The Complete Legacy Series: Books 1 - 6 Read online

  Lia showed Arianna where she’d gone to school in the small elementary school that was still home to small children learning to read and write. She showed her where she used to ride her bike and deliver the baked goods to all her father’s best customers. It had been a good morning, and when they came upon the most perfect-looking little restaurant, they both raised their eyebrows and said at the same time, “Let’s have lunch.”

  Arianna laughed as they both noticed the sign with the name of the restaurant. Thyme. “And it’s named after your favorite herb. That has to be a good sign, right?”

  Lia nodded her head as she took in the interior of the little restaurant, a big grin spread on her face. “It reminds me so much of my childhood.” She grabbed Arianna’s hand, giving it a squeeze. “And it feels amazing to be here now with you.”

  Arianna nodded her head in agreement. They’d eaten at fancier spots in Florence, but this was the kind of rustic environment that she imagined suited Lia. She only hoped that the food matched the decor.

  They found a little table near the window and a smiling waitress came over to greet them. “Buongiorno,” she said as she handed them the menus.

  Arianna smiled wide and said in English, “This place is so sweet.”

  “Si, grazie. My uncle—he owns the restaurant,” the waitress said, pleased with her halting English. “Where do you come from?” She turned to Lia. “You are Italian, si?”

  “I was raised here—in Castillina—and my daughter”—Lia gestured towards Arianna—“she grew up in America. In San Francisco.”

  “Ah. San Francisco. I want to go there one day.” The waitress smiled broadly and continued to tell them the specials of the day, leaving them to make their selection while she got their wine.

  “This menu is really good. I want everything,” Lia said. “Ari, I’m dying to get in the kitchen at the villa. I think tomorrow night I should cook dinner, yes?”

  “If you’d like to. I’m all for it.”

  They both ordered pasta dishes with bruschetta to start, and chatted easily, each with a glass of wine, as they waited for their food.

  Arianna could see Lia’s eyes darting around the small seating area, taking it all in. She’d noticed that a lot when they’d been dining out and wondered what it was that she was thinking. Now she felt brave enough to ask.

  “If you’d have stayed here—in this town, or another in Italy—do you think you would have been cooking in a restaurant like this? Would you prefer it to the kind of work you are doing now?”

  Lia seemed thoughtful, as if she was hesitant to say what was on her mind. “If I’m being honest, my dream was to open my own restaurant. It’s all I ever thought about as a child, while cooking with my grandmother. She used to tell me ‘il cibo è un dono di Dio.’ ” She smiled as she recounted the memory to Arianna.

  Arianna grinned. “I agree wholeheartedly with your wise grandmother. Your food is a gift from God.” And my great-grandmother. She wanted to hear much more about the family that she’d never known, but before she could ask another question, the waitress was delivering hot plates of delicious-looking food to their table.

  “Oh my goodness. It this not the most delicious pasta you’ve ever eaten?” Lia said as she wiped her mouth with her napkin and went in for another bite.

  “Well, it’s certainly great, but I’d say second to yours.” Arianna winked. “But it is good.” She laughed, twirling her spaghetti around her fork. “If I’m not careful, I’m not going to be able to fit into any of the clothes I brought.”

  Lia laughed too, with her hand on her stomach. “You can say that again. We’ll have to get on the bicycles or be sure we start taking some nice long walks near the villa.”

  “That sounds lovely, actually. I want to soak up every bit of this gorgeous Tuscan sunshine.”

  “And really, Arianna, I don’t think you have much to worry about. I think you could stand to gain a few pounds, if I’m being honest.” She looked worried, like she may have said something she wished she could take back. “I’m sorry. You’re perfect. Just the way you are.”

