Among The Roses

Chapter 53: Chiara Comes Clean

"No, don't bother Mara about this, she has so many things going on," Chiara said. "I certainly don't mind if your mother doesn't mind?" She looked over at Ellie, who shook her head.

The three Penningtons and Chiara had been put in adjoining rooms, and each room only had one bed in it. The beds were massive, but it meant that Chiara would have to sleep with one of them. No one asked which Pennington she wanted to share with, it was just too touchy a subject; Drew had simply offered to ask Mara about it. Judging by her response, obviously Chiara wanted to share with Ellie.

"I don't mind, love," Ellie told her with a smile. "It will be like when I was a teenager and shared a room with my sister, we'll have a grand time, won't we?"

So the women took their luggage into the other room, which was joined to the boys' bedroom through a Jack and Jill bathroom. Chiara was fairly certain this wasn't part of the villa's original architecture. Someone must have spent a fortune remodeling the interior while keeping it up to the code of the historical site. It was stunning inside. There was a huge staircase in the front foyer that split in two and climbed both sides of the wall to feed two wings of the villa. There was a central courtyard that was surrounded on all four sides by the massive walls of the centuries old building. Chiara could easily and happily have spent weeks wandering the grounds and examining everything that was growing there and never have covered the same ground twice.

"Ellie, you know that LeeAnne was engaged to--to Drew for a few weeks?" Chiara's voice was hesitant. She knew this wasn't one of Ellie's favorite topics.

Ellie turned around from where she was putting some clothes away in a drawer.

"Yes?"

"What would you have done when you found out the sleeping arrangements? You know Drew refused to sleep in the same bed with her?"

Ellie sighed and shut the drawer. "I don't know. This would've been a classic case of him making his bed and having to lie in it, I suppose, because I certainly wouldn't have slept with her, and no way in hell I'd have let Noah sleep with her."

Ellie still didn't know about what LeeAnne had done to Noah, and everyone had agreed that maybe she didn't need to know.

There was a tap on the door and Drew stuck his head in. "Ready to go look around? There's supposed to be a lunch laid out in the courtyard, and I thought we could go for a walk? Noah's out cold in our bed, so he won't be joining us, I reckon."

Ellie covered a yawn. "I'll wander down in a bit, but I'd like a bit of a lie down myself. I know it's ridiculous to be tired, that it's only a one hour time difference and everything, but plane travel always exhausts me."

"I don't think it matters, I believe the lunch is a buffet thing that will be set out all day." He looked at Chiara. "So it's just you and me, then. You want to go?"

Chiara nodded. "Let me change, though, okay? I feel like I smell like airplane. I'll go to your room in five minutes."

Drew had to be careful not to stare when Chiara entered his room at the appointed time. She had changed into a cornflower blue sundress that brought out her eyes, with white saltwater sandals that showed off her pretty, tanned legs.

"You look very pretty," he risked saying as they went down the stairs together.

"Thank you," she responded with a smile, dimple popping. "You look nice, too."

Drew was wearing khaki shorts with a teal polo shirt and boat shoes, and had his dark curls pulled into a pony tail.

They found the center courtyard, where Mara and Luke were hosting the open buffet to about fifty people.