Page 47 of A Very Italian Wedding
‘Take your time,’ Elena said when Rose cursed as one of the almonds skidded across the table.
‘That was the happiness almond,’ Isabella said sourly, earning herself an indulgent tut from Elena.
Rose carefully put the five almonds into the centre of the material. Why did people believe in traditions like this? Was it easier than putting in the work required to make a relationship thrive?
For years, her parents had hoped for a magic solution – a new partner, fiancé, husband or wife had been used like a sticking plaster – but fundamentally neither had been prepared to put in any hard work. Investing in a new lover was easier than working on the relationship they already had. No matter how hard Rose tried, they never listened. Why did she keep expecting them to? Did she really believe her rules could fix anything?
‘You look preoccupied,’ Luna said, nudging Rose’s shoulder and leaning closer. ‘Something wrong?’
She shook her head. ‘I’m just thinking,’ she said, studying her friend’s face. ‘You don’t look very happy either.’
‘Everyone in this family is obsessed with babies,’ Luna complained. ‘Marco and I have barely talked about having a family. We want time to spend together without the pressure of knowing what comes next. I talked to him about asking everyone to lay off, but he doesn’t want to rock the boat.’
Rose opened her mouth to offer help, to give Luna the benefit of her experience and rules, then shut it. Was she really qualified to give advice on this?
‘Ah!’ Elena suddenly spotted something over Rose’s shoulder and clapped. ‘You’re here!’ When Rose turned, she saw Ben, Leonardo, Cesare and Marco walking towards them looking pleased with themselves.
‘What have you been up to?’ Luna asked, getting up to hug her fiancé.
‘It’s a surprise,’ Marco said, swirling an arm around her waist and tugging her close. ‘Give it a few minutes and you’ll see exactly what we’ve been up to.’ He kissed her cheek.
‘Now you’re both here, you can have your gift,’ Isabella said, rising slowly and grabbing the pastry bag before ceremonially handing it to Luna.
Cesare winced. ‘Is this the right time,amore?’ he checked.
‘Go back to your crosswords, old man, you’ve barely looked up from them for six months, so you have no idea what’s been happening under your nose,’ the older woman muttered. ‘Open it!’ she ordered, waving a hand at Luna who started to pull the gift from the bag, before tugging down the hessian sack and rubbing her hands over the statue.
‘Oh, um, I’m not sure you should do that,’ Rose said, waving her hand, but was silenced by a hiss from Isabella.
‘It’s beautiful,’ Luna gushed, holding the figure up so she could look at it properly. ‘Such an amazing piece of art.’ She glanced at Marco. ‘When I move to Bristol, I’ll make sure there’s a special place for it so we can see it every day.’
‘What does it mean?’ Marco asked, squeezing Luna’s shoulder before looking suspiciously at his grandmother. ‘It’s not just an ornament, is it?’ He sounded annoyed.
‘Isn’t it?’ Luna asked, her hand stilling over the stone.
‘It’s a—’ Aurora glanced at Isabella and winced. ‘Aldo says it’s afacilitystatue, is that correct,Nonna?’
‘Fertility,’ Elena corrected, shaking her head. ‘Nonna…’
‘It is very powerful,’ the older woman said, gleefully pointing at Luna whose eyes had now widened to twice their normal size. ‘Touch it once and?—’
‘It will help you get pregnant,’ Elena finished off.
‘Oh, well, that’s not quite what I had in mind!’ Luna exclaimed, immediately trying to shove the statue into Marco’s hands.
‘I can’t. It works on me too.’ Her fiancé held up his palms looking panicked, leaving the stone figure teetering on the edge of Luna’s fingers.
‘Catch it!’ Luna shrieked, lunging forward as it toppled and plunged towards the ground.
Even Rose tried to step in, aiming to snatch it out of the air before it crashed onto the floor. But she was too late, and it caught the edge of the patio and smashed. The sound of stone shattering echoed around the garden while the family stood in shocked silence.
‘Oh god, I’m so sorry,’ Luna said, dropping to her knees and hovering her hands over the broken figure, clearly still worried about touching the pieces.
‘It is broken,’ Isabella said, her voice grave as she looked around at the family. ‘The magic is gone.’
‘I’m so sorry,’ Luna repeated, looking stricken.
‘It’s not your fault.’ Rose knelt beside her friend and started to pick up pieces of stone.
