Page 18 of Falling for my Family's Rival

I notice that the sun is starting to set. “Hey, do you want to hike up to the bluff to watch the sunset?” I ask.

“For sure,” Marissa replies. “Let’s get this stuff all packed back into the car, and then we can head off.”

By the time we’re on the trail up to the bluff, the sun has dipped even lower. “Thank you for this date,” Marissa says. “I don’t think anyone has ever done something this special… this romantic for me before.”

“You deserve all of this - and more - every day,” I say, looking deeply into her eyes and catching my breath. I know that I sound cheesy, but I don’t care.

Marissa gazes back intently, then reaches out and takes my hand. We twine our fingers together, and remain that way for the rest of the hike. By the time we get to the top, we are in the prime viewing window. All the light is golden, and it makes Marissa look even more like an angel.

“Let’s get a selfie,” she suggests. I’m grateful she thinks to do so - I definitely want documented proof that this happened. And I will cherish being able to have a picture of her to look at when we’re not together. Otherwise, I might think that this has all been a dream.

“Should we stay up here until the stars come out?” I suggest.

Marissa nods enthusiastically. “This is the best date, Luca. Thank you, again.”

We find a spot to sit, another outcropping of rock, still warm from being in the sun all day. Marissa nestles into my arms, and we sit quietly while the night starts to come alive all around us. Animals and insects that weren’t prevalent a few minutes before are suddenly making a cacophony around us. In a way it even sounds like a symphony. I know what people mean now when they say that their song is made up of all the sounds that represent their relationship, not an actual musical number. I mention this thought to Marissa, and she takes out her phone to record it.

We continue to lounge on the rock in a companionable silence. Darkness falls all around us, and soon stars are coming out one by one. Neither of us says anything, and I hope that Marissa doesn’t want to let the magic of the moment end.

When we start to get cold, we decide to head back down to the car, hand in hand. I know that we both need to get home. I’m sure we both need to work tomorrow. At the base of the trail, I pause and pull Marissa gently toward me. She steps into the circle of my arms, and tips her head up toward me. I lean down to kiss her, and she kisses me back. Tender and sweet, but full of desire and promise. Everything about it is perfect. When we break apart, she is grinning at me, and her eyes are shining.

“This is definitely the best date of my life,” she says.

“Me, too,” I say. Now I just have to figure out how to top it.

Twelve

MARISSA

Ifeel like I’m floating on air. This was the most perfect date of my entire life. I glance over at Luca, as he drives back to Cranberry Creek from the lake. He’s going to drop me back off at the library, so I can pick up my car. Just thinking about that brings me back to reality, and I remember how bad things were at the restaurant earlier.

“So things were pretty bad at the restaurant earlier,” I say, now wanting to talk it out, hoping maybe Luca will have some advice or insight.

“Yeah, you mentioned that earlier. Do you want to…tell me about it?” Luca asks.

He seems vaguely uncomfortable about the subject, and I can’t say that I blame him. It’s no secret that we’re treading on very tumultuous ground by seeing one another, and we both know that we are going to inevitably make things infinitely more complicated, now that we’re truly dating. I still think that it’s important to talk about now, though, regardless.

“There were just a lot of things going wrong all at once,” I say. Then I add, “And my dad really thinks that your family has something to do with it.”

Luca is quiet for a long time, and I start to worry that he’s mad at me. Then he sighs and says, “I get it. My dad is convinced that your family has something to do with the food poisoning at Venetian Dreams. I’ve tried getting him to see how absurd that is. I mean, seriously. Why- and even how - would your family have done that?”

I breathe a sigh of relief. He’s not mad. This opens up a whole lot of conversation for us. “Okay, I’m glad that you’re having a similar experience,” I say. “I was beginning to think that I was going crazy.”

“Oh, no- you’re definitely not crazy; but I think our parents actually might be,” Luca muses.

“I just don’t know what they’re thinking,” I say.

“I don’t know either,” Luca says. “And my father is dead set on getting revenge. Unfortunately, he has passed that desire on to my brother. I’m low key worried about what he might do. My brother, not my dad.”

“I feel like we need to do something to get them to put their differences aside. Is there anything you think we can do? There’s got to be something.” My mind is reeling, trying to brainstorm possibilities.

Luca sighs, as he pulls up near the library. “I just don’t know if there is anything we can do about them. My parents are pretty set in their ways.”

“Ha. At least they have that in common! You think yours are bad? Whoo. Wait ‘til you meet mine! My father’s temper can go from zero to one hundred at the speed of light!” I say, already dreading what’s to come. “But, I don’t know, Luca… I don’t feel like that’s enough reason to not try, you know?”

“What do you think we should do?” Luca asks.

Now that we’re parked, he turns and looks at me. I can see the sincerity and earnestness on his face. It doesn’t help, though. I can’t seem to put into words what I think we should do… because frankly, I don’t have an iota of a plan. I guess I was hoping that Luca would come up with one. But he seems as desperate and disheartened as me. No grand ideas have struck either of us so far.

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