  “What, are you worried you’re sounding too much like a mother?” Arianna teased with a wink. “It’s okay, Lia. Really.” And she meant it. Growing up, her mother had been quite critical of her weight, always monitoring what she was eating, and Arianna learned how to battle the curviness of her Italian genes. Her mother had been very thin, so Arianna suspected that her curves, as she grew older, were just another reminder to her mother of their differences. It was a wonder she hadn’t ended up with an eating disorder, but she’d loved food too much for that. She smiled thinking about it. She’d learned how to manage so that she could maintain the figure that would still land her the modeling jobs, while not becoming obsessed with dieting like so many others that she knew in the industry.

  And these days, she didn’t usually have so much of an appetite; so the fact that she was hungry and eating so much while in Italy, she counted as a good thing.

  Lia seemed to relax after Arianna had reassured her that she could, in fact, speak to her as if she were her mother. They finished their meal and when the waitress came to check on them, Lia told her how fantastic they thought it was and asked her to please tell the chef.

  “Si, my uncle is the cook.” She grinned. “Would you like to come back to the kitchen? Say hello?”

  “Si.” Lia’s face lit up as she turned to Arianna. “I never pass up the chance to see a chef’s kitchen.” She laughed.

  Arianna stood up too and they followed the waitress back behind the swinging doors into the kitchen. She spoke to her uncle in Italian and the middle-aged Italian man made his way towards them, wiping his hands on the apron tied around his waist.

  “Buongiorno,” he said, kissing first Lia, and then Arianna, on both cheeks. “Welcome to Thyme. I am Carlo and this is my niece, Sofia,” he said gesturing to the young waitress. “I hope your lunch it is good, si?” he said in his broken English.

  “Il cibo era delizioso,” said Lia.

  “Very delicious,” echoed Arianna with a big grin, rubbing her stomach with the palm of her hand. She noticed Lia eyeing the kitchen and smiled inwardly. Arianna loved Lia’s dream, and wondered what part having her had played in its not coming to fruition. She didn’t dwell on that. There wasn’t time to. The cook was showing them around the kitchen with pride, and Arianna noticed how delighted he was when, in Italian, Lia shared her thoughts on his good-quality ingredients. By the time they were walking back out of the kitchen, Lia and Arianna had promised that they’d be back with the whole gang for a good old-fashioned family-style dinner in the upcoming weeks.

  As they walked out of the restaurant, Arianna couldn’t help but notice all of the smiling customers sitting at the tables outside chatting as if they all knew one another. She had a great feeling about this little restaurant, and looking beside her at Lia, Arianna didn’t think she’d seen her looking so happy since the day that they’d met. She reached over to give her a quick hug. “That was wonderful. I like it here.”

  Lia smiled and Arianna thought she looked radiant in the moment, as if years of stress had melted away.

  “I’m not quite sure what we could do now to top that. Gelato?” Lia asked with a grin.

  “With extra toppings.” Arianna laughed and they continued walking down the quiet street towards the gelato place that they’d noticed earlier.

  After their dessert, they decided to ring the driver, who was parked nearby, and go home for a little rest and later a walk around the property. Arianna had been eyeing the olive grove and the paths that she’d glimpsed winding their way through the crooked vines.

  What a perfect day it had been. Arianna leaned her head back in the car to shut her eyes for a few moments. It felt good, and she realized how tired she was feeling even though the morning outing hadn’t been strenuous. She also felt the creeping of a slight headache coming on and sighed. She’d have to take a couple pills when they arrived home, in the hopes
of knocking it out before the evening.

  Lia turned towards her. “What’s wrong, bella? Are you okay?”

  “Yes, I’m okay.” Arianna smiled in the hopes of reassuring her. “I’m just tired. A nap sounds perfect right about now.”

  “We’ll be home soon. And nothing to do until dinner if you don’t feel like it.”

  “I think I’d like to have a nice walk after my nap. That sounds perfect.” Arianna said.

  Chapter 30

  The rest of the week was spent in the most glorious of ways that Arianna could imagine. She would sleep in and wake up to the most delicious smells of fresh scones and strong coffee. After breakfast, she and Lia had gotten into a nice little routine of walking through the olive grove and back via the country road that ran along one of the bigger neighboring vineyards. She still marveled at the breathtaking beauty that she saw around her every day and thought that if she’d die here, she’d have lived a happy life.

