Rose
"Maybe I should go. They are looking for you." I jerked my hand from his and turned around. The stunning woman kept her eyes on me and when I tried to walk past her, she stopped me.
"I'm sorry for the interruption. Just wait for a second and I can pay for your trouble." she said in a demeaning tone and opened her purse.
"Excuse me? Look I don't know what you are talking about, but I don't appreciate your tone." Marco was quick to stand by my side, but instead of annoyance in his face, I saw amusement and a smile. Jerk.
"Veronica. Basta." (stop)
"Come on Marco, you called me saying it was an emergency and I leave everything, to find you in an alley with a prostitute. No offence miss. I don't know the term you prefer. Sex worker perhaps? The thing is, he won't be needing your services any longer. He has more important things to deal with tonight. I'm afraid his dick is not one of them." Stunned, unable to respond to the mad woman's absurd monologue, I turned my gaze to him. He had crossed his arms in front of him and watched the woman with a stern look.
"Are you quite finished sister? If so, I would like to introduce you to my friend Rose." He slightly touched my arm and I flinched. "Rose, this is my lovely sister Veronica, the lawyer I was telling you about." She instantly paled and looked at me with a sad face.
"I'm terribly sorry Rose. Forget anything I said. I was so annoyed when my brother called. He ruined my perfect date with my fiancé and I was furious. I should have known you were not a prostitute. You are far too dressed." I stifled a laugh but Marco got angry.
"Will you shut up? You are embarrassing both yourself and our family."
"Of course, the family. Always the damn family. You know Rose, it's so frustrating to ........" she didn't finish her sentence. Instead, Marco caught her hand and switched to Italian.
"Mi dice niente. Non lo sa." (Don't say anything. She doesn't know.) She just nodded and smiled kindly at me.
"Well, I'm just going to grab my bag and ask Jay to leave." I said trying to escape the awkward atmosphere surrounding the three of us.
"You know Jay?" she asked and I stopped walking.
"Yeah. He's my friend."
"You sure have a lot of friends in the family. How come I've never seen you around?" What did she mean by family? Is Jay related to Marco? How come everyone knows each other? The giant question mark which was surely painted on my forehead, made Marco to ask me to follow him back inside. Veronica walked by my side with so much style and elegance. Maybe it's a family thing. When we finally reached the bar, I studied her appearance in detail. She wore a knee length red dress, her short, black hair in perfect waves and her makeup flawless.
"I'm sorry about my sister. She doesn't know how to keep her mouth shut when she's pissed. She didn't mean it. You don't look like a ..... and certainly I never pay women to have sex with me. I feel awful. Can I get you another drink? I have to talk to my sister for a moment, but I'll make it as quick as possible, if you wait for me."
"I don't think that's a good idea. I'll better get going." Turning my attention to Jay to ask him to go, he said that it was still early and I hadn't celebrated enough. Bringing me another drink, he winked at Marco and made me sit down. Traitor.
While Marco and his sister vanished to talk, Jay asked me questions about him.
"So, you keep meeting him at the café? Did you two...? You know....?" he asked and I almost choked on my drink.
"Jay, what are you talking about? We're just friends. Nothing more." He started laughing and came closer to me.
"Marco Mancini doesn't have lady friends, Rose. He obviously wants you but I can't understand why hasn't he made his move yet? You said you met him like two weeks ago?" I nodded yes and he kept laughing shaking his head. "That's so unlike him. I've known him for so many years and he has always been so clear and direct with what he wants." Not knowing how to respond to that, I just stared at Jay. "Rose you know how much I love you. I am your friend, you know that, right? I would do anything for you." He kept giving a rather sappy speech, but I was unable to follow. Maybe the drinks had kicked in and I was losing my ability to comprehend simple sentences.
"Why are you telling me all these? Are you drunk Jay?" I laughed it off and returned to my drink.
"Do you know who the Mancinis are Rose?" he asked seriously.
"No. Should I? What's wrong Jay? You are scaring me. Cut to the chase." I encouraged him, but just as he was ready to elaborate further, Marco's hand was on his shoulder.
"Are you ready to leave now Rose? I can take you home. I have only had one drink. I'm afraid Jay will have to stay a little longer. My brother needs him to run an errand." Turning to Jay, I could see his eyes almost pleading me to refuse. What was going on?
"Is this alright with you Rose? I can hail a taxi for you." He tried to convince me, but Marco insisted. In the end he gave up and before we left, I heard them exchanging a few words in Italian. I was never going to come to this place again. I needed a dictionary to get a decent conversation.
