by Kim Nash
‘She found it in Italy. I went over there with her when she decided to set up the cafe as she wanted to show me a hotel she’d stayed in once which had an incredible coffee shop attached to it. It was her dream to have a coffee shop exactly the same over here. The hotel is just incredible. I’d love to take you one day and show you.’ He realised he was getting a little carried away. ‘Erm, if that’s an option, that is!’
‘What a lovely idea, I’ve only ever been to Italy once and I don’t have good memories. I went for a drink in a bar and needed the ladies’ and they gave me a key, led me down a lane and across a courtyard and into a shed where there was just a big hole in the floor! It really freaked me out and put me off ever going back!’
Vinnie laughed and it filled her with joy. His laugh was deep and sexy and she loved hearing it. ‘I promise you that there are proper porcelain toilets in the place that I stay. It’s a stunning little boutique hotel, and the owners are amazing. You wake up every day to the smell of freshly baked bread and pastries and freshly roasted coffee and the patio is just through the double doors and overlooks glorious lush green mountains on one side and stunning turquoise sparkling sea on the other.’
‘Stop telling me, Vinnie, you sound like an advert on their website. You’ve already sold it to me. It sounds divine and I want to go there right now!’ She laughed. Wouldn’t it be fun to just hop on a plane and do something so spontaneous? she thought.
‘Don’t tempt me! Anyway, the reason for the call, as well as the fact that I wanted to hear your voice, was that I wondered if I might have the pleasure of your company on Saturday evening, madam? Lady Ruth has invited you and me round for dinner, if that’s not too much too soon.’
‘Aw, that would be fab. I really like Ruth and I’d love to meet her hubby too. We’ve just decided that we’re going to do a fat club together. Do you want me to meet you there or pick you up so you can have a drink?’
‘I know all about it, she’s already told me how excited she is to be working with you on this project. No love, that’s fine. I’ll pick you up. I’m not much of a drinker and if I change my mind, I can always leave the car and we can grab a taxi back between us.’ It was nice to be with someone who wasn’t a drinker. Mark liked a drink, and when he drank he became a person she really didn’t like, belittling her by saying that she needed to loosen up and have fun. He had always been repentant the next morning, but the damage had been done.
They chatted for another ten minutes, just laughing and joking, really at ease in each other’s company. Grace realised that she’d never had this before. She always felt as if she had to be on her best behaviour with Mark in case he didn’t like what she said and snapped, yet with Vinnie, who she’d not known that long, she felt really comfortable and knew that she didn’t have to put on any airs and graces and could just be herself.
Becks started to bark at her and she realised that she hadn’t taken him out yet. She had a thought. ‘What are you up to today, Vinnie?’ she asked. ‘I’m just going to take Becks out for a walk to the forest. With Archie at his dad’s, because we’ve swapped days around, I’m home alone so thought I’d get out. I don’t suppose you fancy joining me, do you?’
‘Do you know, I’d really love that. I’ve sat at my computer since six this morning and I’m going googly-eyed. A walk in the forest sounds perfect. We can grab a cuppa at the café to celebrate your award win.’
‘OK, shall I pick you up? It’s probably easier because Becks is likely to run off into the streams and get filthy and smelly and at least I can stick him in the boot of my car, which is already quite mucky. Can you be ready in about half an hour? Oh and by the way, have you eaten? I could put a quick sandwich together and a flask if you like?’
‘Sounds perfect, gorgeous, I’ll text you my address. I’d better flick the duster round before you come just in case I can entice you in for a coffee afterwards. It’s the stuff my sister sells…’
‘Ooh, I bet you say that to all the girls. Cool, see you in half an hour then and don’t dust on my account Vinnie, housework is for people who don’t spend their life having fun!’ She laughed as she disconnected the call.
She realised just how much she’d changed recently. The old Grace, when expecting visitors, would have been running round the place like a thing demented, spraying polish into the air so it least smelt like it was clean and shoving things in drawers and storage boxes to give the illusion of a clean-and-tidy house. It was amazing how quickly you could get housework done, when you knew someone was about to descend upon you. But with Vinnie, Grace had the sense that none of that mattered.
