by Lucy Knott
Small beads of sweat started tickling Louisa’s forehead, her pulse beating quicker and quicker. She looked under the worktop, peeked under the dress. She needed her notebook. More importantly she needed to know where her notebook was. Her eyes were the only ones allowed to see its contents.
When the front bell chimed, letting Louisa know a customer had left and the shop was clear, she dashed out to speak to Giulia.
‘Giulia, have you seen my notebook? The white one? It only had sketches and notes for one design in it, but it is molto important,’ Louisa asked, shifting her weight from foot to foot, unable to calm her nerves.
Giulia’s gorgeous fuscia lips curved into a delighted grin, her hands began clapping.
‘I want to surprise you. I see the design e it is like a princess, no? I pass it on to someone very special.’ Giulia’s excitement was evident in her childlike singsong voice, meanwhile Louisa knew her face had turned a wonderful shade of green. She felt faint. She had to burst Giulia’s happy bubble right now. There was no way around this, she was going to hurt Giulia’s feelings, but it had to be done.
‘Giulia, I need my book back right now.’ Louisa spoke calmly, doing her utmost to ignore her clammy state and fix this disaster without too much drama.
‘You do not need to worry, Louisa. Your work, they love it. It is one of your best. Giulia takes care of it. Non preoccuparti,’ Giulia said, dismissing Louisa with a happy wave of her hands.
‘No, no, no Giulia. Whoever it is, they can’t have that design. They absolutely, one million per cent cannot have that design,’ Louisa said, her voice building with exasperation as panic rose in her chest.
‘Ma cara, per che? E bellisima, e Viola Donatella!’ Giulia protested, cheekily dropping such a name into the conversation, like she had let the cat out of the bag when she shouldn’t have. Louisa nearly choked on the air she breathed next. Viola Donatella. Oh god! Louisa understood how crazy she must sound to Giulia. This was Viola Donatella. How had Giulia managed to get her work into the hands of such fashion royalty? The magnitude of Viola Donatella looking at one of her designs was not lost on her, but she couldn’t do it, she couldn’t possibly give it away. Not to her, not to anyone. But Viola Donatella? All eyes had been on this Italian fashion mogul for the past two years running. Her dresses were like nothing else Louisa had ever laid her eyes on before; they were haute couture, bewitching and absolutely flawless in both design and creation.
‘Ma Giulia, it is not for sale. It is not for the catwalk or for magazines.’ Like every Italian conversation, this was escalating quickly; Louisa couldn’t curb her rising and slightly high-pitched voice. Both women were now waving frantically and pacing the shop, shouting over each other. Over the past six months their bond had been well and truly tied and, between work and family affairs, they had become like sisters.
‘Per che, per che, I do not understand,’ Giulia yelled, frustration in her blue eyes at Louisa being so ungrateful for this opportunity. ‘She like it. I say it is hers. You will be happy per che, this make your dreams come true. Ma now I tell you, you are not happy.’ Giulia sounded like Louisa’s mum and nanna whenever they told the girls off when they were kids. The guilt in Louisa’s stomach was real.
‘I know, I know, I know,’ Louisa shouted back. ‘I am happy. Thank you. You are incredible and I can’t believe it.’
‘Then you not be silly or nervous. We wait for what she says next,’ Giulia said with a wave and a defiant nod, mirroring Louisa’s nanna when Louisa said she wasn’t hungry, but her nanna insisted on cooking, telling her she was hungry and needed to eat anyway. But this wasn’t as simple as taking a few bites of melanzane to appease her nanna or was it? Louisa tugged at her bottom lip, one hand twirling around her high ponytail in thought. She took a deep breath, grateful that there were no customers in the shop or waiting to be seen to. No, if there was one thing the girls had learnt from their new ventures this year was that recognition, success, fame and fortune all came second to family and remembering who you were. Sabrina had faltered finding her feet once more in the world of entertainment, but Levi had got her back on track showing her that love was more important than record sales and that he would always choose her over the latter. Amanda had feared renowned critics and reviewers but came to realize that those who truly mattered were the customers that kept coming back, whom she gave a home to. While at the same time she and Dan learnt that though outside interference and events can affect a relationship, it was the two people in it and how they treated each other and loved each other that made all the difference. Of course, having one of her designs gracing the cover of Donatella Designs would be a dream come true for Louisa, but she could not do it at the expense of her client.