  Lia actually said that to her one day while they were out walking and Arianna surprised herself, and probably Lia as well, by bursting into tears. It had led to a great talk that was deep and meaningful and all about how happy they both were that Lia had found her and reached out—how happy they were that they were building a new future that included one another.

  Arianna tried to be as honest as she was able to be about her feelings, and kept reminding herself to be in the moment. She could almost hear Doc’s voice in her head saying as such on several different occasions when the conversation and emotions got rather intense. Every morning, Arianna tried to write her innermost thoughts in her journal. It was a process that had helped her so much so far, and one she suspected that she wouldn’t give up until it was no longer necessary. But she had a new idea about that too.

  She’d gained a lot of clarity since arriving in Italy. Particularly, since arriving at the villa. The days were easy and full of sunshine. Hope and happiness was all around her and it was hard not to get caught up in that.

  They started developing a little ritual of dropping by Thyme every other morning. They’d go in late in the morning for a cup of coffee and then end up staying for lunch and conversation with Carlo and Sofia. One day, while telling Lia of the beautiful ingredients he’d found that morning, he invited her into the kitchen to cook with him. Her face had lit up like that of a kid in a candy shop, so Arianna suspected he really had no choice but to ask her to join him.

  Arianna especially enjoyed these days in the restaurant, and she could tell that Lia did too.

  They had gone into Siena a few times as well, mostly for dinner and for Lia to show Arianna a few highlights of the city. But Arianna enjoyed Castellina the most. When she told Lia that, she had seemed surprised, saying that it was so different from San Francisco, with many less choices for eating and shopping. But Arianna liked the small-town feel to it.

  So they continued on like this, getting into an easy and enjoyable pattern. Often Lia would cook the evening meal and invite all of the staff and their families to join them. These were the evenings that Arianna enjoyed the most. They’d sit at the big tables in the courtyard with her favorite operas playing in the background and plates full of steaming pastas, meats, and sauces. There was always so much laughter and smiles. They got by with their broken Italian and English on both sides, and Arianna found herself picking up on the language much faster than she thought she would.

  She couldn’t wait to share this little home they’d created with the rest of her friends. Gigi was going to love these nights as well, and Blu and Jemma wouldn’t know what to make of it. Arianna was content and counted every minute as a blessing, knowing that these moments were some of the best she’d ever have.

  A few days later, like the flip of a switch, Arianna felt something shift inside her. She knew that she was going to have to make the time to talk to Lia sooner rather than later and she dreaded it.

  Chapter 31

  Arianna awoke with another pounding headache and tried not to cry over the frustration of knowing she’d be unable to join Lia on the bike ride that they’d planned. Maybe this trip hadn’t been the best idea. But she only let herself think that momentarily. She’d already had more great memories than she’d ever imagined possible. She’d just have to figure out a way to deal with Lia and the questions that were sure to come. Maybe it was time to tell her. Arianna didn’t have much time to think about this before she heard a quiet knock on her door.

  “Come in.”

  “Morning, sleepyhead. I brought you some coffee and a scone from this lovely shop I found just down the way.” Lia put a tray on the table beside Arianna’s bed. “What’s wrong? Are you feeling bad again?” Lia had that look of worry on her face that Arianna had come to know.

  “Morning—thanks for the coffee, and that does look divine.” Arianna struggled to prop herself up a bit in her bed. “Yeah, I’m afraid I have a pretty bad headache again today. I really hate to keep you from anything…”

  Lia was quickly beside her with a hand upon her forehead. “Bella, you’re not looking well. Do you think maybe I should find a doctor? That’s several days now with this headache, no?”

  Arianna shook her head and struggled a bit to disentangle herself from the covers, and sit up at the edge of the bed. “No. No, I don’t need a doctor. I’ll be alright. I just—I just need—” Arianna pressed hard with one hand on her forehead, stood up, and immediately fell to the floor.

  “Ari! Oh God—”

  Arianna heard Lia’s panicked pleas as she struggled to open her eyes.

