Epilogue
September
Tessa gazed out at the acres and acres of vineyards spread out in the valley below, as the sun slowly began to set. It was cooler now, something of a relief after the heat of the day, and she thought about going back inside the house for a wrap. But it felt too good to lay back on the chaise and admire the gold and purple colors of the Tuscan sky. Ever since she and Ian had arrived here at his family’s villa two days ago, they’d done very little besides what he’d jokingly referred to as their “S” activities – swimming, sleeping, sipping wine and sex.
This was their last night alone here, since Ian’s parents were due to arrive tomorrow, and his brother Colin and his family the day after that. They were to remain here another week at the grand estate, located about an hour’s drive south of Pisa, before flying to London for a few days. There Tessa would meet the rest of Ian’s family, including his brother Hugh and Uncle Richard. What was definitely not on their schedule was a visit with his cousin Charlotte and her husband Jason, for rather obvious reasons.
It had taken her some time to fully recover from the uterine perforation and resulting infection. Though she’d been able to leave the hospital two days after her fever had broken, she’d been on strict instructions to rest and take it easy for at least two more weeks. Ian of course had taken those directions to the extreme and hired a nurse to look after her while he was busy at the office. It hadn’t been until a follow-up visit with Jordan, where the handsome OB/GYN had proclaimed her fully recovered, that Ian had reluctantly agreed the nurse’s services were no longer required.
Jordan had also prescribed a new brand of birth control pills for her, these with a very low dose of hormones, and so far she hadn’t experienced any type of side effects. The issuance of her new prescription had coincided nicely with the timing of her recovery, along with Jordan’s blessings – given with a huge grin – to resume sexual activity.
Ian had been gentle, tentative even, afraid of hurting her, until she’d rather impatiently taken control of things and straddled him. Since then they had scarcely been able to keep their hands off each other, not only making up for lost time but being conscious of the fact that they wouldn’t be alone after today for well over a week.
“And unfortunately centuries-old Italian villas are not nearly as well insulated or soundproofed as our home back in San Francisco,” he’d told her. “Plus there’s no walk-in closet to hide inside, either. So while my family is here I’m afraid we’ll be restricted to using the shower for any amorous activities.”
“Or you can just gag me again,” she’d offered teasingly. “That seemed to work out just fine the last time.”
He had laughingly told her he’d give the matter some thought, but he did buy her a beautiful silk scarf during their shopping excursion earlier today to the nearby medieval town of Volterra. When she’d protested that she had more scarves that she could possibly use, Ian had whispered that this one wasn’t meant to be tied around her neck.
The live-in groundskeeper and his wife, who resided in a separate cottage on the property, not only tidied up the villa each day but also cooked beautiful, elaborate meals for them. Tessa, who’d lost almost ten pounds during her hospitalization and recovery, was certain she’d gained at least half that amount back just by eating two days of Luciana’s cooking.
Fortunately, she’d recovered enough to have started her online classes on time. It was proving to be a bit more work that she’d imagined, but Ian was as good as his word and helped her when she had questions or didn’t understand a particular theory or problem. He was exceedingly proud when she got perfect scores on the two algebra quizzes she’d completed thus far.
This morning over breakfast he’d discussed with her an idea he’d been floating around for some time – that of delegating more responsibility to both his managerial staff and also to Andrew. Evidently the PA had done an admirable job in delivering part of Ian’s budget talk during July’s managers meeting, enough so that Ian was seriously considering the idea of having Andrew take over some of the hotel reviews he did.
“Frankly, I’m getting awfully tired of being on the road so much,” he’d admitted. “And while having you along certainly makes it more bearable, I’d still prefer to be at home with you a lot more often. So, we’ll see. With the right training and some experience, Andrew might be able to take some of that load off of my shoulders in the near future.”
Tessa had thought to herself that she honestly didn’t mind whatever Ian decided to do. Whether they were on the road or staying at home, so long as they were together it didn’t matter. But she knew Ian must be weary after spending so many years of his career traveling, and she decided to fully support any decision he made about cutting back.
She was wearing a plum and white patterned cotton maxi dress with spaghetti straps, something she’d picked up from a street vendor during their trip to Hawaii, and she thought it was one of the most comfortable things she’d ever owned. Her feet were bare, as were her shoulders, and this time she did shiver a bit as the sun set a little further behind the horizon.
