Page 69 of A Very Italian Wedding
She thought about Aldo and Aurora, about Isabella and Cesare, about her clients. Their marriages weren’t perfect, but somehow, despite that, they could and did thrive.
‘Things can work, but you can’t always rely on rigid rules. It’s up to the individuals to discover the right path for them. I’m not saying I’m always wrong, I’m just saying…’ She screwed up her nose as she tried to find her way through the words, to articulate everything she’d recognised since her conversation with Ben. ‘I might need to ease up a little.’ Her voice lowered. ‘Marco loves you. You light up when you’re around him and he does the same. You’re supposed to be together.’
‘But we’re so different,’ Luna complained. ‘You said so yourself. He doesn’t even like tea!’
Rose shrugged. ‘When I saw him earlier, he was drinking a cup.’ She didn’t add that he still hated it. ‘That tells me a lot. It means he’s prepared to try it for you. He wants to make you happy. For your relationship to work. So he lost his head for a bit, made some stupid decisions. I think what really counts is that he wants to put them right.’
He was willing to learn and change, something neither of Rose’s parents had ever wanted to do. Instead, they made the same mistakes over and over, continually pulling her into their mess. It had coloured everything for her. Ben was right, it was time for her to walk away.
‘He wants to put them right?’ Luna cooed, her face brightening.
Rose nodded. ‘But he can’t unless you talk to him.’
Her friend frowned. ‘I suppose I could.’ She swallowed, brushing a hand across her face looking unsure. ‘But the wedding still can’t happen tomorrow. Mum’s not here, my grandmother’s necklace is gone, and Isabella is refusing to come.’ Tears pricked her eyes, and she blinked, shaking her head. ‘That’s just too much wrong for it to be right.’
‘What if I told you your mum’s agreed to catch her flight in the morning. She’s going to arrive in plenty of time for the ceremony,’ Rose said as Luna’s unhappy expression changed to shocked. ‘I’ve spoken to Marco’s grandparents too.’ She smiled. ‘They’ve decided to come to the wedding, after all, together.’
Luna’s jaw dropped. ‘How did you pull that off?’
Rose gave Aurora a quick wink. ‘Let’s just say I used my intuition. Plus, I talked and they listened. There really wasn’t much more to it than that.’
Luna’s answering smile suddenly dimmed. ‘But what about my grandmother’s necklace? Even you can’t do anything about that,’ she said quietly.
‘I can’t help your mum find it if I’m still in Italy,’ Rose agreed. ‘But I’m hoping this might make up for it a little. I know it’s not the same, but perhaps it’s the start of a new tradition.’ She nudged the bag that Luna had put on the bed towards her. Then watched her friend take out the velvet blue box the owner of the curiosity shop had placed inside.
Luna opened it and gasped. ‘It’s a sapphire necklace,’ she gushed, taking the jewellery out and holding it up, watching it sparkle when the light overhead caught in the vibrant blue stones. ‘It’s not exactly the same as my grandmother’s — but it’s silver and it looks old.’
‘It is…I bought it for you, it’s yours.’ It was the one she’d seen when she’d gone with Ben to pick up the fertility statue. If she was feeling fanciful, she might even say it was like it was meant to be. Aldo or Aurora would probably tell her the same.
Rose took a smaller box out of her pocket and opened it. ‘I brought these sapphire earrings to go with it – for me.’
‘It’s like they were made for each other!’ Luna cried, bouncing excitedly.
‘I thought you could borrow them tomorrow. Something old, something blue…’
‘Something borrowed,’ Luna finished, grinning and then leaping forward and wrapping Rose in a hug. ‘Thank you,’ she whispered. ‘I can’t believe you put my wedding back together.’ She drew back suddenly, and her expression turned stormy. ‘But what about Ben? Aren’t you furious with him? Surely, you don’t want to be maid of honour with him as the best man?’
Rose shrugged. ‘It’ll be okay. I think we got him wrong. He’s a good man. Besides, I think we’re both adult enough to stand side by side and watch our favourite people in the world get married.’
‘Are you sure?’ Luna asked.
‘I’m sure.’ Rose felt the churn in her stomach again. It would be hard, but she’d do it for her friend. She sighed. ‘But it’s up to you now, Luna. The only thing that really matters is whether you want to do this. Do you want to be with Marco for the rest of your life?’
‘I do!’ Luna whispered, then louder, ‘I do, I do, I do!’ She suddenly vaulted off the bed making Coco bark frantically. Then her friend swung open the bedroom door and bolted into the hallway, on her way to track down her fiancé.
Rose followed, pausing on the threshold and savouring Luna’s happiness, as she allowed herself to wish just for a moment, that things could be different for her…
26
BEN
Ben stood at the end of the wedding aisle under a stunning arbour created from vibrant pink pansies, crimson dahlias and white roses. Beside him, Marco adjusted the collar of his shirt as Ben’s throat tightened. Being here, waiting for his best friend’s bride, should have brought back a barrage of awful memories. But he could barely summon an image of Sophia now – instead, all his mind would conjure was Rose.
He hadn’t seen her since their fight. He’d returned to his bedroom, intent on packing his bags and leaving for England, only the idea of going anywhere without her was just…wrong.
Which showed he was as much of an idiot as he’d been two years ago.
Beside him, Marco fidgeted with his tie looking anxious. ‘I’m so nervous,’ he confided, blowing out a breath. ‘Less than twenty-four hours ago, Luna was determined not to marry me, now…’ His gaze returned to the end of the long aisle which had been lovingly created by the Marino family. Cesare had laid down a row of white wooden planks that ran parallel to the sparkling swimming pool. Then Elena, Aurora and Francescahad embellished the edges with multicoloured ribbons and flowers to match the ones on the arbour andbomboniere.
