BEEP BEEP BEEP …
I hear my alarm go off on my phone and I jolt awake! I’m still on the couch, and it was all a dream. I can’t say this has ever happened to me before, but it felt so real that I think I orgasmed in my sleep. Is that even possible?
14
Friday comes more quickly than I thought it would with the coffee shop keeping me busy. Marco has let me pitch him a few marketing ideas I’ve had—including setting up social media accounts for Stella’s and hosting poetry or open mic nights. Even though he hasn’t asked or pressured me, he’s letting me add little bits of my past life into the caffé.
However, even with all the work I’ve been doing, my erotic dream about Leo always runs in the back of my mind. I’ve picked up double shifts every day because Marco is doing all he can to right the wrongs his nonna made with the business side of things.
“All right Marco. It’s 6 o’clock, and I’ve got to go home to get ready for my date.”
“The hot date with the doctor! Be sure to remember everything so when Signora Lucca comes in here you can give her a play-by-play.”
“Ha-ha, real funny! And no one said this was a ‘hot’ date,” I say as I shove him in the arm before taking off my apron.
“Abuse! I’m going to call the bosses and get you fired.”
“Yeah, right. You need me here!”
“You’re speaking the truth, Elena. Listen, I think of you like a little sister. You are a hardworking person with a good heart. Don’t go on dates because you think they will make someone else happy, do it because you want to.”
He always seems to speak the truth. I think Marco is my Yoda—the wise one.
“I know, Marco. And thank you, I think of you like the older brother I never wanted ... kidding. Tonight is purely for fun—to get me out of my apartment so I don’t have to watch another Netflix marathon.”
“Okay, I believe you. But did you finish Sons of Anarchy?”
“Uhh … yeah! I wouldn’t be going out with doctor boy if I was still seeing Jax Teller on the side. Now if you can find me an Italian Jax, I would be all over that!”
“Ha-ha, Elena, you are too much. Now get out of here before you are late for your date.”
He practically shoves me out the door.
I hear a knock on my apartment door and I take a second to give myself a little pre-date pep talk. I remind myself not to have high hopes, to relax, and just let myself have some fun! I open the door, and Carlo stands outside with a bouquet of lilies.
“You look great,” he says as he hands me the flowers and moves in for a classic double-cheek Italian kiss.
“Grazie! You don’t look too bad yourself,” I say, taking in his dark charcoal suit with silver-striped tie.
I’m wearing a mint green one-shoulder dress. It’s tighter and form fitting on the top and flows out loosely as it touches the floor. I have a pair of strappy silver heels that match the silver crystal belt hanging from my hips. My hair is twisted into a low side bun with side-swept bangs.
I quickly place the lilies into a vase of water, and we head out to a restaurant called Amore in the heart of downtown. Candles are lit and flowers hang from the ceiling. Every couple sits huddled close together, whispering into each other’s ears and gazing into each other’s eyes. This is kind of intense for a first date—for me, anyway. Isn’t there a Pizza Hut or something less ‘lovey-dovey’ around here?
We sit at a table towards the back of the restaurant, and just like a gentleman, Carlo pulls out my chair for me. I feel his hand graze my lower back as he pushes me in towards the table. I’m not sure I want him touching a place so intimate just yet, but I decide to ignore it.
The date is going smoothly but it’s not too exciting. We talk easily about typical first date conversations and questions—getting to know each other. Carlo is polite and makes me laugh as we sip our wine and eat our many Italian courses—from an appetizer of bruschetta to delicious first and second courses of gnocchi and glazed roast, and then fresh garden salad. As we wait for our desserts to arrive, I excuse myself to go to the ladies room.
On my way back from the bathroom, I hear a hideous laugh that stops me dead in my tracks. Is this déjà vu? Before looking where the laugh was coming from, I know whom it belongs to … Victoria! From the corner of my eye, I see her with Leo looking cozy at a table for two. I see her leg is running up his from under the table. From me to Gabriella to Victoria, this man moves quicker than I thought.
