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“Yes. We grow grapes and lemons.”
We exit the grounds and turn on a road along the cliff edge. The view of the sea is spectacular. After about 5 minutes, we pull into a building at the side of the road. Leo opens my door and leads me up a stone staircase. At the top is a very Italian-looking restaurant with views looking out to the sea. The restaurant looks very busy; all the tables are full.
“Signor Guerra, Mi scuso per favore, 2 minuti.”Mr. Guerra, apologies, please, 2 minutes. The waiter looks panicked. Leo checks his phone, and I watch the waiter. He goes to a couple eating at a table overlooking the sea. He starts clearing their plates while they are still eating. The man stands saying something to the waiter and looks quite rightly so, very annoyed. The waiter points towards Leo, and the couple both help clear the table. What on earth? Once the table is cleared, the waiter calls us over. “You do release the waiter made a couple move halfway through eating so we could sit here?”
“This is where I like to sit. He will have moved them to another table.”
“No, he didn’t. There are no other tables available. They are stood up at the bar eating their soup.”
Leo doesn’t bother to look; he just looks at me quizzically.
“What would you like to drink, Katherine?”
“Processco would be nice.”
“Good choice.” The waiter appears, and Leo orders our drinks. I have so much I want to say to him, to ask him, but I have no idea where to start. I just sit in silence, taking in the view.
The prosecco is delicious. Crisp, fruity, and cold. Leo stares at me intently, watching me drink every sip.
“You make this, don’t you?”
“Yes, well, not me personally, but that is a Guerra Prosecco.”
The waiter puts some plates down in front of us.
“What is this?”
“Burrata al Tartufo. It’s a mozzarella cheese with mushrooms and truffles.”
“I can order my own food, Leo. Do I not even get to choose what I eat now?” Leo smirks at me and offers me the menu. Damn. It’s all in Italian, which is fine because I understand Italian, but I don’t want him to know that yet. I think back to when we met. We would spend our days together teaching each other our languages. It’s ignorant of him to think that I would not continue to learn his language while he has learnt mine so fluently. Leo definitely taught me how to say pollo, which is chicken. I would always sneak chicken nuggets out of the restaurant for us to eat together. It looks like I am having the chicken, then, annoyingly. I would much prefer one of the fish dishes.
“I’ll have the pollo,” I say, putting down my menu. Leo stifles a laugh.
The chicken is actually delicious, and I have polished off another 2 glasses of prosecco. Having got a little Dutch courage, I decide now is the time to question Leo.
“So why me, Leo, out of all the women in the world?”
“Why not you?” Leo’s phone rings. He answers it when he sees the caller ID.
“Si?”Yes?“Come è successo di nuovo!?How has this happened again!? “Impostare una riunione.”Set up a meeting.He hangs up and stands.
“We are leaving.”
On the journey home, Leo is very distracted, but I press for more answers.
“When is ‘our’ wedding then?”
“In 2 months.” That surprises me; It’s not as soon as I would have thought. “My father has some treatment in a couple of weeks which puts him out for a while. By then, he will be strong enough to attend the ceremony.”
The car is speeding through the narrow streets. I hold on to the seat to stop myself from being thrown into the side of the door. Leo looks tense.
“Is everything ok?”
“What?!”
“Is everything ok? The phone call you had, was it bad news?”
“No, everything is not ok!” Leo puts his foot down even further, throwing me back into my seat. Going the speed we are, returning to the house doesn’t take long. The car pulls to a quick stop at the front steps. Leo quickly rounds the car and flings my door open, not waiting for me to exit; he rushes into the house shouting for Marco.
