Although Marina’s face was turned towards the distant valley floor, Emma could hear the tears in her voice and she stretched her arm around her and gave her a hug.
‘You’re asking the wrong person, Marina. I don’t know the answer any more than you do… I really don’t.’
Marina looked up. ‘Mark?’
‘Mark.’ Emma sighed. ‘Is it that obvious?’
A gentle smile appeared on Marina’s face. ‘It was to me. Rich said he thought it was Ethan, but I knew it was Mark.’ She reached up with her free hand and wiped her eyes. ‘He’s a lovely man, Emma. So, what are you going to do?’
‘I wish I knew.’
‘Hello, ladies. Katya and I are off early tomorrow and I just wanted to say thank you for everything.’
They both spun around to find Erasmus standing close behind them. He had a smile on his face and he didn’t look in the least bit weird – unless you counted the white tuxedo, tonight worn with merely a string vest underneath. Emma released her grip on Marina’s shoulder and they both turned to face him fully.
‘You’re very welcome, Erasmus. I’m delighted you’ve had a good time here.’
‘Um, I couldn’t help overhearing a little bit of what you were saying.’ He held his hands up in front of him apologetically. ‘I didn’t mean to snoop, I assure you, but nobody ever hears me coming in my bare feet.’
Emma glanced down. Sure enough, tonight his feet were bare. As a look, coupled with the tux and the string vest, it was unlikely to make the pages of Vogue Hommes, but he clearly didn’t care.
‘Would you mind terribly if I were to offer you ladies a word of advice? You see, this is a subject very dear to my own heart.’
Both women looked at him in amazement. Emma was the first to reply.
‘Of course, Erasmus. Please.’ She was turning his words over in her head, barely able to believe they had come from him.
He gave them a gentle smile. ‘Try not to think of it as yes or no, either or, black or white, have him or lose him. Choices are never clear cut. Our lives are complicated enough without erecting extra hurdles. Every problem has a solution, although you may not see it at first. It’s just a matter of finding the one that’s right for you, for both of you. Marina, if you think you’ve found the right man, do something about it. In your case, Emma, anybody can see you’re in love with our charming host here at the villa, but you refuse to tell him.’
Emma was genuinely gobsmacked. How could this larger than life character possibly have noticed something as obscure as her feelings? Or had she really been walking around with her tongue hanging out, drooling over Mark? And how did he know she hadn’t spoken to Mark about her feelings? She didn’t have time to pursue this train of thought as Erasmus hadn’t finished.
‘I have three words for you, Emma, and, indeed for you, too, Marina. Amor vincit omnia.’
‘Love conquers all.’ Emma and Marina exchanged looks. ‘But how can love overcome six thousand miles of distance between us?’
His smile broadened. ‘It did for me.’ As comprehension began to dawn on their faces, he nodded. ‘That’s right. That’s why Katya and I are always together, even if our homes are six thousand miles apart.’ He reached out and tapped each of them on the shoulder, almost like a benediction. ‘Let love sort it out. It will, you know. And now, I must go and meditate. We’re leaving early tomorrow, so goodbye if I don’t see you. I look forward to meeting up with you both once more.’
As he started to turn away, he suddenly stopped himself and turned back, looking straight at Emma.
‘Perhaps you should start by telling him how you feel? He’s a man, after all, and we aren’t generally renowned for our perceptive skills in matters of the heart. Now, goodnight and thank you again.’
Chapter 19
After their conversation with Erasmus, Marina went off to bed with Rich, and Emma went for a twilight walk with Mark, now determined to follow Erasmus’s advice and tell him she had been developing feelings for him, even though she feared she might discover that he didn’t share those feelings.
However, all did not go to plan.
As she and Mark strolled along the gravel track through the woods, her hand resting on his arm ostensibly for support, his phone suddenly started ringing. He stopped to answer it and she saw at once that all was not well. He carried on a conversation in rapid Italian and she only understood occasional bits of it. One word that cropped up time and time again, however, was ospedale. Evidently, somebody was in hospital. Finally, he returned the phone to his pocket and turned towards her.
‘I’m afraid something’s happened to my uncle, my father’s brother. He lives on the other side of the valley and he’s just been rushed into hospital in Perugia with a suspected stroke. My aunt’s freaking out. They have no kids and they’ve always considered me a sort of son. In fact, I probably spent as much time at their house growing up as I did here with my grandparents. Would it be all right with you if I dash off now to see what’s what and to give my aunt a bit of TLC?’
‘Of course it would. Just go. If you think Carmen’ll be okay without you, I can carry on with her walk and hand her over to Claudio at the end.’
‘Brilliant, thank you.’ He hesitated. ‘Look, Emma, I’m really sorry. I was looking forward to our walk. I’d really like to talk to you, but I suppose it’ll have to wait until tomorrow.’ He hesitated again and then ducked swiftly towards her, deposited the lightest of kisses on her lips and straightened back up again with an apologetic smile. ‘Like I say, I’m sorry. Talk tomorrow. Ciao.’
And he left.
Emma carried on through the woods, her head still spinning as a result of that kiss, the dog apparently unconcerned that her master had left her in the hands of the new girl. They gradually circled the villa until they ended up on the promontory with the pergola. The sweet scent of the wisteria was overwhelming and enticing and she let herself be drawn inside, where she sat down on the bench, overlooking the valley. As she did so, there was a movement beside her as Carmen arrived and sat down at her feet, leaning against her legs. Emma stroked the dog’s head as she reflected on their brief conversation.
He had told her he wanted to talk. Might this have been some sort of declaration of affection, or more? Was this to have been the night he told her he felt the same way about her as she felt about him, or was it just wishful thinking on her part? And if this really was his message, what did this mean to her? She thought back to what Erasmus had said and tried to think it through. ‘Every problem has a solution’ had been his words, but was this really the case for her or, indeed, Marina? For Erasmus, the solution had been to hook up with Katya as his permanent companion, travelling the world together, but surely that couldn’t work in their situations.
The hotel here was brand new and it was evident that Mark had to stay for at least a year or two to see it safely launched. As for her, she had high hopes of returning to LA to find herself elevated in rank and responsibility in the company that meant so much to her. As JM had indicated, and as his son had repeated, the sky was the limit as far as her ambitions were concerned. She had no doubt, in spite of knowing him for barely a week, that she loved, or at least felt very, very strongly about Mark, but she also loved her job. Which was she prepared to give up and how on earth could Erasmus’s assertion that a solution existed to everything actually be true in this case?