by Laurie Ames
The men that had raped her had been two nineteen-year old’s that were just transients passing through her town. They were working at one of the local wineries doing seasonal work, picking the grapes for wine. She too, was working at the same winery. The rape occurred after one of the men tried to date her and she rejected him. Afterwards, he and his friend thought she was some kind of freak that needed to be taught a lesson. She knew that she was attracted only to women but was far too afraid to let her feelings be known to others. So, she instead accepted her fate, and lived in a loveless marriage for twenty-six years.
“Bruno has always been gone for weeks at a time on his ship. I think we are both glad about this arrangement, as I am sure he sees other women in the many far away ports of his travels. To be honest I am glad because I really don’t want him to touch me. I have been living in fear of this man for my entire married life. He has even threatened to strangle the life from me if I try to leave him. But in a strange way, I feel that I owe him loyalty since he has raised my first boy Veto as his own. I have guilt for not telling him the truth that he is not Veto's biological father. But that Veto's biological father is actually one of the men that raped me. I have never shared my story of rape with anyone, until now with you. It is this terrible guilt that has caused me stay in this loveless marriage for as long as I have” said Frederica as she wiped away tears that were streaking her makeup”.
“Also, I have never told my son the truth. I am worried that he will become very angry with me for not being truthful about his real father. But, to be honest, I really don't know which of the two men is his father. Of course, now with DNA testing that can be easily determined, but that would involve tracking the two men to retrieve a DNA sample. I am so confused; I don't know what I am going to do. I know in my heart it is the right thing to tell both Bruno and Veto the truth. I guess I have just been putting it off. Giorgia I am sorry I am loading this all on your shoulders like this.” Said Frederica feeling very ashamed.
Georgia reached out to hold Frederica’s hand.
“You have had a very hard life and have done nothing to deserve this. Is there anything at all that I can do to help?”
“Oh, you have already been so kind to me. There is something so special about you, I have felt very drawn to you from the first moment we met. Georgia, I need to get something off my chest, I want you to know that I am quite attracted to you,” replied Frederica, her face turning slightly red with embarrassment.
“Oh yes, I also feel the same attraction. I could feel it the first time I looked into your beautiful eyes. Behind those eyes is sadness but also I see a beautiful happy woman that is waiting to come out” said Georgia. She was pleased to hear about Frederica’s true feelings, even though she already knew in her heart.
Giorgia was filled with mixed emotions after hearing this story from Frederica. It seems that she has spent most of her life living in misery with a man she had never loved. The upside from this story was that Giorgia now believed Frederica could indeed be her “golden girl.” She was quite surprised to hear that this lovely goddess was attracted to women but had never actually been with one. Instead, she married a nasty man, never having the chance to experience true love and passion. Giorgia desperately wanted to shower this woman with affection and to try make up for the miserable life that she had endured.
“How would like to go with me tomorrow to the town of Certaldo for lunch? It will be a lovely drive in Uncle Antonio’s convertible, and we could spend some time getting to know one another a little better. Instead of hanging over old dusty books, we could make it a special day. It would be a nice change of pace”.
Frederica smiled and at first tried to speak but the words did not come out as she became choked with emotion. She just nodded her head in agreement.
“Okay then, no need to say anything” replied Giorgia. “Tomorrow is definitely our lunch date. I will pick you up tomorrow at around half past noon”.
“I will be ready and waiting, I am so excited about seeing you again.” smiled Frederica.
“Can I give you a lift home?”
“No, I would like to walk back to the village, I will be fine.”
Frederica waved back at Giorgia with a big sexy smile as she started walking towards the village road. ‘This was starting to feel like the beginning of something very magical’ felt Giorgia.
Chapter 4. Theresa Reveals the Heart-Breaking Truth
Giorgia was sitting in a big comfy leather chair in her uncle's study, looking through the family recipe book. She began thinking how great it will be to bring these recipes back home and use them in her restaurants. Her cell phone started to ring, she pulled it out of her pocket and answered to find it was Theresa, Frederica's mother. She presumed that she must be calling to set up a day to pick up the furnishings that were left here for her in Giorgia's uncle's will.
“Hello Frederica, what a pleasant surprise.”
“Hello Giorgia, I am calling to ask if I may pay you a visit? There are some things that I want to discuss with you. Is now a good time?
“Sure, you are always welcome to come to this house. I would love to have a talk with you.”
About half an hour later a small light blue car pulled into the front of the house. It was Theresa, looking as lovely as ever. Giorgia thought she must have been a stunning beauty in her youth, just as her daughter is now. Giorgia invited Theresa into the house, a house that Theresa knew very well. Giorgia offered Theresa a drink, which she chose to have a glass of red wine. The two women went into the large living-room to sit down in front of the massive big windows that faced out onto the garden. Theresa seemed a little nervous as she began to speak to Giorgia.
