by Lucy Scala
I had forgotten about Primrose, who had spread her paws and was urinating on the entrance hall carpet.
“No, naughty girl!” I scolded her, patting her leg. “Nancy, quick!” cried Lucy, in a high pitched voice.
“It’s just a puppy. I couldn’t leave her at home. I’ll keep an eye on her, don’t worry.” I re-assured her and gave her a cheeky grin. “Bad, Primrose! Naughty.” Diego looked at me with one eye and raised a hand to his mouth to stifle a laugh.
“What happened?” asked Nancy anxiously, as soon as she reached us. “Hello, Mia,” she greeted me with a hug. “And who is this handsome young man?” she added.
“Thanks for the ‘young man’. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” said Diego holding out his hand.
“Nancy, that hairy thing did a lake here on the carpet,” hissed Lucy, now in the grip of hysteria. “It makes me feel sick…” I looked at the stain widening. I was only sorry because Nancy would have to deal with it, but Lucy’s look was something unforgettable.
“I’ll take care of it, meanwhile you go in,” said the housekeeper, rolling up the carpet.
“Take a seat,” Lucy invited us.
In the living room, her husband Federico was chatting to my father in front of the fireplace, holding a glass of red wine between his fingers. My mother had hidden well, because I couldn’t see her anywhere. Maybe she had the flu?
“Welcome!” cried a shrill voice from behind us.
I whirled round, along with Diego. But where the hell had she appeared from?
“Good heavens, mother! What manners!” I snapped.
“Good evening, ma’am,” said Diego. “These are for you,” he added, handing her the bouquet.
My mother spread her lips into a smile and put her nose between the petals. She might have fooled a careless eye, but I knew her well enough to know she was pretending to be surprised. “What perfume! Thank you, you really shouldn’t have,” she said, inviting us to enter.
My father and Federico turned round. My father’s face lit up. “Oh, honey!” he said, approaching and squeezing my hand with his strong grip. Then he turned to Diego and Primrose: “I didn’t know you were bringing guests. ”
I flushed.
“Sorry, Dad, I couldn’t leave her at the clinic and decided to bring Diego at the last moment,” I said naively. “I hope it’s not a problem.”
My dad looked around and whispered in my ear. “I’ll straighten it out with your mother. Please, this way,” leading us to the table.
I was relieved: although my father and I didn’t have a strong bond, I knew I could count on him.
I tied the lead to the leg of the chair and sat down.
“So, you are a friend of Mia’s?” my mother asked, taking a sip of water.
“Actually, your daughter and I are dating,” specified Diego, settling a napkin on his lap.
I choked on my water. What was he talking about?
Diego answered my confused look. “Sorry love, was it supposed to be a surprise?” He stroked my back.
“Yes. No. Yes.” I nodded to make the concept clear.
Everyone was looking at me with suspicion.
I wanted to shout: No, I’m not pregnant!
“I knew it, I told you!” yelled my mother. “Stop it, it’s not necessary,” assured my father.
“I should have imagined it! My daughter is young and she likes to change her suitors often. I can’t blame her…” she said.
I fiddled with my fork, moving it a few centimetres. I had no reply to that gratuitous jab.
“Your daughter is an adult and has the right to make her own choices as she sees fit,” said Diego.
The air was becoming unbreathable.
My father tried to change the subject. “Diego, right?” he asked in a loud voice. “Are you from Turin?”
“No, until a few months ago I lived in Gallipoli with my family. They live in the countryside with my younger brother who gives them a hand with their farm. However, I used our second home by the sea in order to be closer to work.” he took a breath. “I’m not saying it just because I was born there, but it’s a beautiful city.”
I was surprised by the ease with which he was playing his part. I was sure he was beginning to understand what trouble he had put himself in by accepting my invitation.
“Really?” exclaimed my father, euphoric. “When I was young I used to go there every summer, I often think of the sea and the evenings on the beach strumming a guitar,” he muttered, momentarily lost in memories.