Victoria reaches over and puts her hand on top of his. I feel anger mixed with sadness as I stare at their table. I know I am standing in the middle of the restaurant gawking for too long when Leo looks up from his food and locks eyes with me. I turn quickly and high-tail it back to my seat.
I sit down at the table with Carlo a little too forcefully, shaking the plates.
“Is everything okay, Elena? You look a little upset.”
“Everything is perfect, thanks for asking,” I say as I brush my hand along with his on top of the table. Why am I doing this? I don’t want to lead him on—he seems so nice but a needy part of me wants to show Leo that I too can move on quickly.
I dig into the tiramisu waiting for me at the table. It’s to die for! I refuse to learn how to make this dessert because then I would probably eat it every single day.
I feel Carlo’s brown eyes staring into me. Oh, my gosh, was he talking to me?
“I’m sorry. What did you say?” I look up at him and blush at my mistake.
“I just said you make a little moan when you eat something you think is delicious. It’s adorable.”
The blush is gone, and I think my face is full-on red now. Why does every guy keep pointing this out and how the heck do I stop doing this?
“That’s not the only thing that makes her moan,” I hear a deep voice say from behind me. I know Leo said it so only I could hear, but my embarrassment, and now anger, rises.
“Scusi, did you say something, signor?” Carlo asks Leo, as he gets closer to our table.
“Mi dispiace. My name is Leonardo Forte, and I am a friend of your gorgeous date here,” Leo says as he extends his hand to shake Carlo’s.
“Nice to meet you, Signor Forte. I’m Dr. Carlo Romano.”
I sit and stare, not saying a single word. I even put my fork down from my beloved tiramisu. Why couldn’t Leo stick to his side of the restaurant cozying up to Victoria? Has he slept with her? I should not care about this answer!
I look up, realizing that both men are now staring at me. Man, they are the two hottest guys in this restaurant.
“What?” I say, looking at them, clearly realizing I missed what they had to say to me.
“Elena, I just asked your friend Carlo here if I could have a word with you … privately.”
Leo gives me a look so intense I think he can see through to my deepest secrets and hear my inner thoughts. If he could, he’d know I was screaming at him to go away.
“Elena, you don’t have to go with him if you don’t want to,” I hear Carlo say with a kind voice but I can’t pull my gaze away from Leo’s. He doesn’t understand what’s going on between us, but I’m sure everyone in this restaurant can feel the tension. #Awkward
“No. I’m sorry, Leonardo, but I don’t want to talk to you privately … or ever again. You shouldn’t keep your lovely date waiting,” I say as I nod in the direction of Victoria.
Leo remains silent for a second too long, and it sets me on edge. His eyes are dark, and I see his strong jaw locked into place. He’s not happy with my answer.
“As you wish, cara,” he says. Leo nods at Carlo and then walks away from our table.
The rest of the date goes on uneventfully—we ignore the fact that we were rudely interrupted and pick up the conversation. We finish the evening with after-dinner macchiatos. I give Carlo a quick kiss on the cheek as he drops me off at my door. We say goodnight and part ways.
“Is Elena here?” says Signora Lucca, asking Marco from the front counter.
I’m in the back of the coffee shop getting ready to start my shift, contemplating not walking up to the front until she leaves, but I know sweet Marco is an awful liar, and I don’t want to put him in that spot.
“Buon giorno, Signora Lucca!” I say. I’m as chipper as I can be as I join Marco behind the counter.
“Elena! I’m so happy you are here. How was your date with Carlo?” she asks, with a huge smile on her face. She has high hopes for us, and I feel bad for having to let her down.
“I had a great time, Signora Lucca. Carlo was a perfect gentleman—he took me out to a very nice dinner.”
“Did you invite him in after your nice dinner?” she says and gives me a wink. Oh, my God!
“No! I don’t think Carlo and I are on that same page. He was very nice, but I’m not ready to date anyone seriously at the moment.”