Marco was again the perfect gentleman, opening the car door for me, making sure I had fastened my seatbelt and then starting the car. A different one than the flashy Lamborghini from last time.
"How many cars do you have?" I asked and I earned a perfect smile from him.
"They are not all mine. Some are the company's cars. But I do love fast cars and have a few in my collection." That's right he referred to a collection of cars as if he was talking about stamps. "I thought you didn't mind wealth and possessions. Was I wrong?"
"I don't mind. It just seems strange. I don't know anything about you. Just today I learnt your last name. It sounds familiar though. Are you famous or something? And what do you do exactly for a living?" I asked keeping in my mind what Jay told me previously.
"I told you, I'm into finance. It pays well and I can live in comfort. As for famous, I wouldn't say so. Mancini is a rather common Italian name. There is a famous footballer with the same last name. Maybe you know him." His eyes were focused on the road and it felt weird that I was asking all these questions, without him being able to face me. I turned my attention to the road as well and remained silent for the rest of the drive.
It had started raining and until we reached my building, it had turned into a proper downpour. It was raining so heavily, that I couldn't get out of the car. Parked across the street from my apartment, I waited until the rain stopped a little.
"So, it seems that I'm stuck here. I'll try to run real quickly. I don't want to keep you."I admitted when I finally looked at him.
"You'll get wet. Let me give you my jacket and I'll accompany you to your door." He suggested and I nodded. I was not at all comfortable sitting so close to him. Running to the door, I managed to slip on the sidewalk and almost fall if it weren't for him.
"Do you want to come upstairs? Until the rain stops. You got wet. You'll catch a cold." I offered and he accepted. Stopping in front of the elevator, I told him that I rarely used it. I was a little afraid of confined spaces and I preferred the stairs for a little bit of exercise, I informed him with a smile.
"I'll be with you. Don't be afraid." Reaching for my hand, he pressed the button and once inside he kept me close to him. I closed my eyes and counted the floors one by one until mine. Exiting on the sixth floor, he didn't leave my hand and spoke in a soft voice. "See? Nothing happened. You don't have to be afraid anymore." I didn't pay attention and I focused on the difficult task of inserting the key to the keyhole with a trembling hand. That turned more difficult than it sounds and taking the keys from my hand, he opened the door and asked me to relax.
The house was clean and tidy apart from the glass of my last drink. I quickly picked it up and took it to the kitchen.
"I'll get you something to change and a towel. I'm pretty sure that my dad left some clothes the last time they visited me." He wanted to object but didn't give him the chance. I returned handing him a pair of tracksuits and a T shirt. He gave them a strange look but he took them anyway. When I saw him unbuttoning his shirt, I disappeared in my bedroom to get changed myself. Taking deep breaths, I took a last look in the full-length mirror and returned to the living room. I wore my black yoga pants and a loose T-shirt. I found him sitting on the couch, his cell in hand.
"Everything alright? Did they fit?" taking a seat next to him, I turned on the TV and avoided his eyes at all costs.
"Perfect. Thanks for that. So, I think it will be a long time before it finally dies down. Maybe I should go. You might want to go to bed." He said and stood up. I panicked. I didn't want him to leave. So, I did the first thing that came to my mind. I stood up abruptly in an attempt to kiss him. My clumsy attempt resulted in him on the floor and me on top of him.
"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to knock you down like that. I ...." He stared deep into my eyes and held my face with both his hands. "May I kiss you?" he asked and I almost fainted.
"Rose? Did you hear me? I would very much like to kiss you. Would you like that?" he asked again and I nodded.
I felt his lips touching mine and closing my eyes, I let myself take in the strange sensation. I hadn't kissed anyone besides Jack and it's been so damn long.
I moved my hands around his neck and opened my mouth further. He happily accepted the sweet invitation, using his expert tongue exploring every inch of my mouth, meeting mine and battling with it.
I surrendered to his domineering kiss, forgetting about anything else. The sensation was so intense; I might have moaned a couple of times between the swirls of his tongue and the change in angle.
I was almost sure I had forgotten how to kiss, but Marco made it feel so simple and natural. My lips would surely be swollen afterwards and maybe a mild heart attack was on its way.
I was starting to get even more comfortable on top of him, thinking that I might suffocate the poor man. The heat radiated by both our bodies and the never ending kiss made me ready to explode. Shifting a little to avoid crushing him, he held my face and broke the kiss.
"Rose, wait. We should stop."