Diego nodded. “I can imagine, but I’m happy here. I have a nice job and a beautiful woman that I hope will remain by my side for a long time.” he uttered those words with sincerity, squeezing my hand under the table.
My sister and my mother let out a little cry. I gave them an icy glare, with the hope that a sudden sore throat would block their every opportunity to speak. I counted to ten, expecting them to add something clever, but it didn’t happen.
“Diego, you’re so romantic tonight. You amaze me…” I murmured.
Federico, who until that moment had not yet opened his mouth, took charge of the conversation. “If I’m not being indiscreet, what do you do?” he asked, twirling a glass of wine between his fingers.
“I’m a cop and I collaborate with Mia’s clinic. We met during a patrol,” he explained.
Federico cocked his head. “I dare say a fairy-tale meeting,” he joked, turning to all of us. For sure he thought of himself as a very amusing entertainer.
I gritted my teeth. I wanted to get into Lucy’s head to understand what she found so interesting in this slimy man, then I remembered that he was rich…
“Our meeting has saved lives, and that’s the important thing,” I sighed, wiping my mouth with the napkin. Nancy came back into the room with the rest of the meal and there was a short armistice.
“Of course, darling,” said my father. “I am proud of you and your work,” he concluded, lowering his gaze.
My father had actually uttered those words? He had never said that before, and I thought he considered me a complete failure. I was wrong. What he lacked was only the courage to admit it. Emotion threatened to overwhelm me. I wanted to get up and throw my arms around him to thank him, but my feet were glued to floor. He had finally managed to see me.
I felt sharp little teeth on the back of my foot. “Ouch!” I cried, lifting the tablecloth to see what was going on down there.
Primrose was excited and rolled on her back, with her paws grabbing my sandal as she tried to chew it. As I lowered my hand to remove her from my feet she ran to the opposite side of the table. Right under my mother’s chair. On reflection, it was strange that she had been so quiet, that she hadn’t made any noise. I realised she had been enjoying herself all this time by nibbling on the lead until it broke in two.
I smiled to myself.
“Oh my goodness!” cried my mother. “It’s licking my leg,” she finished, with a tremor in her voice.
“Come on, Mum, don’t panic, we have a policeman here poised to drive that huge monster away.” I joked. Primrose held onto my mother’s shoe even more tenaciously and she screamed and leapt to her feet.
“Mia, don’t just sit there, do something!” snapped Lucy, shocked and leaning forward in her chair.
Diego started to get to his feet and then sat down again.
“Primrose?” I called, raising the tablecloth again. “Let go of mother’s shoe!” I said authoritatively. I knew they were empty words because puppies are disobedient by nature, Primrose was really headstrong and in any case she would have had absolutely no idea what I was asking of her.
“Please, let go…” whimpered my mother, running to the other room in the grip of hysteria.
“No stop there!” I cried in one breath.
For a split second Primrose stopped and gave me a look of defiance, while my mother kept hopping. I slapped myself. “Not you,” I said, exhausted, indicating Primrose. “You, Mum! You stand still or she’
ll think that chasing you is a game, and it will be worse,” I concluded, enunciating the words clearly.
“How would I know that you’re speaking to me and not to the dog?” she snapped, hiding behind the couch.
“What a fun dinner, it’s better than a movie,” said my father, sitting comfortably and emptying the meat platter.
“And we didn’t even pay for a ticket,” added Diego with irony.
I threw myself on Primrose and grabbed her. She tried to wriggle, biting my hands.
Meanwhile, Nancy returned. “Can I help in any way?” she asked.
“Yes, get one of Dad’s tennis balls. We’ll use it to distract her.”
She left the room and returned shortly after with a ball. I let it bounce and Primrose, who I had put back on the floor, rushed after it in pursuit. “Can I go back to the table?” stammered my mother, re-emerging head first from behind the sofa.
