by KM Lowe
We pull apart at the same time and Gio leans over to pick up my hand luggage and suitcase. I’m pretty sure I could help him, but he’s a stubborn male who likes to show off his strong side, and I love that about him.
“We’ll give the luggage to Lucca in the bar and he’ll take it to the house for you, saves us having to leave now to hand it in. It gives you an extra ten minutes downstairs with him.”
I nod. I “You look so put together. Yet, here I am, flapping like a bird.”
“Looks can be deceiving, beautiful. Inside, my heart is breaking at the thought of you in Scotland without me. But it’s only for a short time, right?”
“Absolutely. Wild horses couldn’t keep me away from here and you guys.”
We leave the hotel room and I take one last look around before the door closes and I hear the click of the lock. Every step away from the room fills me with dread. I know I’m being silly and overreacting, I just can’t help it.
We take the elevator down to the lobby; it’s quite busy with guests arriving and leaving. Today is going to be a busy day for the staff.
We enter the bar and Lucca spots us straight away. He walks over to us and throws his arms around me, lifting me off the ground and spinning me around in circles. “I’m going to miss you, Harls.”
“Me too.” Tears sting my eyes.
I’m only saying goodbye to Lucca. What the hell am I going to be like saying goodbye to Gio at the airport?
“You’ll be back soon though, right?”
“Yeah, as soon as possible. You’d better stay out of trouble for me coming back.”
“I can’t make any promises.” Lucca winks at me.
“This is Harleigh’s luggage that needs to go over to our house. Just put it in my room and I’ll take care of it when I come home.” Gio hands over my luggage and just leaves himself with my hand luggage. I could get used to traveling light. I hate baggage areas at the airport.
“Got it. Have a safe trip, Harls. Call, text, Skype, whatever. Just keep in touch.”
“I will.”
Lucca leans in and places a kiss on my cheek. And in the blink of an eye, he’s walking away with my luggage in each hand. I’m glad he used his initiative and realised I was struggling with the goodbyes.
Giovani wraps his arm around my shoulders and I lean my head onto his shoulder. We walk out of the hotel and Gio’s car is waiting for me. This is it. This is the last time I’m going to see this place for a while.
“You’ll be back before you know it, beautiful.”
“Yeah,” I say sombrely.
I’ll be back.
Chapter 25
Harleigh
I’ve just landed in Glasgow, and since I’ve just got hand luggage, I can exit straight through arrivals. But, before I meet my family, I turn on my phone and type out a text to Giovani.
Me – I’ve landed safely. I’ll give you a call later when I get home. Missing you already.
I’ve no sooner hit send and I’m getting a reply. It instantly puts a smile on my face, but I feel the effects of being so far away from Gio and Lucca. Lucca has become a good friend to me too. He’s the first person outside of my family and Giovani that I’ve confided in, opened up to, and enjoyed his friendship.
Giovani – I’m missing you like crazy too. Today has been very dull without you. I hope your night with your family goes well. I look forward to speaking with you later. Love Gio.
It’s five p.m. here, and already I feel exhausted from the jet lag. Or, it’s from all the crying I’ve done. I spent the first two hours away from Giovani in tears, sobbing my heart out and feeling sorry for myself. I kept my sunglasses on for most of my flight. I probably looked ridiculous, but it would have been better than seeing me with tears and snot dripping down my face. If anyone noticed me crying, they turned a blind eye and allowed me to wallow on my own.
The moment I exit through the arrivals door, my parents and Gavin are standing with big smiles on their face. The smiles don’t last long when they see me close up. They’ve seen enough of me upset and in tears, they’ll know the signs.
Gavin walks towards me slowly and envelopes me in his arms. The moment I feel that he’s got my weight, I break into tears. I can’t hide my emotions any longer.
“I’ve got you, sissy. I’ve got you.”
I don’t know how long we stand in the middle of the arrivals lounge for, but the next thing I feel is my mum and dad hugging Gavin and me tightly.
