Bella (9 page)

Victoria
looked very beautiful, she wore a cream silk gown, and because she was very
tall and slim, it hugged her slender figure; she carried the dress off
perfectly. In her hands she carried a small posy made of lilacs; which
complimented the colour of her eyes and hair.

Simon
wore a dark navy suit with a pale blue shirt and looked incredibly handsome. I
couldn
’
t take my eyes off
him.

   
After we
’
d taken several
photos outside the registry office, we all got in our separate cars and made
our way to Victoria
’
s favourite steak
house.

Lizzie
arrived with James in tow. I was surprised to see them both there as she
’
d told us that she was really busy at the
salon.
However, she said she would have never forgiven herself if she
’
d missed her own brother
’
s wedding and managed to find someone to cover
for her.

Everybody
enjoyed the day and we all wished Simon and Victoria all the best in their
lives together in New York.

Marco
looked at me and said.

  
“
You don
’
t look well Bella, I worry about you. You look a pale and
your eyes are black.
”

 I
admitted that I hadn
’
t been feeling well
for the last few days and decided perhaps I should see the family doctor.

I made
an appointment and luckily he could see me straight away. After the doctor had
examined me he asked if I had been sexually active lately.

  
“
Yes I have.
”
I told him.

  
“
I can
’
t be sure Miss Green until the tests are confirmed, but I
think you may be pregnant.
”
As I sat waiting for
the results, I realised I hadn
’
t had my period this
month and I had assumed that stress had been the reason.

The
tests confirmed that I was indeed pregnant, now all I had to do was tell Marco.
How was he going to take the news, I thought to myself; we hadn
’
t been together very long.

I went
directly to the restaurant where Marco was working to tell him the news. He led
me to a table in the corner of the room, luckily he wasn
’
t that busy. He only had to look at me and he
knew.

  
“
You gonna ave a baby, Bella! I know it when you
fainted in the restaurant that it is possible and you ave been looking sick
lately.
”

Marco
was so happy, he picked me up, swung me round then looked at me and asked.

  
“
Bella what about you, are you happy caro?
”

How
could I tell him I wasn
’
t happy?
  I lied and said.

   
“
Of course I
’
m happy!
”

    The
day arrived when Simon and Victoria were leaving for New York; we all arrived
at the airport to wave them off.  I put on a brave face but as soon as the
plane left the runway, my heart felt empty.
How was I going to manage
without Simon nearby?

   Later
that evening Marco took me to a nice restaurant and proposed. I immediately
said yes, as I wanted to get married before the baby was born.

   Three
weeks later we got married with no fuss or frills. This wasn
’
t the way I
’
d planned my wedding or my life. As a little
girl I always dreamt of a fairy-tale wedding, with an ivory wedding dress and a
horse and carriage, however, I knew they
’
d just been childish dreams.

   Eight
months passed and my baby was ready to be born. Tammy and Roy gave us a cheque
for a wedding present and it was more than we could have ever imagined. We
decided to buy a lovely house just outside Lighthouse Cove in the country,
which had lots of land and a few animals.

Marco
helped me paint the baby
’
s nursery; we didn
’
t know what we were having so we painted it in
neutral colours.

    I
wrote to Simon often, and he wrote back. I told him I was now married to Marco
and we were expecting a baby any day now. He wrote back and said he was very
happy for me.

I hoped
in time that the feelings I had for my brother would  disappear, especially
when I knew the feelings I had were wrong.

   The
autumn leaves had just starting to fall, and I gave birth to a beautiful baby
girl. She weighed seven pounds and we named her Violet. She had a mop of dark
curly hair and the biggest velvety blue eyes I
’
d ever seen. Luckily she was a very content baby
so I soon got the hang of motherhood.

   At
around the same time, Tammy announced that she and Roy were going to get
married the following summer. She wanted a big white wedding with all the
trimmings and told me that Simon and Victoria were also going to attend.

   After
Violet was born Marco was very busy and worked long hours at the restaurant. I
hardly ever saw him; we became like passing ships in the night.

    The
festive season was fast approaching once again and the weather was getting
colder. I found being in the country could be rather isolating at times, so
Tammy did her best to keep me company when Roy was away at work and Lizzie
often came for a coffee and a chat.

    One
day, Lizzie and I were sitting at the kitchen table drinking our coffee when
she told me that she and James weren
’
t getting on at the moment.  She wanted to start trying for
a baby, but James wasn
’
t too keen on the
idea. Lizzie began to cry.