“I want to reveal something to you, something that you may find very shocking.” said Theresa. I need to tell you that there is a good reason why your Uncle Antonio left me money and furnishings in his will. The truth is Antonio and I have been lovers for many years. The man that I had originally married, Lorenzo Chenzo, was a good man. But back then, it was very much an arranged marriage. My father thought he would be a good match for me in marriage as he had a trade as a watchmaker. I married Lorenzo when I had just turned eighteen. Later when I was twenty-three, I went to work as Antonio's housekeeper. We immediately fell in love and that was the start of our ongoing affair. We have shared our love for one another right up until Antonio's death”.
“My husband Lorenzo and I had tried to have children for years, but it never happened. But when I one day became pregnant, I knew that child was not Lorenzo’s, it was Antonio's. That child was of course ‘Frederica’. I sensed that deep down my husband knew that the child was not his, but he was a good man, he never questioned whether the child was truly his own. Lorenzo was a good father to Frederica, he loved her dearly, raising her like he was his biological daughter. I told Antonio that I would raise Frederica as Lorenzo's child. I did not want to make any commotion for Antonio or myself. This was a small village and these things were not well tolerated. I also knew that Antonio was not prepared to take on the role of being a father, so he agreed with my wishes. I thought best for all that it be kept hidden from my husband and eventually my daughter. I told Antonio not to question me anymore about Frederica—as far as I was concerned Lorenzo was Frederica's father. I thought at the time I was making the right decision, because I did not want to hurt poor Lorenzo. I wanted to keep our marriage together and knew that Lorenzo was much more of a family man than Antonio. Even though I loved your uncle dearly, I knew that he was not the kind of man that wanted to be tied down with a family. He was too much of a social butterfly, enjoying having guests come to stay, and weekend parties that he loved to throw. Travelling was also another passion of his. But he would always come back to me eventually, and we would be back in each other’s arms once again, even though those times were painfully brief. We both cherished those special moments together. To this day, I have never told Frederica the truth about who her real father is”.
“Over th
e years I have taken Frederica with me many times to Antonio's house while working there. He loved it when I brought Frederica because Antonio secretly adored her so much”.
“So now the majority of the money Antonio left for me, is really meant to be for Frederica. He wanted me to give it to her in a way that is not suspicious. There was also a letter accompanying the inheritance money from Antonio. In the letter he suggested giving the money to Frederica but had added it to my inheritance. This way she would not know the money was actually from him. But now I am feeling torn on how to handle this with my daughter. We Italians often have many secrets that we bring to the grave. Instead of talking about things we tend to bury them deep within us. I have much regret in not being truthful with my daughter and late husband. At the time I made a decision and being a stubborn person, I stuck with it—for better or worse”.
Giorgia was deeply touched by this story. Now she realized the reason for having Theresa in his will. She always knew her uncle was a wonderful generous man.
The two women strolled through the house, while Theresa told stories about many different items and what they meant to her uncle. When they reached the master bedroom Theresa walked in and gently felt the post of the big oak bed, with a far-away look in her face as she looked down on the bed.
“This is the bed that Frederica was conceived on. This is the room where much of our passion and love for one another was revealed. The reason Antonio wanted me to have the bedroom furniture is because we shared many pleasant memories in this room together.”
“It’s beautiful, I’m so glad he left these furnishings for you” replied Giorgia. That oil-painting on the wall looks really interesting. Is that that Tuscany countryside?”
“Yes” replied Theresa. “It has a special story behind it. It was purchased on a day when we both went to Pisa, on a romantic trip together. It was one of the most precious and special times that we have shared together. My husband was gone to Switzerland for five days where he was attending a watchmaking convention. He had travelled on this trip with another watchmaker and friend from a nearby village. That meant Antonio and I had five precious days to spend in each other's arms. It was the only time that we were ever able to spend four full nights together, two of which were spent in Pisa. While we in Pisa on our little trip, we were walking through the market hand in hand. That’s when I laid eyes upon this lovely oil-painting. Antonio could tell by the way my face lit-up that I really loved the painting. He said he would purchase the painting for me but thought it best to keep it at his house. This was because suspicions would quickly arise if I came home with an expensive oil-painting from my employer. When I saw the price, I was embarrassed and told him not to be silly, that it was far too expensive. But Antonio had already made his mind up. So now the painting is another symbol of the love we have shared together.”
“Please tell me more” asked Giorgia as she sat down in a big comfy chair. She was delighted to be learning so much about the secret life of her uncle Antonio.
