Page 99 of The Fall Affair

“Would he consider moving here?”

I shrugged. “He said he would. But he has an amazing life in Italy. He has a vineyard that took him years to cultivate, a family that often spends Sunday afternoons drinking wine and talking over each other in the most beautiful way—not to mention a hundred handmade wool hats.”

Her nose wrinkled. “Handmade hats?”

“It’s a long story.” I smiled sadly. “But it wouldn’t be fair of me to ask him to move. Tuscany is his home in a way that’s more than just where he lives. It’s a beautiful life.”

“I saw the look on your face when you walked out of that courtroom today, Allegra. You love your work. I looked into what it would take for you to get your license in Italy after we talked last time. It’s not simple like moving to another state. You could practice there by filling out some paperwork, but you’d only be able to advise people on U.S. law, and since most people who live in Italy are probably married there, I don’t think that would work for your area of practice. Otherwise, you’d have to take an exam in Italian that covers Italian law with things like civil, criminal, con law—it basically sounded like another bar exam, so you’d have to not only teach yourself all of that, but you’d need to be fluent enough in Italian to take the test.”

My shoulders slumped. “I don’t know what to do.”

“What about splitting your time? Work four days here and spend three there. Maybe you can alternate who travels?”

“That would work if it were a two-hour flight, but it’s nine hours to Rome, then a two-and-a-half-hour drive to Montepulciano. Then you add getting to the airport a few hours early and waiting for your bags. It’s sixteen hours each way, if you’re lucky and nothing is delayed. So we’d be traveling two days to see each other for one. Not to mention, opening a new practice would take a lot of work and mean long hours. And what happens down the road if we were to have kids? Do I not see my children a week at a time?”

Cassie stared at me. “Wow. You really have fallen for this guy. I’ve never once heard you thinking about what might happen in the future with a guy, much less kids.”

I sighed. “Matteo would be an amazing father.”

“Have you guys talked about the future?”

“Not in any detail. I’ve only just started to accept how I’m feeling and stopped trying to push him away.”

“Oh, honey.” Cassie patted my hand. “You’ll figure it out. I know you will.”

“I really enjoyed court today, and being here with Matteo has been amazing, so let’s change the subject so I don’t break out in hives before the guys join us. Why don’t you give me all the office gossip in the meantime?”

Cassie filled me in on what was going on at the firm, including Sierra’s baby bump starting to show and the new rumors flying around about who the father might be. Apparently, no one had considered that it could possibly be Harry because, well, who in their right mind would have sex with that man?

A few minutes before six, Matteo walked in. He scanned the bar, and when his eyes landed on me, a slow, sexy smile spread across his face. And damn, I felt it. My heart skipped a beat, and my insides lit up like a Christmas tree. There were probably forty people sitting at the bar, and more at tables between where I was and the door, yet everything blurred, and the only person who existed was him.

I’d had good chemistry with men, but never the type that pushed all my buttons just because he walked in the room. Every step Matteo took, my pulse raced a little faster.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Cassie shift in her seat and follow my line of sight. “Oh my God. Is that your Matteo? He’s insanely good-looking.”

I nodded but never took my eyes from the man approaching.

“Ciao,” he said. His voice was smooth like honey, and I swear my heart skipped another beat. If it kept up, I might need to get it checked. Matteo leaned over and kissed my cheek before offering a little bow to my friend. “Hello.” He extended his hand. “You must be Cassie?”

The smile on her face went from ear to ear. “I think I am. But my brain is sort of frazzled at the moment.”

I feel you, Cass.

A few minutes later, Cass’s husband, Ryan, joined us, and the four of us eventually went to a table for dinner.

“How was your day in court?” Ryan asked.

Cass answered for me before I could open my mouth. “She was a rock star. You should’ve seen her.”

Matteo smiled and took my hand across the table. “I would expect nothing less.”

“It wasn’t that big of a deal.”

“Don’t listen to her,” Cass said, waving me off. “She shredded the wife on the stand. And she deserved it. It was beautiful. She did such a great job that her client is referring her to a celebrity. A big one.”

Across the table, the smile stayed on Matteo’s face, but something in his eyes shifted. “Sounds like New York is going to keep you busy.”

My chest tightened. He wasn’t wrong. These kinds of referrals could turn into something pretty quickly. My first big divorce case, I’d represented the vice president of a large real estate brokerage. After I kicked her husband’s ass on the stand, and he wound up with half the settlement he’d been going for, I must’ve taken on ten other brokers and executives in the first year just from that one firm.