‘Giulia, no. I can’t. I need it back. Can you get it back, please?’ Louisa said, her voice mellowing out, out of shock and fear.
There was no denying the disappointed look on Giulia’s face. Louisa feared Giulia would not likely be doing her any such favours again. What with this and not winning the showcase, Louisa was zero for two. She would seriously have to make up for it come Milan Fashion week.
‘Per che, per che?’ Giulia yelled, her thumb and forefingers pressed together angrily pointing in Louisa’s direction; her one final attempt at understanding Louisa’s crazy request.
‘Because … because it’s Sabrina’s wedding dress,’ Louisa shouted back, her arms rising at her sides and flopping back down. She felt ashamed that she had let it out of her sight in the first place now.
Giulia’s eyes bulged out of her head. Her pacing immediately picked back up. ‘Mamma mia,’ she exclaimed. ‘You not tell me this. Ehhhh, mamma mia,’ she added under her breath, pushing past Louisa and picking up the boutique’s phone. She dialed while shaking her head at Louisa and uttering, ‘Mamma mia’ for the tenth time. Louisa stared at her until Giulia gave her a stern glare and nodded towards the back of the shop. Louisa shuffled back into her office, her feet dragging behind her.
Was she being insane? Couldn’t she just design another dress for Sabrina? But this had been the dress; the dress where every line drawn, every idea thought, and every embellishment made, was made with Sabrina in mind. The look on Sabrina’s face when Louisa had presented it to her had been something Louisa would never forget. It had been the recognition and success she wanted to achieve; getting to design something so special for a person so special to her and them love it with all their heart; she couldn’t possibly give Sabrina second best now. But was Giulia going to be able to get her design back? Too distracted to concentrate on the rack of work next to her, Louisa picked up a lemon cupcake and stuffed it in her mouth. Lemon cupcakes were the real deal when made with lemons from Amalfi.
As she licked her fingers, savouring every morsel, Giulia walked into the back. Louisa stood to attention, wiping her hands on her pink slimline trousers; instantly regretting the decision. She would have to put the washing on as soon as she got home. Giulia followed her movements, her face a little less sparkly than it had been earlier when she thought she had done a wonderful surprise for Louisa. Guilt churned in Louisa’s stomach once more. Giulia’s intention had been pure of heart. Louisa couldn’t be mad, but she could be more careful in future where she put her notebooks when filled with super special secret projects.
Louisa raised her eyebrows to urge Giulia to speak. Giulia sighed, but smiled a hopeful smile.
‘I did my best, ma she would like to know if her magazine can cover the wedding of your sister? This dress, she believes, is special.’
Louisa felt her jaw hit the floor with a hard knock. She was speechless, stunned, completely taken aback. She had to lean back against her desk to keep herself upright. Was it just her or was the room spinning? She felt a touch woozy. Viola Donatella wanted to feature her dress in her bridal magazine and cover Sabrina and Levi’s wedding? Louisa was both thrilled and jealous. Her brain ran away with images of how unbelievably beautiful shots of Levi and her sister would be in such an elegant publi
cation. The thing was, that while this sounded like an absolute dream for her, one that she would happily sign herself and Luca up for anytime, Sabrina and Levi were not her and Luca. Keeping their private life private was an everyday battle for them; would they really want it to be in print for the world to witness? Would Sabrina recognize the opportunity it bore for Louisa? Would she maybe take one for the team? There was only one way to find out …
Crashing cymbals and a solid bass line filled the screen first, followed by a whirring of a kitchen mixer, before both her sisters came into view looking slightly harassed.
‘Sup Lou.’ Amanda greeted her from a distance, waving with dough between her fingers, her phone propped up on the counter away from the food.
‘Hey Lou, everything alright?’ Sabrina asked next, clipboard in one hand, bright eyes and glossy lips taking up most of the screen. Louisa smiled, nerves causing her question to get lodged in her throat. How could she put this so Sabrina didn’t feel pressured?
