Voilà, the long awaited Chapter 48 of THC. It's not very long so I apologise for that but as promised there will be a new chapter next week. Please enjoy :).
Attached above is the song BTS- Spring Day which is one of my favourites at the moment.
Oh ya here is a bit of a recap for those returning months later. So basically Talia, Iver and Raoul are on holidays in Italy. Iver brings them to his villa outside Florence where all his family arrive to meet Raoul for the first time. Talia meets Venezia, Iver's mother, again but she also meets his sister Isabella and her son Marco. Talia soon realises that Iver lied to his family about them being in a relationship for the last five years. He never told them that they weren't on speaking terms. Meanwhile the rest of Iver's family arrive for a party and this chapter picks up towards the end of the party.
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I collapsed on the couch with a sigh and quickly removed my high heels that were acting like torture devices for my poor feet. I swore to myself that would be the last time that I would ever wear 6 inch heels. I couldn't believe that I used to actually go out with my friends for an entire night of dancing in higher heels. My feet must have been made of steel. Now if I walk two metres down the street I get about ten blisters.
I discarded the heels and leaned back on the chair. The party was still going on around me but at this stage I couldn't care less. I needed a good cup of tea and an ice bath for my feet. I scanned the room and gazed at all of Iver's friends and family. How they weren't wrecked was beyond me, they had been here for at least 5 hours. Raoul, Marco and all the other younger cousins had gone to bed ages ago and I wish that I had gone with them.
Isabella, Iver's sister wandered over with two glasses of wine cradled in her hands. The wine sloshed against the sides due to her swaying. She flopped onto the couch beside me and handed me a glass without asking whether I wanted it or not. My eyes widened as I dodged the red wine that spilled from the glass and nearly onto my white culottes. That would have been a nightmare.
Isabella with flushed cheeks giggled at my reaction then threw her high heeled clad feet up onto the coffee table.
"Ah words can't describe how much I missed the wine!" Isabella sighed and sipped from her glass.
"I don't know how you lasted so long without it. I was back drinking as soon as I could!" I exclaimed. Had she really waited so long. It had been years since Marco was born.
"Oh no after Marco was born, you couldn't keep me away from the wine. After Loretta's birth I decided to breast feed so I had to wait a lot longer." I frowned in confusion, Iver never told me that his sister had another child.
"And where is Loretta now?" I asked.
Isabella giggled once again and sipped her wine, "At home with the husband. You'll get to see her at the christening though in two weeks. I'm sure you'll see her before then though."
"The Christening?" I questioned while raising an eyebrow.
"Did Iver not mention it? He promised that you would both be there almost a week ago. We are having a get together at our house after" she explained while removing her legs from the table and crossing them.
"Of course we will be there. I'm sure Raoul would love to see you all again and meet the rest of the family." I said while smiling reassuringly.
"And you?" she asked quickly.
"Hmm?"
"Are you looking forward to seeing us again and meeting everyone else?"
I sipped my wine before replying, "I wouldn't miss it for the world."
Isabella matched my smile from earlier and visibly relaxed on the couch, "I'm happy my brother has found someone like you. I was hesitant at first because the last long term relationship Iver had was with that putanna but I like you and I think you are good for him, just don't disappoint me."
I grimaced but smiled all the same. I wonder how she would react if she knew how her brother treated me, but then again I would do the same for my brother, Ethan.
"Anyway don't you worry; I'll have a chat with Iver about him popping the question. You'll be married before the summer is over, I guarantee it!" She exclaimed while patting my knee and jumping up from the couch. She had wandered off before I could protest. That was honestly the last thing I needed right now.
I sat laughing on the chair watching one of Iver's cousins dancing around like a headless chicken on the floor in front of me when I saw Iver himself approaching me from across the room. He kissed me on the forehead then sat down beside me on the couch. He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me against his muscular chest.
