Chapter 27

Throwing some clothesinto my suitcase, I'm excited for some time away with Lorenzo for the week. I toss in my red bikini and some sexy lingerie I splurged on from Carmella's shop last week. He told me it's a tradition for the whole family to go but that we're staying in a small cottage separate from his parents, sister, and grandmother. I throw in my makeup and hairdryer when my phone rings. I don't recognize the number. I'm about to ignore it, but something makes me pick it up.

"Hello?"

"This is the Burlingame County Jail with a collect call from Barbara. Do you accept the charges?"

"Yes…Hello? Barbara?"

"Summer, I need you to come home," she chokes up.

"Barbara, I can't understand you. What's going on? It's three-thirty in the morning there."

"Summer, listen to me." She breathes heavily into the phone. "I need you to come home now, please."

"Are you in jail?" I clench the t-shirt I'm holding, lowering myself to the edge of my bed. Dread fills my belly.

"I had an accident. I wrecked your car. I need you to come home and bail me out of jail."

"An accident? Are you hurt? Why are you in jail?"

"I'm not hurt, just a few bruises. The nurse said I was lucky. The other person has some bruises but is okay, from what I'm told. I…I was drinking and driving."

Fuuuuck.White-hot rage explodes through my veins as tears streak down my cheek. I didn't even realize I was crying. I scrunch the shirt and wipe my face.

"How did this even happen?"

"Mark and I left a bar, and he was too drunk to drive. I had a couple. I didn't think I was that bad. We got in a fight on the way to your place and I ran a red light. My memory is a little fuzzy, but evidently I sideswiped a car. Mark is fine, but he's in jail, too."

"You could have killed someone, Barbara." I'm shaking.

"I know."

"Jesus." I close my eyes and think. What the hell am I supposed to do from Italy? "Okay, I'll handle it. I'll call Cara and we'll take care of this."

"What about Mark?"

"Honestly, I don't give a flying fuck about Mark. He can get his own lawyer."

"Okay…I'm at the Burlingame precinct on Trousdale. And Summer? Thank you," she says before the line goes dead.

I stare down at my phone and immediately call Cara, even though it's the middle of the night.

"Summer? What's wrong," Cara's sleepy voice rasps into the phone.

"Cara? I…I need your help. My mom just called me from the Burlingame precinct. She's been arrested for drunk driving."

"Shit. Hold on." Sheets rustle as she murmurs something to Damien. "Sorry, I'm here. Just had to go into my office. Okay, Burlingame precinct. Did they set bail?"

"Um…she said I needed to bail her out, but I forgot to ask how much."

"It'll be okay. Did she kill anyone?"

"No." I swallow thickly as the implications of what could have happened crash down around me. "She said the other person has some bruises. She had a passenger who was also drunk. He's in jail as well, unharmed."

"Okay, okay, at least she's got that going for her," Cara says. "I'll call my friend Tony in the morning. He's the best with DUI cases."

"You can't take the case on?"

"Summer, I'm a divorce attorney, not DUI. Don't worry, Tony knows what he's doing. I think it's time for you to come home."

I burst into tears. "I know, Cara, but…non sono pronta."

"Whoa, English, please."

"I'm not ready," I blubber.

"I know it's hard to say goodbye, especially under these circumstances, but you need to come home and deal with this. I can bail her out in the morning, but I can't babysit her until her hearing. You'll need to meet with Tony and deal with your car and insurance."

"I know, I do. It's just…I was supposed to go away this weekend. This is so…"

"I know, love, but the end of your trip was coming. It sucks it has to be cut short because of this, but it's time. Barbara has been a wheel spinning out of control all summer."

"Why do I have to be responsible for this woman?" I shout to my ceiling. "Cara, I'm not sure I want to come back. I know that's incredibly selfish of me, but I'm happy here. For once, I'm happy!"

She's silent for a moment. "I love you. You know I do, but we're going to have some real talk happening right now. I know you're upset. Lord knows, I would be too, but sometimes we don't get to choose. Sometimes, we have to put our needs to the side and do what's right."

"But I love Italy. I love the Rossis and I'm in love with Lorenzo. I'm not ready to throw that all away. Besides you and Dame, the Rossis are the first family I've had since Grams died."

"Oh Summer…shit. You're in love with him?" She pauses for a moment. "Have you guys talked about what you are to each other?"

Fresh tears soak my pillow. "We've agreed to be exclusive, but we've been avoiding the talk about what happens when I have to return. I was going to bring it up this week."

"Summer, I was all on board for you to find yourself in Italy with a hot Italian man, but I'm sorry, babe, you have to deal with Barbara."

"What if I come home, deal with Barbara, and come back—"

"You know it's not going to be a quick fix. Barbara's situation is going to take months to resolve, maybe longer."

"We can do long distance." But even as the words leave my lips, I know it won't happen. We're too far apart on crazy time zones. Life will get in the way. It always does.

"Okay, let's say you return to Italy. Have you considered what will happen if things don't work out between you two? What if he decides he doesn't want a girlfriend, and you find yourself kicked out of that fancy villa? Where will you go? You won't be able to work there anymore."

"It's not like that…I can get my own place," I say with little conviction. I'm grasping at straws and she and I both know it. "My adventure was just beginning, Cara. You don't understand, Frances stayed—"

"Dammit, Summer, this is not a movie! This is reality, and your mom is in jail. Your life is here. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…I wish it could have been different for you." Her voice cracks while I sob into the phone. "Come home, Summer. You've had an amazing time in Italy, but your old life awaits."

Like a bird tethered to its cage, I know I don't have a choice. I hang up with Cara, my heart heavy as I call the airlines to book my flight back home.