Learning to Dance Again

by Frankie Valente

‘Nor do you, my dear,’ Tony said, raising his glass to her.

  The conversation turned to local politics, which effectively excluded Julia from the conversation. She listened intently while she ate her food, which was delicious, and did much to overcome her lack of appetite.

  She could not believe twenty four hours earlier she had been sat in a soulless airport hotel at Gatwick, sulking about her argument with Jamie the previous night, over her decision to go on holiday on her own. She wished she could take a photograph of this scene on her phone and send it to him, to show him how she hadn’t been kidnapped by the mafia, or any other of the mad scenarios he had painted for her. It was nice of him to be concerned, but she resented the way he seemed to think she would not manage on her own. Bryden had also changed his tune a little, and chipped in with the warnings not to go out at night on her own, or to attempt to drive a car, or speak to strangers. She had felt more like she was turning five.

  She marvelled at the fact she was sitting at the dining table of a famous author, two other English ex-pats and two rather wealthy looking Germans. So what if they weren’t really including her in their conversation; the food was great and the wine was going down a treat. In fact, she really ought to slow down and change to water.

  ‘So what do you do, Julia?’ Lydia asked, after a brief lull in the conversation.

  ‘I’m not working at the moment. I used to manage a care home.’

  Lydia’s face clouded over a little at her reply, as if this not a profession she cared to talk about.

  ‘I’m thinking of changing my career though; that’s another reason for my long holiday. I plan to spend some time considering all my options.’

  ‘What kinds of options are available in Shetland? You’re not going to take up fishing are you?’ Lydia said, laughing as she looked around the table, inviting support for her joke.

  ‘My father was a fisherman, but no, that’s not something I’m considering. The job I most enjoyed was being a theatre nurse in a big hospital in Aberdeen. That was really busy, and I enjoyed the fact I was helping to save lives. But I don’t want to go back to nursing now; after thirty years, it’s time for a change.’

  ‘What did your late husband do?’ Tony asked.

  ‘He was a maths teacher at the High School. My youngest son has just started teaching the same subject, at a school in Edinburgh. My other son is also in Edinburgh, but he’s training to become a doctor.’

  ‘Clever boys then,’ Jürgen said, nodding in approval.

  ‘So you don’t have to stay in Shetland then, maybe you could move to Edinburgh too,’ Sebastian said.

  ‘Oh no, I couldn’t imagine leaving Shetland. I love it there.’

  ‘Really? It doesn’t sound very appealing to me,’ Lydia said, shivering as if the cold North wind had just breezed past her shoulders.

  ‘No really, it’s beautiful; especially in the summer, when it hardly gets dark at night. And the people; well it’s a very different culture to anywhere else. So friendly!’

  ‘A sense of community?’ Christine said.

  ‘Definitely!’

  ‘But where do you go shopping?’ Lydia asked, frowning indiscreetly at Julia’s outfit.

  ‘We have shops in Lerwick, and the internet of course. I tend to do my shopping when I go down to Edinburgh or Aberdeen. But we don’t have much call to wear Diane Von Furstenberg very often. I would look overdressed if I wore that outfit around to visit my best friend; as lovely as it is.’

  Lydia looked down at her dress and then narrowed her eyes at Julia, trying to work out whether that was truly a compliment.

  ‘I was reading about a zero carbon-footprint house somebody built in Shetland; it looked really interesting. I would love to see it one day.’ Jürgen said, deftly changing the subject.

  ‘That was built by an architect friend of mine, Cameron Moncrieff. It really is a great house; even on a freezing cold day it’s toasty warm inside. They don’t pay any electricity bills; so it’s cheap too. Well it was cheap, right up until his wife had an affair with his brother and he’s now living back at his mother’s house.’

  Tony laughed. ‘So you do get some scandal there from time to time.’

  ‘Definitely! Sometimes it’s like living in the middle of a soap opera,’ Julia replied.

  ‘So you could introduce me to your friend, the architect,’ Jürgen asked.

  ‘Yes of course. I’ll give you his email address. He’s working on another similar house. He’s always really busy with work, especially since his house appeared on television.’

