“I’d love that!” I say with far too much enthusiasm. “Shall we go back home so I can change?” As I say it, I realize the word “home” has slipped out far too easily.
Mateo shakes his head. “You’re perfect.”
I smile and fiddle with the strap of my dress.
“So are you,” I respond, starting to feel a little more like my old brazen self. Mateo grins at me.
“I’ll say!” Antoine agrees with me. “You’re going to be mymostbeautiful couple all year! Mmm-mmm…” He’s nodding his approval, running his eyes up and down Mateo’s torso and beyond. Dressed in a charcoal gray suit, with a crisp white dress shirt unbuttoned at the throat, he looks good enough to eat.
“Hungry?” he asks as if reading my mind. I nod like a crazy person.
“Ravenous.” When he holds his arm out to me, I hook my hand through the crook of his elbow. The darn bear is clutched firmly beneath my other arm.
“I’ll get your purse,” Nikki says as we turn and head to the doorway. I’d have forgotten it if she hadn’t reminded me. Heck, I’d have forgotten my own head! The men at the door part silently as we walk out.
The usual black SUV is waiting at the curb and the driver leaps out to open the passenger door as we reach it. Nikki and Antoine have been chattering happily behind us as we’ve walked, but I’ve barely registered a word they’ve said.
“Have a lovely evening, honey!” Nikki says, pulling me in for a warm hug before heading to her own vehicle. “I’ll chat to you tomorrow, okay? Antoine and I will go over the details before then.”
I nod silently, still too awestruck to say much that makes sense. When the passenger door closes behind me, I turn to look at Mateo’s implacable profile.
“Where are we going?” I ask.
“Someplace good.” He turns to me and smiles and my heart melts all over again. “You like pasta?”
“Who doesn’t?” I murmur. The car has moved from the bustling high street and begins traveling to the quieter roads beyond. “Did you get all your work done?”
He glances away. “Yeah. But I didn’t come back to talk about work.”
“Really? What did you come back for?”
“You.”
Chapter 15
Andy Carter
My stomach lurches. We’ve turned down a small road and the driver pulls up to a curb where a small doorway spills golden light onto the pavement. It’s beginning to grow darker now, and when we step through the doors, it’s like a warm haven.
“Mateo!” a female voice greets us. I get a brief impression of aged brick walls covered with dozens of family photos and bright paintings of Tuscan landscapes. But then a flurry of Italian tugs my attention back to the stout woman in front of us. Silvering black hair is pulled away from a round, beaming face that’s dominated by a smile that reaches her dark eyes and leaves her cheeks dimpled.
“Ahh…Mateo, Mateo!” she repeats, drawing him to a bosom that looks like it might fit several large men.
“Ma Rosa!” He grins when he finally gets a chance to draw back. He towers over her by at least a foot, but she pinches both his cheeks and ruffles his dark hair like she’s greeting a much-loved child.
“And this!” She turns to me. “This is your Andrea!” she announces, pronouncing my name “Andraya.” And then I’m engulfed in an embrace too. “So beautiful! Such a beauty!” she says when she releases me. “Come…come! You sit.” Taking my hand in hers and sliding an arm around Mateo’s waist, she leads us into the restaurant.
It’s already bustling with activity and as we walk through, I see several arms raised.
“Ciao, Mateo!” someone calls out. The greeting is repeated by other voices as we walk by.
“Where’s Emilio?” Mateo looks around as she seats us in a relatively secluded corner. Not that it offers much privacy. The room is filled with countless tables, all decked in red and white checked tablecloths and flickering lanterns.
“In the wine cellar, of course!” Ma Rosa seems to say everything with emphasis. “When we hear you come tonight, I tell him to bring out the Barolo!”
“For me? You shouldnt’ have, Ma.”
“Pfft!” she says. “Is not for you. Is for Andrea!” She winks at me. “Is good, too. From the time beforeil millennio.” I look at him in confusion.
