The Conti Place: Where Enemies Become Lovers by L.M Anthony

Author:L.M Anthony [Anthony, L.M]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-11-22T18:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

White curtains dancing in the morning breeze greeted Jane when she opened her eyes. She stretched languorously, thrilling at the tug of sore muscles. She could almost believe it hadn’t actually happened, that she had imagined her time with Francesco under the trees in his orchard. Except for the sore muscles. Smiling, she rolled over, tucking her hand under her chin and allowing herself to remember every second of the evening.

Uncle Elliot flashed through her mind, and she frowned. He wouldn’t approve of her having dinner alone with Francesco, much less anything else. This was her home, after all. Her legal property. He was a tenant and a surprise one at that. Uncle Elliot would have labeled him her enemy and warned her to stay far away from the potential pitfalls of such a relationship.

Would my father approve? she wondered. He had always drilled adherence to decorum at all costs as the only way to successful dealings, and decorum certainly hadn’t been in the forefront of her mind. But Uncle Elliot had said her father was impulsive, proven by the way he invested all he had in a ramshackle farm on the other side of the world. I don’t know if he would approve, she decided. But I bet he would understand.

Jane rose and dressed in a pair of comfortable black leggings and a t-shirt dress the green of the fields. She pulled her hair into a loose braid and made sure to not only put on her sunscreen but drop it in her backpack for later. She also packed a couple of bottles of water from the minifridge in her room. Sliding her feet into her old hiking boots and clapping a wide-brimmed hat on her head, Jane picked up her sunglasses and slung her bag over her shoulder. She scanned the room. Was she forgetting anything important? She closed and locked the door behind her.

It was early but not so early that no one would be about. She paused at the bottom of the steps, nothing stirred in the rooms beyond. The entry room was dim and quiet as she crossed it, and the door opened noiselessly on its hinges. She slipped out into the crisp morning air, the sun’s early light just hinting at the heat ahead. It smelled of flowers in bloom and green growing things. Jane grinned to herself. She couldn’t imagine a more perfect morning.

Humming, she started off down the lane. Last night, as she lay on her bed in an exhausted, satisfied stupor, she had decided to go see Elena again. She wasn’t yet sure of the older woman, but she had claimed intimacy with her mother, knowledge of her father. It was the only real link Jane had with her past, aside from the land itself. She found she was yearning for the stories Elena might possess. Stories no one else could tell her.

Her feet found a rhythm, and her muscles warmed with the sun. Trees slid slowly past. Marveling at their exotic beauty, she thought of the places she had been.

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