* * *
Grace picked up Vinnie exactly thirty minutes later. He was dressed casually in jeans, walking boots and a navy long-sleeved t-shirt. He looked incredibly sexy and Grace smiled to herself.
As he jumped into the passenger side of the car, he turned round to the back and said, ‘Hey, Becks!’ as naturally as if it was one of his mates. ‘I love walking, but you feel such a jerk on your own, don’t you?’ he said. ‘I’ve always fancied a dog but it’s difficult when I work such long hours, wouldn’t be fair on one. I’ll have to borrow Becks next time I fancy a walk.’
‘You can or you’re welcome to join us anytime. I know what you mean though about walking on your own. I would never have dreamt of doing that before I had him. I always wanted to, but never had the courage to go out on my own.’
‘How long have you had him?’
‘Just under a year. It just seemed like the right time and he’s great company for me when Archie is at his dad’s. Saves me talking to myself, anyway!’ Grace laughed.
They pulled up in the small car park and she grabbed a rucksack out of the boot as Becks jumped out. They walked briskly for around a mile as Becks sniffed every blade of grass he came across, and weed up most of the trees, before they found a picnic bench and decided that it was time for a pit stop. Grace poured coffee from an aluminium flask into two plastic mugs and opened up a big plastic box which revealed a whole host of savoury food; sausage rolls, chicken bites, satay sticks, scotch eggs, pork pies and crisps.
‘Blimey, Grace, you know how to put on a snack. I’ll be the size of a house if I keep walking with you guys.’
‘Then you’ll just have to come to our fat club, won’t you?’ She laughed. ‘I take after my mum, she was a feeder too.’
The walk had made them both ravenous and after they’d polished off the lot between them, they started walking again.
The closer they walked together, the more they touched each other and each touch felt like an electric current soaring through their bodies. Vinnie suddenly stopped walking and Grace stood still too, puzzling over why he was standing still. He swept up a big section of her hair which had blown into her face to one side, tucked it behind her ear and kissed her gently but fully on the lips. He smiled and carried on walking and she caught up with him. He grinned at her, took her hand in his, kissed it, tucked it under the crook of his arm and then didn’t let go. Neither of them seemed to be able to stop smiling.
‘I don’t think I’ve ever felt this comfortable with anyone before, Grace. Just walking side by side, we don’t even have to be talking, it just feels right to be here with you. Does that sound a bit mad? Am I scaring you with too much too soon?’ he asked.
‘Not at all, I love it!’ she responded. ‘It just feels good and right and I feel like I’ve known you all my life, if that doesn’t sound too forward.’
They smiled at each other and a kind of deep understanding passed between them. They’d got to the end of the walk and were nearing the car park again. ‘What are you doing for the rest of the day, Grace?’ Vinnie asked.
‘Not much planned to be honest, I have to be back by six as that’s what time Archie is back but apart from that, nothing.’
‘So can I persuade you and Becks to come back to mine and curl up on the settee and watch a film, do you think?’
‘Are you sure you want that furry smelly monst
er in your house? He needs a good wipe down first.’
‘Well, I’ve got some old towels and a sponge knocking around in the airing cupboard. I’m sure we could give him a bed bath!’
‘Ooh, he’d love that! Not!’
‘He’ll be fine, won’t you mate?’ he said to the dog while ruffling the fur on his head. Becks licked his hand and raised his head in a look of complete adoration.
‘See, he’s my buddy! Leave it to me.’
‘OK, if you insist but don’t say I didn’t warn you.’
When they got back, Vinnie went into the house first and grabbed some old towels and a sponge. He kneeled down by the front door. ‘Come on then, boy,’ he said as he patted his knees. Becks bounded up to him and jumped up, nearly knocking him over. Where Mark would have hit the roof, Vinnie just laughed and rolled around on the floor with him, Becks licking his face. Then Becks sat obediently and did everything Vinnie told him to while he gave him a wash down and dried him.