"How are you feeling?" He asked just when I let out a massive yawn. He chuckled and tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear while I smiled sheepishly. He let the back of his hand linger on my cheek for a moment before removing it. He kissed the corner of my mouth before grabbing my heels and pulling me to my feet.
"C'mon let's go to bed."
I began to protest because I felt bad leaving the party that was for us early but Iver shook his head and smiled, "It's okay they won't mind. This party could end up continuing on until tomorrow evening."
I chuckled, said goodnight to Iver's family and then followed him up the staircase. We entered the lavishly decorated bedroom that I remembered from the last time I was here. The photos of me and his family were still on the dresser the only addition was a photo of Raoul playing with his Ironman toy and Iver sitting beside him wearing a cowboy hat. They both of them were smiling. I internally awed a little at the photo.
Iver came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. I relaxed against him as he kissed me just behind my ear. I turned around in his hold and faced him. My arms moved from my side and to his shoulders. "Iver why didn't you tell your family that we hadn't seen each other for the last few years?" I whispered while looking him in the eyes.
"I didn't want them to pester you about what happened. My family likes to ask questions so I just thought I'd save you the ordeal" He replied and kissed my forehead. I was confused though, for all he knew we were never going to see each other again after the last time we had spoken in London. Had he really kept the lie going for this long?
"You didn't even tell your Mother?" I asked shocked. He just shook his head in reply.
"And when did you tell the rest of your family about Raoul?" My hands had dropped from Iver's shoulders at this stage.
He sighed and closed his eyes, "when I first started sending you letters. But when you didn't reply I just told them that Raoul was too young to travel to Italy and that I couldn't get off work. And then the lie got progressively worse and I couldn't go back on it a few years later so I had to keep the pretenses up"
"But you didn't even know Raoul's name!" I spluttered out.
"I just gave him a name and when family asked tonight why he was called Raoul I just said that Giuseppe was his nickname" He said shrugging as if this was perfectly normal. I just couldn't believe that he had made some elaborate lie instead of just telling the truth. It must have been so complicated to keep track of.
Iver leaned in to kiss me but I pulled away slightly. He sighed and slumped his shoulders, "Look Talia I think that you need to make a decision about what's going to happen with us." He lifted my chin while staring me in the eyes, "I love and I care about you and my son. I want to be a family. I know I messed up in the past but I'm trying to make up for it. Whatever you decide I'm still going to remain a part of my son's life because he means the world to me now."
Tears started to well up and I tried to blink them away but I couldn't. They started to free fall from my eyes and one salty tear ran into the corner of my mouth. I didn't know what to say. My heart said yes but my head said no and even my head was wavering the more Iver stared into my eyes. I didn't know if I could open my heart to future heartbreak once again.
Iver pulled me towards him and nestled my head against his chest. I hiccupped and stuttered a bit but I finally got some words out, "I want to be with you Iver." He sighed in relief and kissed me.
"Just please don't break my heart again" I whispered against his lips.
"I wouldn't dream of it" he mumbled and kissed me once again.
It was then that I remembered, "Giuseppe...of all names you picked Giuseppe!" I couldn't stop laughing. I'm sure I looked a right state with tears still streaming down my face.
He chuckled, "It was the only name I could think of! They put me on the spot. Just imagine their faces when I told them. They had to pretend it was the nicest name that they had ever heard of. And then my mom had to tell all her friends that I'd named her grandson Giuseppe. Dad was just annoyed that I hadn't given him a Scottish name."
I was still just laughing about it all and imagining the relief on Venezia's face when she realised her grandson was actually called Raoul.
"You're such an idiot Iver" I scolded while jokingly slapping him on the arm.
"But I'm your idiot." I rolled my eyes at his cheesiness but kissed him all the same. God I missed this.
A.N. I hope you enjoyed. Sorry once again about the length. I wish I could have written a 5,000 word chapter but it probably would have just been a big old pile of shit haha.
Anyway please like and comment and i'll be back next week with another installment.
I'll also try and work on Pride and Pratishness in the mean time :)!