Page 11 of Apple Martinis

“There you are. I thought at first you’d changed your mind.”

He starts off towards the water and I fall into step next to him. As we make our way out of the light of the bar, I can see the stars above us more clearly. They shine down on the surface of the water and seem to dance across it.

We stop right at the water's edge and I look at the sky with awe. Sure I can see the stars back home but this is the most amazing way to see them with the vast ocean seeming to stretch out to the ends of the Earth.

Chapter 3

Rome

Watching the awe on her face as she looks out across the ocean with the moonlight shining brightly above, I can’t help but be captivated by her in a way that I don’t think I’ve ever felt before.

As we walk further along the shore, we take turns asking each other questions about our lives. I find myself telling her about my mom and how she raised me completely alone.

“We’re quite the pair. Both of us were raised by single mom’s because our father’s didn’t want us.” She says quietly.

“Yeah, it’s not a life I would ever want to put on a child. I couldn’t imagine not wanting my own son. Or daughter.” I say.

“I’ve come to realize there’s just some people out there that should never have been allowed to have a child. I was just reading a newspaper article last week about another trafficking ring they shut down. Several of the kids they saved had been sold by their own family.” She looks over at me with a sad shake of her head.

“It’s getting worse every year. I think as a child I would take it better knowing that I was forcefully taken than knowing that my own family sold me. That would fucking suck.”

The picture of my father’s face flashes before my eyes and I wonder if he had been into the trafficking thing long before it was talked about more often in society. The fact they are Mafia makes that a huge possibility.

Would my brothers have followed in his footsteps?

Would they be just as bad as he was?

That’s a question that I really want to know before I take the next step and reach out to them, letting them know they have another brother in the world.

“Hey. Are you okay? You zoned out there for a moment.” Piper asks, drawing my attention back to her.

“Yep. All good. I was just thinking about family.”

“Have you thought about contacting your father’s side? I know he’s no longer around but maybe they’d like to get to know you.”

“I’ve thought about it. I actually have twin brothers that I’d like to meet some day. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to have siblings.” I answer honestly.

“You don’t have anything to lose by reaching out to them. Not really. They may not want to meet you but other than it stinging a little, you’ve lost nothing by their refusal to acknowledge you.”

We continue walking and I watch her out of the corner of my eye. She’s definitely something special. I’ve never felt so easy when talking about my life to a woman. We finally come to a stop when she begins to yawn into her hand.

“Guess, I should probably get back. I was supposed to call my friends and let them know when I made it back to the condo for the night.” She says, looking down at her watch with a slight shiver.

Looking down at her, I remember that she’s still wearing her beach attire under my jacket and is getting chilled by the cool night air.

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