Page 28 of Pomegranates and Olive

I caught myself scowling but forced a welcoming smile on my face as this divine creation sat down between Deniz and Aydin and winks at us. "Oh my gosh, I'm the filling in a sexy man sandwich!"

And while I nearly fell off the chair at her ridiculous comment, I really wasn't lying about her being a divine creation.

I had a hard time determining Eve's age but I guessed she was in her early thirties. Her glossy, crow-black hair was pulled into a high ponytail that showed off her heart-shaped face, slender neck and copper-glow skin. Her long, tanned legs led to her pert bum and curvaceous hips that were only barely sheathed by an expensive dress.Andshe wore a pair of this season's Manolo Blahnik sling backs which made Ginny's eyes practically pop out of her head. Yes, Eve and Deniz certainly seemed to be a match made in heaven.

I wasn’t jealous. Really, I wasn’t. In fact, it was a relief to know we didn't go any further than the kiss on the plane because I would surely have caught an STD if we had.

"Hello again, Russo." Deniz threw his arm casually over his potential conquest's shoulder but leaned into me, indicating the bottle. "May I offer you a glass?"

"A fanabla!"

"You speak Italian, Olive?" I nod at Aydin who clearly had no idea that I'd just told his cousin to go to hell. "Deniz is fluent."

Deniz smirked and poured me a glass anyway filling it right to the rim. "Yes cousin, Russo showed off her Italian to me this morning."

Oblivious to the tension at the table, Aydin passed me a bowl filled with colourful salad. "Having you visit us, Olive, has inspired me to make this salad."

I gave Aydin my full attention as I scooped a spoonful of the dish onto my plate. "Tell me?"

"When I create a new dish for someone, I'm sharing the feelings I have about that person. Ginger has told me all about you."

"Oh no! Did you have to sign a waiver before meeting me?"

"In blood!" He laughed. "Seriously though, Ginger says that you are fierce and loyal to a fault."

"That I am. And I love my cousin, so you'd not want to hurt her in any way."

"It’s lucky that I love her, then." He leaned over to Ginny and kissed her on her cheek. "Ginny told me so many stories of the mischief that you and she would get into when you were younger, so I wanted to make a dish that is fierce and sweet, but just a little bit naughty, like you."

I blushed at his compliment and took a lady-like bite of Aydin's dish rather than gobbling up the whole thing. "It's so light and tangy, Aydin, but there's a spicy kick to it as well."

"See? Just like you." He repeated with a smile. "There are olives and pomegranate, as well as mint, green onion, parsley and... er...pul biberand all of the ingredients are straight from our land."

Ginny leaned towards me to translate Aydin's Turkish. "He gets lost in the words sometimes. It's chilli flakes."

"And we marinated the lamb in spices, cooked it over the grill and are serving it with a tahini and sumac sauce. I would normally prepare a seafood banquet, but Ginny tells me lamb is your favourite food."

"It really is." I filled my plate with lamb, grilled green and red capsicums, crunchy roasted potatoes and the creamy sauce. I took a bite of the succulent meat before closing my eyes and moaning. "It's like an explosion of taste in my mouth."

Aydin looked pleased. "Afiyet olsen!"

Dinner itself was slightly awkward, but it did corroborate that my original assessment of Deniz was the right one. I should have slapped him when I had the chance. His obnoxious behaviour, coupled with Eve's outlandish flirting, was so over the top that it was almost slapstick comedy.

As Ginny, Aricia and I moved closer and closer to inebriation we did our best to ignore them while Aydin pretty much gave up trying to maintain any means of conversation with his cousin at all and chatted business with Burak.

Finally, our plates were empty, and I settled back in my chair and looked up at the sky through the rows of fairy lights strung across the pergola, my body tired but my mind still reeling with the excitement of my adventure. The waning crescent moon was so close I felt as if I could reach out and grab it. Thousands of stars dotted the inky sky. Then I remembered that this isn't the same moon and these aren't the same stars that I usually see. I was a million miles away from Sydney, from my family, and from Luca. A million miles away from a life that I had left in ruins and yet, right then, my biggest regret was that I wished I had anything on other than Rosie's russet, strapless 'Rara' dress, with its fitted bustier bodice and delicate frill detail at the waist which now felt much tighter than it had when I put it on earlier this evening.

I knew I still had to face what I'd done. Luca and I would still have to sit down and decide what of our relationship was salvageable, or worse than that, we'd have to sit down with lawyers and decide how to separate the last 15 years of our lives. I also knew I’d to have to face my mother again which would be rather unpleasant and even Ginny would want to talk about it, that's for sure, but not last night. Last night I enjoyed the excellent food and thepredominantlyexcellent conversation.

Yes, I was happy at that moment. Then Deniz’s mobile rang and he answered right there at the table. So rude.

He started speaking in rapid Turkish to Aydin and Burak before the three of them stood up and left the table.

"Back in a moment, ladies."

I could hear an engine in the distance and we watched as they piled into the golf cart and it zipped off up the hill.

Ginny glanced at me and I opened my mouth but she shook her head. "Anyone up for tea?"

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