“Damn, Mom, that’s kind of lame. Didn’t you ever want to do something really bad?”

Frannie propped her chin in her cupped hands and seemed to think about it. “Yeah. I always wanted to try skinny-dipping.”

Allegra and I shared a glance and burst into laughter. “Did you ever try?” she asked curiously.

Frannie shook her head. “Never got an opportunity. I mean, I wouldn’t do it with a crowd of people at a pool or anything. But a secluded watering hole or lake, on a beautiful summer night? I could do that.”

“Well, I have no desire to swim naked with icky bugs or fish,” Allegra announced. “I’m keeping my clothes on.”

“Good, let’s keep it that way, shall we?”

Allegra stuck out her tongue.

We finished our drinks, took our bags, and headed back home. The sun was beginning to slowly sink in the sky, and the light warmed all the colors of the hillside, blurring them into a misty glow. By the time I got home, my pelvis and feet ached, and I needed desperately to go to the bathroom. My skin had browned from the long days in the sun. My age surprised me sometimes. In my mind, I was forever young and able-bodied, but as I climbed the steps, I realized how easily a deteriorating body can become a prison.

“I’m going to take a bit of a rest,” I said cheerfully. “Then we’ll make a wonderful dinner and eat it outside on the terrace.”

“Okay, Nonni, let me know if you need me.”

I smiled at my sweet granddaughter, whom I was so blessed to have fuss over me. She’d eased my loneliness over the years and given my heart a new lease on life. One day, I’d express in words what she means to me. Perhaps a letter she could hold close after I left this earth, and be reminded how she is loved.

I slept for an hour, enjoying the firm mattress and the soft, hand-stitched white blanket. A gentle breeze blew in from the open windows, and the sound of birds floated to my ears. My sleep was disturbed so often, and I’d gotten used to snatching a few hours here and there, so this one short, dreamless slumber was everything.

When I came out of my room, Frannie and Allegra were already on the terrace. “I made lemonade, Nonni. Have some.”

She poured from a hand-painted floral pitcher, and I sipped the cool, tart liquid. “Delicious,” I praised. “Are you ready to start dinner?”

“Yes, I’m starving.”