  ‘I’m sure. We have much to learn in Sicily about carbon-neutral building. It costs so much to keep houses cool in the summer, so it is the same problem as Shetland, but in reverse I think.’

  ‘I’m sure it is. I do love Tony’s house though. It really makes the most of the views.’

  ‘Thank you! What kind of house do you have in Shetland?’

  ‘We built our home many years ago, so it was before all of the carbon-neutral ideas were around. But it overlooks the sea and we have a big conservatory like this, and it has five bedrooms, which is too many, now I live there on my own. But I would hate to sell the house. My husband designed it.’

  ‘A maths teacher and an architect?’ Jürgen said, raising his eyebrows.

  ‘Well, he didn’t produce all of the architectural drawings, but they didn’t actually change much from his original design. Nearly every room has a view of the sea, which is only a hundred metres away. It’s amazing to look out of the window during a storm. Very dramatic.’

  ‘I would like to see that too. Sometimes this permanent good weather gets very boring.’ Christine said, as she set her knife and fork down on the plate. She picked up her wine glass and leant back in her seat, and rested her arm along the back of her husband’s chair.

  ‘You should come and visit then. Whereabouts in Germany are you from?’

  ‘We’re both from Berlin. But we met in Rome. We chose to live in Sicily because it seemed like an adventure, and we loved the weather. In Berlin it rains a lot; but now I miss the rain sometimes,’ Christine replied.

  ‘I don’t miss the rain at all. I love the hot weather. I wouldn’t move back to England if you paid me,’ Lydia said.

  ‘You only love the hot weather because we have the air-con cranked up to the highest level. You would be on the first plane back home if it broke down. Let’s face it, you’d be so desperate you’d even fly Easy Jet,’ Sebastian said.

  Julia had been about to ask Lydia and Sebastian about their reasons for living in Sicily, but after the comment about Easy Jet, she realised she didn’t really care to find out more about them. There was something rather unpleasant about this couple.

  When they finished dinner, Tony suggested they took their coffee into the lounge. Julia was about to make her excuses to leave as she was feeling tired after so much good food and wine. But Tony took her arm as she left the conservatory and whispered to her.

  ‘Dreadful snob Lydia; well done for putting up with her. Come and try some Limoncello. I put a bottle in the freezer earlier.’

  Julia followed him out to the kitchen, while the others sat down in the lounge.

  ‘I was thinking of going off to bed; I’m pretty knackered now.’

  ‘Oh, don’t go yet; it’s nice having someone new here. Otherwise the conversation just bounces around all the same old subjects. Between you and me, I could do without all this socialising. I find it hard work, but if I didn’t see all our old friends, I really would become a recluse. And that wouldn’t be good.’

  ‘I know how you feel. Sometimes I just want to lock my front door and hide away from the world. But if I do, my friend Marianne comes along and drags me out. That’s why I’m here. I need to mourn in peace and quiet, and sunshine. It feels very strange being in a new place, but it’s helping already.’

  ‘A change of scene is good. I hope it works for you, being here. But you must get out and about and see some of the sights. There’s
so much to do; you really ought to reconsider the idea of hiring a car.’

  ‘Maybe; we’ll see. I thought I might get the train across to Agrigento sometime. I would love to see the Greek temples.’

  ‘Oh but you definitely need a car for that. The train station is about five miles away from the Valley of the Temples. It’s much easier to drive.’

  Julia pulled a face and shook her head.

  ‘Let’s face it my dear, if that airhead Lydia can drive around Sicily without any bother, then I’m pretty sure you could.’

  Julia giggled. She looked at Tony who was rooting around in the freezer drawer; his shoulders were shaking with laughter.

  ‘What are you two laughing about in here?’

  Julia turned and saw Lydia standing behind her.

  ‘I was trying to convince Julia she needed to hire a car to make the best of Sicily. But she’s a little nervous,’ Tony said, as he shut the freezer and stood up.

  ‘Oh nonsense; if I can drive over here, then anyone can.’

  ‘That’s just what I told her.’

