Tires crunched on the gravel driveway. The sound filtered in through the open windows, heralding a welcome arrival to the villa.
Kat flew through the rooms to the front door, almost bumping into Philippe on his way there from the salon. He pulled open the heavy wooden doors just as Bernadette’s sedan drew to a stop.
Andrew leapt from the car to pull Kat into a bear hug. He shook Philippe’s hand warmly before turning to help Bernadette with his luggage.
“Non, non, monsieur!” she sharply rebuked him, as she wagged her finger. “Eet’s my job!” Then she gave him a sly smile and a wink. His bags were on the ground before he had a chance to touch them.
Giving Kat and Philippe quick bises, she motioned to Andrew, saying, “Now ’e is a fine young man!” Then she waved, her bangle bracelets jingling, and was on her way.
Andrew laughed as Kat threw her arms around him again. “It’s been too long! I’m so happy to see you!” Holding her nephew at arm’s length, she surveyed him up and down. “You look great, and we can’t wait to hear about this new undertaking of yours. From what your mom tells us, there’s an added incentive in your returning to Ukraine.” She finished the sentence with a sparkle in her eye.
Andrew blushed. “You might say that, Aunt Kat.”
After the men greeted each other, Philippe picked up the bags, nodding for Andrew and Kat to go in first. “We have champagne chilling. But you might want to rest after your flight. I will take your bags to your room, and Kat can give you a quick tour along the way.”
“I would love to see all the changes since the wedding!” Last May, Andrew had flown to Antibes with all of Kat’s family and friends when Nick had chartered a private plane as a wedding surprise. They spent a moment reminiscing how Kat and Philippe’s über-wealthy and generous friend, Nicholas Field, had gone out of his way to make good things happen.
“He’s an inspiration to all of us when it comes to paying it forward,” Kat remarked, as Andrew agreed. “We can’t wait until he returns from Australia in the spring.”
In the foyer where they were still standing, Kat turned Andrew so he could see her mother’s treasured Persian carpet hanging in a place of honor.
She watched his eyes glisten with emotion as he laid his hands on the carpet. “Just like Néni would do,” he said softly, using the Hungarian word for aunt. He reached out and pulled Kat into a hug. “It’s so lovely to see it here.”
Kat smiled her agreement. “A simple carpet with a strong spirit living within.”
They shared a look of understanding that was interrupted by the sound of barking down the hall. “Next, I need to meet those pups of yours. After watching them grow on Skype, I want to get up close and personal with them. Besides, I can hear them calling me!”
Kat laughed. The pups were definitely making a lot of noise in the mudroom, where they had been waiting impatiently. Duly warned, Andrew got down on the floor in the salon, and Philippe let the pups out.
“Let me just move those champagne glasses on the coffee table until the greeting is over,” Kat said. “Those tails can wipe any surface clean in a flash!”
The next few minutes were a flurry of activity as Coco and Rocco were all over Andrew. Animal lover that he was, he only encouraged their exuberant welcome. The pups would alternate dashing to Kat or Philippe for a nuzzle, and then leap on Andrew, in spite of words from their owners.
“As you can see, they still have to work on their ‘petiquette,’” Kat said, “and we still have a way to go with obedience school.”
After a few minutes, both pups settled in a pile on Andrew’s outstretched legs, after clambering over each other a few times to achieve the optimal position.
When the laughter and ruckus had calmed, conversation continued as Andrew stroked the furry heads and backs. Two tails wagged contentedly. “Now I truly feel at home. There’s nothing like a dog to make me feel welcome.”
“I would say they approve you are here,” Kat agreed. “Let us know when your legs are falling asleep!”
After sharing bits of news with each other, Andrew said, “I hate to disturb my two new best friends, but I’d love a quick shower. Then I’ll be ready for whatever you have planned.”
Philippe went into the kitchen and called the pups to him. “So much for loyalty when dog treats are a possibility!” Andrew said with a laugh as they dashed off. Kat nodded her agreement.
“Take your time. Enjoy your shower and give us a shout when you are ready for champagne,” Kat told him. “We’ll be puttering about.”
She folded her nephew into another warm embrace. “I’m so glad you are here,” Kat murmured.
“So am I, Aunt Kat. So am I.”
Andrew had first met Philippe, briefly, over a year before, when he had flown to Antibes for a quick stop on his way from Toronto to Ukraine. At that time, Philippe and Kat had not yet been lovers.
After those few days in Antibes, Andrew and Kat had left to make an emotional journey to Kat’s parents’ and Andrew’s grandfather’s small village in Ukraine. Their ancestors had lived there for generations. Only after Elisabeth, widowed for many years, died two years before, leaving behind a heartrending letter, did they learn the details of how she had managed to avoid being sent to a concentration camp and how her husband, Jozsef, and his brother, Andrew’s grandfather, had aided in her escape. None of that older generation had spoken of those years with their families.
The emotions of that visit had taken a toll on Kat. As she walked the streets where her mother had lived and played as a child, she could not help visualizing her and the other Jews being rounded up by the Gestapo. First they were herded from their homes into a ghetto, and later put on to trains headed for the horrific death camp, Auschwitz.
Images were seared in Kat’s memory by the painful words in Elisabeth’s letter. Kat knew that family history would forever be a part of her. It was the reason Elisabeth and Jozsef had chosen to live secular lives and raise Kat in the same manner. Through the pain of her mother’s disclosures and the resulting awareness of the truth, she had grown in compassion and become a stronger woman. It had not been easy. There had been floods of tears along the way.
But Kat had left her nephew behind earlier than planned as she fled back to Antibes, unable to handle the emotional impact of the terrible history any longer. Andrew was an agricultural engineering student and was inspired to remain and volunteer with a farming co-op.
Andrea recently had told Kat that Andrew had met a young woman in that small town. A very special young woman named Magda. After a quick visit back home to Toronto to attend his graduation, Andrew was returning to a paid position at the co-op. No less importantly, he was returning to be with Magda.