Dangerous Numbers

Chapter 23

VITTORIO

I see her standing outside my door, angry and confused.

"Can I have a word?" she asks.

I nod and let her in. I watch as she carefully steps inside like my room is a forbidden area. She heads to the office and sits on the couch. I feel a small pain in my chest as I turn and look at her side, her dark brown eyes pleading for help. I make my way toward the empty space on the couch, but she cuts me off.

"Can you please don't sit next to me? Otherwise, I won't be able to say the things I want to say."

I grant her request and walk to sit at my desk chair. "What's wrong Alex?" I say gently.

"I don't know. Really, I don't know." She says and stands up pacing up and down. "We started all this as a business. I accepted to come and work for you. There are times that I have the idea of something else going on with you. I catch you staring at me without any particular reason, at least from what I know. And then, sometimes you are so good to me, you are treating me like I'm your wife for real even when we're not somewhere public, and then you come back to ice cold the very next moment. Maybe this is all in my head, an illusion or something, so if this is correct, please accept my apology, but I feel so confused I don't know how to react when I'm with you. I don't know were you're pretending and when you're acting your true self."

I just sit and listen carefully, I can see she has a lot more to say, so I don't interrupt her.

"I'm aware that you most probably have run a check on my life before you offer me this position, so you may know that I haven't been in a relationship before. I cannot figure out if your actions or words sometimes are a well-played act or if you mean something more. You confuse me, I don't know how to feel around you." She says and collapses on the couch, leaning forward to hide her face behind both her hands.

I stand up and walk to the table pouring some whiskey into another glass. I take it and walk to sit next to her.

"Drink, it will help you relax," I say softly and give her the glass. She hesitates a bit, but she takes it and gets a small sip. She shrugs her shoulders taking a disgusting reaction to the strange taste of the alcohol, and I cannot hide a laugh at her antics.

"I was planning to have a talk with you at some point, I just hoped this talk would be much later until I figure out something."

"Like what?" she asks. She looks still troubled but somewhat calmer after she took it out of her chest.

"About your feelings," I say and turn to look at her. I want to look deep into her eyes as I'm confessing my love for her.

"You remember the first time we met?"

"Yes, the day I came to the office for the test, and you fell on me, knocking me down." She says in a bit angry tone.

"Since that day your image got into my mind and never left. I keep thinking of you constantly. When I found that you were on the top to be selected for the job, I saw your CV and got impressed. And I felt excited to have you working with me. Every day I was waiting for the moment when you'll enter my office. I was longing to see you, I felt like a school kid."

She takes another sip of whiskey, not breaking the eye contact.

"When I saw you at the food truck, and you told me about the situation with your mother, I couldn't deny offering my help, although how proud I knew you are, and you wouldn't accept it."

It's my turn to drink now.

"Bianca is right, you change me. I wasn't like this with any other woman I've dated before. But with you, all I do seems to be right. And they give me such joy seeing you with that shy smile that makes my heartbeat racing and those sweet eyes that set my soul on fire."

I look at her, her cheeks are burning red, and I doubt it's from the alcohol.

"Excuse me if I'm too forward with my words but I cannot hide my feelings anymore. And everything I did tonight was to make you feel happy and not because I have to pretend, you're my wife."

I break the eye contact and turn my face down looking at my glass of whiskey holding between my hands.

"Sometimes I wish even that to be true."

A long silence falls in the room, it Is unbearable. Did I scare her? Was it too soon to confess my feelings? Now I understand why she felt confused.

"So, I'm not hallucinating?" she whispers.

I turn sharply at her and see a smirk on her lips and her eyes sparkle with hope.

I shake my head slightly sideways and she lights up a sweet smile.

"You know..." she hesitates, "I think... I think I'm falling in love with you."

I cannot hide my smile anymore as I stare deeply into her eyes. "Good, because I'm already on the floor for you."

She lets down the glass and wraps her arms around me giving me a kiss. She didn't know how to kiss; she just connected her lips with mine. She abruptly breaks the kiss averting her gaze from mine from embarrassment I guess.

"Sorry for this. I don't know how it's done." She whispers moving a bit back to look me in the eyes. I don't let her get away.

"In that case, let me show you." I give her a playful smile and lay back on the cough dragging her with me.

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So... what do you think about this chapter?

I'm waiting for your comments!!