Page 5 of Bella Rosa
My hometown of Azzurro and the Eden Valley that surrounds it are quickly becoming an international food destination. Thanks to my dad and I who spent the last fourteen years after we moved back trying to put the region on the map. There are so many amazing local chefs that have worked so hard to make Eden Valley a household name. It also helps that we have the coast, ancient ruins, and great weather. The perfect Italian vacation.
As soon as I sit down I feel my phone buzz. It takes far too long to wiggle my phone out of my pocket because the man sitting next to me has no sense of personal space. I mean, come on. This train doesn't have assigned seats, but I don't want to risk moving because I might see...her.
I'm not surprised to see Luca's name on the screen when I finally get my phone out of my pocket.
Luca:You're welcome.
Me:For what?
Luca:Giving you that wonderful opportunity after you almost screwed it up with that "I can't even remember my own name and I think I just pissed my pants" look that you had written all over your face.
Me:I did no such thing. I was just trying to get to my train. You know I don't have time for that shit. I've got a lot on my plate man.
Luca:Geez. I didn't say you had to marry the girl. I just thought she might be good company on the train that's all. Don't shit your pants.
Alright, moving on...
Me:It was good seeing you. Thanks for giving me a place to hang out while I waited on my train. I know you're not supposed to have anyone back there. Saved me from giving dirty looks to parents who can't shut their kids up in the waiting area. The free food was also a plus, even if it did suck ass.
Luca:No problem man. Have a safe trip. Tell your dad I said hi.
Me:Will do.
Fucker. He knows I don't have time for this shit. He means well though. He has been my best friend since the summer camp before first grade when I gave him a few of my apple slices because he forgot his lunch. I could have given him half my sandwich, but I can be a selfish fucker. Not really the best story of how I met my best friend, but it could be worse. I can always count on him though. He's basically like a brother to me. He took me in every summer when my parents and I would visit. We also went to school together after I moved back to Italy with my father. Every time I come to Naples to meet with our wine supplier I always stop by and see him. It's an easy two hour train ride, so I try to make the trip as often as I can.
He was in the Italian Special Forces for a while after high school. He's currently training to transfer to one of their intelligence special divisions. I'm glad I'll get to see him more, even if he is a pain in the ass sometimes.
After I tuck my phone away, I give my seat neighbor a death glare for how little he cares about personal space. The glare usually works. He scoots back over to his side. Then I take my laptop out and put it on the folding tray on the back of the seat in front of me.
I begin to work on the schedule for the week, pay a few bills, and research photographers for a marketing campaign I’m planning so I can get the restaurant in a few local newspapers. At least the train has free Wi-Fi. I manage to get through making this week's schedule and paying the first few bills before my mind drifts back to light brown eyes, dark long lashes, and curls.
Rosalie.
She has a beautiful name. Fits her too. Her cheeks were the color of a rose when she realized how close I had been holding her when she almost fell. She fit so perfectly. Like she had been made for me.
She didn't smell like a rose though. She smelled like frosting and sunshine. No idea how I know what sunshine smells like, but she definitely smelled like it.
I still don't know what possessed me to reach out and grab her like that. Let alone pull her so close. It's like I couldn't help myself. I just had to touch her. I mean, I will always try and help someone if they are falling, but I didn't have to hold her that close or for as long as I did. The noise she made when she realized she was falling was cute, and the little o she made with her lips when I caught her was adorable.
It almost brought me to my knees. I had to stop myself from begging her to make the noise again. I am pathetic. And those legs. Damn. Wars have been fought for less. It didn’t help that she had on a blue dress in the same style as so many of my fantasies. What was with that god awful pillow she was carrying?
Snap out of it Matteo. You don't want to get involved with a woman like that. Any woman really. Why am I analyzing her anyway? I don't do stuff like this. I meet a pretty woman, and we may help each other out here and there, but I never date. Ever.
Yeah, I have needs. But those needs haven't been met by someone other than my right hand in a while. It gets the job done just fine, and I get to stay focused all while not forming attachments. Win win.
Now if I can just get some more work done before we arrive in Azzurro. Some of my best thinking is done on trains, when I have a few hours where I can’t be doing one thousand things at the restaurant. So I spent the next hour brainstorming marketing ideas and thinking about what my ideal restaurant would look like. When I’m finished, I stow away my laptop and take in the scenery for the rest of the trip. I learned when we moved back to Italy that the city is not for me. I prefer the conveniences of a nice train station and quality restaurants, but I don’t want to live in a huge city like Naples.
I keep being interrupted by thoughts of a woman in a blue dress. Before I know it my thoughts are consumed by Rosalie. I can't let it happen though; if we’re going to open up a new restaurant soon, I have to stay focused. I have to keep my eyes on the prize, and I don’t need any distractions, no matter how beautiful and dangerous they are. That’s what she is. Dangerous. She doesn’t seem like it now, but she’ll show her true colors when I least expect it.
That's the trouble with roses. I never see their thorns until it's too late.
4
Garden of Eden
Rosalie
Thetrainridewasso beautiful I almost didn’t have time to wander about Matteo. Almost. I'm human after all. No one could forget a man like that. I thought the coast was beautiful, but heading east through the rolling hills was breathtaking. Now that my train is pulling into the station, I need to focus my thoughts back to why I'm here. I can't afford to get distracted by a handsome stranger.