‘Sabrina what would your publicist say …’ Louisa started, then shook her head. ‘Sorry, what would you say or how would you feel if there was a small, smidgen of a chance that your dress could feature in Donatella Designs with maybe a wee possibility of you being in it and them doing a feature on you and Levi? I know the wedding is a family affair and I understand privacy being an issue, but just throwing it out there on the off-chance that Viola Donatella saw my design and loved it, you know, on the off-chance and like in another universe? And then I just got thinking about how magical it would be to share some pictures in a tasteful way rather than them being leaked and I think it would be a wonderful way to show the boys in such a light with this new album and how special and from the heart it is.’ Louisa was out of breath rushing to get everything off her chest and her idea out in the open, the rambling just kept coming. She scrunched up her nose, terrified of her sister’s response. She considered she had a fifty-fifty shot at a yes. Sabrina loved fashion and all things floaty and elegant, but at the same time she was all about her band and keeping herself out of the limelight. If Sabrina said yes it could bode well for both of them; Louisa being taken seriously as a fashion designer and getting her foot in the door and Sabrina and Levi being seen as team and a pairing to be reckoned with.
When Louisa stopped talking Sabrina’s mouth flew open; her hazel eyes sparkled. ‘Are you serious Lou?’ That sounded like an excited, ‘Are you serious?’ to Louisa but she needed to be a million per cent certain.
‘It’s just an idea I was thinking about, that’s all. So, you, hypothetically, would be fine with it and like the idea?’ she asked nonchalantly, swiping frosting off a lemon cupcake. How many lemon cupcakes should one eat in a single sitting?
‘Are you kidding me? I’d wear that dress everywhere, every day for the rest of my life if I could. Of course I’d show it off in that beautiful magazine. My goodness, oh wow. That would be too weird though, wouldn’t it? I’m not a model,’ Sabrina said, her eyes glazing over as if dreaming about what it would be like.
Louisa felt bad for shouting at Giulia earlier. She could make this work, couldn’t she? Sabrina was naturally stunning; her airy nature came through her features often giving her a radiant glow. Louisa could picture her on any cover, but in her one-of-a-kind wedding dress and with natural makeup, Donatella Designs would be lucky to have her. Not to mention getting to feature one of the world’s hottest drummers alongside her. Put Levi in a tux and the magazine would fly off the shelves. The shots of them both would be utterly gorgeous. Furthermore, one of the reasons Louisa adored Donatella Designs was that it featured models and people of all different shapes and sizes and ethnicities; everyone could be a model and rightly so.
‘Just to clarify, you’d be totally cool with it?’ Louisa asked once more, aware that she was going to start hyperventilating soon. Just then Giulia poked her head in front of her phone screen and in rapid fire Italian gave Sabrina the run down on what she had been discussing on the phone. Louisa stared at her feisty Italian boss with a mixture of awe in her eyes while doing an impeccable impression of a goldfish.
‘You didn’t tell me all that,’ Louisa noted to Giulia, trying to process the new information that Giulia had just shared with her sisters. Apparently, Viola had spoken of envisioning the dress amongst a winter fairytale. Now, either Viola had some sort of crystal ball, could read minds or she was just really, really good at her job (being that she was Italy’s number one designer for wedding dresses, Louisa would bet on the latter), but a winter fairytale matched Sabrina’s wedding plan already. Sabrina had talked of getting married at a Duomo in Ravello and holding a reception at Hotel Caruso after falling in love with its Neapolitan style and tradition and its lush gardens. Twinkling lights, garden candles and a touch of Christmas would make it a photographer’s dream and the most divine backdrop for Louisa’s design. Excitement bubbled inside Louisa; it felt like this was all meant to be.
‘Ma, we need Sabrina’s blessing first,’ Giulia responded innocently with a shrug. Sabrina was currently rendered speechless – even Amanda had put down the dough and come closer to her phone to take everything in. Louisa shrugged. ‘I think we have her blessing,’ she said with a chuckle.
A few moments passed where everyone simply stared at each other. The music had since silenced, as had Amanda’s kitchen mixer. There was an electricity in the air, a sort of magic that only the power of celebrating love could induce.
‘Sup ladies?’ Levi’s voice interrupted the calm as he appeared on screen to give Sabrina a kiss. Sabrina didn’t skip a beat and got straight to it.
