Alex turned as Gio scoffed and walked away. Before he got to what he assumed was his office, he turned back and caught Alex’s gaze.
Gio nodded a greeting which he reciprocated, both pairs of eyes narrowed at each other. Without words, they quietly declared war.
At that moment, he made an important decision. He would call his agent Anthony and let him know he was unavailable for any projects for a while, including the one in Argentina. As much as it meant to him, Aria meant more.
He turned his attention back to Aria and the photos. She’d chosen her favorite and held it out to him.
“This one. I think it captures the heart of who Michael is. What do you think?”
He wheeled his chair a little closer to the desk. Misjudging the distance, he reached for the photo but caught most of Aria's hand with his fingers, feeling a pull as they connected. Once again, the touch of her hand robbed him of breath as it froze in his lungs.
It was almost indescribable. Like he was a magnet that was drawn to her by a force he couldn’t resist. Every time their hands touched it was like a lightning strike.
Aria gasped as Alex lightly rubbed his thumb over her hand.
Pulling his hand away, Alex cleared his throat which had suddenly dried. Hoping she didn’t hear the tightness in his voice, he answered, “Yes, I agree. That's the one. Do you think Michael will like it?”
“I'm sure of it. Thank you again, Alex. It was thrilling to watch you work. I can only imagine what it would be like to see you working in some beautiful place around the world.”
Finding his confidence, Alex replied, “You would make anywhere in the world even more beautiful.”
Aria’s cheek flamed instantly, and he loved that he had that effect on her. He hadn’t meant to sound so flirty, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. The growing feeling of rightness between them was to blame.
“Yes, well. I, I don't want to take up too much of your time. I can only imagine how late you worked last night. I'll forward the digital ones to Michael and let him know our choice and go from there.”
He tried to hide his smirk knowing she was flustered. Maybe this attraction wasn’t one-sided after all.
“Great. Let me know when you’re free again. I still would like to make you dinner,” Alex said with a hopeful look.
“I'd like that very much. And thanks again for the photo. I haven't taken any of myself in quite a while and now I can tell all my friends it was taken by a famous photographer.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
From her office,Aria stared at the door that Alex had just exited, his words still taking up residence in her heart.
“You would make anywhere in the world even more beautiful.”
Swiftly blowing out air from her lips, Aria went straight into daydreaming about book boyfriends and the way they always said the right thing. Gio’s voice startled her out of her musings as he entered her office.
“I see Alex dropped off the photos from the shoot. How did they come out?”
“They’re perfect. I think Michael will love the one we picked out.”
“Great, great,” he answered, his agitation obvious. “Ah, I was wondering if you were free for lunch later. I have a craving for Indian.”
“Sure. Let's plan for noon. Curry Kingdom sound good?”
“You read my mind. Noon works and we can go together if you’d like.”
“Actually, I have an errand to run afterward, so I’ll meet you there.”
“Sounds good. See you later.”
Aria nervously rubbed her hands together. Was this about the hug? It didn’t feel like his usual offer to have lunch together. Her eyes glanced around and stopped when she saw Luna’s smug look.
Aria’s eyes widened when she saw her mouth,“Get ready.”
“No, no, no,” Aria moaned, turning away. Grabbing the growing pile of folders on her desk and the stack of phone messages that needed to be returned, she kept herself busy for the next few hours.
