Page 82 of I'm Looking for a Man in Finance
I blinked, caught off guard. “Dinner? With your family?”
James nodded, casual—but I didn’t miss the way he paused to gauge my reaction. “I’d love you to experience the restaurant with the whole family vibe, so that you can really be immersed in the traditions and flavors which make it such a wonderful place. No pressure, though, if you don’t want to go I can make other plans.”
The invitation landed heavier than he probably intended. This wasn’t just dinner—it was meeting his people. The inner circle. The ones who could make or break everything.
“I—yeah. I’d like that.” I sat up straighter, the sheet falling around my waist. “You’re sure?”
“Positive.” He smiled, and it was that quiet kind of smilethat felt like a secret only we shared. “I’ll pick you up. I don’t want you trekking to Brooklyn alone. Plus, I can show you some of my favorite places on the way to the pizzeria.”
I tried to play it cool, even though my heart was doing somersaults. “What time should I expect you?”
“Dinner never actuallystartswith dinner. There’s always at least an hour of talking before any food hits the table. I’ll get you around five—with traffic, that should work.”
And that’s when it hit me. Tonight wasn’t just dinner. It wasmeeting his family. When he first suggested it, it had sounded casual. But now, on reflection? Now it felt a little like being invited into the fold. Into his world.
“And that’s on top of our weekly Wednesday dinner! Sometimes we do that at the pizzeria,” he added, shuffling through a briefcase. “Other times it’s my grandparents’ place, if Nonna’s in the mood to cook. Either way, everyone shows up, and there’s always way too much food.”
I nodded my head absently, not trusting myself to do much more than that with the nerves pushing through me.
“I’ve got to head out,” James said, grabbing his bag. “I need a few hours in the office before this meeting happens, so I can try to get some work done.”
“Who’s your meeting with?” I asked. “Some big client you’re bringing on?”
James hesitated, rubbing his chin, gaze lowered. “It’s not for Berkley Williams. I’m meeting a business acquaintance.”
“So, a business opportunity for yourself, then.”
He shrugged. “Potentially. I’m not sure. Maybe the start of being able to pursue my own thing.”
“Then good luck,” I said softly.
James paused before he crossed through the doorway. Only to backtrack across the room. “One more thing before I leave.”
He leaned down and pressed the slowest, sweetest, tenderest kiss to my lips. I pulled him close, wanting to soak in a few more seconds in our little blissful bubble before we had to return to reality.
“I’ll see you later,” he said. “Promise me you’ll have some breakfast before you leave?”
I lifted my pinky. “Promise.”
“I expect a full review of it when I see you later.” His face lit up with that perfect grin, the one I adored, a flash of pure joy.
That was the thing about James Rossi. He fought for the people he loved—his family when their restaurant was threatened, his friends when a girl writing an article about them came along, or me when I was my own worst enemy.
Thanks to him, maybe I was about to start fighting for myself.
29
James
I was falling for Hallie Woods, and I didn’t know what the hell to do about it.
The moment I walked away after our first kiss, I knew. The weekend in the Hamptons only solidified it. But this morning? I woke up with her warm body tangled in the sheets beside me, and there was no denying it anymore. I’d crossed the point of no return.
She was still asleep when I stirred. Peaceful. Soft. The kind of tranquility I didn’t know I’d been searching for until I found her. I reached for my phone, trying not to wake her, the glow of the screen casting light across her face. There was a text from Theo asking to meet for lunch. Said he had a business proposal and that a quick resolution would benefit us both.
For a minute, I considered ignoring him completely. Turning on Do Not Disturb and spending the rest of the morning exactly where I wanted to be—wrapped around Hallie, with no one else in the world to bother us.
But Theo rarely reached out unless it was important. So, despite every fiber of my being screaming at me to stay, I got up, got dressed, and headed toward the Financial District.
