“That’s two days away. What do I busy myself with untilthen?”
“Well.” He stands away from his desk chair and walks over to sit next to me. “How about you attend some of these? I won’t be able to go, but I’d appreciate if my Sassy Assistant goes in myplace.”
“Sassy Assistant?” I say, taking the pre-fashion-show guest pass from hishand.
“Since day one.” He winks. “This pass will get you into all of the events located in this expo center and should keep you busy until Friday. I’ll expect updates on all of the latest trends on fabrics andaccessories.”
I gesture a hand salute. “Yes,Sir.”
He chuckles. “But first, how about an early dinner before the crowds take up all the restaurant space? I think we both can use a fashion-focusedbreak.”
“Pizza?”
“You read mymind.”
Pizza AMis located in Downtown Milan, with festive décor and a small menu. At first, I’m put off by their small menu options, but Antonio swears a smaller menu translates into better, more thoughtfully prepared cuisine. He takes the liberty of ordering for us. I don’t want to take the chance of ordering pepperoni and get told pepperoni in Italy is actually sweet bellpeppers.
“Trust me on thisone.”
“You’re the boss,” I say in a brat-ish, unfazedtone.
“Says the SassyAssistant.”
I shake myhead.
I do trusthim.
More than heknows.
“Thanks for the pass. I’m looking forward to attending all of theevents.”
“Oh, not a problem. I hope you understand my concerns. You’re a beautiful woman. It’s bad enough guys gawk even when you’re withme.”
I feel my eyebrows snap together. “No, theydon’t.”
He snarls, “Uh, yeah, theydo.”
“Well, I probably haven’t noticed because I’ve sworn offmen.”
His jaw drops. “You’ve sworn offmen?”
“Yep. Ever since Jacob Ryan broke up with me via text. That day, I decided men are offlimits.”
His expression softens. “Interesting. And for howlong?”
“How longwhat?”
“Will you be men-less? A day, month,year—”
I raise my chin. “Forever.”
“That’s a mighty long time. You’ll break a lot of hearts.” He drums the tips of his fingers along thetable.
“Which is so much better than anyone breakingmine.”
