Liam's Best

by Grace Kagni

  Milania too knew only too well that when disasters happen in Italy, the population is left to fend for itself. The Red Cross puts up tents for shelter and offers food but that is as far as it goes. It takes years for a town to rebuild and sometimes, it still suffers decades later. The 1980 earthquake in Irpinia and 2009 earthquake in Aquila came to Milania’s mind. People were still living in prefabricated temporary homes in Irpinia many years after the disaster. How do you explain it to two American men who grew up in a privileged world? She was sure it happened in the US too but possibly not to this extent. All she knew was that she wanted to help her hometown get back on its feet.

  They parked the car and walked toward the town center. Rachael and Dalton walked ahead of Liam and Milania. Milania’s heart broke into a thousand pieces when they reached the main square; it was not far from her home and as they started to walk toward her street, her legs froze. It was like she couldn’t bear to see what happened or maybe it was because she was remembering the night of the flood when Liam rescued her.

  Liam sensed something wasn’t right when Milania stopped walking. He let Rachael and Dalton walk ahead, seeing Rachael was explaining in detail how the town was before the flood. When he turned to Milania, her eyes were closed and she was breathing heavily.

  “Baby Doll, you’re okay.” He’d seen panic before and it was because she was seeing it for the first time since the flood. “Open your eyes and look at me.” When she didn’t he rested his forehead over hers and told her to open her eyes.

  She couldn’t breathe and then she felt Liam’s forehead touching hers. His calm voice was telling her to open her eyes and the moment she did, she saw his beautiful blue eyes the color of the depths of the ocean. “I thought I could do this,” she whispered as a tear ran down her cheek.

  “Baby Doll, you can do this. I’m right here and it’s all in the past. You can trust me,” he leaned down to kiss her tenderly on the lips.

  “It’s like it’s happening all over again. I can’t stop it,” she cried, holding onto him.

  “Shhh, it’s not happening again and I’m right here – look,” he said, turning her around and wrapping his arms from the back around her body so she felt protected. “Shhh, it’s okay. See?”

  She felt his arms around her front, pulling her into his chest and it calmed her quickly. She didn’t know what had happened. It hit her so quickly that she didn’t know how to deal with the emotion. “I’m feeling better now.”

  He let go as her breathing returned to normal. Dalton and Rachael had gone ahead, too far to call out to them so they walked slowly toward Milania’s old house to have a look.

  They found a sign on the building with the word ‘inagìbile’ which meant it was not stable to enter. The flood had damaged the foundations of the building too much for its residents to return inside.

  “I didn’t realize a flood could damage a building to this extent.” Liam looked around at the buildings nearby and noticed the same sign on a few of the other buildings.

  “Yes, well you need to understand that most of these buildings are centuries old so an earthquake or flood will cause extensive damage.” Milania walked around and noticed the street was deserted. “We need to find where they’ve put up tents to go speak to the towns people.”

  “Tents? Do you really think they are still living in tents after all this time?” Liam exclaimed, wondering where the residents could be.

  “Unfortunately, yes. That will be exactly where they are. Those fortunate to have a family to go to will have left. Some have taken temporary quarters in hotels in neighboring towns but that would have been for thirty to sixty days. The only housing available indefinitely is a tent put up by the Red Cross because they’ll be the last to leave when the town has had a chance to supply its residents food and water.” She took his hand and they walked toward Rachael and Dalton as they too were taking in the catastrophic scene around them.

  “It’s like a ghost town, isn’t it?” Rachael said, feeling the need to leave. She didn’t have traumatic memories of the town but she couldn’t bear to see it abandoned.

  “Okay, let’s look for the Red Cross in Vernazza and see where they have set up camp. It’s our first step before informing the town’s people about tomorrow’s morning. We want everyone there so they know help is on its way,” Milania said, taking pictures of the abandoned town. She wanted to capture the state of neglect that the town was in so the website could make an appeal for funding to people who wanted to help. They had the means and the knowledge to do something good but they needed pictures to show the world that Vernazza needed anything they could give.

  When Milania was satisfied with the pictures, they went back to the car and drove in the direction of the Red Cross camp indicated on its webpage. The moment they arrived, they found a completely different atmosphere. There were a number of large white tents set up next to each other down the length of the field and on the other side was a row of portable toilets for public events. The first tent had the Red Cross logo so they went directly to that one to speak to the coordinators.

  Milania and Rachael noticed the children running around, playing ball and laughing, as nothing was wrong. They had grown accustomed to this new life in a tent. As they walked by the first tent on their way to the Red Cross coordinators, they looked inside and saw about ten cots lined up. Sitting on a couple of the cots were mothers, breast feeding their infants while they chatted together.

  “Milania, Rachael, let’s go inside to speak to the Red Cross,” Liam said, waiting for the girls to enter first. They had to do all the talking because the men didn’t speak a word of Italian.

  The moment they walked into the service tent, two gentlemen and a woman greeted them. They were invited to sit at a table and offered a cup of coffee while they talked. The woman said they received a communication from the Mayor of Vernazza that there would be an important meeting the following morning about funding but no information was provided on the topic.

