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I arrive in the kitchen to find him sitting at the island, his suit still as crisp as last night, a cup of coffee in front of him as he scrolls through his phone. It is as if I landed back in the kitchen yesterday evening. His pose is the same, his expression deep and focused. Was last night just a dream?
“Good morning,” I say. Gianni looks up from his phone, his eyes stern and abrasive as he assesses me. I’m not sure what he’s searching for. Creases on the side of my face? Sleep in my eyes?
“Morning. There’s a coffee for you if that’s what you want to call it,” Gianni grumbles. I smile as I remember him complaining all night about my mom’s coffee machine.
“Thanks.” I pad over to the machine. He watches me grab the cup and sit at the end of the island.
Fear drips into my veins. I know what I’m afraid of, and I don’t want to admit it to myself. But I know what haunts me. Soon, he’ll be gone. He will probably never set foot in this house again. I’ll never have him to myself like this.
“I take it there were no intruders?” I ask. The coffee is hot, and I blow on the edge before taking a sip.
“No, everything was quiet.” Gianni puts his phone down, and I’m honored to have his full attention.
“Did you get any sleep?”
“A little.”
“I had the strangest dream about a bird in my hair.” I laugh, but Gianni isn’t smiling. He has changed. He’s back to being Gianni, the coffee shop owner, not the art lover I shared my thoughts with last night.
“Chloe, I must ask you to keep this to yourself.” His voice is clipped.
“Keep what to myself?” Have I forgotten something? Did we kiss without my noticing?
“Everything,” Gianni begins. “The fact I brought you home, I stayed, and I’m here now. No one must know.”
“Who am I going to tell?” I feel as if I’ve done something wrong.
“Anyone in the shop. Faith, Casey, any of the staff, and especially Piero.”
“Piero?”
“Especially Piero,” Gianni emphasizes. “He will not be happy with this.”
“I find that hard to believe. The guy is wired happy.” I snigger. “I’m sure he must take happy pills by the bucketload. It isn’t natural for one man to be so happy.” I smirk, but Gianni isn’t biting. His stare is cold and hard. For a second, I wonder if Piero is on some sort of happy drug, and I’ve yet again put my big foot in my big mouth.
“It is no laughing matter.” I’m pinned down by the seriousness on his face.
“But I don’t understand.”
“I have a business to run. You’re my employee. Piero and I have an agreement to keep ourselves separate from our employees. It’s basic business management.” I sweat. A cold shiver runs down my spine. The familiarity of it all is knocking on the inside of my chest.
“But we haven’t…” I begin but cannot finish.
“I’ve crossed a line. I shouldn’t be here.”
“Then why are you?” He doesn’t answer, and I have a sickening realization he doesn’t want Piero to know for an entirely different reason. Has he been involved with an employee before? Has he been found with his hand up a waitress’s skirt? Did Piero warn him this wasn’t to happen again?
There are tears in my eyes for the second time in less than twelve hours, and I’m struggling to keep my cool. Gianni hasn’t done anything. He’s been the perfect gentleman, but I can’t escape from the jealousy that’s now building and the fact I’ve been here before. Cora’s rage is still fresh, my wounds still healing, and my familiarity with all this is too raw.
“Chloe, are you okay?”
“Yes, why wouldn’t I be?”
“You look upset.”
“No, I’m just tired.” I manage a small smile. The last thing I want to do is explain myself.
Gianni stands and pockets his phone.
