Here's part two, and a little bit of the romance I was mentioning earlier.
Don't worry, though--it's nothing too sugary!
Sunset in Tuscany Part Two
Rated: PG
“Well, Jesse is right,” Pete said over the phone with MacGyver. “Lucien is a wanted international criminal. Every agency known to man has been hunting him with little success. He could very well be in Tuscany. Think of it. It just makes sense. It’s a country area, filled with wealthy people—it’s the perfect place for him to hide and enjoy his illegal earnings.”
“Yeah but…us, going after him? Pete, I just don’t think it’s a good idea,” MacGyver said, glancing over his shoulder at Jack and Jesse, who were waiting patiently in the living room of his house boat, grinning at him.
“Normally, I would agree with you,” Pete said, “but if all the major world organizations haven’t been able to find him, maybe it’s time a smaller group tried. I can arrange for your papers and have you ready to go soon.”
MacGyver sighed. “All right Pete,” he said, “thanks.” He hung up the phone.
“So, Papa Thornton said yes again, didn’t he?” Jack asked, smiling. “I knew he would.”
“Yeah, why do you need his permission?” Jesse asked.
“Because he’s my boss and my friend,” MacGyver said. “I like to hear his opinions before I jump into anything.”
“Come on, Mac, where’s your sense of spontaneity?” Jack asked.
“Look, I’m all for being spontaneous, but that doesn’t mean being stupid,” MacGyver said.
“You’re calling me stupid?” Jack asked.
MacGyver sighed. “Never mind,” he said. “Pete’s getting our papers together, and we’ll be leaving soon.”
***
Tuscany
It had been a long, exhausting plane ride, especially with Jack Dalton as the pilot. It was not a new experience for MacGyver, but as they took a taxi through the gorgeous, rolling hills of the Tuscany region, he never felt more relieved to be on the ground. The pleasant, sunny country scenery relaxed him, even as he remembered the reason for being there.
“Did you see how that Customs official looked at me?” Jack asked. “You would have thought I was the wanted criminal, not this Lucien fellow.”
“Yeah, well maybe he knew you from before,” MacGyver said, staring out the window.
“Just what are you trying to say, MacGyver? That I’ve done my share of illegal activities?”
“Well…yeah.”
“How could you say that, Mac?”
“Jack, I know you. You would do anything illegal as long as it made you a buck. Remember all your smuggling operations?”
Jesse looked at Jack and grinned.
“Okay,” Jack said, “but it wasn’t like I was hauling grass or anything. It was all legitimate cargo.”
“Yeah, I’ll bet,” Jesse said, laughing slightly. He looked out the window at the hills, golden with sunlight and dotted with bright red flowers. “Man, would you look at this place? Maybe I’ll buy me a sweet little piece of land out here when I get the reward money.”
“I thought you liked Hawaii,” MacGyver said.
“I do, but it’s got nothing on this. I mean, look at it! It’s a paradise! Just beautiful.”
“It sure is,” Jack said, watching some cattle graze on the rich, lush fields. “I’ll bet everything here tastes pure, like honey. I can see why Lucien would want to hide out in this area. It’s so calm and peaceful.”
“Yeah well, it’s going to take awhile to find him, if we do at all,” MacGyver said. “This is not a small region. There are a lot of provinces. We have the information Pete gathered, but it’s still…” his voice drifted away.
“MacGyver, what is it?” Jack asked.
The taxi was beginning to pass a red-tile roof Tuscan villa surrounded by a vineyard. As they passed, MacGyver thought he saw a woman among the vines that looked familiar. He turned to the driver and asked him to stop in Italian.
“Mac, what are we doing?” Jesse asked.
“We’re getting out here,” MacGyver said.
“Why?”
“Just…come on.”
Jesse looked at Jack for some clarification, but all Jack could do was shrug.
“Don’t look at me, I don’t know what’s on his mind,” he said. “But he must be on to something. Let’s go.”
The three of them got out of the cab and MacGyver paid the fare. As it drove away, leaving them on a small, narrow, dusty road, they stood and waited, Jesse and Jack watching MacGyver to see what his next move would be. He was completely still, staring at the woman in the vineyard, listening to her as she spoke to her workers in fluent Italian, her blonde hair glowing in the bright sunlight, her floral dress flowing gently in the warm breeze.
“Uh…mind explaining to us what’s going on here?” Jesse asked.
“I think I know that woman,” MacGyver said faintly, unable to remove his gaze from her. She was mesmerizing.
“You what?” Jesse asked. “How?”
“Mac knows a girl in practically every country, lucky dog,” Jack said.
“No, she’s an American,” MacGyver said, “from California. I’m pretty sure.”
“Well, then what are we doing standing on the side of the road like a bunch of idiots?” Jesse asked. “Let’s go talk to her.”
“She might not want to see me,” MacGyver said. “She just left me one day without explanation.”