  Rachael and Milania explained how their new Foundation was there to help the town rebuild. The businesses could ask for funding to set up their shops again while homeowners could ask for a small loan to get back on their feet. They had a plan to bring tourists back to the town once it was self-sufficient again and all of this would involve the collaboration of the Italians along with the Foundation. The Red Cross coordinators were more than interested in finding out how they could help to speed up the process. They were very helpful and willing to do whatever was needed to get the project going.

  When they were finished discussing the purpose of their trip, the four of them got back in their car to drive to the hotel where Liam stayed during the flood. It miraculously was still in business. They left their bags in their rooms and met back for a bite to eat in the restaurant.

  After lunch, Dalton, with Rachael’s help, spoke to the hotel’s owner to find out what he would be willing to do to help build tourism in Vernazza. The owner was extremely interested in doing his part and needed to speak with his marketing team to understand how they could help. They all decided to meet again the next day to discuss possibilities.

  “Okay, I don’t know what else we could do today so why don’t we take a step back and go on a nature walk to see what Vernazza has to offer that doesn’t need any help cleaning up.” Liam was sure there were areas that had not been affected by the flood, which he knew had mesmerizing views of the sea. These were marketing strategies that they needed to grasp at no cost because Cinque Terre was known for its beauty.

  “Great plan, Liam,” Dalton said, slapping him on the shoulder. “Give me a few minutes to change into hiking gear and I’ll meet you back here in thirty minutes. Is that good for everyone?”

  “Yes, absolutely.” Milania looked over at Rachael to know if she needed more time.

  “I’ll be ready in thirty minutes,” Rachael confirmed.

  “Let’s get going then,” Liam murmured, taking Milania’s hand to lead her to the elevator.


  Dalton took the stairs, wanting to warm up before their walk, whereas Liam, Milania and Rachael took the elevator. They were all excited about taking a walk up the scenic route, which was known for its beauty.

  The moment they met up again in the lobby, the men let the women lead the way, knowing they knew the paths blindfolded. They walked through the desolate town to the other side until they found the path leading toward the sea view. It was a beautiful warm day with the sun shinning making it a comfortable and enjoyable walk. They started to climb higher, following the path through rough terrain until they could see the sea. It was breathtaking from the point they were standing.

  “I’ve heard Italy is packed with beauty but I never expected this and to think you both grew up here with this on your doorstep,” Dalton said, taking in the view.

  “Yes, well you know the saying that you don’t always appreciate what you have until it is gone? Well, we can testify to that,” Milania said, looking out toward the sea. “I can’t believe how much I’ve missed it.” She was silent a few minutes, thinking back in time. “My parents used to take me here for a walk every weekend. They believed the view was enough to make stress and worry disappear so our walks were our escape valve.”

  “You know, I think we could use that as a strategy to bring tourists back. We could arrange therapeutic walks to clear the mind and soul of people living stressful lives.” Dalton’s mind started to think out loud. “Do you think we could build a cabin up here as an activity center where people can sign up to do activities to relieve stress?”

  “What kind of activities?” Milania asked, curious to know where this conversation was leading.

  “Yoga by the sea, nature walks, hiking – the sort of things that ground people and make them become one with nature,” Dalton said.

  “Become one with nature?” Rachael asked, not understanding what he meant by it.

  “Yes, think of it as stress therapy. The town must have Pilates or yoga instructors, right?” Dalton continued.

  “Sure but what about it?” Rachael questioned.

  “We could give them a location to run a stress therapy center and provide marketing to get it going. Can you imagine the possibility? North Americans are always looking for vacation spots that are stress free so why not offer them a quaint Italian town by the sea that offers them stress therapy activities?” Dalton said, knowing the idea would work. “Food, wine, great weather and stress therapy. Who wouldn’t sign up for it?”

  “I love it already. I have a couple of friends that were yoga instructors. I need to find out where they are and talk to them,” Milania said.

  “I have a friend who’s a Pilates instructor who moved away after the flood. I could contact him to find out if he’s interested. Actually, I’m sure he’ll be interested since he moved to Vernazza a few years ago because he loved it here.” Rachael looked past them at the sea and knew they were on to something big.

  “Okay guys, we need to focus on what we can do and how to do it. We need a financial plan for this so Rachael, start working on costs for something like this. Include licenses necessary to build and look into bringing electricity and water up here. That might be a problem but we could work around it with a generator and a water well. I’m sure the soil is full of water so include well drilling and water testing.” Liam’s mind was working quickly as ideas were flowing in his head.

  They continued their walk until they turned around and went back the same way they came. On their walk back to the hotel, they talked about other possibilities for Vernazza to live again. Once back in the hotel, they went their separate ways to shower and get dressed for dinner.

  Liam and Milania entered their suite and the moment they walked in, she pulled him close to kiss him.

  “Umm, this is a great way to relax after an eventful afternoon,” he said, pulling her in.

  “Thank you for helping me put Vernazza back on the tourist map.” She kissed him sweetly.