  “I—I’m okay. Water. Can I have some water?”

  Lia got the glass of water on Arianna’s bedside table and knelt down beside her, bringing it to her lips. “I’m calling the doctor. This is not normal, and I’m very worried about you now.”

  Arianna struggled to sit up and get her thoughts together enough to talk to Lia. She knew that if she couldn’t convince her soon, Lia would be calling for help in a matter of minutes; there was no mistaking the panicked look on her face. It was time. Arianna needed to get the strength together to have this conversation with Lia—with her mother.

  “No, no. Please don’t call anyone. Just—can you help me get back into bed, please? I’ll be okay. I—I just need to talk to you.” She hoped that the pleading in her voice was enough to convince Lia of this.

  For the moment Lia was focused on helping her get back into the bed and seemed a little less likely to go running to the phone, so Arianna focused on some deep breathing and thinking about what she was going to say. This was it. She had to tell her. She owed it to Lia now. She hoped that she wouldn’t be too angry with her. If it were reversed I might be furious. And then, just as quickly, she reminded herself how much she’d changed these past few months. She’d become someone who was much more in the moment and zen-like. She couldn’t help but smile as the word came to mind.

  Lia helped tuck the covers in around her, and she was sitting up in the bed now, feeling a little less like she was going to pass out again. Arianna reached for the coffee and then took a little bite of the scone.

  “Ari, why won’t you let me call for a doctor? I think you need to see someone, don’t you, bella?”

  Arianna felt bad for how worried Lia appeared to be. She’d hoped that they would have much more time here together before she started to feel unwell. Before she would have to tell Lia the truth. And probably ruin her vacation, Arianna thought.

  “Lia, there’s something I need to tell you. Pull that chair up by me, will you?”

  Lia pulled the nearby chair up close to her bed and looked every bit as nervous as Arianna felt.

  “What is it? Are you okay? You look so serious—you’re making me worried.”

  Arianna took a deep breath and tried to sit up a little straighter in her bed. “No. I’m not okay. And I’m so sorry for telling you like this. For not telling you sooner.” Arianna glanced up to look Lia in the eyes. “I’m sick. Well, that’s not true exactly.” She took another mea
sured breath and decided to blurt it out. “I’m not just sick. I’m dying—”

  “What are you talking about?” Lia reached out to grab Arianna’s hand, giving it a squeeze as she did so. “You’ve probably just gotten something from the air travel. People get sick all the time when they spend time on planes. I’m sure we can go to a doctor here and—”

  “Lia. Stop. Listen to me.” Arianna thought she looked genuinely confused, and it reminded her of her own initial reaction when the doctor had first given her the diagnosis, and then the rotten prognosis, mere months ago. She’d have to make her understand. To prolong it now wasn’t better for her.

  “The headaches I’ve been having…”

  “Yes.” Lia nodded for her to continue.

  “It’s because of what’s wrong with me. I have a brain tumor, if you can believe it.” Arianna was surprised herself at the lack of bitterness in her voice. She’d had time to adjust, and it had been awhile since she’d had to tell anyone the news. At this point, it was almost laughable. Well, not really. But to anyone that knew what she’d been through these past months since the accident, it was way too much to be real. To imagine any one person could go through. Arianna did get that.

  Now she could see the tears springing up in Lia’s eyes, and she felt that she was prepared for it.

  “What? I don’t understand. When? How long have you known this, Ari? And why—why didn’t you tell me?” Lia wiped her tears with her hand, waiting for Arianna’s response.

  “It’s crazy, really. It’s crazy for me now to even think of everything that’s happened. They don’t know for sure, but it’s likely that I’ve had it for a while now. I’ve always had to deal with headaches for as long as I could remember, really, and then before—before the accident, they started to get pretty bad. I remember thinking it was weird, but I was also partying a lot—I had a lot of hangovers, so I didn’t think too much about it.” Arianna squeezed Lia’s hand that she was still holding as Lia wept quietly.