Blackbird of the Vineyard

Damn! She’s something else, he thought as he watched her body hum to the rhythm of Nina Simone. He leaned back and listened as she sang Blackbird, closing his eyes to the dance he had witnessed every night this week. When she completed the set, he watched her smile, the red lipstick drawing his eyes to the roll of small sweat beads on her bare brown-skinned neck. Then, without a second thought he left, remembering he had someone else to see.

Stevie sighed. She wore the red lipstick to get his attention, but it didn’t work. Feeling defeated, she decided to accept an earlier invitation from the one person she knew would sit in her mood with her just so she wouldn't feel alone.

"Stevie!" the old man beamed and led her to a quiet table in his little restaurant. It was near closing time and most diners were finishing their meals.

Stevie smiled as he sat opposite her. "Are you well Giovanni?" she asked and reached for his hand. "Sorry I haven't been around-"

"- bella," he smiled as he patted her hand. "You are a young woman and should not be worried about an old man like me. My Lucia would have told you this."

Stevie looked at his hands when she heard her name then back into his grey eyes. He smiled then stood.

"I will cook for you-" he said as he turned towards the kitchen.

"-Oh no I can't let you do that. You are packing up for the night," Stevie pleaded and reached for his arm.

Giovanni chuckled and patted her hand once more. "I want to cook for you... and for him."

Stevie turned to see the man from the club approaching.

Ben faltered. He wasn't expecting to see her here, but he was excited she was.

"Ben, Stevie... Stevie, Ben," Giovanni said then urged Ben to sit. "Wine?"

"Water for me," Stevie answered quickly.

"Ah what has my Lucia taught you, bella? You cannot date without wine," Giovanni teased then looked at Ben.

"This isn't a date Giovanni... whisky for me," Ben said then looked at her. "Hello."

I just didn't say hello he thought and looked over her head at the people leaving the restaurant to avoid her eyes. Stevie recoiled at his no-date comment then composed herself as Giovanni walked into the kitchen.

She smiled then asked, "How do you know Giovanni? I've never seen you here before."

"I used to work in the kitchen. That's probably why.”

"You're a chef?"

"Trying to be."

Stevie smiled again. "I love food. Eating is one of my favourite things to do."

"Same. This is my favourite place to eat."

"Ditto! What's your favourite Giovanni dish?"

Ben thought then smiled. "Don't laugh but I like the spaghetti and meatballs. I mean Giovanni does steak in red wine sauce and grills lamb chops to perfection, but I love his pasta dishes most."

Stevie licked her lips as though she could taste the spaghetti. She nodded her head slowly. "Me too."

He saw that... he noticed the lick of her lips... Damn, that red lipstick!

She saw he looked away and frowned, thinking he was losing interest. "So… what is your favourite Giovanni dessert?"

"How about you tell me," Ben suggested, leaning forward in his chair so that his forearms rested on the table.

"Chocolate," she answered slowly with a hint of a smile. "Anything chocolately he makes like soufflé or mousse... oh my god - have you tried his chocolate cream pie? That's worth a toast or two!"

Ben laughed and nodded. "The chocolate cream pie is a favourite of mine too. How is it you know Giovanni?"

"I can tell you!" Giovanni boomed as he approached pushing a trolley. He pulled a chair over to the table and gave them each a drink. He then placed an unopened bottle of Merlot in the centre of the table and sat down.

Ben looked to see what Giovanni had served and almost drooled when he saw the bocconcini, cherry tomato, and basil pizza. Without waiting, he used his hands to pull at the hot pizza until a big slice came away.

Giovanni laughed. "Let's begin," he said with a clap of his hands then copied Ben as he spoke. "Stevie lived around the corner from me and my Lucia. One day she was with her mama and heard Lucia playing the piano. I was in the front garden when her mama asked if Stevie could listen to my Lucia play. I said of course and my Lucia played all afternoon while Stevie listened. Her mama went to the store and when she came back, gave us our first bottle of Merlot. She thanked us for letting Stevie watch my Lucia play. That was when our love for Merlot began. How old were you bella?"

" Five or six."

"You were a little girl with a smile so big that my Lucia fell in love with you. After that, my Lucia and bella were always together."

Ben noticed Stevie's back straighten and knew Giovanni had touched a nerve.

"Can I tell him?" Giovanni asked and when Stevie nodded, he continued. "Magic happened that day. We did not know but bella could not hear properly and yet she heard my Lucia play the piano. My Lucia began teaching her everything she knew about music from that day on."

Ben looked at Stevie. "Are you deaf?" he asked bluntly.

"I live with mild sensorineural hearing loss in my left ear, which is permanent, but this helps," Stevie said as she tucked her curls behind her left ear and showed Ben a small hearing aid.

"You sing?" Ben spoke again without thinking. "I mean..."

"Yes, deaf people can do many things too, Ben.”