‘Amazing!’ said Grace. ‘I definitely think you have a new best friend.’
‘Come on, boy, let’s see what we can find you for a treat,’ he said opening and closing cupboard doors. ‘What can I give him?’ he looked at Grace for advice.
‘This might sound a bit mad, but do you have any carrots?’
‘I do. They’re in the fridge, will that be OK? I’ve never heard of a dog eating carrots before. Are you sure?’
‘I hadn’t either, but they’re good for their teeth apparently and it’ll keep him quiet for a while.’
He gave Becks the carrot and walked over to where Grace was standing, putting his hands on her shoulders and kissing the top of her head. ‘Fancy a cuppa?’
‘Mmm please,’ she responded. ‘Can I do anything?’
‘No, sweetheart, all under control. Why don’t you go in the lounge and see what films we can watch.’
Grace walked into the room that Vinnie indicated and took a look around. It was obvious that it was a man’s room. It had a black leather suite and there was a footrest with some car and men’s health magazines on it. His Apple Mac sat on a low black glass-topped table in the far corner and there were very few knick-knacks around. As she looked around the room her eyes caught a photograph on the mantelpiece of him and Ruth together and another of him with his arms around a beautiful young woman, standing on the side of a mountain, bathed in sunshine. It was the lady whose picture was in his wallet. Vinnie looked like he adored the very ground that she walked on. You could see the love in his eyes. Her heart caught in her mouth.
She picked up the photo and looked at it in detail. The woman was tall, slender, blonde, beautiful, young, vibrant and full of life. She was wearing a white skimpy vest and very short shorts. She was quite simply stunning. Grace was gutted. Her heart sank to the bottom of her boots. She felt green with envy and could feel jealousy surging through her body. This girl couldn’t be further away from herself – she was everything that Grace wasn’t. Grace was short, curvaceous and dark and she couldn’t help but wonder who this beautiful lady was. She was obviously someone very important to Vinnie, if the photo was still on the mantelpiece, yet everything she knew about him told her that he was single.
‘Ah, you’ve seen the photo then,’ Vinnie said as he walked into the lounge balancing a tray in his hands while Becks danced around his ankles.
‘Yep!’ Grace looked at him.
‘I should explain,’ he said as he put the tray down and took the photo out of Grace’s hand and touched the glass, stroking the girl’s face tenderly. Grace felt sick with jealousy.
‘This is Meredith. I loved her so much. She’s stunning, isn’t she?’
‘She is indeed,’ replied Grace, wondering what on earth was going on and why he was telling her about how much he loved another girl.
‘My beautiful brave girl,’ he said, his voice catching on his words. He took a deep breath.
‘Are you OK, Vinnie?’ Grace asked, wondering about his emotional reaction.
‘Yes thanks, I might just need a hug though.’
Grace stepped over to him and hugged him, even though she was confused as to why she was comforting him when he was clearly so devasted about an ex girlfriend. Especially one that was stunning to look at!
‘Perhaps I’d better tell you about my Meredith. Sit down, Grace.’ He sat on the sofa and patted the seat next to him. ‘Meredith was the most incredible girl I’ve ever known. Full of life, full of adventure and full of love. She meant the world to me. I loved her so much.’
Grace couldn’t move; she felt compelled to listen even though she knew he was about to say something she really didn’t want to hear.
‘She was just twenty-one when she died of leukaemia. It was discovered way too late and the illness was short and over quickly and we could do nothing to help her. I’ve never felt so helpless in my life. I loved that girl with all my heart. I still can’t believe that my little sister was taken away from me!’
‘Your sister? Oh my God, Vinnie, your sister? How awful.’ She hugged him tightly, knowing that it was hard for him to have to explain. She wanted to kick herself for being such a jealous bitch, but she really had thought it was an ex. Now that she knew the truth, she felt dismayed at her initial jealous reaction, and empathy for this man, having to go through the pain of losing a sibling. She couldn’t imagine how that must have felt and she vowed to ring Hannah as soon as she could to tell her how much she loved her.
