Tuscany Trip

"Yes. They are," Brian agreed. He watched Khaat come out of the dressing room in a little glittery white cocktail dress swirled in pink and blue. It looked like it had been made for her. "We'll take that one," Brian spoke up. He selected a few other cocktail dresses that he really liked on her. And that all seemed to be happening in the midst of other clothes and shoes being designed and ordered.

By the time they were finished, Brian had spent a pretty penny on the whole business. And he had the package sent to the villa. He knew they might be in England by the time it all arrived, but his men would make sure that it was delivered to him safe and sound.

He encouraged Jack to send the order for anything that needed additional fitting or alterations to the villa and gave him the address. That way, everything would arrive safely and at the same time.

"When we're done here, what do you say about some lunch?" he asked Jack.

Khaat was always interested in lunch, and she looked at Brian. "Are you buying?" she asked.

"As a matter of fact, yes," he laughed. "Shall we?"

He hired a water taxi and it delivered them to a nearby island, and they took a short journey to a vineyard. They had a wonderful selection of wines for tasting and for purchase. They also had an ability to cook some of the finest Italian country cuisine that Brian had ever tasted. And, he wasn't telling Khaat, Jack, or Jess how he had managed to let them know that they were coming for lunch. They sat the four of them under a covered patio that was covered in grapevines. Brian ordered both alcoholic and nonalcoholic white wines to begin with for lunch.

The first course was a wonderful fresh mushroom salad, with a variety of different sorts of mushrooms, some fresh shallot, and some garlic, in a rich balsalmic viniagrette.

Khaat took her first forkful of the marinated mushrooms and savored them. They were heavenly. Brian broke a piece of a baguette and passed the bread board to his left, to Jess. "Its still warm, Jess. Help yourself."

"The salad is incredible," Khaat told them all. "I definitely want to try to replicate this recipe."

"I think I can figure it out," Khaat smiled.

Lunch was a beautiful chicken piccata with capers, in a wonderful sauce, over freshly made homemade linguini. The chicken was so well prepared and so tender that it tasted, to Khaat, like it nearly melted on her fork. And Khaat loved capers. It was a delight to her palate. She loved every little morsel. She normally didn't eat so much at one sitting, but she loved each and every bite so much that it was hard to stop eating it.

The next course, so very Italian, was a selection of freshly grilled vegetables, asparagus, scallions, portabello mushrooms that had been grilled and sliced, red bell pepper, and fresh herbs. It was not unusual for the main course to be followed by a course of vegetables. These were exceptional.

The last course was a very unusual selection of biscotti and amaretti cookies that had been dipped in either dark or milk chocolate and served with a small bowl of fresh fruits, and either regular coffee or espresso, depending whatever each person wanted. It was the perfect dessert to simply sit and linger over and talk and enjoy the picture perfect surroundings. Khaat was deciding that in the future, whoever came to Italy to share the villa with her and Brian were going to be treated to the whole traditional Italian experience--the atmosphere, the food, the wine, the music, the whole thing. She was just simply the happiest she had ever been in years.

"Do either of you ride horses?" Brian asked Jack and Jess. "It's a beautiful day to go riding through the estate here and see what a real Italian vineyard and winemaking estate is like. They also produce olives and olive oil. I think you'd enjoy experiencing that. What do you think? Can you manage a bit on horseback? I ride, and so does Khaat--well, when we can keep her in the saddle and on the horse."

"Hey, that was one incident and was not my fault. That was due to lightning hitting a tree," Khaat laughed.

"Well, its better than Khaat. She landed on her head when she fell off,' Brian laughed. "Knocked herself silly for days. She had no sense of balance for days. She looked like she was drunk. "

"I am perfectly capable of staying on a horse when something does not interfere with it," Khaat frowned.

"Hey, I"m on your side, remember?" Brian laughed. "You don't mind if I keep an eye on you just to be sure, do you?"

"Could I dissuede you somehow?"

"Absolutely not," he laughed.

The estate owners hooked them each up with a beautiful horse. Brian's was a chestnut colored stallion. Khaat's was a mare that was white with some brown spots and was a bit spirited. Khaat liked her from the start. Brian offered to help her up into the saddle, and Khaat made the climb easily on her own. She looked down at Brian.

"I think I can manage," she laughed. "Do you want me to help you with a boost?"

He laughed out loud and mounted his horse.

"I think we'll ride a bit ahead of them and let them just follow. We deserve a bit of girl talk. You got that Brian Quinn?" Khaat glared.

"Yes, Ma'am," he saluted her, laughing. "Just no racing, alright? I know you're alright, but I want to keep it that way."

"Okay," she agreed. "Come on, Jess."

She rode out ahead of Brian and Jack, knowing Jess would keep right up with her. The scenery was gorgous. Khaat could not remember when she had seen anything so beautiful. "I love this country so much," Khaat told Jess. "I don't know when I"ve been happier. I can't tell you how glad I am that Brian bought the villa. It is so beautiful. I can't wait for you and Jack to see it. We can come back on as many weekends as we like. I think I might take one of the bedrooms and make it into a nursery for the babies so that when we come on weekends, we have a place for the girls. You know, Brian is an awesome father. He's really stepped up. Maybe you'd like to help me decorate a room for Abbey and Dakota to share?"