“Is this all your luggage?” asks my mum.
I manage a nod of my head through my gut-wrenching sobs.
“Let’s get out of here, guys,” says my dad.
Gavin puts me down on the ground and holds his arm around my shoulder. We leave Glasgow airport and everything is in a blur.
“We’ve got a table booked at The Bruce. Seb’s going to meet us there after his work,” my mum tells me.
I don’t think I’m ready to sit and eat dinner, but I owe it to my family to tell them everything. I don’t like hiding things from them. I’ve held enough back from them because of Martin, and when I got away from him, I promised myself and them that I would always be open and honest with them.
***
We sit down at our booth for dinner, and Gavin sits beside me, and takes my hand in his.
“What can I get you all to drink?” asks the waitress.
“I’ll just have an orange and lemonade, please.”
“No cocktails?” asks Gav cheekily.
I shake my head. “No. Honestly, I’ve drunk my weight in cocktails during my holiday. My liver needs a break,” I joke.
“So, sweetheart, you had a good trip?” My mum breaks the awkward tension around the table.
“I did. It was the best.”
“You don’t seem thrilled to be home, sweetheart.”
My dad reaches over and squeezes my arm.
I nod and Gavin squeezes my hand tighter. I think he knows what’s coming and he’s silently telling me that he’s got my back.
“I’ve got a lot to tell you all. And…” I trail off as the waitress places our drinks down.
Right now, I’m wishing I decided to have an alcoholic drink for Dutch courage.
“What’s on your mind, Harls?” asks Gav, pushing me to continue.
“I…” I take in a deep breath and hold my head up high. If the last four weeks have taught me anything, it’s that I should always face life head on, and not looking down at my hands or feet.
“Sweetheart, you can tell us anything,” my mum says.
“I met someone in Bulgaria. I met two people. Giovani and Lucca. They’re brothers. They lived in Glasgow their whole life, parents from Italy, and now they run the hotel I stayed in. I met them on my first day in Bulgaria, and I’ve spent pretty much my whole holiday in their company.”
“Aww, that’s good. I’m glad you met people and had fun. You’ll have to invite them over the next time they’re home.”
“I’m not staying,” I blurt out.
I wanted to be tactful about this conversation, but I just need to get it over with.
“What do you mean, you’re not staying?” my mum probes.
“I’m moving to Bulgaria, Mum. It has broken my heart leaving Giovani behind today. He was ready to give up everything to come back here, for me, but this doesn’t feel like home for me anymore. It hasn’t for a long time. I don’t want to hurt you, because you’ve all done so much for me, but while I was in Bulgaria, I found out a lot about myself. I’m confident. I felt alive and free. I wasn’t constantly looking over my shoulder. I liked myself for the first time in…” I blow out a breath.
“Did you know about this?” my mum asks Gavin.
He shakes his head. “I knew there were going to be some changes, but I didn’t know to what extent. But I have to say, I’m so proud of you, Harls. Speaking to you the last couple of weeks has been like speaking to a new person. And, for what it’s worth, I like Giovani.”
“You haven’t m
et him.” I laugh.
“No, I haven’t. But I have stalked him on social media. And if he makes you happy then that’s all that matters to me.”
“Thank you.” I swipe away at the stray tears falling down my cheeks.
My mum and dad are staring at me like I’ve grown horns. I just want them to talk to me, ask questions, scream at me… anything, is better than silence.
“Mum? Dad?” I push for them to say something.
“Are you happy, sweetheart?” asks my dad.
I nod. “I’ve never been happier.”
“And you have everything you need to make this transition work?”
“I need to resign from work, pack up my house, and book flights back to Bulgaria, but I have everything planned.”
My dad nods, but my mum is still just staring at me.
“Mum.”
“I don’t know what to say. I’m a little lost for words.”
We stare each other down and everything is carrying on around us. Gavin clears his throat and sits forward.