It was really funny to see a woman so sure of herself, frightened by a tiny puppy. “Sure, Mum, she won’t bother you for a few minutes,” I said seriously. “Just enough time for the sweet,” I finished, going back to sit next to Diego.
Moments later, Nancy made her entrance. “The cake is ready,” she said, calling for our attention.
“I like that little one,” exclaimed my father, pointing at the puppy and smiling.
My mother shrugged. “I don’t know what you find so amusing,” she replied drily.
“Maybe our house could do with a jolt of life,” he whispered, from behind his hand.
Surely I hadn’t got it right. That was totally unexpected from the man who had always denied me the opportunity to have a pet of my own. I still remembered the tears and my jealousy of classmates who had pets.
My mother’s eyes widened. “What are you talking about?” she asked in a small voice.
“I said that a dog might be a good companion.”
My mother shook his arm. “You’ve never said you wanted a dog.”
“I never said anything because I was afraid to ask you,” Dad said, giving her a dirty look.
I was incredulous, my father was surprising me continually this evening. He was a completely different man. For a moment I thought I saw a strange gleam in my mother’s eyes, but then she composed herself and changed the subject.
“Diego, would you like a piece?” she asked, cutting the cake. “You never told me what you were doing in Apulia,” she added, narrowing her eyes to the point where they were reduced to slits.
Diego coughed. “Always the same job,” he said curtly.
Lucy took a chance. “Is there something wrong? You seem nervous,” she asked Diego.
Despite the efforts he made to mask it, there was something about him that was about to resurface. I couldn’t tell what, but it certainly wasn’t pleasant.
He looked at her and replied: “Absolutely not.” There was a moment of silence, while the temperature in the room seemed to drop. “Thinking about what I left to come here makes me a little melancholic.”
“You mean your family?” asked Lucy, curiously.
“Let’s say so,” he murmured.
“Oh,” answered Lucy, giving me a fake sad look.
“But we’re not here to talk about that,” Diego resumed, trying to change the subject. “I met Mia and I think I found the right woman. I wanted to come to this dinner to meet you all and share our happiness. Right, darling?”
I pretended to be in ecstasy.
My father put his spoon down. “You did well. I’m happy to know that my daughter is happy.” He actually looked elated. “I see a new light in her eyes.”
“Oh, Daddy…” I murmured, my heart pounding. “It’s the truth,” he admitted. My smile widened dramatically.
“Thanks,” I replied softly.
Primrose came back under the table, barking and fiddling with the tablecloth.
“I think we’d better go. The earthquake is tired of playing with the ball!” I said, glancing at Diego. Dinner had been trying, but certainly less so than previous ones.
There was an unusual air that hovered in the house, which I couldn’t breathe before. Was it due to Diego’s presence?
I picked up Primrose to stop her from escaping. Two large black eyes, hidden under that mass of hair, met mine, and that look made me smile. She really was adorable.
“Mia, until next time,” my mother said. Then she turned to Diego. “It was really interesting to meet you,” she concluded flatly. She held out her hand.
Diego squeezed it back.
Even Lucy and her husband approached. “See you at the next dinner, or perhaps before,” she suggested.
Nancy came back into the room without her uniform, because her working hours had ended. “I’ll accompany you to the entrance,” she said, showing us the way.
I touched her shoulder. “Don’t worry about me. I know my way,” I said, and hugged her so hard that I took her breath away.
She turned to Diego. “You better not hurt her.”
He performed one comforting look.
“Goodbye everyone!” I cried, before closing the door.
Outside the air was damp so I hugged Diego to find a little warmth. Fortunately, the car was quite close. When I put Primrose in the back seat, she pulled a face.
“It was tough, right?”
“Well, in the end it was better than I expected,” said Diego, leaning against the door.
I hesitated a bit before answering. “Actually, it was a strange evening, lighter than usual. However, I didn’t know I was dating you,” I said.
“All right. Maybe I got a little bit carried away.”
“A little bit?”