“Now’s the time to get an explanation, then,” Jesse said. “Come on, let’s go.”
Slowly, they began walking down a stone paved pathway to the villa, a high canopy of trees filtering the sunlight. As they got closer to the vineyard, they could smell the rich, damp earth and the sweetness of the grapes. MacGyver was now only inches away from the woman, still watching her and listening to her as she spoke Italian, holding a bunch of grapes and explaining something to the workers near her. Occasionally, she would share a smile with them, and as MacGyver got a closer look at her profile, he knew it was the woman he thought it was.
“Iris?” He asked.
Slowly, she turned, revealing her lightly tanned skin speckled with small, light freckles across her cheeks and her pale green eyes. At first, she looked stunned, but then a beautiful smile formed on her face.
“MacGyver?” She asked, staring at him in disbelief. “Is that really you?”
MacGyver smiled shyly. “Yes, it’s really me,” he said.
“What are you doing here?” She asked, approaching him and embracing him tightly. “How did you know where I was?”
“I didn’t,” MacGyver said, “I just happened to be passing by and saw you.”
Iris released him, looking up into his dark eyes, shaking her head. “I can’t believe you’re here,” she said. She saw Jack and Jesse standing near them. “Who are your friends?”
“This is Jack Dalton and Jesse Colton,” MacGyver said.
“Hello,” Iris said.
“A pleasure to meet you, Madame,” Jack said, taking her hand and kissing it.
“Yeah, it’s great to meet you,” Jesse said, less gallant than Jack, but still friendly.
“Likewise, I’m sure,” she said. “Listen, since you boys are in the neighborhood, would you like to stay for dinner?”
“Yes please!” Jack said.
“Jack!” MacGyver said. He looked at Iris. “Really, we don’t have to impose.”
“Nonsense, MacGyver,” Iris said. “I’m making enough for everybody. You’re certainly welcome.” She winked at him. “Come on, follow me, I’ll show you around this place.”
She began walking, and MacGyver fell back with Jack and Jesse.
“I like her, Mac,” Jack said quietly. “She’s got that natural beauty look going for her. Why did you ever let her go?”
“Jack, shh!” MacGyver said, feeling uncomfortable and embarrassed.
“Seriously though, why did you let a pretty lady like that go?” Jesse asked.
“I don’t want to discuss it right now,” MacGyver whispered.
“Ah, come on Mac, she’s way ahead of us and can’t hear us,” Jack said.
“Yeah, just tell us,” Jesse said.
MacGyver sighed. He remembered why he liked working alone. There were fewer questions. “We used to go out when she lived in California,” he said. “Her father owns a vineyard in Napa Valley, okay?” He asked, growing irritated.
“Yeah…so what happened?” Jesse asked.
“We broke it off, all right?”
Jesse smiled. “All right, no reason to get all ticked, slick,” he said.
“He’s like that,” Jack said, “always so private.”
“Would you two please just knock off the questions?” MacGyver asked.
“Okay, if you’re going to get all mad about it,” Jack said. “Excuse your friends for trying to talk to you.”
“Jack, don’t lay the guilt trip on me right now and try to make me feel bad, all right? Seeing her again is hard enough as it is.”
“Why? She seems friendly enough,” Jesse said.
“It’s complicated,” MacGyver said. “I don’t really know what to say to her after all this time, and I’m feeling pretty awkward, so I’d appreciate it if you’d both back off a little, okay?”
“Fine, suit yourself,” Jesse said.
They reached the courtyard of the villa, filled with fountains and pools glistening in the sun, the hills of the Tuscan countryside spreading out beyond them, seeming to continue forever.
“Wow! Now that’s what I call a view!” Jack said.
Iris looked at him and smiled. “I’m glad you like it,” she said. “Why don’t you have a seat? Dinner should be ready in a minute.”
“Don’t mind if I do,” Jesse said, sitting with Jack at one of the tables in the courtyard.
“MacGyver, join me in the kitchen,” she said, smiling sweetly at him.
For a moment, MacGyver found it difficult to move, and the looks from Jack and Jesse encouraging him to follow her didn’t help, either. He was about to refuse, but he decided against it, thinking it would make him look impolite, and he didn’t want that after what they had already been through.
“All right,” he said, smiling at her.
***
“You always were a good cook,” MacGyver said, watching as Iris finished a pasta dish filled with fresh seafood and garden vegetables.
He picked up a spoon and played with it absently, not sure what else to say but compliment her on her culinary skills. Iris noticed him and gently took the spoon away from him.
“And you always liked to play with things,” she said, smiling slightly.
“I guess so,” MacGyver said, still feeling a little nervous in her presence after all the time they spent apart. “So, what brings you to Tuscany? I mean, why did you decide to live here?”