“Well, the trip to Pisa was a very special time in my life. It felt so nice to be out with the man I loved and just enjoy his company. Then spending two nights of heated passion in the lovely hotel room that we shared in Pisa was unbelievable. This indeed was a treasured time for both of us that we never forgot, and fondly thought about often. As most of our relationship was hidden behind the doors of Antonio's estate, we had to keep our love for one another a secret until death. Now I am having feelings of extreme guilt, I feel that perhaps the time has come to reveal the truth to my daughter”.
Giorgia loved listening about Theresa’s romance with her uncle Antonio, but secretly felt crushed when she heard the woman, she hoped to be her “golden girl” was in fact her biological cousin. She sat listening to Theresa's stories, all the while in the back of her mind she was feeling broken hearted to hear the truth. Little did Theresa realize the pain she was causing Giorgia by revealing these truths about Frederica.
“I have something I really need to get off my chest as well.” Said Giorgia with a deep grimace on her face. “You have been so very open with me, and I need to be honest with you. There are some things you need to share with your daughter, and your daughter has some hidden truths she needs to share with you. The fact is I have only known your daughter for a very short time, but I have deep feelings for her. I want to get to know her more intimately and I know she feels the same way about me. I suggest that you both need to tell each other the truth about yourselves. You would both feel better for it in the long run.”
“Yes, I agree. It’s the right thing to do. And to tell the truth, I have always sensed that Frederica was never drawn to men in a sexual way, even from a very young age. She always seemed to love looking at other females,” replied Theresa. “I often wondered about my daughter because she is a beautiful girl that never had a boyfriend, that is, until Bruno came along. This was despite half the village's handsome young men trying to date her. I did have a sense that she might be attracted to women, but then all of a sudden, she started to see that husband of hers, Bruno—I never understood why she picked him of all the men. She could have had her pick. I never liked Frederica's husband at all. He has always treated her so poorly. She seems to be at her happiest when he is off on his ship, sailing around the world. From day one, I never believed my daughter loved that man. I think they had sex, she got pregnant and they married very quickly. Frederica never told me that she was pregnant—but six months after her marriage to Bruno she had my first grandson, Veto. The strange thing about that child, I could never see whose side of the family he looked like. But you just never know with these things. Like I said before, we Italians carry many deep secrets.”
Chapter 5. What Will Become of the 'Golden Girl'
“I knew you were a lesbian because your uncle told me, he was often worried that you would be left alone in life. Now you have confessed to me that you have fallen in love with my daughter” said Theresa softly. “What am I to think?
Giorgia nodded back at Theresa.
“Yes, I understand your concern, but we have both shared some shocking revelations. But for now, I want you to know I was planning to take Frederica out for lunch to the town of Certaldo tomorrow. But now I am so confused about what to do, I have just learned that the woman I am in love with is none-other than my own cousin!” A tear fell silently down her face, she was incredibly heartbroken. “Theresa, I have felt drawn to Frederica from the first moment I laid eyes on her, when she first came walking up the road toward the estate. I have never seen such a vision of loveliness in my life. Maybe I am only dreaming, but I am hoping to convince Frederica to leave Bruno and come to America, to live with me.”
Theresa sat quietly, listening with intense interest. Her facial expression was one of both concern and approval.
“We could have had a wonderful life together running my four restaurants. I have had visions of spending the rest of my life with Frederica. But, now hearing this news today has changed all of that. Even if I cannot have her as my partner in life, I would still love to see her break free from the unhappy marriage she is in. Her sons are grown, she should move on, she deserves to spend her life being happy. I cannot deny that I am totally heartbroken that she will not be spending it with me as my soulmate.” Cried Giorgia.
Theresa was speechless as she sat taking all this in. Deep inside she knew that Giorgia could be the key to her daughter’s happiness.
“I would still love to help Frederica, any way that I can. If she ever wanted to come to America, I would be more than glad to help her set up a new life, I would give her work. She could stay at my home until she was settled. Whatever it takes, I want to see Frederica happy. The poor woman has spent the first part of her life in a marriage that was not based on love and respect. If I can only have her in my life as a cousin, then so be it.”
“Giorgia, it has saddened me for many years knowing that my daughter was in a loveless marriage. I knew in my heart that my dear daughter did not ca
re for men in a sexual way. But it was one of those many things in life we never talked about with one another, and perhaps we should have before she became married. I believe at that time in Frederica's life she just wanted to be accepted and loved by those around her. Perhaps she thought that by marrying a man it would change her somehow—would help her deny her true feelings. But now I see that you and my daughter have found one another and should have the chance to be together to enjoy your lives with each other. I really do not want to see my daughter move to America, but in my heart, I know it is where she needs to go to find happiness in life. And she needs to be as far away from Bruno as possible!”
