‘Yeah. Sure.’ I squirm under his intense gaze. I can’t believe this is the first conversation we are having. ‘It might have looked as though our lips were kissing but in real life they weren’t. Well, they were, but it was the camera angle mostly. And the gravity of the piece we were singing. I certainly didn’t tell his lips to do that. And mine didn’t respond in any way, shape or form. Emotionally, I mean. Or physically for that matter. My lips wouldn’t do that sort of thing. Usually.’
I’ve fallen down a rabbit hole.
‘Are you saying that lips can somehow think and act independently of the body?’ He knits his eyebrows together. ‘In an existential capacity?’
He’s being facetious. His mouth curves slightly. I think he’s teasing me but all he’s doing is making me want to kiss him.
‘Let me explain.’ I drag my eyes from his lips, flustered.
He holds his hands up. ‘Really. Don’t bother. I’m not sure my brain can take it.’
‘It’s to do with singing opera and the technical and emotional demands required to navigate the demanding vocal requirements. Ask me about gesticulating in multiple languages.’
He tilts his head. ‘I can’t. The excitement might kill me.’
I edge a little closer to him. ‘You have to be an exceptional actor, is what I’m saying. To bring the characters to life.’
‘And is that what is happening here?’ He shows me the photo on his phone. He doesn’t seem angry or upset in the slightest. He’s taking it very well. His eyes glitter with amusement as he steps towards me. He is basically letting me know that we can get past this. It isn’t going to be an issue. My heart is tra-la-la-ing.
‘Absolutely,’ I say, taking another step towards him. We stand a few inches apart, a crackle of electricity fizzing between us.
‘And there’s nothing else you need to tell me?’
We are dying to kiss, but we still have this awkward obstacle holding us back. The Luke situation. It’s going to ruin everything. How on earth am I going to tell Matteo that Luke’s here in Las Vegas? With any luck, we’ll lose him on the way to the hotel and not see him at all, and he’ll give up, and Matteo won’t ever need to know that Luke followed me out here.
I take a deep breath, contemplating what to say. Delay the truth? Or learn from past mistakes and be honest and upfront?
Be honest. Be upfront.
And yet…
I move even closer to Matteo. I want to kiss him so badly. I want to kiss him more than I want to tell him about Luke. Much more. I reach out to take his hand and tug him towards me. I lean my head back and allow my lips to fall slightly open. I am ripe for the kissing. I couldn’t make it any more obvious.
The truth can wait. ‘No. Nothing,’ I say huskily. I am literally yearning for him. Every fibre in my body is calling out to make physical contact with this gorgeous man.
Matteo’s gaze drops to my lips. He wants me. His eyes grow even darker as he gives me an intense look. ‘Not even that you brought him with you?’ He nods over to somewhere behind me.
I swivel round. Through the crowds, I see Luke doing a bad job of hiding behind a pillar. Bright blond hair is poking out from a baseball cap pulled low and black sunglasses hide his eyes as he attempts to spy on us.
‘Well?’ says Matteo, crossing his arms as though we’ve got all day for me to come up with a decent answer.
4
My heart sinks. Luke is taking things far too far. I tut vociferously and roll my eyes. ‘Oh, God. I swear there’s nothing going on.’
Matteo regards me intently. ‘Sure? That’s a long way to come for nothing to be going on.’
‘I’m sure,’ I say, hoping to God he believes me. ‘He’s making up some excuse that he’s here for work.’
‘Good,’ he says and takes a deep breath in. ‘I believe you.’
I visibly sag with relief. ‘That was easy.’
He gives me a sheepish look.
‘What?’ I ask.
He lets out a huge groan and rubs both hands down his face. ‘You’re not going to like this.’
