Sicilian Dreams (34 page)

‘Pity, I should have arrived earlier, but I wanted to give you and Liz and Kat time by yourselves. That’s what happens when you try to do the right thing,’ he murmured with a sigh, turning Cassie around to face him and lightly kissing her on the lips. ‘Come, we must go or you will miss your flight. Actually, I would like you to miss your flight. Shall we do that?’ he asked, grinning at her.

‘Nice try, let’s go,’ said Cassie reluctantly but firmly.

The drive to the airport seemed to pass too quickly for Cassie and in no time at all Marco was pulling up at the departures entrance.

‘Please don’t come inside with me.’ said Cassie. ‘I really hate goodbyes.’

‘But Cassandra, what are you saying? Of course I must come inside with you. I must take your bags for you, you have so many.’ said Marco in astonishment.

‘Please Marco, I would rather say goodbye here.’ said Cassie, firmly, staring at him evenly. He grinned at her serious face.

‘Okay, if you insist.’ he said, and then added. ‘Just sit here for a moment while I get a luggage trolley for you.’ He leapt out of the car and returned moments later with a trolley. He took her bags from the trunk and loaded them onto the trolley before climbing back into the car and pulling her into his arms.

‘Now I have you to myself, if only for a few seconds more.’ He kissed her passionately and Cassie responded to his kiss with every fiber of her being.

‘I hate goodbyes too,’ whispered Marco, hugging her tight, her face pressed into his shoulder. She couldn’t see his face, but his voice sounded gravelly. She gently pulled herself from his embrace and looked into his green eyes, which were clouded with emotion.

‘I’ll come back soon, I promise.’ she whispered back to him, opening her own door and climbing out before he could move. This was too much for Marco. He leapt out of his side and came around to her, picking her up in a bear hug. She started to giggle and he hugged her harder.

‘Okay, I’ll let you go now.’ he said, gently setting her down. He kissed her lightly on the lips and then he was gone, climbing back into the car and pulling away smoothly from the curb. Cassie stood there for a few seconds more, watching until his car was out of sight.

Two hours later Cassie sat forward in her seat watching the view unfold through the window as the plane banked and turned, climbing steeply into the clear, blue sky. Looking down, she could see the sharp outline of the coast where it met the deep blue Mediterranean Sea.

As the plane leveled out and continued north, she recognized the massive bulk of La Rocca far below her and the little town of Cefalu nestled into the corner of the bay. She felt a pang of nostalgia mixed with a deeper, stronger conviction that she would return here one day to be with Marco and make this part of Sicily her own. Resolutely she closed the window shade and sat back in her seat, closing her eyes and letting her mind wander over everything that had happened. It felt like she had lived a lifetime of adventure in just one short week, and surely that was what good holidays were all about, wasn’t it? She didn’t need to go and fall in love with Marco and complicate things, but she had and that was that. If she had any misgivings, they were completely overshadowed by her feelings for Marco. For once in her life, sense and sensibility were playing no great part in her plans and this was a very new and exciting experience for Cassie.

‘Prosecco for you signorina?’ asked the flight attendant. Cassie opened her eyes and nodded. How appropriate she thought, taking a sip and silently toasting Marco as the big plane climbed higher into the sky and they flew away from Sicily.

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