the phone? You just have to remind yourself that ultimately it will be your decision as to how you go forward—if you decide to do that.”

  Blu nodded, but inside she only had more confusion to wade through.

  “But really…It’s so hard for me to imagine that’s she’s changed. And also, is it a coincidence that she’s contacting me now after seeing that I’ve had some success in my life?” Blu was daring her friend to disagree with her.

  “You could be right about that.” Lia’s voice grew just a bit quieter as if to make a point. “I’m sure Ari had some of those same concerns about me when I first contacted her.”

  Blu nodded because she knew it was true. But Arianna had also been dying. It was different. That was what Blu told herself when doubts about her stance crept in. What if my mom really has changed? Would that be amazing? What would it mean for Jemma, though? Blu just couldn’t fathom any of this working out okay. She sighed.

  “You’re right, she did,” Blu said in response to Lia’s comment about Arianna’s doubts, of which Blu had had firsthand knowledge. It had worked out well for Arianna and Lia. There was no doubt about that.

  “I mean, can you imagine giving her a chance?” Lia asked carefully. “I’ll bet that you’d have a pretty good idea after a first meeting—” Blu instinctively cringed at the thought of seeing her mom.

  “—or even an initial phone conversation,” Lia continued. “Maybe she really has changed. Wouldn’t it be kind of amazing for you—and for Jemma to be able to know her grandma? ”

  “I don’t know. That’s the part that’s making me the most stressed, if I’m being honest. I just don’t want anything negative in Jemma’s life, ya know?”

  Lia nodded. “Yes, I can understand that. But she is getting old enough to understand more now. I guess you need to look at the worst-case scenario, and think about what that would be like for both you and Jemma. And I’m guessing that if that occurred—that if anything got ugly—Douglas would be able to help you with some of that, legally, I mean.”

  “Yes, I think he could help me to get a restraining order, and I could hire security if I needed to.” But in her head she was reminded that that really wasn’t the worst thing that could happen, and she felt her initial resolve rising up again inside her.

  “Well, I just know how grateful I was to Ari for giving me that second chance. I don’t need to tell you how much it changed my life—how much I believe that it changed both of our lives.”

  “Yes, I do understand that.”

  “And the fact that I do have a granddaughter out there somewhere—you have no idea how that feels. I know it’s not exactly the same, because it does sound like your mother has seen Jemma at least, that they knew each other?”

  Blu thought carefully about how to respond.

  “Well, not really. I mean, I left with Jemma when she was a baby. She doesn’t remember anything about my mother.”

  “Oh.” Lia grew quiet.

  “What, Lia?”

  “Well, I’m just wondering what is the best thing for Jemma. Do you wonder that?”

  “Yes, of course I do.” Blu didn’t mean to sound as frustrated as she was feeling, but it was hard to hold it back. “Just this past week, in fact, Jemma was asking about her grandmother.”

  Lia raised an eyebrow as Blu continued.

  “Yeah, I know. Very weird timing considering she’d never brought it up before.” Blu laughed despite her discomfort. “She actually asked me if Gigi was her grandma.”

  Lia laughed. “That’s sweet; did you tell Gigi?”

  “No, I’ve not really had a chance to yet, but I told Jemma that I’m sure Gigi would be flattered to act as her honorary grandma.”

  “Does this have anything to do with Jemma begging Gigi to make cookies with her the other day?”

  Blu burst into laughter. “Yes, in fact it does. I didn’t have the heart to tell Jemma that we’d be better off getting a box mix from the store.”

  “So aside from preferring a grandmother who can bake, it sounds like the timing of this could be very good. That’s if you feel comfortable.”

  “About them meeting, ya mean? Yeah, I’d say that’s a big if,” Blu said.

  “Are you willing to at least entertain the idea?” Lia asked.

  Blu thought about this carefully before responding. “Yes, I suppose that I should consider it, although I have to be honest and say that every part of me is leaning towards trying to block her from seeing either of us. I’m just not sure how to go about that. Or if there’s a possibility of it backfiring on me, which could be pretty bad.” She felt exhausted thinking about it now. She really needed for it to be done so that she could get on with her life and all of the work that she had coming up.

  Lia smiled at her and reached out her hand to touch her arm across the table. “I’m sure you’ll make the decision that is best for you—and Jemma.”

  “I hope so,” Blu said. “I do appreciate your insight. It’s been very interesting to hear another perspective on it all.”

  “Well, all I can say is that I can’t stress enough how happy I am that I took that chance years ago to connect with Ari. Had I not done that—and believe me, there were plenty of days that I didn’t think that I had the courage to do it—but had I not done it, my life wouldn’t be half the life I have today. And I’m not talking at all about the material things that Ari gave me.”

  Blu nodded, understanding exactly what Lia meant.

  Chapter 14

  Blu spent the next few days in a busy whirlwind of entertaining her guests and getting some much-needed work done. Gigi, Douglas, and Lia were more than willing to spend a lot of time with Jemma, which Blu thought was good for her daughter as well. So she willingly used some of that time to make some decent progress on her new collection of designs. It was easy to push any thoughts about her mother and the email out of the way for now. She’d deal with it tomorrow after her guests left.

  Blu was sad to think about them leaving. It had been so nice having a house full of people, and she knew that it would seem very quiet to both her and Jemma once they’d all left. She made a mental note to ask Jemma if she wanted to invite Claire over for a night, and she’d invite Chase over for dinner too.

  She grinned, thinking about Chase and wondering when they might have the chance to spend the night together again. It had been difficult to not spend any real time alone together since that first night right before her guests had arrived. But she wouldn’t have traded the pas
t week for anything. He’d been so wonderful spending all of his free time with her and her friends. She loved it that they’d gotten a chance to really get to know him, and she knew that they all thought a great deal of him, fully giving her their blessing, if that was what she was asking for.

  “Mom—” Blu’s thoughts were interrupted by Jemma’s running into the kitchen and hurling something at her. “Mom, put this on and come out on the deck with us.”

  Blu looked at the Mickey Mouse ears in her hand and smiled. They’d just gotten back from Disneyland and Jemma had had the best time—they all had.

  “Mom, hurry. Douglas is setting the camera up to take the picture of all of us.”

  Blu put the ears on and headed out to the deck, where everyone else was already assembled in a wonderful close huddle of Disney celebration—all with their ears on, all with big grins. Blu took her place next to Chase and smiled, waiting for the timed click of the camera that Douglas had set up on the tripod. This little family of hers. She loved them all so much. She felt tears stinging her eyes.

  Jemma grabbed her hand to pull her over to a little corner of the deck.

  “Douglas, will you take another picture?” She looked at Blu. “Just you and me, Mom—with our little beach in the background.”

  Blu couldn’t speak for fear of the tears coming that she was trying so desperately to keep inside. She hugged Jemma close for the picture, laughing at the child’s silly poses and instructions for how she wanted Blu to pose with her.

  “I will remember this day always,” Jemma said in the overly dramatic way that she had when she was trying to be silly, but as Blu looked at her laughing, her sun-bleached hair shining in the remaining light of the day, she knew that it was what she wanted. Above all else. To see Jemma’s smile, to create memories for her that would last her lifetime. Blu felt a renewed commitment, a renewed sense that everything was going to be alright. She’d make sure of that.