  Julia’s face froze, trying hard not to laugh. Unseen by Lydia, Tony winked at her as he passed her the bottle of ice cold Limoncello.

  10

  The following morning Julia was thoroughly surprised not to have any kind of hangover. She looked at her watch and saw it was after ten. The bedroom was roasting hot as she had opened the shutters in the middle of the night. Now the sun was streaming in completely unfettered.

  She took a shower and then put on another of Marianne’s “summer holiday” dresses. It was an orange sleeveless knee length dress; not the kind of bold colour she would normally wear, but Marianne had convinced her it would be appropriate for Sicily. As Julia looked out of the window at the bright blue sea, the dress did seem to fit the bill. She found her iPad and took it outside and sat in the shade of the veranda.

  She had missed a number of emails and messages via Facebook, as well as texts from her sons, demanding to know whether she had arrived safely.

  She held her iPad up to the view and took a few pictures and uploaded them to Facebook. She sent Bryden and Jamie a message each telling them a little bit about the dinner party she went to. She smirked to herself as she typed, knowing this would probably end up in some form of rebuke, from Jamie at least.

  She had just finished catching up with the online gossip when Maria appeared at the gate loaded down with carrier bags. Julia jumped up to take the heavy bags from her, as Maria indicated she was going back to get more. Julia carried the bags into the kitchen, peaking in to see what pleasures awaited her. It smelt divine.

  She opened one bag and took out some fresh bread, a box of cannoli pastries, a bag of dried pasta, a waxed paper package containing Parma ham, a large tub of olives, a packet of butter and various different cheeses. The other bag contained meat, rice, coffee, tea, milk, and flour.

  Maria entered the kitchen with another heavy bag containing wine and juice.

  ‘Thanks so much Maria, this is perfect. I won’t need to hurry to the shops now.’

  ‘It’s good? You like?’

  ‘Oh yes. It’s making me feel very hungry now. Although I ate so much last night I can’t believe it.’

  ‘I am glad… I must get back to work now. Arriverderci.’

  Julia made herself some coffee and stood in the kitchen as she drank it and tried a sweet, ricotta filled cannoli. It was so good she cut another one in half and ate that too. She put the shopping away and sighed with pleasure as she realised she didn’t need to go anywhere. She could just sit by the pool all day, or stay in the shade and read. It was heaven.

  She opened a carton of apple juice and poured herself a large glass and carried it outside and sat down. It was warm, even in the shade; warmer than it ever got in Shetland in the middle of summer. It was hard to believe it was October; even the garden appeared to be warding off autumn. Flowers were still blooming and insects and birds flitted about peacefully.

  Julia had a quick look at Facebook to see if anyone had responded to her photographs. There was a message from Bryden.

  “Looks lovely – and hot! Haven’t booked our flights yet, but hope to get there on 16th for a few days at least. X”

  Julia put the iPad down and settled back in the lounger, planning on sunbathing for a little bit, before the raw heat of the midday sun would send her scurrying for shelter.

  She knew she ought to venture down into Cefalu and explore the town. It was a waste to fly all this way and just lounge around, but she decided one day of laziness was perfectly acceptable. She thought of Duncan and wondered what he would have planned for their first day in Sicily. He would not have wanted to sit around. On their family holidays he had been a demon for exploring museums, art galleries, historic buildings; anything to avoid sitting in the sun, or worse still, shopping. Julia blinked back the tears that erupted suddenly at the thought of him. She thought of the arguments they had sometimes had on holiday when she had tried to encourage him to chill out and do nothing. She would give anything to be sitting here with him nagging at her to do something other than soaking up the sun.

  ‘Damn it!’

  She stood up suddenly; all thoughts of rest and relaxation had vanished. She decided she would walk into Cefalu, have a wander around, maybe stop at a café for a drink and then walk back up the hill. It would take hours; but she had hours. She had days, weeks, an entire month. The month suddenly stretched out ahead of her, quiet, lonely and in all honesty, a little miserable.

  She heard a rustle of plants, and heavy footsteps walking towards the property; she turned to see Tony standing at the gate.

