Page 23 of It's All Sun and Games

I know that I am ultimately in this country for work, but I would be crazy not to treat it like a proper holiday too. Well, who knows when I’ll get the chance to take a proper vacation that I’ve planned and booked and found the time to take off work for?

I’m here, in Bari, and it is somewhere I’ve always wanted to visit so, why not? When in Rome – well, when in Bari. I’m going to soak up every drop of sun, every bit of culture, and eat absolutely everything that is put in front of me and then some.

‘Ciao, Mamma,’ a young woman’s voice calls out from the hallway.

I sit up straight in my seat. Oh my gosh, this must be Andrea.

Antonia excitedly springs from her chair, heading to meet Andrea at the kitchen door.

Andrea walks in and she is beautiful. Tall, slim, with super shiny dark hair that is twisted into a neat clip on the back of her head. She looks cool – in both respects – in her lilac vest top and cream shorts. She greets her mum with a couple of kisses, but then looks over in my direction and her smile drops. She looks surprised to see me, unless she doesn’t like what she sees, but that’s crazy, because why would she care what I look like?

Unsure what else to do, I decide to approach her and give her an Italian greeting, kissing both her cheeks.

‘Ciao,’ I say with a friendly smile, but as I step back, I notice that Andrea still looks confused.

‘Ciao, ciao,’ a man’s voice chimes in as he joins Andrea. He catches sight of me and his confusion mirrors Andrea’s. Now, everyone’s eyes are on me, and I can practically feel the question marks hanging in the air. What on earth is going on?

I know it’s not really the time or the place, but I can’t resist noticing how strikingly handsome the man is. He looks like he’s in his early thirties, with deep brown eyes – the kind that look as though there’s a sexy mystery lurking behind them. His dark hair is styled in a trendy blown-back cut, and he’s wearing shorts paired with a partially unbuttoned cream shirt that is unbuttoned enough to give me a peek at what is going on underneath. Spoiler: what lies beneath is nothing but sun-kissed muscle.

‘Chi è questo?’ Andrea says, turning to her parents with a puzzled expression.

‘Dammi solo la possibilità di parlarle e scoprire che cosa sta succedendo,’ Leonardo replies, leaving me utterly clueless.

Again, none of these words are familiar to me. I feel like I’m watching a foreign-language film without subtitles.

‘Erm, is everything okay?’ I ask, feeling a bit lost as to what’s happening.

‘You are English?’ Andrea asks, her confusion evident.

‘Yes,’ I reply, feeling equally puzzled. Andrea knows I’m English, so why would she say that? Something is seriously, seriously wrong here.

‘Andrea, che cosa sta succedendo?’ Antonia says, directing her question to the man, not the woman.

‘Aspetta, Mamma,’ the man replies.

‘Andrea, hai una ragazza?’ Antonia continues, her voice seemingly sounding a little panicked. ‘Ti stai sposando? Dimmi che non ti stai sposando in segreto…’

Shit. I couldn’t be more obvious, now that I’m realising they’re all saying An-dre-a not An-dree-a. The man is Andrea. Andrea is a man. I need to do something, just as soon as I can get a word in. I’m not sure what Andrea and his mum are saying now but it seems heated… maybe? Maybe they’re not arguing, maybe they’re just Italian.

Antonia gets up from her seat and walks out of the room. Now might be my chance.

‘Andrea, I tried to tell them that it’s me, Robin, but my Italian isn’t as good as your English,’ I explain with a smile, hoping to clear up the confusion for him.

I notice the realisation light up inside Andrea’s eyes. Still, he manages to keep it under wraps.

Antonia joins us again. This time she sits down right next to me, taking my left hand in hers. Honestly, just when you think that things can’t get any weirder.

‘So, you are Andrea’s secret fiancée?’ the girl asks me in disbelief.

Her words have no sooner sunk in when I realise what Antonia is doing with my hand – she’s placing a ring on my finger. It’s a yellow-gold band with three large diamonds sitting in a row. It looks old, in that it looks like an antique, but otherwise it is in pristine condition.

‘Lucia, one moment, please,’ Andrea says before turning to me. ‘Robin, can we go outside?’

I nod and follow Andrea’s lead as we head outside.

Outside the apartment door, a balcony overlooks the car park below, offering a glimpse of the world below us. Andrea hands me a set of keys.

‘These are for my car, that one, down there, the black one,’ Andrea tells me, pointing out the vehicle. ‘Please, go wait there for me, I will explain.’

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