“Is it a nice feeling to have me as a boyfriend? I’ve always wondered.”
He unsheathed his unbeatable smile.
“Oh God, you’re exasperating.” I walked away abruptly.
“Come on, don’t be like that. We could organize something fun?”
“You have a strange light in your eyes, as if you were planning something that I won’t like.”
“Do you think so?”
In a split second Diego pulled the keys from my hand, opened the car and sat inside it.
“Get out of there at once, the car is mine and I’m driving.”
“You get as tense as underwear elastic! You’re never excited by my surprises, just trust me.”
I snorted, and I settled in the passenger seat. “Are you aware that this is called abduction?”
“I’m sorry, but now you’re my hostage. Like it or not, this trip includes a night tour of the city.”
I slumped back in the seat, without showing any emotion. I wasn’t going to give in, but the prospect of going further didn’t seem that absurd any more.
“I’m only going along with it because I’m not sleepy yet.”
Diego didn’t say anything and just looked at me. He narrowed his eyes. “Let’s go then.”
Chapter fifteen
I passed the fruit section and walked through the rest of the supermarket aisles at a brisk pace, throwing the most diverse products into my basket. I reached the lane reserved for wines, where I studied the prices on the shelves carefully. I picked up a bottle and was reading the label when a light touch made me start.
“Sorry, I didn’t want to scare you,” Alberto re-assured me, with a broad smile on his lips. “Do you need some advice?” he asked, pointing at the wine.
“Hello, Alberto,” I greeted him a little too quickly. “I’m not a great connoisseur, but I think this is fine. I’ll take it,” I concluded, without looking into his eyes. I had no intention of continuing the conversation.
A female voice, coming from the end of the lane, called him. I frowned; it was his mother, all I needed. She walked briskly towards me and shook my hand; I shuddered, feeling how cold and bony it was.
“Mia, out shopping as well?”
What else would I be doing in the supermarket?
“Sure, but I’m almost done. And you?” I said. Her sh
rill voice could puncture my head, almost enough to cause a migraine.
Alberto spoke first. “I’m helping my mother, she wants to throw a great dinner party.”
The exchange seemed far-fetched to say the least, and I began to feel embarrassed and uncomfortable.
“Any event in particular?” I enquired.
“Of course, dear!” said Patty, crinkling eyes marked by mascara. “I’m celebrating forty years of marriage, no small thing.”
Her eyes seemed to penetrate mine, and I realized that the remark was a dig against me.
The woman put her hand to her mouth and began to cough, short rasps that provoked tears in her eyes. Alberto tried to hold her, but she pushed him away. She caught her breath and continued the conversation.
“Alberto, I’m going towards the cashier, don’t make me wait too long,” she added. “We, however, will see each other very soon at the clinic,” she concluded, annoyed.
I returned her handshake. It was clammy and, unnoticed; I wiped my hand on my jeans.
“Are you all right?” asked Alberto.
I wanted to tell him that his mother was suffering from a serious problem of excessive sweating, but I didn’t and nodded. “I would say so,” I hesitated before continuing to advance down the lane. “And it’s partly thanks to you, you opened my eyes.”
Alberto put his index finger to his lips to silence me. “Now I want you to listen carefully to what I have to say.”
I shook my head. “I have no intention of doing that and we have nothing more to say to each other anyway. I’m also in a hurry…”
Alberto stopped me. “I left her, Mia! I’m a free man.”
I sneered. “My condolences.”
“You’re cruel, Mia. I know I didn’t behave properly with you, and I know I screwed up. I shouldn’t have let you go.” He slipped his hand onto mine. “I never thought I was the best of men, but neither am I the worst. I thought about you a lot during the past week.”
I frowned. “You’re joking, right? Because I don’t understand you any more. You can’t tell me that you thought about me after having acted like an asshole and making me believe I invented a relationship that didn’t exist. You also said that we had never promised each other anything and I wouldn’t find it hard to find someone else, or have you forgotten?”