by Grace Kagni
“Which one do you like?” Liam whispered into her ear.
“It is hard to say. They are all beautiful,” she said under her breath.
“Which would you like?”
“It’s not for me so it wouldn’t matter.”
“Of course it matters. Choose one,” he said, taking each one in his hand to look at it.
“I think the one that looks like a lock is really nice.” She picked it up to look at the beautiful craftsmanship.
“It is called Amulette de Cartier and the beautiful lapis lazuli gemstone carries a wish that is kept safe in the talisman. It was inspired to bring good luck,” said the Director of the store.
“I like it,” Milania’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Liam.
He knew right away it was the right one just by looking at how her emerald eyes danced at the sight of the charm. “We’ll take it.”
They watched as the Director took the charm and brought it to the sales lady to gift-wrap it in the classic Cartier box. When Liam had paid, the walked out into the sunshine and heat of the afternoon.
“We’re done for today, right? We need to get back to Villa Conti to meet with the florist,” Liam said as he placed his arm around Milania’s shoulder.
“Thank you,” she said, staring up at his blue eyes.
“You’re very welcome, Doll.”
Milania drove through rush hour traffic back to Serena’s grand-parent’s house just in time to meet the florist. When they walked into the house, the family was gathered in the living room writing the invitations.
“How did you two manage with the list of arrangements today?” Serena’s grand-mother, Erminia, asked.
“We got it all done,” Liam said.
“Really? That is wonderful news,” Erminia said as she welcomed them to take a seat. “Would you like a coffee?”
“I wouldn’t mind an Italian espresso,” Liam said, rubbing his face from fatigue.
“I’ll help you,” Milania said as she followed Erminia into the kitchen.
“Dear, you should sit down. You’ve been on the go since this morning. Did you have lunch?”
“Liam insisted we sit down to eat so yes, I did have lunch.” Milania pulled out the cups and sugar for the coffee. “Shall I ask if anyone else would like a coffee?”
“Yes, Dear. I’m sure the men will all want an espresso,” she said as she put the first capsule in the machine.
Liam watched as Milania left the living room and then saw her return a few minutes later. He’d enjoyed his time with her and hoped to have the possibility to spend more time together. She was a feisty little woman and he realized he was certainly attracted to her. It was too soon to say anything but he would talk to her as soon as he had a chance. He wasn’t going to let her slip through his fingers.
Nearly all the men wanted a coffee so Milania went back to the kitchen and helped prepare enough for everyone. As soon as the two women returned to the living room, Serena arrived home and joined them.
“Hey, how was your day?” She was curious to know how her friend got along with James’ younger and extremely good-looking brother. The two were polar opposites but she hoped something might spark between the two of them during the wedding preparations.
“It was long,” Milania said, looking at Liam as he talked to Serena’s grand-father, Marcello, “but it wasn’t too bad.”
“I’m happy. The two of you are as important as the bride and groom so you need to get along. James has told me that Liam can be a real charmer but underneath all that appearance, he’s a really nice guy so don’t be so hard on him, okay?” Serena hugged her friend. “I’m really happy you’re here.”
“Me too. I wouldn’t miss this for the world,” Milania said, looking over Serena’s shoulder at Liam. He really did grow on her after the disastrous morning. She sensed he’d tried to make it up to her and she must admit that his efforts had not gone unnoticed.
James arrived shortly after just in time for the meeting with the florist. They walked through the house and then the terrace outside to explain where everything would be so the florist could understand how many flower arrangements were needed.
When the florist left, the men fired up the barbecue to grill some meat while the women made vegetables in the kitchen. Serena’s sister-in-law, Leena, brought lasagna ready to place in the oven. As Milania walked out onto the terrace holding a tray with plates, utensils and glasses, Liam ran up the steps to help her carry it to the table.
“You should have asked for help,” he said.
“I can do it. Why don’t you help the others with the barbecue?” She suddenly felt embarrassed he’d made a point of helping her in front of the others.
“I’d rather help you. We didn’t have a chance to talk aside from the wedding arrangements. I don’t know anything about you,” he waited for her to say something.
“I thought you said you knew my type so what else is there to know?” She smirked, knowing he wanted to know about her personal life.
“I don’t know very much about you. I said I can read your type but I didn’t imply that I know everything there is to know about you.” He waited, hoping she would give him some information about who she really was.
“What do you want to know?”
“Everything about you,” he blurted out, laughing.
“Wow, you really don’t beat around the bush, do you?”
“No, I like to get straight to the point,” he grinned. “So tell me do you have any brothers or sisters? Do you live with your parents or with your boyfriend?” He really wanted to know if there was someone in her life at the moment.
“No to all three questions.”
“So you’re an only child and you live alone.”
“That’s right.” She felt loneliness coming on again. Whenever she saw Serena’s large family, it made her wish she’d had one too. Truth be told her parents passed away in a car accident when she was eighteen and being an only child, she was alone in the world.
“No boyfriend?” he asked, hoping the answer would be no.
“Nope.”
