Page 65 of Pomegranates and Olive

"What was it supposed to be like, exactly?"

Without another word, he turns and makes a very hasty retreat inside, leaving all of us to gape at the doors as they close behind him. We stand silent for a few seconds, then all start talking frantically, in both English and Turkish.

"Rosie! Why didn't you warn me you were coming?"

"There wasn't time."

"Bullshit! You should've made time."

"It's not my job to clean up all your shit, Olive!"

"What did you just say to me?"

"Geri gelecek mi?"

"Is he coming back? I honestly don't know,canim."

The doors re-open, and we all immediately fall silent. Luca steps back out on the terrace and waves at me sheepishly. "Surprise!"

My brain can't really reconcile Luca standing in front of me. He takes a step toward me and I take a step back. "Seriously, Luca, why are you here?"

"You said you wanted to talk."

"Telephone. Skype. Facetime. Zoom. Lots of options there that don't include the cost of a last-minute ticket." I glance over at Rosie, who had slithered over beside Ginny after snapping at me. "And you?"

"You stopped replying to messages, andmammawas drivingbabboup the wall." She replied, her eyes darting nervously in Luca's direction, who had now returned to pacing across the terrace, getting wound tighter and tighter. "When they found out that Luca was coming, I was roped in to make sure you get on a plane home."

Aydin whispers in Ginny's ear, and they both stand up abruptly.

"God, yes. Awesome. Bed. We're going to leave you both to it. And remember to be ready to leave at dawn for the olive harvest." Ginny hugs me before turning to Luca and hugging him as well. "It's good to see you, Luca."

"Good to see you too, Gin Rummy."

She punches him on the arm. "I hate that nickname."

"I know." He winks at her before shaking Aydin's hand. "And, hey, sorry for just landing on your doorstep unannounced, Aydin, but I've gotta say it's great to finally meet you."

"You are most welcome, and yes, it’s great to meet you too.Iyi geceler."

Ginny turns back to Rosie. "You coming?"

"Me? Well, right... I guess. Yes. Yep, of course." Rosie hesitates but hugs me again before looking back at Luca, almost protectively and I roll my eyes at them both.

Luca and Rosie have always been frustratingly close, well, rather Rosie always followed Luca around like a besotted puppy, and he's always been kind enough to include her in everything we did. Luca once said that Rosie was a like a storm, not one that you run away from, but one you run toward, which is possibly the most excellent thing anyone has ever said about her. It used to annoy me, but in the end, I just accepted that Rosie was part of our relationship, whether I wanted her to be or not.

I realise that they’ve become closer since I’ve been away. She stands on her toes and kisses Luca's cheek and he ruffles her hair like she was five, which only makes her scowl and him chuckle. "Thanks, Rosie... for everything."

Now, it’s just Luca and me alone and the silence stretches on while we both stand awkwardly, staring out into the darkness, each waiting for the other to speak first.

"You look nice."

"Thank you."

He reaches out and touches my dress lightly. I tense up, which I can tell he senses, so his hand falls to his side. "Rosie definitely has some skills... but for God's sake, let's not tell her that, it’ll go to her head!"

Indicating the chairs around the wooden table, we sit down. I force myself to smile.

How the fuck do I get myself into these situations? I thought back to what Alice called me a few weeks back. Hot mess. Yes, I’m a fucking hot mess right now.

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