Page 13 of Roses are Royal

Giving me his signature eyebrow quirk and pinning me with a questioning stare, he asks, “Did you eat dinner?”

What am I, twelve? Who does this man think he is, my father? If I want to have a milkshake for dinner, then I’ll have a milkshake for dinner.

“I wasn’t very hungry.” Take that, Daddy Dante. Pause. Delete. I cannot start referring to him as Daddy Dante in my head because my internal thoughts seem to become external words around this man. And the last thing I need to do is call him Daddy…out loud.

Without hesitating, Dante turns to Shirley and orders two cheeseburgers with no onions and extra pickles with tater tots on the side. Oh and a side of ranch.

Mouth agape. How does this man know how I like my burgers? There is no way that’s some kind of cosmic coincidence.

“Uh, I hope you are just really hungry, and both of those burgers are for you. Plus, what if I don’t like pickles?”

Shirley must take that as her cue to leave because she just nods and heads back behind the counter to put in the order with the kitchen.

“You need to eat.”

“I am eating.” I gesture to my Oreo milkshake.

“What were you dealing with earlier when I called?” Dante asks, clearly ignoring my childish protest about dinner.

“Oh, it was nothing. Just working out the logistics of my stay with the motel manager.” Understatement of the century. I add a wave of my hand in an attempt to move past this subject.

“Why does it look like you’ve been crying?”

Does this man notice everything? Does he have X-ray vision into my soul?

“Um, it’s nothing. There was just an issue with my room, but I have it under control.”

“What kind of issue?”

“Wow, this milkshake is really good. Would you like to try some?” Was that too obvious a subject change? Yes. Do I care? No.

“Rose.”

There he goes again using my name as a command. I am powerless to resist when he says my name like that.

“I had to move rooms because someone broke into mine,” I mumble into my straw as quickly as possible, hoping he won’t press me further. But this is Dante we’re talking about, so of course he won’t let this go.

I swear the air stills with the poorly leashed rage in Dante’s eyes. The bugs outside cease their chirping, the sizzle of our burgers on the grill pauses, and the buzz of the neon Open sign by the door halts. It’s like the sounds around us do a collective record scratch on his command. I’m even holding my breath, waiting for Dante to break the tension created by my words. I don’t think he’s even blinked since I spoke. I have to say something before I burst.

“Actually, I wanted to let you know I will be heading back into the city tomorrow for a few days. I will be sure to return before any of the deliveries arrive, so no need to worry about your strict timelines. Everything will stay on track. Plus, I can use that time to source a few of the pieces we discussed from some of my local contacts. It’ll be better for me to be in the city. And then I won’t be in Luca’s way as he and his team complete the finishing touches I requested. I’ll still be available to you by phone if anything comes up. And I promise to answer when you call. Today was abnormal. I always have my phone on me. It’s practically glued to my hand. Not that I get any calls or messages outside of work. I mean, I do, but work comes first. My clients come first. You come first. As a client of course. My only client actually. Not that I can’t get other clients, I just wanted to ensure I have the time and energy to fully service you.” My eyes widen as the words continue to tumble out.

“Rose,” Dante says in the softest tone I’ve heard him use since I met him. Like he doesn’t want to spook a wild animal, he places his hand over mine, which is clenched in a fist on the table. “Tell me what happened to your room.”

With that small amount of physical contact, whatever lies or excuses were about to spew from my mouth are frozen.

“Oh, um, well, the door to my room was broken and left open when I returned earlier. But I’m sure it’s nothing. They didn’t take anything, just messed up my stuff a bit, which is another reason I need to head back into the city. I will need to grab more clothes and personal items since I’ll be staying up here longer than I had originally planned.”

I know I’m underplaying the extent of the damage and the fear it caused me, but Dante doesn’t need to know all of that. It’s not like he will ever find out what actually happened or even be able to help me figure out who did it. It’s not worth risking further embarrassment by telling him what was done to my stuff.

“And you’re planning on staying there tonight?”

“Yes, it’s the closest place in town, and I’ll be checking out in the morning anyway, so it’s not a big deal. I actually think they had the wrong room and mine was broken into by mistake.”

“Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why do you think that was meant for someone else?”