Page 161 of Modern Romance January 2025 5-8
It took her a moment to realise that she’d been sent the message by mistake.
It happened now and then—and it hurt every time. This message perhaps more than most. She’d already guessed from a couple of things her mum had said that the twins were thinking about sharing a flat.
The rapidly deleted message only confirmed it.
She could hear Juliet and Louanna chatting and laughing in the kitchen, and even though they were lovely Susie felt a bit of an outsider.
It wasn’t just the fact that she was a temporary housemate that kept her a little apart from them. Music was her flatmates’ energy and their main topic of conversation.
It reminded her of when she was younger, listening to her sisters chatting in the next room.
Gosh, she’d felt left out.
Every night it had sounded as if there was a little party going on, with her listening as Celia and Cassie chatted and giggled or, in later years, cried about a broken heart or whatever...
She was going to go out for breakfast, Susie decided, and speak Italian all day.
No exceptions!
She pulled on some thick black tights and a black jumper, and then wriggled into a burnt orange corduroy pinafore that added a blaze of colour, determined to cheer up and stop being so mopey.
‘Buongiorno!’Susie breezed into the kitchen.
‘Good morning,’ Louanna smiled. ‘How was...?’
‘Ah-ah!’ Susie halted her with her hand.‘Italiano.’
Louanna obliged, telling her that her dress was very colourful and she had a passion for orange. Or something along those lines. Then she asked if she was working tonight.
Susie affirmed that she was, and said that, yes, the restaurant had been busy last night.
‘Do you know Mimi?’ Louanna asked, as if surprised. ‘I saw you with her in a café.’
‘Yes.’ Susie nodded. It wasn’t just her lack of vocabulary that had her holding back from mentioning Gio. She didn’t think Gio would like having his personal life discussed, so she’d never mentioned the home deliveries. ‘She’s helping with my Italian.’
Louanna turned to Juliet. ‘Mimi was once a very famous opera singer.’
‘Wow...’ Juliet said. ‘I love opera.’
And back to talking about music they went...
The rain had dried up, though Susie’s trench coat and scarf were still required as the weather was crisp. Still, the sky was the palest blue, and the clearest it had been since her arrival, and it was wonderful to wander through the laneways.
Unexpectedly, she had fallen in love with Lucca.
She meandered through the ancient cobbled streets, just drinking in her surroundings.
She went past the gorgeous opera house, where Mimi had once performed... She would love to go to the opera. It was something she’d never considered before, but here in the birthplace of Puccini it was everywhere.
All roads seemed to lead to the Piazza dell’Anfiteatro, a public square in the heart of Lucca, and she entered it through one of the archways. It was more like a circle, surrounded by tall pastel buildings—an amphitheatre where gladiators had fought. Now, where once the audience had watched on, it was cafés and restaurants, umbrellas and tables.
Wandering around the perimeter, she was soaking it all in while trying to select where to stop for breakfast.
‘Hey...’
Susie stilled, the deep voice causing her to startle, and she looked over to the stunning sight of Dante, seated at a café table, sipping coffee and looking rather too gorgeous for a lazy Saturday. He wore a black jumper that must be cashmere, and even dressed casually he looked groomed and elegant. And he was beckoning for her to go over.
Susie went.