   
“
I think James is having an affair; he
’
s always late home and he never kisses me anymore.
Maybe it
’
s just me.
”

“
Don
’
t be silly Lizzie. Anyone can see that James
loves you. He wouldn
’
t do anything like
that. You
’
re worrying for
nothing.
”

She
nodded her head in agreement.

  
“
You
’
re probably right. Anyway how are you? You look a little down
today.
”

  
“
I
’
m ok, but I miss living in Lighthouse Cove. I feel rather
isolated here. I can
’
t just pop out for a
walk on the beach when I feel like it.
”

  
“
Yes, I can imagine.
”
Lizzie then admitted that she missed our
parents. She took a deep breath and said. 

  
“
Do you remember the time when Tammy sat us all
in father
’
s office and told us
that Ben was our father
’
s child? Do you
remember the comment she made when I said I
’
d been kissing my half -brother. She said Ben
wasn
’
t our half-brother.
”

  
“
Yes, I do remember that.
”
I said.
 
I then went on to tell Lizzie that I
’
d found the key to the safe, the one Tammy had
been looking for.

  
“
I think we should just leave it. Whatever the
secret is behind the key doesn
’
t matter now. Things
should be left the way they are.
”
Lizzie said.

 I
agreed, however, I did often wonder what secrets there were.

CHAPTER FIVE

D
ecember soon came and it was bitter cold outside, everyone
was rushing around busily doing their Christmas shopping.

I
decided to invite the family over because it was Violet
’
s first Christmas.

I went
to do some shopping in Lighthouse Cove. I parked my car near the high street
and put Violet in her pram.  Whilst walking down the street I bumped into
Tammy.

  
“
Hi love, do you have time for coffee?  I have
something to tell you.
”
She said excitedly.

  
“
Yes I do. Let
’
s go to that nice little caf
é
on the corner, they have really nice cakes.
”
I answered wondering what she had to tell me.

The caf
é
was very busy; however, we managed to find a
little table in the corner where Violet
’
s pram wouldn
’
t get in the way.

   
“
Have you heard the news Bella? Lizzie
’
s expecting a baby. She called me this morning
as soon as she
’
d found.out.
”

I was
rather surprised to hear the news.

  
“
That
’
s strange! She told me that James didn
’
t want a baby. He must have changed his mind. I
think I
’
ll pop over and ask
her.
”

After we
’
d finished our coffee, I called into Lizzie
’
s shop to ask her if she was really pregnant.

 
“
Yes it
’
s true Bella, I
’
m pregnant, but James doesn
’
t know yet. I came off the pill quite a while
ago. I was desperate to have a baby.
”

 
“
Are you crazy Lizzie? James won
’
t be happy.
”
Lizzie looked worried.

“
Well I won
’
t tell him then.
”

 I
laughed.

  
“
What are you going to do when you start showing?
You can
’
t hide your pregnancy
forever.
”
I couldn
’
t believe she could be so stupid. Violet began
to cry, so I told Lizzie that I needed to go home and give her a bottle.

  
Violet was nearly three months old and a very happy baby. It was going to be
her first Christmas so I wanted to make it special. I couldn
’
t wait to decorate the tree.

I began
baking; the smell of Christmas food always made my mouth water, and reminded me
of my mother when she used to bake. I missed my parents so much, especially
this time of the year.  I put on a CD with all the Christmas songs and sang out
loud at the top of my voice.

Marco
had taken Violet with him to do some Christmas shopping; and to get my
Christmas present. So while they were out the way I decided to have a long soak
in the bath. I slid into the hot water.
Heaven
. I was so exhausted I
fell asleep. Loud knocking on the front door woke me with a jump. I leapt out
of the bath; pulled on my bath robe and
looked at
the time. It
was late and Marco and Violet still weren
’
t back. The knocking was getting louder, so I
rushed downstairs to answer the door. Two police men were standing there and
they asked me if they could come in. I knew by the look on their faces that
something was wrong. I showed them into the living room. I could hear my own
heart beating, as I anxiously waited for the news.

  
“
Do you have a husband by the name of Marco
Antionini?
”
One of the officers
asked in a very serious tone.

  
“
Yes I do and a baby daughter who is eleven weeks
old. Can you please tell me why you are here?
”

  
“
We are sorry to inform you that there has been
an accident.
”
One of the officers
said.