California Wine Read Online Free PDF Page A

them.
    “It was nice,” he said when they reached the lobby. “I wish it could be more, but I leave for France in a few days. And you leave — ”
    “ — the day after tomorrow.”
    “Yes.” He smiled. “I remember.
    “I guess this is good-bye, then.” She held out her hand.
    He shook it. Then he lightly touched her shoulders and kissed each cheek in turn. “We do not say good-bye — we say
arrivederci
— until we see each other again.”
    “
Arrivederci
.”
    His hands still on her shoulders, he said, “You are very attractive, Elizabeth, inside and out. I am glad to get to know you and I will look forward to seeing you in California.” He stared at her for a moment, then leaned in and kissed her lightly on her lips. “
Arrevederci
,” he said again before he turned, waved and was gone.
    She stared after him for a moment, a hollow feeling in her chest.
    “He is a good-looking man, no?” A voice beside her startled her. Rosita had stepped silently into the lobby. “Did you have a good time?”
    “Yes.” Elizabeth wasn’t sure if she was answering the first question or the second.
    “
Bueno
. I’m glad my cousin behaved. Have a good night.” Rosita bustled back toward the kitchen.
    Elizabeth floated up the stairs to her room.
    • • •
    Elizabeth inserted the key into the lock, her mind racing as she determined what to say to her daughter.
    Sarah was sitting up in bed, television blaring incomprehensibly while she read and made notes on the small pad she carried everywhere. She dropped everything when Elizabeth opened the door. “I’m glad you’re home! How was your dinner date? I was getting worried.”
    “He was very charming. And I was fine. At my age, I’ve learned to take care of myself.”
    “R-i-ght. Are you going to tell me about it?”
    “What’s to tell? We walked to a nice restaurant, had a lovely dinner and walked back.” Elizabeth tucked a hair behind her ear and kicked off her heels.
Aah.
Cobblestone sidewalks and stilettos did not mix well. Her ankles ached.
    “What did you eat? And whatever did you talk about?”
    “Nosy, aren’t you?”
    Sarah grinned and squirmed out of the covers to sit cross-legged on the floral coverlet. “I’ve never seen you like this. What’s the word they use? Oh, yeah. You’re glowing, Mother. What happened?”
    Glowing? “We talked about our children and our businesses. For dinner we had … ” As she undid her hair and removed her earrings, Elizabeth listed the food.
    “Did he kiss you?” Sarah demanded after she finished.
    “No.” Elizabeth walked into the bathroom, shut the door, and leaned against it. She’d lied to her daughter for the first time in a long while. The whole scene reminded her of escaping her mother’s inquisition when she’d come home from a date with Joe.
    And, just like she had with Joe, she touched her lips with her fingers, imitating the touch of his lips on hers. A shiver went through her and she curled her toes. To be sixteen and foolish again, instead of thirty-eight and worldly wise.
    Hah.
    As she began to take off her makeup with the lotion she’d picked up earlier in the day, she saw the jar of
Amoré
out of the corner of her eye. What would have happened if she’d worn a little of it on her date?
    Another shiver ran through her body. She thrust the fantasy aside and concentrated on the texture, smell and feel of the mixture on her skin. Could she ever create something as luxurious? She didn’t know anything about chemistry. With a high-school diploma, how could she expect to launch a line of beauty products?
    What had Marcos said? Anything was possible if you had the heart and hands to do it?
    She stared at the woman in the mirror. All her life she’d put her dreams away for someone else. Her mother was gone, Sarah was moving on, and her relationship with Bobby was over. Marcos was a fairy-tale fantasy.
    It was time for Elizabeth Ladina to take her life into her own hands and heart.
    • •