Allegra was fixing her hair and she touched up her face a bit with some finishing powder and re applied her lipstick of the day. She did not know why but she was slightly nervous for her date that evening with Matteo. The two had been keeping in contact and when Matteo had to go to Sicily to visit his mother he had to cancel their date and then when he told her his mother had passed away, they postponed their date even further, then when everything had calmed down a little bit, they finally had some time to spend with each other again and she could not be more excited. She had not seen him in weeks and despite their seemingly short encounter she did have somewhat of a feeling with him and she was also curious where their relationships would lead to.
That evening she had only returned back from work but it was Friday so she no longer had much work to do and could actually go out on the date. The same went with him as well, he had done working at the coffee shop and could take a break from managing his online business to go out with her. It was real sacrifice on both part. They had agreed to meet at a privately owned Italian restaurant near her workplace. The place was cozy and perfect for the couple. It was not too casual but was not too formal either so none of them had to feel to awkward about the date.
Once she was there, he had arrived earlier so she just had to go straight to him. They exchanged a smile as he greeted her. He asked her how her day was and she did a short ramble on her work, but she had made sure that it was not too much rambling because it might come off as a turn off and in return he asked her how his week was because she knew things had been quite eventful for him lately and she wondered if he had felt better. His face slightly fell upon the question but Matteo was a man who had his life together and he would not have his feelings hurt by the innocent question.
"It's been difficult but I am holding up great. I guess I would have to live on my own now" he forced a smile and she kind of regretted asking it but then he eased up the air again by asking her what she wanted to eat. She told him she was craving some fettucine that day and she wanted lemon tea as the companion drink. He nodded and the waiter approached them to take their order.
He ordered the food for her they started to engage in a pleasant conversation. There was such a nice dynamic between the two. Allegra was usually more aggressive when she's in the workplace but when it came down to her relationships she was willing to tone down her assertiveness a bit. While Matteo was always respectful toward women in general and Allegra was no exception. He was not trying to be sexual or aggressive nor was he showing off anything or tried to dominate her. He was just calm, pleasant and laid back yet he still had that air of assertiveness and alpha charm. Somehow she felt incredibly familiar, she hated to compare men to other men but if she had to describe how she was feeling at the moment, she would say he was incredibly similar to Valentino in term of mannerism and gesture, calm, smart working, attentive and determined, those bloody traits that managed to make Allegra have a silent crush on the man a few years back, yes, she had to admit it, at one point she had a major crush on Valentino, I mean who would not? He was handsome, sophisticated, intelligent, chivalrous and everything in between, but of course she knew since the beginning that he was unavailable since his heart had always and would always belong to Valeria. She respected that and decided to never reveal her feelings for the sake of their friendship and she thought she would never find anyone who would give her the similar feeling than what she had with Valentino. Yet she was wrong, Matteo gave her the same comfort that she felt whenever she was around Valentino but this time he was actually available for her.
By the end of the evening, Matteo was already relaxed and comfortable around her that he was going to open up about everything he had been feeling lately. In his vulnerable state of mind he confessed everything to her and the rational side of his knew that he should not have done so because it has never been a good idea to tell your deepest issues to someone on the first five dates but he did not know why he did it anyway, perhaps because he felt like he could trust her.
Allegra was listening intently to each words he was saying and she was surprised when she found out that he was actually the half-brother of Alessio and Valentino. She knew she should not be surprised since she found so many similarities between them but still, it was just unexpected. If that was the case, then Gianluca Salvatore was a cheater. She had heard about Alessio's and Valeria's breakup which was caused by Alessio's infidelity toward her but she had never expected that it was genetic. Of course, not in a literal way, but still, how could both father and son be cheaters? It was mind blowing for her and it was a bit too much for her to handle. Of course she did not express it to him because she knew he was also handling a lot of issues with the whole Saverino family not accepting her.
Yes, she did hear that Chiara was briefly hospitalized from Valeria but she would have never guessed the cause was Gianluca's infidelity. Once he was done, he apologized for rambling too much about it.
"No, actually. There is something I need you to know as well. The people I just mentioned, I actually know them" she told him the relations she had with the Saverino and all the madness between Valenza and Saverino. She had never expected that her supposedly fun date turned out to be a deep conversation involving the Saverino and it came from the place where she least expected it.
The world is such a small place.
She explained to him everything about the family since the beginning and there were so many information he absorbed that evening. It made him understand a bit about the family he had never knew existed before. The internet could only provide so much about them but to truly understand everything inside out he needed an insider and much to his luck, Allegra was that insider.
"Then that means you are a Saverino. My God, this is insane" she was holding back a mad laughter because the coincidence was too much.
"No, I will forever be my mother's son. There is no place for me in that family. Clearly, my appearance had created quite the chaos. I don't want his wife to despise him for life because of me. Getting out of their business is the best thing I can do" he stated calmly as he took a sip of his drink.
"Don't. I don't want to sound like I am meddling into your business or anything, but Matteo, you are a Saverino. You deserve a place in that family. Gianluca has to take responsibility for what he did. You are innocent, you need to claim your birth right. You deserve better than this" Allegra encouraged. She became quite passionate because she thought what happened to him was truly unfair. A son should not be held responsible for his father's action.
"What do you think I should do then? My brothers would hate me if I appear before their mother. Beside I already have my own life and I should not let this newfound information change anything" he firmly stated. Allegra did not know why she could not just accept that answer. She thought he deserved much better. She thought of something and then she spoke again.
"I know Alessio and Valentino, Matteo. They are good individuals despite everything that you witnessed. The situation was just messy... well, maybe not when it comes down to women for Alessio, but nonetheless you should at least have a conversation with them. They are your brothers after all. It's not good to be alone in this world. Invite them out and speak with them. At least you deserve that much" she suggested. Matteo had his doubts about it but he saw that she was right. He should at least have a conversation with them. Otherwise he might regret never taking his chance.
He took her hand in his and gently caressed it.
"You are right. Thank you" Yes, he should at least have a conversation with them. Even if things turned out badly in the end, at least he took the chance. It would be much better in comparison to nothing at all. Allegra smiled at him as she called the waiter to order some dessert. While she was busy talking with the staff, he smiled and thought quietly.
"She's a keeper"
YOU ARE READING
The Devoted Gentleman (EDITING)
Romance"My brother does not deserve you, Valeria. He could never love you as much as I do" He stepped in closer to her until she could feel his breath on her neck. 'Valentino, we shouldn't..." she tried to push him away. He froze where he was and placed h...