“Mum, what would you rather, she stays here and falls into a black hole with no room for return? Because, let’s face it, we were all worried before this holiday. Look at this…”
Gavin takes out his phone, goes to my Facebook timeline, and shows my mum and dad some of my pictures with Giovani. Just looking at the pictures again stabs my heart.
“What do you see, Mum?”
Tears fall down my mum’s cheeks and she tries to swipe them away before causing a scene. “You look happy, sweetheart.”
“I am, Mum. I wouldn’t be doing this if I wasn’t happy. I wouldn’t be doing any of this if there was a tiny part of me that wasn’t sure. I want to do this. I want to live life, see places, and be with someone I…” I clear my throat. “Someone I love.”
And that’s the first time I’ve said that out loud, but I like it.
“I’d like to meet Giovani before I give you my blessing.”
“I’d like you to meet him. In fact, he’s agreed to do a Skype with you guys. I’ll come by tomorrow and we’ll do it. It will give us all tonight to digest everything. I’m not doing this to hurt any of you. I love you all.”
“We know, sweetheart,” My dad reaches over the table and takes my hand. “We love you so much. It’s a lot to take in, but if you’re happy then I’m happy.”
“Thank you, Dad.”
“And I’ll just have to come back to Bulgaria with you to meet Giovani and Lucca.” Gavin nudges my side and I laugh.
I knew this would be happening at some point, because although he’s stalked Giovani, it won’t count until he’s seen him face to face.
“I wouldn’t expect any less from you, bro.”
“Good. Now that’s settled, let’s order, because I’m starved,” says Gavin dramatically.
And that’s how our family reunion started. It went better than I anticipated, and for that, I’m happy. I just need to get my mum on side and show her that I’m doing the right thing.
***
“Are you sure you don’t mind dropping Harleigh off at home?” asks Dad.
“No, I don’t mind,” said Gav. “It will give us time to catch up.”
“Okay, sweetheart. We’ll see you tomorrow. I’m sorry Sebastian got caught up at work, but we’ll fill him in tonight, and he’ll be there tomorrow for this Skype call.” My mum leans into me, places a kiss on my cheek, and squeezes me tightly.
“It’s okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
I part from my parents and walk over to Gavin’s car that he left here earlier today, because he travelled to the airport with Mum and Dad.
“That wasn’t too bad, huh?”
I shake my head and climb into his car. “It went better than I thought. I just hope Mum comes around.”
“She will. She just needs some time to digest it all. You’re her little girl and that will never change.”
I nod and totally understand why she’s acting the way she is. Gavin pulls out of the car park and heads out onto the main road. It will take us about twenty minutes to get to my house, and I’m looking forward to taking off my shoes and having a nice hot bath.
“You have a glowing tan.”
“Yeah, the weather out there is unbelievable.”
“I know I’ve said this a lot lately, Harls, but I’m so proud of you.”
“You have said that an awful lot, but it means a lot. I have you to thank for my change of luck.”
“Nope. This is all on you, sis. I just gave you a…” Gavin pauses and looks in his rear-view mirror. “Some arsehole is trying to run into the back of us.”
“What?” Our car moves quicker, and I look behind us.
“This car is trying to run us off the road.”
The car behind bangs into us, shunting us forward. I scream and hold onto the door tightly. Our car is all over the road, trying to get out of the way safely.
“What’s going on?” I cry. “Who would do this.”
Bang.
My heart is pounding in my chest. My nerves are shot. Will this ever stop?
The road we’re on is long and winding. There is no way for us to get off. We speed up and try to get away from the car but it comes up alongside us, and it’s now that I get a glimpse of who’s behind the wheel – Martin.
Fuck! This is all we need.
“He’s lost his ever-loving mind,” shouts my brother as he tries to keep our car on the road. “Move over, dick!”
“Gavin, he’s going to kill us!” I scream as he rams into us again. This goes on for about two miles, until a lorry comes along on the other side of the road.
