I arched a brow at Vincenzo, who gave me a small shrug as if to saywhat.I shook my head. He was unbelievable.
“This won’t take long,” I muttered.
Turning to face me, Vincenzo dropped a possessive kiss on my forehead.
“Relax.” Vincenzo ran his knuckles down my spine. “This is supposed to be fun.”
Fun…such a foreign word.
“We need everything,” the mobster commanded the giddy little associate. “Pull your whole team. This customer takes priority.”
“Enzo,” I hissed.
“Everything?” The woman’s eyes widened.
“Do you have a problem with your hearing?” Vincenzo gritted.
With a sharp gasp, the associate jerked straight. “Not at all! Come, madame.”
I glared at the monster, but he let the attendants lead me away, while he went to the crushed velvet armchair in the middle of the room. The last glimpse of him, before I was taken into the back partition, was of a king on a throne.
At their instructions, I kicked off my shoes and stepped onto the raised dais. A wiry man came and took my measurements. Already, three attendants brought stacks of clothing.
Keeping with my standard of a capsule wardrobe, I selected three blouses, two slacks, and one suit jacket. “That’s all I need.”
My statement was met with horror.
The wiry man pressed a hand on his chest, breath fluttering, and his face grew pale. “Madame! Monsieur Messina instructed us to selecteverything.”
I adjusted the waistband of the slacks, which sat high on my belly and draped to the floor. “I don’t need much.”
I plucked my shoes off the dais and hopped into them as I emerged into the main area. Vincenzo looked up from his phone, eyes narrowing at me.
“Done.” I flashed a smile. “I just have to pay, and then we can leave.”
Tipping his head to the side, he looked around me. “Was there a problem with the service?”
I frowned. “No. Everyone was pleasant.”Except for Annette.
She was on my shit list for fluttering around Vincenzo. I’d heard her offering him drinks, trying to chat with him about the sports teams.
“Did you not find anything to your liking?” Vincenzo leaned back, clasping his hands over his abs.
“I don’t need a lot,” I protested. “I’m just going to get these, and we’ll go.”
“Hmm…that’s different,” he muttered under his breath.
“Excuse me?” I snapped. “Enzo, we don’t have time for this. There is a whole mess waiting for us outside those doors, and I don’t want to spend any more of our precious time here. We’re done.”
“No, we’re not.” Vincenzo rose from his seat. He went to a display, plucked a pair of shoes, and came to me. They were white, satin-wrapped, with an open toe. Dainty pearls decorated the material.
“The Amanda I remember could shop all day.” Vincenzo dropped to a knee, lifted my bare foot, and slid the shoe onto it.
A perfect fit.
“She wanted the silly, outrageous outfits.” He drew my hand forward and placed it on his shoulder for balance. “Vibrant colors. Impractical designs.”
The other shoe went on like a dream. My toes wriggled on instinct.