‘How would you feel about having our wedding covered by a prestigious bridal publication? It wouldn’t be too invasive, more about the dress and the reception, nothing at the church,’ Sabrina asked with a giddiness in her tone.
‘Is it something you would like? Would that be good for Lou and her design?’ Levi replied casually, saluting the screen to say hi to everyone.
‘I think it would be beautiful,’ Sabrina expressed. Levi kissed her forehead. ‘Then let’s do it,’ he said, simple as that. Louisa could feel Giulia melt beside her, having not been accustomed to the charm of the members of San Francisco Beat. Though they were always swoon-worthy on camera, it was dialed up by about three thousand per cent in person. Oh, Giulia was in for a treat come the wedding when she would get to meet them.
‘Thank you both, I appreciate this with all my heart. I love you,’ Louisa gushed as the reality of this conversation started to hit her. Amanda had remained quiet throughout the exchange and was back to prodding and poking dough only now with an even bigger grin on her face than before; it was not often she cooked without a smile on her face, even when frazzled it was there.
‘Is that okay with you Amanda?’ Sabrina asked. This affected everyone. Amanda was of course in charge of the wedding cake and Louisa knew that the nerves that came with making something for someone special was one thing but then to have it under scrutiny in a magazine was another.
‘Ooh I don’t know, I was thinking of phoning it in; now this seems like a big deal it might be too much like hard work,’ Amanda said, appearing up close again, a teasing side smirk creasing her face.
Levi promptly burst out laughing while Sabrina and Louisa rolled their eyes.
‘Are you behaving, baby girl?’ Dan’s voice crept up behind Levi. Louisa watched Giulia take a seat and start fanning herself with papers. Louisa laughed at the ‘Dan effect’. Amanda chuckled, ‘Don’t I always?’
‘Right, well this is awesome.’ Louisa said, shaking her head in disbelief. Not only was she going to have one of her designs in a high-end magazine, but it had now become a family affair; she was getting to do it with her sisters.
‘I feel like The Avengers have assembled,’ Amanda noted, her eyes on Dan.
‘Mamma mia,’ Giulia chuckled, taking in the sisters talking and Levi and Dan’s handsome faces squeezed onto Sabrina’s screen.
‘Right, well we best get back to it, e
veryone has a whole lot of work to do,’ Sabrina said, gently waving her boys away to find their instruments. The band were currently doing rehearsals for their tour that would be kicking off in Manchester in July and take them all around the world over the summer. Louisa was incredibly excited that they would be making a stop in Italy. She couldn’t wait to hear their new album live and get to fit her sister for her wedding dress while she was at it.
There certainly was something to be said for stepping out of your comfort zone and learning balance and patience in both life and work. Sure, she had failed in scoring the magazine spread from the Young Designers Fashion Showcase and she had missed Amanda’s grand opening, but fate would have it that Louisa was able to attend Sabrina’s engagement, spend Easter with her family and visit Torta per Tutti and now she was getting to work with Viola Donatella. Louisa had learnt over the past few months that there would be hits and there would be misses. The road to your dreams was not a straight path. The dream itself came with a life that needed to be lived; with ups and downs, twists and turns, happy chapters and sad ones. It’s who you share the moments with and how you cope with those turns that matter the most.
If you fell in love with Amanda, Sabrina and Louisa, then don’t miss Lucy Knott’s first book How to Bake a New Beginning, available now!
Click here if you’re in the US
Click here if you’re in the UK
Acknowledgements
I want to start by saying a massive thank you to the entire team at HarperCollins and HQ Digital UK for believing in me and allowing me the opportunity to write more books. To Nia Beynon for your support and initial thoughts on The Ingredients for Happiness and for getting me on the right track with where I wanted the story to go. To Cara Chimirri for always being there to advise, guide and encourage me – emails from you always motivate me and make me smile. To Suzy Clarke, thank you for pushing me and making sense of my mind, and helping me to tell the story I wanted to tell. I can’t express how much I appreciate all your input and how much it helped me to get the story out of my head and onto the page when I felt a bit lost. You are amazing. Thank you also to the wonderful design team for creating such a gorgeous cover that I can’t stop staring at and fills my heart with so much joy. And thank you to Helen Williams for your edits, input and for catching my (sometimes amusing) spelling mistakes.