“I wanted my own vineyard, separate from my father’s,” she said, setting down plates and preparing them, putting pasta on each of them. “I enjoyed helping him, but I wanted to be a success on my own, you know.”
MacGyver looked around the massive kitchen. “Well, it seems like you’re doing pretty well for yourself,” he said. “Congratulations.”
Iris smiled and opened a bottle of wine. “It’s the wine,” she said, smelling it before she poured it in the glasses, closing her eyes and taking in the fragrance. “I know you don’t drink, MacGyver, but there’s something about wine production that I think you would appreciate in a way. It’s nature and chemistry, all in one.”
MacGyver smiled. “You know, I’ve never thought of it that way,” he said, “but I guess you’re right.”
Iris finished pouring wine into the glasses and looked up at him. “You know, I used to think that was the reason our relationship never worked,” she said. “I was the daughter of one of the largest wine producers in California, and you don’t drink.”
“I don’t think that was it,” MacGyver said, watching her.
Iris smiled and shook her head. “No, of course not,” she said, “but look around this place. It’s a little opulent for your taste, and it’s what I like. You’ve always been more into nature. We were kind of the odd couple, you have to admit it.”
“Well, as you said, growing grapes is agriculture,” MacGyver said. “It is a part of nature, too. So, maybe we’re not so different after all.”
He leaned in closer to her, staring at her with his soulful dark eyes. He began to try to kiss her when she backed away.
“Help me with those plates please,” she said, handing him some of the dishes of pasta.
***
“Hey, you’re quite the chef,” Jesse said, admiring the pasta.
“Yeah, this is delicious!” Jack said.
“I’m glad you like it,” Iris said, setting down the glasses of wine. “I hope you boys like wine.”
“Vino! Bring it on!” Jack said.
“All right, let me know if you need anything else. I’ll be back later,” Iris said, joining MacGyver at another table.
She thought about him nearly kissing her in the kitchen, and it brought back memories. He had been the most passionate boyfriend she’d ever had. He seemed to care about things that no one else ever considered, and he had a way of arguing for those things so intelligently and compassionately that it attracted her beyond the physical. But a part of him was unavailable to her. She could always sense it. He could seem so distant, even when he was sitting right next to her. He seemed that way to her again, sitting quietly, eating his pasta.
“How is it?” She asked.
MacGyver smiled at her. “Excellent,” he said. “You didn’t even have to ask. Everything you ever make is excellent.”
Iris smiled. “I’m glad you like it,” she said.
“Why did you leave?” MacGyver asked suddenly, unable to keep the question locked in his curious mind any longer.
Iris sipped her wine and stared at the fountain.
“It wasn’t just to move here and start your own vineyard, was it?” MacGyver asked. “You were gone, without explanation. I never saw you again.”
“Please, MacGyver,” Iris said, forcing herself to look into his eyes, those eyes that could seduce her and pierce her soul. “That was a long time ago.” She sighed. “I guess it was because you said you were cursed when it came to women.”
“Cursed? When did I ever say that?” MacGyver asked.
“Several times, don’t you remember?” Iris asked. “You said that all the women that you loved in your life either died or betrayed you.”
“Maybe I did,” MacGyver said, “but that’s why you left?”
“I thought you were just trying to back away as always, but maybe what you said scared me, too. If things went wrong with our relationship, I didn’t want you to think I had betrayed you too, so yes, I left. I’m sorry, MacGyver.” She took another sip of wine.
“Iris, I’m sorry,” MacGyver said. “I should never have said that. I loved you. I didn’t want to lose you.”
“Is that why you came here?” Iris asked. “Be honest, MacGyver. Did you track me down through my father or something?”
“No,” MacGyver said, smiling. “Actually, I think it was fate somehow.”
“Fate? MacGyver, you’re too practical a man to believe in fate.”
“I know, but I saw you today when we were driving down the road in a taxi, and I knew it was you. I had to stop and see you.”
“But, what are you doing here with your friends?” Iris asked, looking at Jack and Jesse as they laughed and drank their wine.
“Well, it’s kind of complicated,” MacGyver said. “You see, we’re actually looking for someone. Have you ever heard the name Lucien around these parts?”
“Lucien,” Iris said, thinking. “You know, I think so. There’s a man by that name near here, but I’m not sure…”
“Hey! Could we have more vino over here, please?” Jesse asked.
“I’ll go check on your friends to see if they want more wine. I’ll be right back.”
MacGyver watched her as she got up and approached Jack and Jesse. She looked so beautiful and wholesome, but something about her demeanor when he mentioned Lucien bothered him. She seemed to be avoiding him, relieved that Jesse had called out for more wine, more than happy to get up and away from the table. He didn’t know if she was just upset about their conversation, or if Lucien meant something more to her than she was willing to admit, but he had to find out soon.
To be continued…
"If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer."
--Henry David Thoreau
brains+brawn+beauty+personality=MacGyver
