N: short one! I had a bit of a block on this one before i figured out what i want to do next. So read on and enjoy! I'll have links for a giveaway contest for the new book in a few days! If you guys want to know more, find me on twitter under sydney563a

Enjoy!

Bo

I stood outside my hotel, clutching the tiny piece of paper. What was I doing? This was crazy. I should go back inside, do some work and then meet up with Bonnie. It was a bad idea to go find Lauren and have lunch with her. I'd just get swept up in the romance of Italy and fall all over again for her.

I sighed heavily, shifting my bag on my shoulders and looked back at the hotel. This wasn't a great idea. Probably one of the worst ever.

I turned to go back inside, shaking my head at my heart for its moment of weakness.

"Bo? Is that you?"

I turned to catch Tamsin coming my way, waving with her arms full of wine bottles. I threw on a tight polite smile, and waved back. "Hey Tamsin."

The blonde stopped right in front of me, moving the bottles of red wine under her arm. "I'm glad I caught you, Lauren just left the restaurant in hurry. She got caught up in making the fruit tarts for dinner, she almost forgot about your date."

I shook my head, "It's not a date. We're just having lunch." I glanced at the cobblestones near my feet. This wasn't a date, it couldn't be a date. I had to keep this platonic.

Tamsin chuckled, shoving a bottle of pinot into my hands. "It's a date. Take this wine, it's her favorite and no one at the restaurant will notice it's missing. There's a million bottles in the wine cellar." She went to take a step when she paused, and bent down to look in my eyes. "Bo, give her a chance. She's not the woman you remember. She's softer, open and ready to find her way back to you."

I almost dropped the bottle. "It's not like that…"

"It's exactly like that, Bo." Tamsin's green eyes sparkled with tiny bolts of lightning. "Give yourself a chance too, you're her soul mate and you know it. Let yourself believe it." She then winked at me, and I felt a strange warmth cascade over my body as she walked away mumbling, "A bow and arrow would be more effective than the truth stare. I need to talk to Meg about giving me better weapons."

I stared at the back of the blonde, she was incredibly unusual but her words had me suddenly motivated to go through with this lunch meeting. "So strange." I tucked the bottle of wine into my bag and started walking down the path, unraveling the small map Lauren drew for me.

As I walked, I thought about everything. Tamsin's comments, my hearts own whispers, and how Lauren never really left me over the last year. There was always a piece of her wherever I looked and in whoever I dated. I would always latch onto the one characteristic of the person that reminded me of Lauren. Whether it was the way they smiled, laughed, or even how they smelled like Lauren. It was all subconscious things that had me drawn to them, but never filling the void left by Lauren.

She always had my heart. I just refused to admit it.

I walked around the corner and came across a small alleyway that looked as if it fell right out of an old movie about Italy. The buildings were tall, old, and made me smile as I saw the strings of laundry hanging between the windows. Shirts, socks, and the occasional tea towel hung like party streamers between windows. I looked up as I walked and soaked up the atmosphere. I was beginning to feel my anxiety ease with every step, and even waved at a little old lady hanging out of her window.

She smiled at me and nodded to watch where I was walking, I smiled back and tipped my head down in time to catch Lauren walking towards me with a basket full of vegetables. The second our eyes met, she grinned and waved. I nervously threw up my hand and jammed it back into my pocket. The old woman I had waved to, started hollering at Lauren in Italian.

"Lauren! Questa bella donna qui per te?"

Lauren blushed a bit, "Sì. Il suo nome è Ysabeau. È un amico."

The old woman clucked with a smile on her face. "È l'amore della tua vita, Lauren. Posso vederlo."

I was confused, since I didn't speak a lick of Italian, but by the red cheeks on Lauren's face, I could tell the lady had something about me. I walked closer to Lauren, offering to take the basket from her. "What is she saying?"

Lauren ran her eyes over my face for a second before answering me. "That's Fiamma. My nosy neighbor." She dug in her pocket for keys, avoiding telling me more.

I smiled, "How did you know my full name was Ysabeau?" I glanced at Fiamma waving at me with a huge grin on her face. There was something about her green eyes that had me suspicious, in a good way, about the woman.

"You told me on our second date. The story of how kids picked on you about your strange first name, and how your mom changed it to Bo to give you a break from the endless name calling." Lauren pushed open the heavy blue wooden door to her house. She held it open for me and whispered, "Fiamma believes you're the love of my life."

I barely heard it, but I heard it. I swallowed down the lump in my throat. "Um, where's the kitchen?" I silently cursed Fiamma for making this ten times more awkward than it needed to be.

XXX

Tamsin

Wearing a disguise sucks, especially when you're trying to be an ancient old Italian woman. My back still hurts from faking the hunch of Fiamma. But it worked, my cheeky old lady ways worked and it ignited a fire in Lauren. Calling her out on Bo being the love of her life, worked.

Lauren was taking my sage old words to heart, and it led to an interesting lunch and lesson in pasta making for Bo.