“Oh, Elena, I’m sorry to hear that. I think you two would make a great pair—when you are ready, dear.”
Did that really just happen? She let me off the hook easier than I thought she would. I knew that I always liked Signora Lucca. Even though she was super overbearing when it came to going on a date with Carlo, she has my back knowing I’m not ready.
“Grazie! I knew you’d understand.”
“Of course! But I will say that, with a beautiful face like yours, if I was your age, I would be ready to date every night!” She laughs and takes her coffee and finds her usual seat to read her newspaper.
Marco and I go about our shift as usual—serving customers, making espressos, cleaning the shop, laughing with the regulars, and keeping the pastries flowing. It’s not until after the lunch rush of over-caffeinated Italians dies down that I hear the sound of red-soled Christian Louboutins click-click-clicking across the tile floor. I look up to see none other than bitch face Victoria. Ugh! My day has been brought to an end … and what a way for it to die!
“Ciao! Welcome to Stella’s, what can I get for you?” Marco greets the stone-cold looking Victoria as I try to decide—do I run to the back or face the monster head-on?
“I’ll take a double espresso macchiato.” No “hello” or “please”—go figure she’d be rude to people she thinks are below her. Didn’t anyone ever tell her you don’t treat the people who deal with your food (or coffee) like shit? Guess not.
“No problem,” says Marco.
Marco starts to make her drink when she spots me. She takes her huge sunglasses off and stares at me like she’s seeing through to my soul. At least mine isn’t black on the inside.
“Ciao, Elena. I didn’t realize this was the little caffé you worked at.”
Yeah, right! Leo has been photographed in this caffé, and I’m 100 percent sure she’d be the kind of crazy girlfriend to keep tabs on him. She probably has some kind of Google Alerts set up to track his every move. She definitely knew this was my coffee shop from the minute she walked in.
“Ciao, Victoria. Yes Stella’s is the best!” I try to say with a super fake smile plastered on my face. Marco gives her the drink, but she lingers at the counter after paying. What does she want?
“I saw you at the restaurant on Friday. Were you on a date?”
“Oh, I didn’t realize you were there. I was out with a new friend,” I say, trying to play it cool. Didn’t know she was there? That was the best I got?
“Your date looked … cute. I told Leo he didn’t have to take me out, but he insisted. You know how he can be when he wants to charm his girl. We were celebrating.”
She is just trying to get me wound up—don’t fall for this, Elena! And celebrating … celebrating what? She wants me to take her bait, but I won’t do it.
“Well, that’s lovely. I hope you had a great time, you frigid bitch.”
Okay that’s what I wish I said, but it comes out more like, “Oh, great. I hope you … um … had a good time.”
“Oh we definitely did. Before and after dinner.” Then she winks at me.
Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! I do not want to hear this.
Yes, I let Leo go, but that doesn’t mean I want to hear or think about him with any another woman. Especially the Ice Queen Victoria. I can’t believe he had sex with her! I must not have meant as much as he said if he so quickly replaced me. It was hard for me to go on a date with someone else so soon; I can’t even think about having sex with someone else.
“Good for you two. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to work.”
I hurry out from behind the counter and into the back room like a coward. I don’t want to see her again or have anything to do with her. #MeanGirl
After a few minutes, Marco finds me in the back room sitting on the counter, eyes closed, doing some meditative breathing, and trying to collect my thoughts. She shouldn’t have been able to affect me the way she did.
“You want to talk about it?” he asks me, with a concerned look on his face.
“Nothing really to talk about. That’s Leo’s new girl … or maybe latest girl. He moves quickly I’ve noticed.”
“He’s definitely downgraded.”
“You are too nice, Marco.”
“Are you kidding? That woman looks evil just by the way she walks. She seems standoffish and like she’d be mean to a puppy—that’s not a good person in my book.”
I don’t know what it is about what Marco said but I can’t stop laughing! He definitely hit her description right on the point—she does look like someone mean enough to not like puppies. It feels so good to get out a true deep belly laugh—I don’t think I’ve laughed like this in weeks, since Leo and I were together.