  ‘Hello there, just wanted to make sure you’re alright after last night. Not too hung-over I hope.’

  ‘No; although that was a pleasant surprise.’

  ‘That’s good, I’m glad you enjoyed yourself. It must be a bit odd having dinner with a bunch of complete strangers.’

  ‘No, it was lovely; they were lovely - Christine and Jürgen especially. Did I really agree to go and meet them in Palermo some time?’

  ‘Indeed you did. But don’t worry; they won’t hold you to it. But they’re a nice couple.’

  ‘I meant to ask how you knew the other two.’

  Tony laughed.

  ‘I met them at a party somewhere. Eleonora introduced us; I think she imagined I was homesick for some English company. Funny thing is they make me appreciate Sicily even more.’

  ‘What does Lydia do?’

  ‘Shop, I think. Oh yes, and she “writes” novels.’

  ‘You don’t sound convinced. Aren’t they any good?’

  ‘Good God no! Thankfully she’s not found a publisher yet. And this tells you how bad they are, since she’s a very well connected woman. Old money; never needed to work for a living. But actually, Sebastian’s a good sort. I get on well with him, so I tolerate Lydia. And she was lovely after Eleonora …’

  Tony stopped speaking and looked into the distance for a moment. He hadn’t opened the gate and was still standing a polite distance away.

  ‘I was just about to make some coffee, would you like some? Maria very kindly bought me lots of groceries this morning. What a lovely woman she is?’

  ‘Ah yes, she has been with our family for about ten years now. Would you believe she’s nearly seventy? She refuses to retire and works as hard as she ever did; maybe more so. She even comes to work on Sunday’s after church. Her excuse is she needs to make sure I’m alright; but truthfully, she’s lonely. Her husband died the same year Eleonora did. We’ve been keeping each other sane ever since.’

  ‘That’s just what I need. I was having a moment there. Funny how you can be sitting around quite happily, then WHAM, it hits you all over again.’

  Tony still hadn’t opened the gate, and he hadn’t accepted or declined her offer of coffee. Julia stood awkwardly beside one of the pillars of the veranda not sure whether to repeat the invitation.

  ‘Anyway, I’m not getting any
writing done this morning, so I’m going to call it a day. I was thinking about going off for a drive somewhere. I would love some company if you’re not doing anything. But please say no if you’d rather not. I won’t be offended.’

  Julia hesitated. What would Duncan have said? She knew he would have said yes to an opportunity to see more of the island, although she wasn’t sure he would approve of her going off with a strange man. Jamie would definitely tell her not to, and Bryden would probably agree with his brother. Marianne, on the other hand, would have picked up her handbag and be half way out the door already.

  ‘Actually, I was just thinking of going for a bit of a walk, but going out for a drive would be even better.’

  ‘Brilliant. Meet me at the car when you’re ready.’

  ‘Five minutes!’

  They set off down the hill towards Cefalu and then joined the motorway in the direction of Palermo. As he drove, Tony coached her on the art of driving in Sicily; and on the motorway it didn’t seem complicated. The traffic was moving swiftly, but not as fast, or erratic as Julia had imagined. Tony pointed out places of interest and told her some of the history of the island, much of which Julia had been reading about in her guide book, but it was interesting to hear another version of it.

  She could understand how he had become an author, his storytelling had a certain charm and humour to it. She imagined he had practised these stories over the years, maybe ferrying other guests around. He seemed to be enjoying himself.

  Shortly after leaving the outskirts of Cefalu they turned left onto another major road that cut through the mountains. Suddenly the view of the sea vanished and it was now an entirely different landscape. The steep sloping valley supported vineyards, lemon groves and olive plantations; and occasionally they would glimpse a dark river running alongside the road. Small farmhouses were dotted around the hills, each seemingly miles from any neighbours. They looked much lonelier and more isolated than any Shetland croft house.

  It took a while before she realised there were hardly any animals around. She had expected to see sheep, but had not seen a single one. There were just tiny herds of white cattle every few miles, often sheltering in the shade of the trees. It was an alien landscape, with its terracotta earth, prickly pear cacti and the deepest blue sky she had ever seen.