He smiled and as he helped put everything down on the table, he felt relief set in knowing she was free. He couldn’t explain it but somehow she had, in the short time they’d known each other, managed to grab onto his heart. There was something about her that made him want to spend more time with her and his month in Italy would give him the perfect opportunity to do that.
“What is so funny?” She noticed him grinning.
“Nothing – absolutely nothing. So, do you need more help carrying things for dinner?”
“I don’t think so. I’ll go back inside now. Thank you for your help.”
“It was my pleasure, Doll,” he winked and ran back down the stairs to join the men.
Milania stood a moment on the terrace before going inside, wondering what had gotten into Liam. He was acting very strange.
The women were chatting about the dress fitting the next day and as soon as Milania realized she would not be spending the entire day with Liam again, she felt a sense of loss. It was difficult to describe but she certainly felt it.
Chapter Two
The rest of the time went quickly and it was soon the wedding day. James and Serena’s wedding was a happy time and after the ceremony, everyone partied and ate until it was late into the evening.
“Can I have this last dance?” Liam asked Milania, not wanting the evening to end. They had spent more time together the days before the wedding and now that it was over, Milania would be returning to her home in Cinque Terre.
She looked up at him as she sat at the table with his sister, Tessa. “How much have you had to drink?” She could tell he’d had too much but she knew he was harmless.
“Not enough so will you dance with me?”
“How can I resist an invitation like that?” Milania said, getting up to dance with Liam.
He walked her to the dance floor and as he took her in his arms to dance to the slo
w song, she could smell his wonderful scent.
“You smell nice,” he whispered in her ear.
“You are drunk,” she said, laughing.
“Only slightly,” he whispered. “If I were drunk, I’d take you to bed, Doll.” He winked as he pulled her closer while they continued dancing.
Her heart suddenly fluttered at the idea of seeing him completely naked. His tall body was muscular in all the right places. “I’d need to be drunk too for that to happen,” she laughed. She suddenly felt at ease in his arms, something she never would have thought after their disastrous first meeting.
“You never know, Doll.” He lowered his head to kiss the top of her head as she rested her head on his chest.
It was a wonderful evening and it was soon time to see James and Serena off on their honeymoon so they joined the family at the front of the house to wish them well on their trip. When the bride and groom left, it was time for everyone to go home. Liam needed to get to James’ apartment in the city as Milania needed to get to Serena’s apartment so Milania offered to drop off Liam on the way.
“Are you sure? We can take Liam back into the city if you want to go straight to Serena’s place. We know you’ll have a long drive back to Cinque Terre tomorrow,” Serena’s brother, Marco, said.
“I’ll be fine. I’ll take him where he needs to go.” They said good night and got into Milania’s car. As soon as she started the engine, Liam fell asleep so she drove into the city in silence as she listened to him softly snoring.
When they arrived at James’ place, she tried to wake Liam but he wouldn’t wake up so she nudged him more than once until he woke up enough to get out of the car. She needed to hold him up and then search his pockets for the keys to James’ house. It was not an easy task but they made it upstairs and inside safely. She left him face up on the large bed and said good night before leaving. He was snoring again so she let herself out and took the elevator down.
Milania drove the rest of the way to Serena’s apartment wondering if she’ll ever see Liam again. She would have liked to say goodbye to him but he was in such a deep sleep, she was not able to speak to him so that was it!
Liam awoke in the middle of the night and realized he was in James’ bed fully clothed. The last thing he remembered was getting into Milania’s car. He needed to apologize for falling asleep like that but for now, he turned over and fell back to sleep until the morning.
~~~
Milania got up to make herself a quick coffee before having a shower. She needed to leave before Rome rush hour traffic got really bad so as soon as she was packed and ready to leave, she got her suitcase, bag and keys before leaving the apartment.
While she put her suitcase in the back of her car, she heard her phone chime. She received a text message so after getting into the driver’s seat, she checked the message. It was from Liam.
Hey, Doll. I need to apologize for falling asleep on you last night. I had planned to tell you to keep in touch and now that I’ve totally screwed that up, I hope you will forgive me and let me contact you in a few days when you’ve settled back into your life back home. Safe travels, Liam.
His words made her smile. He’s such a character! She wrote back that she would be happy to hear from him. Then she put her phone down and started off on her journey home.
The trip was long and when Milania finally arrived home, she was exhausted. She had a shower and put on her pajamas before reading in bed. As her eyes were about to shut, she heard a chime so she took her phone to see whom the message was from. It was Liam again. Twice in one day!
Hey, Doll. I just wanted to make sure you made it home safely. Let me know before you go off to bed. Ciao, Liam.
Liam’s thoughtful message made her smile again and before going to sleep, she sent back a text to tell him she made it home safely.
He sent back three words. Sleep well, Doll.
She turned over and went to sleep.
~~~
The next few weeks passed quickly as she returned to work and the weather continued to be hot. It was autumn but the weather was unbearably sweltering. She’d had a couple of text messages from Serena to tell her she was having the honeymoon of a lifetime and daily messages from Liam to ask how was her day.
