anymore.
“This is it,” said Rafael, coming to a stop outside a rustic looking restaurant with a low wooden entrance and ‘Luigi’s’ printed in red neon lighting above the door.
The sound of laugher and incessant chatter radiated from inside. Rafael opened the door and stood back to let Anna enter.
The restaurant was warm and inviting. Tables were filled with laughing families or animated groups of men, eating pizza or slurping up spaghetti. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. No sooner had they walked in when a short, stocky man in a dirty apron came rushing forwards to greet them.
“Rafael, bona serra,” he enthused and then turned to Anna.
“ Signorina , welcome to my tavern.” He took her hand and kissed it. Anna gave him one of her best smiles causing him to blush and stammer, “Please come this way. I give you my personal table.”
Rafael went to pull out Anna’s chair, but Luigi beat him to it.
“Luigi is quite taken with you, I think,” teased Rafael as they sat down.
“He’s very sweet.” Anna looked around her. Luigi had seated them in front of a big archway that opened up into a picturesque courtyard filled with even more tables and laughing guests.
“Gosh, Luigi is a busy man,” commented Anna, as waiters rushed from table to table carrying large plates piled high with food, decanters of wine and jugs of water.
“ Its simple fare, but it’s good and the service is fast.”
“The atmosphere is great in here , too,” Anna remarked as the table next to them burst into hysterical laughter. “Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves immensely.”
“Ah, Italians always talk loudly and laugh even louder,” remarked Rafael with a grin. “We like to enjoy ourselves.”
“I can see that. ”
There was a pause. “I s that why you brought me here tonight?” Anna asked softly . “So we could enjoy ourselves? Or was there another reason?”
“Purely enjoyment,” lied Rafael, signalling for the waiter. “You must eat and you may as well see something of Capri while you’re here.”
A sweating waiter appeared. Anna’s mouth watered as Rafael ordered a carafe of wine for them to share and a starter of Parma ham, olives and a small salad.
“So this is for my benefit?” Anna gave him a sideways glance. “Well, that’s very decent of you, Rafael. Perhaps you’re not the lawyer from hell after all.”
“I try my best,” he smiled, not quite meeting her eye.
Rafael proved to be a considerate and amusing companion. He enthralled her with interesting facts about the island, legends and folk tales.
“H ave you lived here all your life?” Anna felt compelled to ask. He seemed incredibly knowledgeable about the island.
“I used to come here for holidays as a teenager,” he told her. “But I grew up in Naples.”
“So you had family here?”
“Yes,” he replied vaguely, changing the subject. “How about you? Where did you grow up?”
“Oh, I lived with my mother in a small English village in Surrey. We had a lovely old Victorian house, which unfortunately had to be sold after she died.” She looked wistfully at Rafael. “I loved that house. My uncle used the money to send me to boarding school.”
“How old were you when your mother died ?” His dark eyes roamed casually over her face.
“Twelve. It was an awful time and I was desperately unhappy for a few years, but then I made some good friends, friends I still have today, actually, and life improved drastically . I learned to look after myself.”
“It’s a valuable skill to possess,” remarked Ra fael, a tad cryptically, but he didn’t elaborate. Instead , he changed the subject. “There are a couple of things you should see while you’re on the island.
“I’m listening...” Anna smiled indulgently. She didn’t know how much free time she’d have, or how long she could stay, but it was worth visiting one or two landmarks before she left. Capri turned out to be far more expensive than
“This is it,” said Rafael, coming to a stop outside a rustic looking restaurant with a low wooden entrance and ‘Luigi’s’ printed in red neon lighting above the door.
The sound of laugher and incessant chatter radiated from inside. Rafael opened the door and stood back to let Anna enter.
The restaurant was warm and inviting. Tables were filled with laughing families or animated groups of men, eating pizza or slurping up spaghetti. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. No sooner had they walked in when a short, stocky man in a dirty apron came rushing forwards to greet them.
“Rafael, bona serra,” he enthused and then turned to Anna.
“ Signorina , welcome to my tavern.” He took her hand and kissed it. Anna gave him one of her best smiles causing him to blush and stammer, “Please come this way. I give you my personal table.”
Rafael went to pull out Anna’s chair, but Luigi beat him to it.
“Luigi is quite taken with you, I think,” teased Rafael as they sat down.
“He’s very sweet.” Anna looked around her. Luigi had seated them in front of a big archway that opened up into a picturesque courtyard filled with even more tables and laughing guests.
“Gosh, Luigi is a busy man,” commented Anna, as waiters rushed from table to table carrying large plates piled high with food, decanters of wine and jugs of water.
“ Its simple fare, but it’s good and the service is fast.”
“The atmosphere is great in here , too,” Anna remarked as the table next to them burst into hysterical laughter. “Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves immensely.”
“Ah, Italians always talk loudly and laugh even louder,” remarked Rafael with a grin. “We like to enjoy ourselves.”
“I can see that. ”
There was a pause. “I s that why you brought me here tonight?” Anna asked softly . “So we could enjoy ourselves? Or was there another reason?”
“Purely enjoyment,” lied Rafael, signalling for the waiter. “You must eat and you may as well see something of Capri while you’re here.”
A sweating waiter appeared. Anna’s mouth watered as Rafael ordered a carafe of wine for them to share and a starter of Parma ham, olives and a small salad.
“So this is for my benefit?” Anna gave him a sideways glance. “Well, that’s very decent of you, Rafael. Perhaps you’re not the lawyer from hell after all.”
“I try my best,” he smiled, not quite meeting her eye.
Rafael proved to be a considerate and amusing companion. He enthralled her with interesting facts about the island, legends and folk tales.
“H ave you lived here all your life?” Anna felt compelled to ask. He seemed incredibly knowledgeable about the island.
“I used to come here for holidays as a teenager,” he told her. “But I grew up in Naples.”
“So you had family here?”
“Yes,” he replied vaguely, changing the subject. “How about you? Where did you grow up?”
“Oh, I lived with my mother in a small English village in Surrey. We had a lovely old Victorian house, which unfortunately had to be sold after she died.” She looked wistfully at Rafael. “I loved that house. My uncle used the money to send me to boarding school.”
“How old were you when your mother died ?” His dark eyes roamed casually over her face.
“Twelve. It was an awful time and I was desperately unhappy for a few years, but then I made some good friends, friends I still have today, actually, and life improved drastically . I learned to look after myself.”
“It’s a valuable skill to possess,” remarked Ra fael, a tad cryptically, but he didn’t elaborate. Instead , he changed the subject. “There are a couple of things you should see while you’re on the island.
“I’m listening...” Anna smiled indulgently. She didn’t know how much free time she’d have, or how long she could stay, but it was worth visiting one or two landmarks before she left. Capri turned out to be far more expensive than
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