Page 100 of The Fall Affair

“Busy is good,” Ryan chimed in. He lifted his glass. “To Allegra’s success, which I hope means my wife can go back to working for her, so I don’t have to listen to her complain about the woman she reports to now anymore.”

We laughed and clinked glasses. Matteo put on a happy face, but there was an undercurrent beneath, and his grip on my hand loosened. I slid my fingers more firmly into his and squeezed. He met my gaze, and his smile widened, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

Cass leaned in, launching into a story about a disastrous client meeting we’d once had. We’d been prepping for the deposition of a wife divorcing her husband because he was having an affair. And we’d accidentally mixed up the wife and mistress—they looked almost identical, so clearly the husband had a type—and we wound up questioning the wife about her hotel rendezvous before we figured it out.

One story led to another—divorce law tends to be an endless well of dramatic tales. We all laughed, but every so often I caught Matteo watching me, and I knew he was thinking what I’d been thinking about him. How can I ask this woman to leave something she loves so much? I wanted to tell him I hadn’t figured out how to be in two places at once yet, but now wasn’t the time for that.

Matteo teased Ryan about his pronunciation of gnocchi, and the two men laughed at my expense when Matteo told Ryan how he had to be a firefighter, too—when I’d cooked.

When dinner arrived, conversation shifted from work to Matteo’s vineyard. It was clear he was proud of what he did, and I could’ve sat there all night gazing at him and listening to his sexy Italian accent.

We ordered four different desserts and passed the plates around to share. When Matteo passed the cheesecake to me, he leaned in, and his lips brushed my ear. “Sono orgoglioso di te,” he whispered. I’m proud of you.

My throat tightened. “Grazie,” I whispered back.

I knew we needed to have a bigger conversation about my work, but maybe that was enough for tonight. We’d have plenty of time for serious discussion once we got back. Or at least, that’s what I thought…

Chapter 33

Allegra

“I’M SO NERVOUS.”

Tonight was the night my sister was coming over. We’d been back from New York for five days now, and I’d miraculously managed to not think about her impending visit too much. Matteo and I had slipped into a sort of domestic bliss, with him sleeping at my house or me at his every night. Wherever we were, I usually conked out after he gave me a delicious orgasm, but last night, not even that had turned my brain off. I’d tossed and turned, growing more anxious every hour until the sun finally came up.

“What can I do to help?” Matteo asked.

I grinned. “What you did a half hour ago was pretty helpful.”

He smiled, kissed my forehead, and took my empty coffee cup over to the sink, turning the water on. “I’m available for that whenever you need.”

“Leave that stuff.” I pointed to the breakfast dishes. “You’re already late to get out in the field because of me. I’ll wash it before I go next door.”

He looked at his watch and nodded. “Grazie.”

I stood, and Matteo walked over and wrapped his arms around my waist, pressing a kiss to my lips. “What time is she coming?”

“Six.”

“I’ll drop off some wine this afternoon for you to share.”

“Thank you.” I nibbled on my lip. “Would you…want to join us? Maybe not right away, but for dinner or dessert? I’d love for you to meet her.”

He pulled back and looked at me. “You sure?”

“Positive. I feel like my emotions are all over the place when it comes to her, and I might not be the best judge of character. I could use an opinion from someone without a stake.”

“I have a stake.” He squeezed me. “A very big one.”

I smiled. “You know what I mean.”

“I’ll do whatever you want me to, yes?”

“You’re the best.”

And he really was. Usually when I started to date a man, the more we got to know each other, the more red flags I noticed. But Matteo was bright green—all day, every day. It made me smile as I stood at the sink, wearing his T-shirt that smelled like him, and washed the breakfast dishes, even with dinner with Camilla looming.

When I was done, I pulled a clean dish towel from the drawer to dry, putting the dishes away one by one. As I reached up to place a mug in the cabinet, I accidentally bumped another cup already on the shelf. It wobbled, tilted forward, and started to fall. I caught it just before it hit the counter and let out a quiet breath of relief.