Page 3 of Purrfectly Mated

Somehow, he’d managed to tuck the back of the shirt in, but the front simply would not hold in that stomach. What worried her more were the tight brown pants.

As he sat back and stretched, she wondered if she should take cover. They looked like they were one bite from exploding off his body. Elissa shuddered at the image.

Please God, if You have an ounce of mercy, don’t let that happen,she prayed.

“Hang on, doll, I gotta take this,” he said, and turned to answer his cell phone.

It was ringing to the tune of ‘70s disco music she hadn’t heard since the last family reunion. Her eyes kept going to the huge stain on the front of his shirt. It was a little game she liked to callwhat the hell is that.

Coffee, she guessed.

“Up your ass, Bruno. I gotta have it by Monday,” he cursed into the receiver.

Elissa winced at the spectacle he was making of them both. There were only a handful of people there, but still.

Deep breaths.

Ew. Maybe not.

She coughed as the strong body spray, that he’d obviously used a ton of in lieu of a shower, bad move in her opinion, invaded her lungs.

Oh, this was so bad.

Elissa was, by no means, a snob. But this guy looked like he’d stepped out of a bad 1980s mafia spoof film. What’s worse, he kept smacking his lips together as he hung up the phone and looked her over from head to chest.

Thank fuck for the table, she thought, wishing she could hide her bosoms from his view.

“Ssssss,” he hissed, like it was sexy or something.

She just grimaced. Elissa might be able to forgive a lot of quirks, but she hated mouth noises. Really hated them. It was a super pet peeve of hers. Never mind his totally inappropriate and unwelcomed leer.

She started counting the minutes, willing the date to be over already. Plenty of people would tell her she shouldn’t be so choosy, but really? She was not this desperate.

Not yet anyway.

So, she was curvy and a little mouthy too. But was it wrong to want a man with good table manners? Even if men were thin on the ground for someone like her.

As a chef, she’d worked in a lot of restaurants and even as a personal cook for professional couples. She’d seen her fair share of unhappy couples and downright uncomfortable marriages. But as far as she was concerned, all relationships went downhill when good table manners were dismissed.

Good manners were merely a sign that a person was thoughtful and respectful. At least, that was what Nonna had told her. Gianni here had clearly missed that lesson as a child. Elissa had to work not to groan in disgust as he slurped a raw clam down his gullet.

Shudder.

Was there no end to his feeding? That’s what it reminded her of. Feeding time at the zoo.

OMG. That was rude,she scolded herself. But it wasn’t like she said it out loud.

All she wanted to do was go home. At least she was comfortable.She’dworn her softest pair of black leggings for this disaster date, paired with one of her favorite tunics on top.

It was dark green with tiny black buttons down the front and showed just the right amount of cleavage. She’d gone for neat and tidy as opposed to downright sexy.

Good call, in her opinion. Elissa looked perfectly fine for a nicegetting to know youdinner, which is what she thought she was getting when her roommate asked her to step in for her on a blind date that one of her best client’s had set up for her.

Elissa shuddered now, thinking how good old Gianni here would’ve reacted to the red dress and heels she’d contemplated before checking the weather report.

Gulp.

The lewd man was already salivating, and she was so not having it. Fending off his unwanted advances was not how she wanted to finish the night.

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