‘I’m head waiter. The restaurant belongs to my family. Has done for four generations,’ he told her, large and honest eyes the shade of grey never wavering. ‘You liked it?’
She was aware of her sister watching her and beneath the scrutiny of them both she needed to escape. ‘I…I have to go.’
‘Come back tomorrow,’ he called after her. ‘Si?’
All she could do was smile and walk away. He was gorgeous; maybe he did this all the time, flirted with the locals and tourists, and that was why his English was so good. He could probably speak a dozen languages to get his way every time.
But the girls had returned to the restaurant the next night because Celeste wanted to see the waiter and that time Dario had been working but he’d still cast enough glances Jade’s way, his intentions obvious. The girls had gone again the night after that and on the third evening, when Celeste had gone off on a date with the handsome waiter, Jade’s love affair with Dario had begun.
Celeste, true to form, had had a great time, a holiday fling that would never be anything more despite her spending a lot of time with the waiter. Jade, on the other hand, knew what she and Dario had wasn’t just the buzz of a summer fling, it ran much deeper. And while Celeste worked for five weeks in a different restaurant making some cash to buy herself a new car when they returned to England, Jade spent all her time with Dario. They talked about how their lives might be together if they made the commitment. Over the weeks they planned a dreamlike future, a family. They’d both fallen head over heels and Jade had let herself believe it would last. But when it became apparent how impossible it would be with her new business in England and him a part of the family restaurant in Venice, they made the mutual decision to go their separate ways.
Saying goodbye to Dario had been painful, gut-wrenching. He’d told her, ‘Non dimenticarmi’,Don’t forget me. Both of them had been devastated but they’d ripped themselves away from one another and hadn’t been in touch since.
Before today, Jade had thought she had sorted her head out and was moving forwards. But she didn’t know what to think now Dario was here.
The ringing phone on the wall in the kitchen took her attention from the loaves she handed to Celeste to a cake commission from a couple planning a Halloween party. They wanted a unique cake – most did when they got in touch, it was part of the excitement – and they’d run on about spiders, cobwebs, ghosts and ghouls. Jade’s brain hadn’t been quite able to make the leap into creativity with Dario so close by but she arranged a meeting with the couple in a few days – enough time to get her head on straight. Dario’s presence was sparking a befuddled brain, not something she usually suffered from at work. Perhaps it was the shock because she’d never been anything other than comfortable in his company. Or maybe it was because she had no idea why he was here, what he wanted – and why all of a sudden?
‘Where are you staying?’ she asked him once she’d hung up the phone. She used a small brush to rid the bread slicer of excess crumbs, letting them fall into the plastic container she held beneath.
‘I have a room at the Heritage Inn.’ The words rolled off his tongue. When Jade was in Venice they’d spoken English most of the time they were together, although he’d done his best to teach her as much Italian as he could. ‘I wanted to surprise you but…well, I didn’t know your living arrangements, your accommodation.’
She smiled. Sometimes his sentences didn’t include phrases most people would use, and sounded overly formal. ‘Me and Celeste live out there.’ She pointed out of the open back door, a little relieved he hadn’t assumed he could stay with her.
His eyes followed the path up to the back door of the cottage. ‘It’s very English. And what do you say? Cute?’
‘Yes, it is cute, that’s another word for small, but we’ve got an upstairs now so it’s perfect for us at the moment.’
‘England is pretty.’
‘It is.’ She couldn’t help but smile at him. He’d come all this way on a whim, no warning. His first time in England. ‘What are your plans while you’re here?’
‘To see you.’ He didn’t add anything else.
Flustered, she told him, ‘You’ll enjoy the inn, you’re in good hands there.’
‘The owner, Tracy, is nice. She’s a good cook, I’ve had an enormous breakfast. What is it called…the Full English?’
‘That’s right…sausages, bacon, eggs, fried bread, mushrooms…have I forgotten anything?’
‘I had spinach too. I turned down the offer of a black pudding.’
‘An acquired taste,’ she explained before nodding to the tray of prepared doughnuts. ‘I’ll be back after I’ve taken these through.’
In the bakery Celeste was wiping down the curved glass-fronted display cabinet. ‘What’s he doing here?’ She immediately leapt into question time. ‘Did you have any idea he was planning this?’
‘None at all.’ Jade quickly checked Dario was still in the kitchen and he was, except he’d moved to lean against the door frame at the back and was gazing at the cottage. He looked so much like she remembered – tall, dark and outrageously handsome with a winning smile that had held her captive from the word go.
‘I can handle things here if you like,’ Celeste whispered as Jade unloaded the last of the doughnuts. Their shimmery sugar coating had already drawn the attentions of a woman who’d been perusing the glass-fronted cabinets, or maybe it was their doughy smell filling the air that did it.
Jade, empty tray in hand, wanted to go back to Dario and talk but at the same time she wished she could go about her normal day. ‘I can’t, what if we get too busy?’
‘Then we get a queue out the door and people will have to wait.’ Celeste popped three doughnuts into a paper bag for the lady and waved a cheery goodbye. ‘Find out what he’s doing here. He was the love of your life once, remember?’ She winked but the doubts on her face matched Jade’s own, because she had no idea what to feel. ‘Find out whether this is a fleeting visit or whether he’s declaring his undying love and moving in.’
‘This was the last thing I expected today.’
‘Me too. Give me a call if you need me.’ She put a reassuring hand onto her sister’s shoulder.
‘I don’t really want to face questions from anyone in the Cove so I’ll take him into the cottage.’ She knew Celeste would give her the space she needed.