Vinnie wiped his eyes. ‘God, I’m so sorry! I’m not normally so open. I’ve shielded my heart for so long, because I thought it would never mend after Meredith had gone, but I feel like I can – and need to – open up to you, Grace, and let you into my life. What have you done to me?’
She put her hands on either side of his face and wiped away his tears with her thumbs. She kissed the place where the tears had gently rolled down his cheeks. ‘I am so sorry that you went through this Vinnie,’ she said. ‘I couldn’t even begin to imagine how you could get over something like this.’
‘But it’s strange, Grace, because for the first time in a very long time, I actually feel like I’m ready to move on from this part of my life and start a new chapter. It’s almost like she’s willing me to do it. Meredith leaving us hit Ruth and me really hard, but we know that we can’t continue to live in the past, wishing that she was going to walk through the door, because it’s never going to happen. I know it’s time to move on. We’ll never forget Meredith but we have to learn to live our lives without her. It’s a new chapter.
‘Since I met you Grace, I feel like I finally have something special to look forward to. I feel like I can finally start to see some light at the end of a very dark tunnel. I haven’t had anyone special in my life for a long time. I suppose what happened with Meredith broke my heart and I just didn’t want to put my feelings out there again to be bashed around any further.
‘I don’t know what the future holds for you and I but I have a good feeling, a really good feeling that we could have something really special together and I’d like us to explore that. God, I hope that’s not too heavy for a Sunday afternoon. I sound like a big girl’s blouse and a stalker rolled into one!’
Grace laughed, realising that she was relieved that he’d acknowledged the fact that there wasn’t anyone else in his life. ‘You don’t sound like those things at all, you sound like a wonderful human being who adored his little sister. I do know what you mean about us, though. I know we’ve not known each other for long but this just feels so right. I know it’s early days but I also think we have something special and I’d love to see where this goes. How does that sound?’ She kissed him long and lingeringly on the lips and gave him a hug that said lots of things. Becks started barking and jumped up excitedly which made them both laugh out loud. ‘Now are you going to pour that coffee out or not?’
They sat side by side on the sofa watching a comedy which lightened the mood somewhat. Becks crept up onto the sofa and put his head on Vinnie’s lap. Grace
went to move him off but Vinnie said he was happy for Becks to join them. He rested one hand on Becks’ head and the other held Grace’s, as she snuggled into his shoulder and realised that she never wanted to move from that spot. They stayed like that until Grace realised the time; she needed to head home soon as Mark would be bringing back Archie. Grace felt that this afternoon had been a pivotal point in her and Vinnie’s relationship and that they had shared something incredibly special. She hoped that it would be the first of many special moments.
Vinnie popped to the loo, and his phone was on the coffee table. It pinged to say there was a message and she couldn’t help but look at it. It was from someone called Ellie and it simply said,
Ring me, it’s urgent
Her heart sank and she had a really bad feeling in her tummy. She knew it could be something, and she knew it could be nothing.
When Vinnie came back downstairs, he quickly looked at the phone, frowned and put it in his back pocket. Grace kissed him on the cheek and drove home, her mind full of what ifs, and maybes.
Would she ever learn to trust someone again? Perhaps she was better off with Mark. At least she already knew he was a shit sometimes. At least she wasn’t trying to get the measure of someone all over again. Perhaps it was a case of better the devil you know.
Chapter Eighteen
She arrived home and was just getting Becks out of the car as Mark and Archie pulled up. Archie ran up to her and flung his arms around her as if he hadn’t seen her for days.
‘Hello, gorgeous, how are you?’
‘I’m better now I’m with you, Mummy,’ he replied. ‘Can I go on my Xbox?’
‘Oh, OK, but only for half an hour,’ said Grace, wondering how she was going to have tea and get Archie in the bath once he’d got on the Xbox, and get some of his school reading done, all before bed. And it would have been nice for some snuggling up on the sofa time before he went to bed.
‘You’re too soft on him. You can say no to him you know.’ Mark laughed as he saw her brain whirring and Archie ran upstairs to his room.