WANTED: Love of my Life

23. My secret heart for Everyone to see

Giacomo blinked.

“Scusi?”

“When is your birthday?” I repeated, a grin creeping onto my face. “I... I'm your girlfriend, right?” Unsure as I was of their truth, the words came only hesitantly. “A girl has to give her boyfriend something for his birthday. How am I gonna do that if I don't know when it is?”

Again, there was a short silence. Then he suddenly picked me up and swung me around, laughing at the top of his voice, not caring who or what might hear.

“The 18th,” he chortled. “The 18th of August! That's my birthday.”

“See?” I was laughing, too, now. “That wasn't so hard, was it?”

“Has anyone ever told you that besides being nosy, you can be quite annoying?”

“My teachers. And My parents. And, oh yes, my sister tells me so on a daily basis.”

Giacomo sat me down again.

“You have a sister?”

“Yeah, why?”

“It's just that you haven't mentioned her before.”

“I try to do so as little as possible. It's bad for my stomach.”

Giacomo's lips twitched again.

“I gather that you're not particularly fond of her.”

“You could say that, yea. Or you could say that I hate her guts.”

“What's she like?”

I scowled. That was not the direction in which I would like the conversation to turn. In fact, it would be fine by me if the conversation were over and the kissing would start. But Cathy? Just thinking Giacomo's and Cathy's name in the same sentence made my blood boil with fear and jealousy.

“She's older than me,” I mumbled. “Taller, too.” And prettier. “Long, brown hair, best of her class, Head of the Cheerleading Squad.”

The words tasted like bile in my throat. And nothing could have been more beautiful than Giacomo's reply.

He frowned. “What is that word? I don't know it. What is this 'Cheerleading'?”

I closed my eyes in bliss, imagining my sister's reaction to those very words.

“Angela? Did you hear me?”

“Yes,” I said. “Yes, I heard you. And do you know what?” I put my arms around his waist and squeezed as hard as I could. “I absolutely love the fact that you are a foreigner. Promise me that you will never ever change, okay?”

“Um... okay. And my question?”

“Forget it. It's not really important. Not something anybody living in the US needs to know. I think it's high time for us to get back to the reason we came here in the first place.”

“And what is that?” He asked, and I was thrilled to detect a note of teasing anticipation in his beautiful voice.

I stretched myself up as high as I could – and just managed to place a soft kiss in the hollow at his throat. I heard him suck in a quick breath. “Each other of course,” I responded, sweetly. “Should we continue our walk now?”

“I think I have a better idea”, he said, and bent down towards me. Fine by me.

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

Some time later, a breeze picked up and I began to shiver.

“Are you cold?” Giacomo asked, concerned.