At lunchtime they tore into Luca’s picnic. He had brought cold prosecco, water, sandwiches, crisps and strawberries. After they had eaten they fell asleep, their stomachs full, feeling relaxed and rather light-headed from the prosecco they had shared. Later, as the sun began to drop lower in the sky and the temperature gradually fell, Luca retrieved a bat and ball from his bag and they played beach tennis. They cooled off in the sea before eventually calling it a day, packing up and heading back into Positano. Libby accompanied Luca to his flat, greeting Nicola with a kiss as she came through the door. She was busy preparing some delicious-looking lamb chops in a thick marinade.
‘Are you staying for dinner?’ she asked.
‘Yes please,’ replied Libby. ‘That looks incredible. What’s in the marinade?’ she asked, always keen to pick up cooking tips.
Nicola talked her through it. ‘Giovanna is coming around too, by the way,’ she added.
‘Ah, the sister I haven’t yet met,’ laughed Libby. ‘Great!’ She had met Antonia, the oldest sister, and her husband Matteo one evening in the bar. Giovanna, the youngest of Luca’s three sisters, had been away on business for the past month and had only recently arrived back in Positano. Luca drove Libby back to the hostel to run in and get a change of clothes.
‘Ciao Giulia,’ said Libby. Giulia was sitting behind the reception desk doodling on a pad.
‘Where are you off to in such a hurry?’ she asked as Libby rushed past her.
‘Luca’s waiting in the car. I’m just grabbing a change of clothes before dinner.’
‘Really?’ asked Giulia, one eyebrow arching towards her hairline and her mouth settling into a pout. Libby hoped Giulia wouldn’t disapprove of her now that she and Luca were seeing each other. As Luca had said, wasn’t it all water under the bridge between them? If she took against the idea, it could make for a rather frosty working environment. She wondered once again whether Giulia was jealous, or just trying to protect Libby from getting hurt.
Libby grabbed her coral dress, a fresh set of underwear and a pair of earrings, then turned and ran back downstairs. ‘See you later,’ she called, waving cheerily at Giulia.
Luca was waiting with the engine running, having turned the car back around. He drove her back to his apartment. She showered in his huge power shower, rinsed out her wet bikini and got dressed, hanging her bikini on Luca’s balcony to dry off. She had already decided that she would walk home later; it would be a while until she felt ready to spend the night with him and she knew sleeping in the same bed would prove too much temptation for her to resist. For now she just wanted to enjoy the early stages of a new romance.
Giovanna arrived half an hour later. She had a mass of bouncing curls that seemed desperate to break free from her hair tie. ‘Libby it’s lovely to meet you. My brother has mentioned you quite a few times,’ laughed Giovanna.
‘It’s a pleasure to meet you too. Now, apart from the parents, I’ve met the whole family.’
‘Oh you must meet our parents,’ said Nicola. ‘They would absolutely love you.’
‘And she will, soon,’ added Luca, kissing her on the cheek. Libby blushed as she noticed both Giovanna and Nicola exchange a grin at this display of affection from their brother.
They had a happy dinner, chatting and teasing Luca, as always, at any opportunity. Libby relaxed into their company, feeling part of the family. They were all so easy-going, such warm people. Luca was very tactile with her now, resting his hand on her knee or putting his arm around her shoulder, dropping kisses on her head when he walked past to get another bottle of wine. It was amazing how simply getting your feelings out in the open and being honest with one another changed the dynamic of a relationship so completely.
Later that night, Luca walked her home. She was grateful that he didn’t try to persuade her to stay, that he respected her and clearly wasn’t only interested in getting her into bed. As they stood outside the hostel she found it hard to tear herself away from his increasingly passionate kisses. Eventually she found the strength to turn and walk up the steps, letting herself in through the yellow door before turning to blow him a final kiss. Beaming from ear to ear, she came through into the reception.
‘Have fun?’ asked Giulia as Libby hastily wiped the grin from her face.
‘Lovely thanks,’ said Libby. ‘Giovanna and Nicola were there; they’re both so nice.’
‘Mmm,’ said Giulia. Again, she hardly seemed thrilled that Luca and Libby were growing so close.
Libby went up to her room and closed the door, allowing the smirk to come back on to her face. She really, really liked him! And he really seemed to like her. Despite their different nationalities and the complete implausibility that they would work out as a couple, she couldn’t shake the feeling that this could be the beginning of something amazing. She fell asleep with the shadow of a smile tracing her lips.
On her days off, now always coinciding, thanks to Floriana, Luca took her to incredible local restaurants, well off the tourist trail. They went out on the boat with Gian Matteo and they drove all over the Amalfi coast, finding hidden coves and hiking along hilltop paths. Libby felt heady with happiness; she felt herself falling hook, line and sinker for Luca. Likewise, Luca seemed absolutely smitten, utterly devoted to her, the perfect gentleman, constantly spoiling her. He introduced her with pride to his parents, choosing his father’s birthday as the perfect opportunity.
Things were going so well that during a phone call with her mother she decided to tell her about Luca.
‘So, Mum, I’ve actually been dating someone out here for the past few weeks,’ confessed Libby.
‘Really darling, how fabulous.’ Her mother sounded delighted. ‘Is he Italian?’
‘Yes, he is.’
‘How exciting! So… who is he? Tell me all about him.’ Libby proceeded to tell her mum all about Luca and his family; her mum seemed impressed that she had already met his parents. When Libby had finished answering all Miriam’s questions, they moved on to discussing Helen.
‘Have you heard from her recently?’
‘No, not for a couple of weeks. I’ve been meaning to call her,’ Libby said, guiltily. She’d been so occupied with Luca recently, all other thoughts seemed to have gone out of the window.
‘I’m going to send her an email this afternoon. I’ve taken to writing a weekly update of any news I can think of, though it has to be said it is quite boring – not much goes on in Kent these days. But I feel it’s important not to let her feel too cut off.’
