Page 10 of Undeniable

“I already ate. Thank you though,” he says as his eyes stay on me. They haven’t stopped burrowing holes into me since he walked through that door, and I have a feeling that there is zero chance of them stopping anytime soon. Just one look from him makes me feel like he is stripping me down naked. It is an unnerving feeling, but I can’t deny the thrill that runs through me with each look.

I reach down to a drawer and grab some tinfoil before wrapping up the plate and putting it into the fridge. When I turn around, I see that Gio is only standing a few feet away from me, his hands braced stiffly against the island, his normally sharp eyes seeming dull and clouded. He blinks a few times like he is shaking himself out of a daze before he gives me a polite smile.

“Thank you for watching him. Sorry I was late.”

“No worries. What do you do for work? Businessman or something?” I ask as I gesture to his pristine black suit.

His lips tilt up into an amused smile. “Or something.”

Okay?

“And you? What do you do when you aren’t watching people’s kids?”

“Oh, this is the first time I have ever done anything like this before actually. Like Becca said, I am job hunting currently.”

He quirks a brow. “Looking for anything in particular?”

I shrug. “Not really. Just something for now. No one wants to hire anyone with sporadic experience.”

“What have you done till now? Did you just move here?”

“Yeah, from California,” I lie smoothly just like I have about over a dozen other locations time and time again. This time my story is that I am from Santa Barbara, the time before that it was Austin, the time before that it was Seattle. “I have mostly been traveling, honestly. I have done a few under the table odd jobs but nothing permanent.”

“Why is that?” He asks curiously.

“Guess I just like to keep moving,” I say with a shrug that I hope helps sell my bullshit.

I would love nothing more than to settle down somewhere, to have a place that I can call home, to make good friends and get a steady job, hell, maybe even fall in love. All of that is impossible to do when you are moving every 6 months or so unfortunately.

He hums as he watches me, his eyes narrowing a fraction like he is a damn human lie detector. If he sees through my answer though, he doesn’t call me on it.

“Well, Alessandro is really taken with you. His happiness means everything to me, and you make him happy. So, whatever we have to do to keep you, just let me know.”

“You want to keep me?” I blurt quickly, mentally slapping myself the moment it slips out.

His silver eyes flare with an intensity that I have not seen before. Suddenly, it is like all of the air has been sucked out of the room and the tension is so thick you would need a chain saw just to cut through it. The silent moment stretches on for a painfully long amount of time. Now I just came across as desperate and creepy. Great.

“We will see,” he rumbles lowly again, so low I almost think that I misheard him for a moment.

The sound of his deep voice sends a scattering of goosebumps up my arms and causes my heart to flip flop in my chest. Well, that wasn’t what I had expected. His body language is completely closed off and stand offish, but his eyes are practically on fire and begging me to step closer. Not knowing what to do, I choose the safe route at staying stock still like a doe being hunted.

Just as quick as the mood had set in, like a flick of a switch, it is gone. Giovanni stands up straight and messes with the collar of his suit jacket as he turns his back to me and reaches for a tumbler glass and a bottle of bourbon out of a cabinet. He pours 3 fingers into the glass and tosses it back before pouring another, only taking a sip this time.

“Well, I am going to get going,” I speak up once the silence hangs for an unbearable amount of time.

I watch as his back tenses and his head nods while he continues staring out the kitchen window.

“Text me when you get home,” he says. A thrill runs through me that he wants me to text him, and I begin to smile till he adds on, “Becca always did.”

Ouch. Way to kill the mood.

Chapter Five

Tasha

When I make it back to Becca’s place, I am dragging my feet. Who would have thought just trying to keep up with a 6-year-old could wear you out this much? As I open the door, I am instantly greeted with a sweet and spicy smell wafting through the apartment. The kitchen is trashed with bowls and ingredients everywhere. Sitting in the middle of all of the ruin is a pan filled with Becca’s famous Chicken Mole Enchiladas. My stomach grumbles appreciatively, despite the fact that I just ate.

Becca comes sauntering down the hallway and smiles when she sees me.

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