“Okay, I know I’m no comedian. It wasn’t that funny! Did something get lost in translation?”
“Grazie, , Marco! You know just the right words to say—in any translation.”
As I’m wiping away the tears from laughing, we hear the ding of the door chime to let us know a last-minute customer has come in.
I walk around the counter and my jaw drops in shock.
“Elena Scott in an apron … baking. What in the world? You’ve changed best friend, you’ve changed,” I look up to see my super sassy best friend Sophie - who is definitely supposed to be back home in Michigan – standing in Stella’s. If she wasn’t carrying her luggage still you’d never know this girl just got off a plane – she looks fabulous. Sophie’s long blonde hair is pulled up in a high ponytail and her blue eyes light up her face. I didn’t realize how much I missed her until this very moment!
“Sophie, what the heck are you doing here?!”
“I think ‘ciao’ is what you mean to say.”
We embrace in a huge hug and talk a million miles per minute trying to catch up.
“What’s with all the excitement out here?” Marco says as he comes out from the back room and spots us.
“Marco! This is my best friend, Sophie. Sophie, this is my boss, Marco.”
I make the introductions and they double kiss each other’s cheeks. I notice their eyes linger for a minute too long for a friendly ‘hello’ but I let it go. I’ll have to tease Sophie about this later.
“So what’s the plan for tonight girl? Show me this ridiculously amazing city!”
“Sophie, it’s been a crazy day today. I’ll definitely tell you about it over some delicious pizza and wine. Would you mind staying in tonight? I promise you a fun trip and I think I know just what we can do!”
After a night of wine, pizza, and girl talk I wake up actually feeling refreshed. I think getting out all of my feelings, crying on her shoulder, and then laughing my ass off was good for my soul. I look over at my snoring friend and decide to start the morning practicing my culinary skills.
“What’s that smell?” Sophie says as she walks into the kitchen.
“Belgian waffles and Americanos. Please tell me you’re hungry?”
I say as I sit a plate down in front of her.
“Starving! And very impressed. My Elena had no idea how to use her own microwave, let alone whip up something that smells delicious.”
“If you’re just going to make fun of me this whole trip, you can get your butt back to Detroit.”
“That was cold girl, cold. So what’s on the agenda for today?”
And just as Sophie starts to quiz me, there’s a knock at the door. Sophie gives me a curious look as I head over to open the door.
“Elena, let’s get this trip started!”
Alessandra walks in carrying an overnight bag and looking drop-dead gorgeous even this early in the morning.
“You must be Sophia. It’s nice to meet you, I’m Alessandra. Any friend of Elena’s is a friend of mine,” she says as she pulls Sophie into a big bear hug. It touches me that my two worlds are blending together.
“It’s so nice to meet you! What, are you a model? You are freakin’ hot! And is anyone going to tell me what’s going on?” Sophie says. It doesn’t escape me that these two together should be called the ‘blonde beauties’ – both of them have long blonde hair and blue eyes. I will definitely stand out as their frumpy brunette friend.
“We are going to Verona and Milan! So grab your bag because we’ve got a train to catch,” I say to Sophie as I clean up our plates.
15
We find a pair of seats facing each other, me next to Sophie and Alessandra directly across from us. We settle into reading gossip mags (skipping over the articles about Leo, of course), listening to our iPods, and napping. After we’ve been on the train for about two hours, Sophie catches me off guard and pulls out her iPad, asking to run some numbers by me. I shoot her a death stare that says ‘shut up’ but she doesn’t seem to catch it and continues talking about our current clients.
“Are you guys coworkers?” Alessandra asks when she sees Sophie explaining our newest client, a high-end fashion line, to me.
“Coworkers? I wish! Elena is the big boss lady,” Sophie says proudly. “I’m her company’s Vice President.”
My Mr. Beautiful: Eternal City Love, Book 1 Page 9