“I thought you might need this. At this time of the year the temperatures can drop quickly once the sun goes down.”
Tessa turned her head slightly and smiled at the sight of her handsome lover walking towards her. Like her, he was barefoot and very casually dressed in a pair of lightweight beige trousers, and a cream colored shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He hadn’t shaved since they’d arrived, though he had joked earlier today about how his mother would be sure to nag him about it when she arrived tomorrow.
Tessa had pouted playfully, caressing the dark stubble that made him look so incredibly sexy. “Well, I don’t want your mother to scold you – or be annoyed with me for encouraging you – so I guess you’d better shave tomorrow morning.”
She saw now that he was carrying two wine glasses, an opened bottle of red wine, and had her new silk crochet shawl draped over his arm. He had bought it for her this morning during their shopping trip.
Tessa accepted the shawl gratefully, draping it over her shoulders as he poured them each a glass of wine. It was a rich ruby colored Chianti that he’d bought at the winery in the adjoining town where they’d lunched earlier today. And even though the wine cellar here at the villa was already bursting at the seams with its stellar collection, Ian had wanted to buy a bottle to commemorate Tessa’s first visit to Italy.
“Salute,” they told each other simultaneously as they clinked glasses and sipped their wine.
“Would you like some cheese and fruit?” he inquired. “Luciana left a plate for us.”
“Maybe in a bit,” agreed Tessa. “After all, I saw what she has prepared for our dinner and I don’t want to fill up on formaggio.”
He grinned. “Molto bene’, cara. You see, your Italian is coming along quite nicely. You were actually able to speak to the shopkeepers and the winery owner a bit today.”
She shrugged. “I’ve still got a long way to go until I’m as fluent as you are.” She’d been enthralled to hear him converse so easily with the owner of the winery in the language she had barely begun to learn.
“I’ve had a lot more practice than you have, don’t forget. You’ll get there, darling. Plus, you have an awful lot on your schedule these days between school, work, your cooking classes, and of course,” he added with a lascivious look, “your most important duty of all – taking care of your very demanding lover.”
She reached out for his hand and drew it to her lips. “That’s not a duty, my love. I think of it as a privilege.”
Ian’s eyes darkened. “Tessa – God, I’m not sure it’s possible to love you more than I already do, but when you say things like that I begin to wonder.”
“I love you, too. And I love being here in Tuscany with you, at this beautiful villa. As wonderful as all of the company’s hotels are – well, this is actually a home, isn’t it?”
He nodded, and traced a finger over her lips. “Let me guess. This is now your new favorite place in the entire world.”
Tessa laughed. “You’re very perceptive, aren’t you? But actually, I’ve come to the realization lately about what my absolute favorite place in the entire world really is.”
“And where is that, darling?”
She turned her cheek into his palm, pressing a soft kiss there, before gazing at him adoringly. “It’s wherever you are. Whether that’s San Francisco or Italy or London or anywhere else in the world. Wherever you are at that particular moment is always going to be the best place in the entire world to me.”
Ian stared at her with so much heartfelt emotion stamped on his handsome features that it made her heart ache. “There you go again,” he murmured. “Saying such beautiful things to me that I can’t possibly tell you how much it means to me. So I suppose I’ll have to try a different approach.”
Tessa tilted her head towards him in bewilderment. “I don’t understand.”
He smiled mysteriously, brushing his thumb over her knuckles. “Do you know what day it is today, love?”
“Hmm.” She wrinkled her nose and shook her head. “September twenty-something. I’m afraid I’ve lost track of time very quickly over here.”
“Well, I know exactly what day it is. It’s the twenty-third of September. And, to be more specific, it was three years ago today that you walked into my office and into my heart.”
Tessa stared at him in surprise. “Really? I mean, I knew it was this week sometime but I didn’t remember the exact date. But of course you’d remember. I’ve never seen anyone as amazing with details as you are.”
Ian shook his head. “Not with employee dates of hire. For example, I couldn’t even tell you what month of the year it was when Andrew started working for me, much less the exact date. But with you – it was still fairly early in the morning, I think just after nine a.m. I even remember what you were wearing – a little red dress with a black belt. You were easily the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen and I fell head over heels the first time I heard your voice.”
She gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “And I never guessed, never ever imagined that you even noticed me from day to day. I felt like a teenage girl with this huge crush on her favorite movie start. I never imagined we would someday be together like this.”
“Sometimes fate can be cruel to us, Tessa. You’ve certainly had more than your fair share of that, after all. But then at other times fate chooses to smile fondly on us, like it’s doing right now. And I hope it will continue to do so for many, many years to come.”
They each sipped at their wine and gazed out at the landscape, now bathed in the soft glow of twilight. Ian drew Tessa to her feet, wrapping an arm around her waist as they stood against the balcony of the terrace.
“There’s another occasion to commemorate today,” he said quietly. “At least, I’m hoping there will be.”
“What’s that?” she inquired teasingly. “I already know it’s not the anniversary of our first kiss. That date I do remember very well.”
Ian smiled. “As do I, my love. No, this is something new to commemorate. Hopefully to celebrate.”
As she watched wide-eyed, he dropped down to one knee, keeping her hand clasped in his. Tears were pooling in her eyes before he could even open his mouth to speak.
“Tessa. My darling girl. Will you take pity on this very old man you see before you and grant him the greatest honor he could possibly imagine – that of becoming his wife?”
The tears fell freely as she nodded, too choked up with emotion to do more than whisper, “Oh, yes.” And then, as he slipped a beautiful ring with a fabulous blue stone onto her engagement finger, she burst out, “And you are not old!”
He laughed and stood up, wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her feet off the ground. “I think you’re my very own personal fountain of youth, darling. And you have just made me the happiest man of any age in the entire world. Now, tell me, do you like your ring? I had it designed especially for you.”
Tessa gazed down at the round blue stone surrounded by dozens of smaller round diamonds. The slender platinum band was also encrusted with pave diamonds. “It’s gorgeous, Ian. I love it. And I’m glad you chose a sapphire since they’re my favorite.”
“Ah, but it’s not a sapphire, love – it’s a blue diamond,” he corrected. “Very rare and very precious. Just like yourself.” He gave her a sweet, soft kiss. “It reminded me of your eyes. And also of that dress you wore the night of the Christmas party. The night when I finally had real hope that a moment very much like this one might actually happen.”
She pulled his head down to hers for a much longer, much deeper kiss. “I love you,” she breathed. “And I am so honored, so proud, that you’re going to be my husband. You’re the most wonderful man in the whole world, and I will do everything in my power to make you happy every single day of our lives together.”
Ian hugged her tightly. “And I love you, my darling bride-to-be. Speaking of which, do you recall when I told you during Julia and Nathan’s wedding that I had a very special place picked out for our own special day?”
She nodded, smiling. “It’s here, isn’t it? That’s why you were so mysterious. You wanted me to see the villa first. And yes, I love it here. I would love having our wedding here in Tuscany.”
He chuckled. “We might have a bit of a problem hosting so many guests here, though. And as beautiful as this place is, how much I’ve always enjoyed coming here, this isn’t exactly what I had in mind. Though it is very similar. Remember when we first drove up through the gates two days ago and you told me this place reminded you of somewhere?”
Tessa nodded. “Of course.”
“Well, I gave a great many photographs of this villa to Nathan and told him this was the feeling I wanted to capture when he came up with the designs for our new hotel in Napa. And while there are a number of differences, the entire resort is being built to resemble a Tuscan villa. And that, my love, is where I hope to make you my bride.”
She gasped in delight. “Oh, what a wonderful idea! I love it, absolutely love it! I know exactly what you mean now – why this villa looked so familiar. I was remembering all the drawings I’d seen of the new hotel. So we would hold our wedding there on the grounds?”
“Yes, that’s what I was hoping. Right now we’re scheduled to hold the grand opening the second week of June. My plan,” he added with a wide smile, “was to marry about a week before that time, so that ours would be the first wedding ever held in the place. And so that we would also be the very first guests to stay there as well.”
“That’s what you meant by another first. And I couldn’t think of a more perfect time or place to get married. Yes, absolutely. As usual, you think of everything.”
Tenderly, he brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. “One more thing I just thought of. Do you realize what other day this is, darling?”
Tessa arched a bow. “No, I can’t honestly say that I do. What day is it today?”
Ian’s eyes twinkled merrily. “It’s a Wednesday.”
THE END