“Gavin!” I scream, but it’s useless. There is nowhere for us to go. Another ram in our side and our car gets turned over and we roll for what feels like forever.
I hear the smashing of glass, crunching of metal, and the smell of rubber burning. Everything is a blur. My head is banging and I can’t move. I feel paralysed. I want to scream and try to get to my brother, but nothing happens. I can’t speak. I can’t even cry.
Oh my God, Giovani.
Giovani is my last thought before everything goes black.
Chapter 26
Giovani
I’ve heard nothing from Harleigh since earlier today. I’m worried about her. Her phone is either dead or she’s got it switched off. I’ve sent her lots of texts and voicemails. I’ve even sent her Facebook messages, but there is nothing from her. I’m going out of my mind with worry. I just wish she would let me know she’s okay. I have no idea what happened with her family when she arrived in Glasgow. Did they make her change her mind? Is she afraid to tell me?
I bang down my phone on my desk and pour myself another whiskey. Yeah, I’ve hit the hard stuff. I need a distraction and only alcohol will do the trick.
Lucca walks into my office and sits down at his desk.
“Have you heard from Harleigh?”
“Nope!” I snap. “You?”
Lucca shakes his head and throws a pen at me. “Of course I’ve not. I would have said if I had. She’s probably got carried away reuniting with her folks and lost track of time.”
“Yeah.”
As rational as that sounds I can’t help but think there is something wrong. I have this gut feeling that’s usually spot on.
“I have no way of contacting her family. We didn’t exchange numbers or addresses.”
“Can’t you contact her brother via Facebook? He commented on one of her pictures of you both. They both did, I’m sure.”
“Yeah, that’s a plan. If I don’t hear from her in the next couple of hours, I’ll do just that. I don’t want to look like a stalker.”
“I’ll take this.” Lucca reaches over my desk and drags the bottle of alcohol away from me.
I want to scream at him for taking what’s mine, but I know he’s right. I shouldn’t be under the influence when I hear from Harleigh. I need a clear head.
“Go have a lie down. I’ll wake you if I hear anything.�
��
“Maybe.” I stand from my desk, grab my phone and wallet, and leave my office. I walk through my hotel and go straight to Harleigh’s room. I’ve told everyone to keep the room empty just now. It’s the only room that still smells of her perfume. It’s the one room where I still feel a connection to the woman who has stolen my heart and soul.
I climb onto the bed, hold her pillow tightly, and close my eyes. I’ve been awake since 4.30 this morning, since my parents were flying back to Italy. I feel like the walking dead, and the whiskey has just made that worse.
***
“Giovani!” I hear being yelled somewhere in the distance.
Am I dreaming?
“Giovani, wake up.” I feel myself being pulled several different ways.
I wake up with a jolt and sit forward. I feel disorientated. Where am I? I look around and see that I’m in a hotel room. Harleigh’s hotel room. That’s all the recognition I need to snap my attention to Lucca.
“What is it? Where’s the fire?”
“It’s Harleigh.”
“What?” Dread fills my stomach. “What’s wrong with her?”
“We got a call here at the hotel from her father. I took it because I wasn’t waking you up until I knew what was going on. Harleigh and her brother have been in an accident. She’s in Forth Valley Royal hospital. I don’t know the details, but it doesn’t sound good, Giovani.”
My whole body feels like it’s in shock. I can’t seem to think about what I need to do or say.
“What do you want to do?” asks Lucca.
Lucca sits beside me on the bed and squeezes my shoulder.
“I thought she was just ignoring me,” I breathe out.
“Never mind that now. Harleigh needs you, Gio.”
I nod. I need to get to her. I need to see her with my own two eyes.
“I need a flight. I need to pack a few things and go to her.”
“I’ll book a flight. I’ll book you a rental. Just go home, pack a few things, and I’ll call you with all the details. I’ll print everything you need and meet you in the office.”
“What about you?”