"I'm sorry. That was rude," Ben said embarrassed.

"Let me continue," Giovanni insisted as they began to finish their meal. "I invited you two here tonight for I have news."

Ben and Stevie looked at each other then back at Giovanni. "See this bottle of wine?"

Giovanni held up the unopened Lane Vineyard Block 8 Merlot and they both nodded. "Did you know merle is a French translation of blackbird? The colours of the grapes I think... or because the birds love the sweetness of the grapes as they hang on the vine."

Giovanni continued. "Was it a coincidence my Lucia loved Nina Simone and Nina Simone sang a song called Blackbird? Then your mama gave us our first bottle of Merlot? My Lucia was always looking for signs.”

Stevie nodded as she frowned. "What are you saying, Giovanni?"

"My Lucia worried about you bella. Nina was her way of loving you. She knew just like in that song that the world would say no to you because of your brown skin and she was teaching you to ask yourself why instead of accepting that answer. It worked si? You did fly Stevie, si?"

"Yes, Giovanni I did," Stevie said, confused. "What has that got to do with this?"

"My Lucia wanted to fill you up with so much love bella that no matter what, you would still have nothing but love to give.”

Stevie nodded.

Giovanni continued. “My Lucia... before she died...told me she still worried the loneliness was going to catch you bella. So, she wanted me to introduce you to Ben and tell you that he is the one for you. That you have love to give and he is the place to hold all those tears... like in the song. Of course, I thought that would be odd so Ben, I will give you this... and this... and tell you to take Stevie out on a date.”

Giovanni handed Ben the bottle of Merlot and a paper bag of bread that was hidden on the trolley. He looked at him and spoke with authority. "The wine is soft and rich and has to be respected and treated at just the right temperature otherwise the flavours are no longer rare. Understand?"

Ben nodded and knew he was talking about Stevie. He accepted both the bottle and bag and placed them on either side of his chair.

"Now... you are wondering why I am telling you this?" Giovanni continued. "I am moving to Adelaide Hills… to The Lane Vineyard. My daughter works there and wants me close so I will run the restaurant. Signs you see… just like the ones my Lucia looked for."

"But Giovanni," Stevie began, "you are 74 years old…"

"… and you are deaf bella but that did not stop you from hearing music. Oh, what a blessing our Lucia has been... to inspire us to dream and even in her death, to give us the courage to live!"

Ben spoke to Giovanni often over the months following his move to Adelaide Hills but never called Stevie once, finding an excuse every day to not dial the number stored in his phone. Stevie gave up after the first month of waiting for the call that never came. She performed in the club and he didn't show, and she walked by the restaurant but never saw him. Yet she looked for him as she admired the views of Adelaide Hills and The Lane Vineyard estate where a small group were celebrating Giovanni’s birthday.

"Hello," Ben said with a smile when she saw him. "How are you?"

Stevie noticed he was holding a bottle of Merlot and 2 glasses. A waiter followed and placed a large platter of bruschetta on a table, some topped with fresh tomatoes, garlic, and basil and others with garlic, olive oil, and salt.

"Good," Stevie spoke slowly as she eyed the plate.

"I'm getting around to the bread and wine thing that Giovanni wanted me to do..."

"... six months ago."

"Six months ago," Ben agreed. "I'm sorry it took me this long. No excuse other than I was chicken."

Stevie smiled.

Ben continued. "Lucia was always such a good judge of character yeah?"

Stevie nodded.

"She would tell me to stop playing with women and I’d say to her that I didn't understand them, so I was just playing for now. But every time she saw me, she would tell me that all I needed was love. Then she died and then Giovanni told us that she thought we would be good for each other. It was just too much."

Stevie nodded then reached for the bruschetta. She was hungry and the garlic she could smell was tantalising. She neither spoke nor looked at Ben but ate and enjoyed the views before her.

"So, Giovanni asked me to cook for his party. Then he said you were here, and I took it as one of Lucia’s signs and made something with bread and brought wine like Giovanni wanted. What was it that Lucia would say?"

"You cannot date without wine," Stevie said quickly, still not making eye contact with Ben.

"That's it... so I brought the Merlot Giovanni gave me that night."

"Are you saying this is our very first date?" Stevie cut-in as she stopped eating and stared at him.

Ben inhaled and nodded his head yes. "If-if you agree..."

"Well then," Stevie spoke with another slight smile. "You better open that bottle of Merlot and pour us a drink."

Ben smiled wide and did as she said. "By the way," he teased as he poured. "I made dessert."

Stevie stopped eating and squinted at him. "Are you saying chocolate soufflé or mousse?"

"I'm saying chocolate cream pie."

Stevie squealed. "Chocolate cream pie and Merlot! That's worth a toast or three!"

Ben laughed and raised his glass to hers. Damn, he thought... she really is something else!

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