Page 39 of Change of Heart
She left the happy couple who seemed oblivious to the rain and made her way back down the hill. She was soaked by the time she got home and had to change into dry clothes. After doing her best to dry the soaking wet dog with an old towel, she poured dog food into his bowl and marvelled at the speed with which he devoured it. After that she decided to treat herself to dinner at the restaurant. The rain hadn’t abated and, although she took her big umbrella, she had to put up with the aroma of a damp dog who snored at her feet throughout the meal. She received a warm welcome from Roberto the waiter and his boss and had just finished herpaccheri al pomodoro e basilico, wonderful, tasty little tubes of pasta in an aromatic tomato and fresh basil sauce, when her heart skipped a beat – momentarily.
Into the restaurant walked a tall, fair-haired man who looked all too familiar, and for a moment her spirits soared but then, a second later, he was followed by a big black dog. Behind him was Simonetta. This had to be Tommaso Montorso, not his twin brother. Alice took a mouthful of red wine to submerge her disappointment and waved across to them.
‘Ciao, Simonetta. It’s good to see you.’
Simonetta led Tommaso across to Alice’s table where Frank jumped to his feet to give the other lab an olfactory greeting. ‘It’s good to see you too, Alice, but didn’t you tell me you were having dinner with my man’s brother?’ She glanced sideways at Tommaso and gave him a little smile. ‘Let me introduce you properly. Alice, this is Tommi. Tommi, this is Alice. I’ve told you all about her.’
‘Ciao, Alice.’ He bent forward and shook her hand with his left hand while fending off Frank with the other. Alice was relieved to find that the touch of Tommi’s hand didn’t produce the same thrill that his brother aroused in her – or at least had done so far. He looked up from the dog. ‘And Luca’s told me a lot about you.’
‘Nice things, I hope.’
‘Verynice things.’ Tommaso gave her a little smile. ‘He thinks a lot of you.’ Beneath the smile, however, Alice had the impression he was far from happy. Maybe this was because he had told his father about his relationship with Simonetta and all hell had broken loose.
Simonetta repeated her original question. ‘No Luca? How come he’s stood you up when you had a date arranged?’
Alice realised that this was the opportunity she needed to find out more. Fortunately she was sitting in the corner of the restaurant and the nearby tables were not yet occupied, but she kept her voice down all the same. ‘I got a call from him this morning telling me he’s had to go off to somewhere down south. Some sort of medical emergency for somebody he knows down there. That’s why I’m looking after Frank.’
‘An emergency, really?’ Simonetta looked as puzzled as Alice had been feeling, but when Alice shot a quick glance at Tommaso’s face, she distinctly got the impression that the news hadn’t come a surprise to him. Simonetta must have noticed this as well as she turned towards him and put him on the spot. ‘Who could that be, Tommi? Somebody you know?’
Tommaso was looking uncomfortable. ‘Erm… I’m not sure.’ He sounded hesitant but Simonetta wanted more – as did Alice.
‘So who do you think it is?’ Simonetta glanced sideways at Alice. ‘Was it a man or a woman who was having the medical emergency?’
‘Luca said it was a woman.’
Simonetta turned back to Tommaso. ‘Who is she, Tommi? Is it a friend or a relative or…’
There was a tense hiatus for a second or two before he replied. ‘I’m afraid I can’t tell you.’
‘Can’t or won’t? Come on, Tommi, you can tellme.’
He shook his head. ‘I’m sorry, but I promised.’ He looked across at Alice. ‘But it’s not what you think.’
Simonetta had another couple of tries but Tommi either didn’t know or he wouldn’t say. The two of them finally bade Alice farewell and went off to their own table as her grilled lamb chops and roast potatoes arrived. Alice was vaguely conscious that the meat tasted good, but her mind was far away from food. This latest information only added to her bewilderment, rather than helping to relieve it. The only glimmer of hope in her confusion had been Tommi’s words:
‘It’s not what you think.’
Chapter 24
The weekend passed slowly for Alice. She hadn’t found sleep easy overnight, her mind still churning over the possible ramifications of what might be happening in a hospital south of Rome. She had come close to calling Luca to find out what was going on but had given up on the idea. When all was said and done, this was his business and although she had felt herself growing closer to him, their relationship had hardly begun. After all, she reminded herself, she hadn’t mentioned a single word to him about any of the handful of embryonic relationships she had had over the years, let alone Maurizio. She could hardly accuse him of doing anything she hadn’t done. No doubt he would reveal all when he returned – assuming he did return.
It rained on and off most of Saturday but when she awoke on Sunday morning it had stopped and there were patches of blue sky above. That afternoon, after a long walk with Frank – who was fast developing into a trusted confidant who, while he didn’t offer much in the way of advice, was an excellent listener – she sat down for a cup of tea and was about to call her mum for a chat when her phone started ringing. It was Luca, and despite all her uncertainties and fears, she couldn’t miss the little leap her heart gave as she saw his caller ID.
‘Ciao, Luca, how’s things?’
‘Okay, thanks. Listen, Alice, I’m really sorry for rushing off like that.’ He hesitated briefly. ‘It was an emergency. Things here are complicated. I’ll tell you all about it when I come back.’
Alice couldn’t help giving him a little prompt. ‘I saw Tommi and Simonetta on Friday night at the restaurant and he was very mysterious.’
‘I promise I’ll tell you all about it when I get back. Like I say, it’s complicated.’
‘Your friend in the hospital, is she seriously ill? Is she going to be all right?’ Whatever this woman’s relation to Luca, she must have been in a bad way for him to rush off like this.
‘Yes, thank God.’ She was pleased to hear him sounding more upbeat but she couldn’t help wondering whether his delight that his lady friend was getting better might signify a rapprochement between the two of them – whoever she was.
‘Oh, good.’ What else could she say?
‘It’s a long sad story and I’ll explain when I see you. By the way, that should be some time tomorrow. If you can stand the sight of me, maybe we could have that dinner together at my place…’
