Page 12 of Bella Rosa
Rosalie
"Noway!Youdidn'ttell me your rude mystery man is Matteo!" Juli can't contain her excitement.
I can barely concentrate on what she's saying. I tossed and turned all night. My dreams were plagued with visions of broody eyes and sun streaked hair. I take a long drink from my coffee cup before I answer. "It didn't seem important to tell you his name."
I return my focus back to the list of restaurants in front of me to try and plan out the rest of the week. I already made reservations for tonight. I won't make a fool of myself like I did last night ever again.
"Well it was!" Juli pushes the list out of my line of vision so I'll look at her. "He's my cousin! My mom and his dad are siblings!"
"What? That's a crazy coincidence."
Juli nods as she says, "I know, right! Matteo has been through a lot, but he's such a great guy."
I look down at my now empty coffee cup and sigh. Not just about the empty cup, but about him. It took me so long to calm down after our encounter last night that I could barely sleep. Also, I'm pretty sure Enzo never even made eye contact with me on the way back to Alda's last night. He also looked like he'd seen a ghost when he picked me up in his little car out front.
Juli snaps her fingers in my face. "Have you been listening to me?" I give her a blank look, shaking my head to try to clear my thoughts. "I guess not. You really should give him a chance though. I have always wanted him to find a girl like you."
She has to be kidding. "There's no way. He was so rude at the train station, and last night he made up this whole pact thing." I do the motion for air quotes around the word pact for emphasis. "He made it very clear he wants nothing to do with me. I don't know if I want anything to do with him either."
She takes a bite of her breakfast before standing to get a refill of our coffees and completely ignores what I said. "Don't worry, you'll have a great time tonight. That restaurant is wonderful, and Matteo can be so fun after he loosens up a bit."
I'm sure she's right. I need to loosen up and enjoy this experience. I snap a few photos of the display case while Juli finishes up at the front counter. We decided to try a bakery a few streets away this morning. Juli's cafe is closed today, so she offered to do a little sightseeing with me. Walking around the city square and going to a few local museums are just what I need after how hectic the past few days have been.
I hear the little bell signaling the front door just opened. I feel the air shift around me. I know he's there before I even look up. I like to torture myself, apparently, because I immediately look up and make eye contact with him. He's already looking right at me. I can tell even though he still has his sunglasses on.
He's standing there looking like a model in his dark jeans and fitted black shirt. He takes his sunglasses off and runs his other hand through his hair. I follow the motion like my life depends on it.
"Oh hi there, Matteo!" Juli sing-songs from behind me. I bolt upright from my squatting position by the display case causing my sunglasses to fall off my head. I don't even have the wits about me to try and catch them. I'm too caught up in the storm that is Matteo Moretti.
He finally breaks eye contact to look over at Juli. "Hi Juli. How's the bakery doing? I'll have to come in soon to get some desserts for Luca's birthday." He smiles as he reaches out to give her a side hug.
I must be doing a horrible job at hiding my feelings because after they let go of each other Juli gives me the ‘what is wrong with your face’ look. I bet my face is so red it looks like I forgot sunscreen on a week long cruise in the Bahamas. Great. I can't seem to stop embarrassing myself.
I bend down to pick up my sunglasses and tuck a stray hair behind my ear. "Good morning Matteo," I say as I return to a somewhat normal standing position. As normal as one can be when they don't know what to do with their hands in an extremely awkward situation.
He gives me a full smile that almost knocks me to my knees again. I manage to stay upright, thankfully. I don't think my sunglasses would survive another fall.
He takes a step toward me and swallows me whole with one look. Suddenly I'm surrounded by leather and sandalwood. It's quickly becoming my favorite scent. He speaks so low I can barely hear. "Sleep well, Rosa?"
I unintentionally take a step toward him. "No." I breathe out.
"Me neither," he says as he takes another step in my direction.
The door opening again causes us both to return to reality. We are very much in the way of the flow of traffic for the small space in the bakery. We separate, and allow the new customers to walk up to the counter. After they pass he starts towards the counter while talking over his shoulder. "See you tonight, Rosa."
Juli grabs me by the arm and pulls me through the door and I’m grateful for the fresh air. As soon as the door closes she lets go of my arm and spins around. "What the hell was that?"
She's motioning to the door we just came through and stares at me like I should know the answer to her question. I open my mouth to say I have no idea, but she keeps talking. "I almost caught fire from the heat coming off the two of you. You didn't tell me he was interested in you! Oh my gosh, he looked like he was going to mount you in the middle of the bakery, and you looked like you were going to let him. Spill!"
I take a deep breath to give myself more time to think of an explanation. Giving up I finally admit, "I have no idea. We talked some last night at dinner, but I already told you everything he said while we were eating breakfast. I'm just as confused as you are. I thought he hated me. He made it very clear last night this was only a business arrangement. Plus, I overheard him talking about his girlfriend at the train station when we met. Remember?"
We start walking in the direction of a little boutique at the end of the street. She locks arms with me to make sure we don't get separated in the sea of people. "Well all I know is, that was hot, like so hot I can't wait to hear how tonight's dinner goes. I want a play by play first thing in the morning. I've not heard about him dating anyone, so it must be a new thing."
We end up shopping and walking around for a few hours. My feet are so numb, I'm pretty sure I left them laying in the middle of the street. My mind, however, is back at the bakery with Matteo. I've been replaying our encounter all day.
We find a seat outside our lunch destination and dig into our sandwiches. I still have some of my brain working enough to remember to snap a few photos before eating. As soon as I take the first bite, I feel like a new person. I didn't realize how hungry I was.
Juli points at me with her sandwich which causes a little piece of tomato to fall to the table. "So what are you going to wear tonight?"