XX

Lauren

"Towards the back. You can set the tomatoes in the sink for washing." I barely found my voice as Bo walked through my living room. I would have to have a hearty conversation with Fiamma about sticking her nose in places it didn't belong. No matter how right she was.

Bo was the love of my life, I realized it this morning when I woke up with excitement to get through the first half of the day. I couldn't stop thinking about her while I made the desserts and decided I would teach her how to make pasta. It could be romantic, it could open up the walls Bo had around her. I sighed, closing the door behind me. Fiamma had me motivated to give Bo my all. If it went to hell, at least I could say I tried.

"Your house is nothing like I expected it, especially from the outside." Bo stood in the middle of the kitchen, looking around the modern interior.

I chuckled, "It's all brand new on the inside. The architect wanted to maintain the integrity of the exterior, but give the owner all the modern conveniences." I walked to the kitchen, "Old meets new."

"It's beautiful." Bo turned to smile at me.

"So are you, Bo." I turned away, feeling nerves rise at my own bold words. But I was under some sort of spell. Call it Fiamma's old Italian magic, but I was compelled to speak from the heart. "So, I've decided to teach you how to make ravioli. I have spinach, ricotta, and a nice sausage from the butcher at the end of the street." I went to reach for a large bowl and the flour. There was a painful, heavy silence filling my kitchen. "Um, Fulvio really likes you. He was impressed with how much you knew about pasta."

I looked up from the bowl to catch Bo staring at me. I felt my heart drop. The look in her eyes was unreadable, and I was pretty sure I'd gone too far with my beautiful comment. I let out a slow breath. "Bo, if you don't want to have lunch. I'll understand." I waved my hands around nervously. "I've never spoken from the heart. Always shoving down my feelings when it was least needed, and I've regretted it." I met her eyes, clenching my jaw at how stupidly beautiful Bo was and that I blew it. "But I've learned, from Fiamma, Fulvio and a thousand others in this country, love shouldn't be set aside. It should be spoken as often as possible." I paused, knowing Bo was thirty seconds from walking out the door and to never be seen again. "You're beautiful Bo. The most beautiful woman I've ever met, and will meet. I screwed up in Michigan and I don't expect you to forgive me."

Bo still had no reaction, so I stepped away from the counter to head towards the front door to let her out. "I just wished I'd given myself a chance when I fell in love with you the first time."

I tilted my head down, biting back the tears as I thought about making a quick pizza and drowning my woes in last nights Chianti. I was three steps away, when I felt a firm hand wrap around my arm and yank me back. I turned to come face to face with Bo, tears rolling down her cheeks as she grabbed the sides of my face and kissed me. It took a second before I registered she was kissing me, and kissed her back. I could feel my heart come back to life as Bo pulled me deeper into her. I wrapped my arms around her, lifting her up to press our bodies closer together. This was exactly like the first time I kissed Bo, but a million times better. All the puzzle pieces were falling into place, and I felt cupid's arrow ramming into my heart.

After a minute, I reluctantly parted from Bo. She looked up with watery eyes, searching mine. I smiled, running my hands up her back. "Bo…"

She shook her head, "I must be insane to want you back, but it's the only thing I know to be right." She laid her head on my shoulder, "That old woman and Tamsin really got in my head. Maybe I'm stupid, but you were the only thing that ever made sense in my life, Lauren. And as much as I'm confused, this is right." She leaned back, smiling softly. "But why do I feel like we might screw this up?"

I shook my head, wiping away her tears. "We won't. This is our second chance, Bo. It's meant to be. We're meant to be." I smiled, "We should thank Tamsin and Fiamma for their wisdom. But I do wonder what Tamsin told you. She's nothing but snark and sass."

Bo laughed, leaning back into my arms. "It's not important, it was just snarky wisdom." She leaned back, pointing at her bag. "She did give me a bottle of wine that I'm pretty confident she stole from the restaurant."

I laughed, and nodded in agreement. "That's a give in." I found Bo's hand and took it, grinning at the way she squeezed it. "What do you say about making ravioli?"

Bo grinned back. "I say the only ravioli I know how to make is out of the can."

I playfully rolled my eyes and shook my head. "I have so much to teach you."

XX

Tamsin

You'd think that would be the end of it. But it's not. There's a few more bumps in the road as these ladies finally ball up and fight for each other. Like every great romance story, there's at least one thing that blocks the way to serendipity for our two ladies. One that had me wondering about the gods and if they were sadistic bastards playing with humans.

So much so, I almost quit my job as cupid and took a job in the Pegasus stables. Do you know how much shit a Pegasus creates? It's more than you'd think from a winged beast.

Stick with me, I'll tell more of this story during this weddings cocktail hour. I have to get to the open bar before the bride's brother does, if I don't, he'll eat all the cocktail weenies and chase them with all the vodka in the house. And I could really use a drink right about now. Reminiscing ain't easy.