  He lifted her feet off the floor, holding her to his chest as he kissed her deeply. Then he walked toward the bathroom while keeping her feet elevated and didn’t let go of her lips. When he entered the bathroom, he put her back down and started to undress her, slowly savoring the feel of her skin. Next, he took off his clothes and turned on the shower. “Wash with me,” he said with hooded eyes.

  She looked into his face and knew she couldn’t resist him for much longer so she felt the water with her hand and walked into the huge walk-in shower. The moment she was underneath the water, her eyes turned up to capture his expression as her nipples hardened by the feel of the water and the excitement of what was about to happen.

  He leaned down to take one of her nipples into his mouth as his fingers slid down her body to feel between her legs. He wanted to feel her and know she was aching for him. As his fingers found their way to her mound, he pushed two fingers inside and felt it was already wet and slippery. He looked up a moment at her expression and grinned.

  Milania tilted her head back against the water when she felt his fingers between her legs. Her breasts were hot with his mouth working over the tips, relentlessly biting and sucking. She raised her hands to hold on and twined her fingers inside his hair. Her fingers wanted to push his head down to where his fingers were but she didn’t want to push things so she waited until she felt his lips kiss the contour of her breasts before slowly sliding down to where his fingers were.

  Liam couldn’t wait any longer; his manhood was growing quickly as his mouth worked on the delicate parts of her body. He moved his mouth from her breasts to where his fingers were and when he knelt, his mouth went directly to her heat.

  She held onto his shoulders as his mouth found where she was most vulnerable and as soon as his tongue pushed inside, she felt her legs lose balance. Her body slouched over Liam as his tongue worked like magic inside her body, sending her to another dimension. It was the moment she knew she wouldn’t be able to hold herself up when she whimpered as her body crumbled against the shower wall as her orgasm hit.

  He felt her legs give way so he moved her against the wall as he continued probing inside with his tongue. He needed to feel her let go before he penetrated and finished the job. It wouldn’t take him long to release, knowing he was hard as rock from the start. The moment she regained her legs, he pulled her up, circling her legs around his waist to push inside.

  Milania held onto Liam as he slipped inside her and the spray of the water over the back of her head while he pushed in and out made the sensation build again inside. This time it was stronger than before. They had never made love in the shower and it was such a different experience that she felt she was cascading down a waterfall while she flew. It was amazing and the moment her second orgasm hit, it was when she felt the warmth of Liam’s release inside her.

  He slowed his movements, to take in the last minutes of being inside Milania before he moved his head to kiss her. Her lips felt like they were candy and while he was still inside, he pushed his tongue inside her mouth, not wanting to let go just yet. It was a delirious feeling being inside her.

  Their mouths worked at keeping the connection until he felt his manhood sliding out and the moment it happened, he let go of her mouth and rested his forehead on hers. “I can’t get enough of you.” He was still holding her and didn’t want to let her go.

  “So why don’t you wash me while I wash you,” she wiggled her eyebrows as their foreheads were still connected.

  “Mrs. Miller. Do you know the power you have over me?”

  “No, Mr. Miller. Please tell me,” she teased.

  “I would get on my hands and knees for you right now,” he said, letting her down gently to wash.

  She grabbed the shampoo to wash and the moment she started to lather her hair, she turned with devilish eyes. “Maybe when we come back tonight you can get on your hands and knees for me?”

  “Oh, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?” he asked, knowing he would do anything if she asked.

  “Well the
n. I’ll remember to ask you later,” she said, passing him the shampoo.

  He smirked at the though of what his wife would do to him that evening and slapped her behind before placing shampoo on his hair.

  “Hey, what was that for?” she asked, offended.

  “That’s for being naughty,” he said, kissing her on the neck before washing his hair.

  They left the shower to sit in the sauna before getting ready to go out again. They had made dinner reservations at the only restaurant in Vernazza still open to business so they weren’t going to turn up late and lose their table reservation.

  When Liam and Milania went down to the lobby, they found Rachael and Dalton sitting on a sofa chatting. Liam turned to his wife and gave her an inquisitive look.

  “So what do you think is going on? They seem to be together all the time,” Liam asked, wondering what his brother was thinking.

  “I’m not sure but if he has any ideas about dating, he’ll find out the hard way.”

  Liam looked at Milania and wondered what she meant by that. He raised his eyes, waiting for her to elaborate.

  “Rachael has never wanted to marry so she’s not keen on relationships or commitment.”

  “Well leave it to a Miller man to change her mind,” he winked.

  “He’ll be in for a heartbreak if he tries. You better warn him. She’s one tough cookie to break.”

  They reached the others and ordered cocktails from the bar while they waited to go for dinner. They relaxed as they chatted about how welcoming the people in Vernazza had been since they arrived. The people had determination to start over which was admirable in their eyes.

  “Look at the two of you. After what you both went through, it’s amazing how you got up, dusted yourself off and started over,” Dalton boasted, finally understanding what they had been through.

  “Milania went through more than I did. I wasn’t caught in the flood as she was so it was a little different for me,” Rachael said.

  “No wait. Liam took over when I couldn’t function so I really didn’t do anything. Rachael, you really did pick up your life on your own,” Milania commented, looking at her friend.