She became accustomed to his messages and waited for them at the end of the day. He called her once a week to ask how her week had been and he’d give her updates on the progress of the hotel build. It was now the middle of October and James was due back with Serena the following week, giving Liam a little free time before going back to the US.
Liam planned on surprising Milania in Cinque Terre as soon as he was relieved of his duty in Rome. He was anxiously waiting for his brother James to return from his honeymoon so in the meantime, Liam kept busy with the hotel build. It was progressing brilliantly and Liam was sure James would be pleased that it was on schedule. The builders hadn’t given Liam any problems so it was only a matter of time before the hotel would be completed.
The day before James and Serena were due back, Liam made the final arrangements for his trip to Cinque Terre. He planned on staying two weeks to tell Milania he had feelings for her and to know if she felt the same about him. Everything was set and once he’d packed his suitcases, he rented a car to make the journey. Just before going to bed, he called Milania because he needed to hear her voice. It was difficult keeping his trip a secret but he knew he needed to have the upper hand to win her over. She was a tough cookie to crack and he was sure she would oppose the idea of a relationship with him for the simple fact that her life was in Italy and his was in the US. He knew he had his work cut out so after saying good night to her one last time over the phone, he put his phone down on the dresser and fell asleep thinking of Milania.
The next day flew by quickly with the arrival of James and Serena in early morning. Then Liam went over the hotel progress with James and once that was done, he said goodbye and told his brother he was going for a well-deserved vacation. He didn’t want to tell anyone about his feelings for Milania until he’d had the chance to speak to her about it so as he drove off in the rented Land Rover, his mouth formed a smile as he thought about Milania. It was going to be great and he was looking forward to the time alone with her.
The drive was long but the scenery was beautiful so when he arrived in Vernazza he was ready to knock on Milania’s door to surprise her. It was just before dinnertime so he could take her out for a meal while they finally talked.
He drove the car to the hotel and checked-in before finding Milania’s address. When he stood by her apartment building, his nerves suddenly made knots appear in his stomach, which was something new to him. He was never nervous about anything but Milania made him feel this new emotion.
“Liam?”
He heard her voice behind him so he turned and smiled as he tried to keep his voice calm. “Hey, Doll.”
“What are you doing here?” she asked, confused by his sudden appearance in Vernazza.
“I thought I’d visit your hometown and since I’m here, I thought I’d ask if you’re free for dinner tonight.”
“Liam, we spoke last night. Why didn’t you tell me you’d be coming today?”
“You’re not pleased to see me?” The knot in his stomach suddenly felt tighter.
“Of course I’m happy to see you but I don’t understand why you didn’t tell me you’d be coming?”
“I wanted to surprise you,” he said, feeling honesty would be the best approach.
“Well, you’ve surprised me.”
“Are you just getting home from work?” He saw she had her portfolio bag so she must have come from work.
“Yes, I’ve just finished. I still have some work to do tonight so why don’t you come in and tell me why you’re really here,” Milania said, opening the front door to her building.
“Yes, we need to talk,” Liam said, feeling he needed to tell her how he felt before he keels over from the pain he felt in his stomach.
�
��You look serious,” she said, walking down the stairs to the basement apartment.
“I have something I need to tell you,” he said, rubbing his sweaty palms.
They walked into her tiny apartment and as she turned on the light, he saw how small the place was and how few pieces of furniture she had.
“Yes, it’s really tiny but I call it home,” she shrugged her shoulders.
“It’s cozy,” he smiled.
“So what is so important that you needed to come all this way to tell me in person?” she asked, wondering what happened. She put down her bags and waited for Liam to talk.
He took a couple of steps closer and took her hands to lead her to the sofa. “Let’s sit down.”
“Okay, I’m listening.” She looked into his blue eyes and saw hesitation.
“Has something happened? Are you afraid to tell me something? Are James and Serena okay?” She suddenly feared something could have happened to her best friend and her new husband.
“No, please let me talk.” He was having a hard time telling her how he felt and it wasn’t like him. She put a spell on him, which made him lose his concentration when she was near. “Milania, I don’t know how to explain it but I seem to have feelings for you. I know it seems crazy but it’s the truth. I’ve come here to find out if you have feelings for me.”
She couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. Liam Miller had feelings for someone like Milania Alessandrini? It wasn’t possible. Sure she had feelings for him but who wouldn’t? Look at him. Tall, blond, handsome guy, built like an athlete and who was one of the richest guys in America. The real question was why did he suddenly have feelings for her?
“I’ve scared you speechless?” He raised his eyebrows, wondering what was going through her mind.
“No on the contrary. I’m just wondering why me?”
“Doll, you’ve captured my heart and it aches in a way I’ve never felt before.”
“Wait, you’re talking about emotions. It’s probably physical attraction you feel right now and nothing more. Come on, a guy like you would normally go out with a long legged blond Barbie type that looks good on your arm. I’m nothing like that so what do you see in me that you think we would have a chance? I’m not saying I agree but I’m curious to know what you seem to like about me.” She waited, knowing he wouldn’t find the words to describe what he liked about her. It had to be physical attraction for him and nothing more.