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This is how real men act,”he’d told me when I asked him why he’d done it.
But in my eyes, there’s nothing manly about being so reactive that anyone could easily get a rise out of you. True power is silent—where your confidence speaks for you before you can even open your mouth.
I bite down on my lip, heat stirring in my veins as I realize that Enzo isexactlythat. If his annoyingly good looks hadn’t been enough, his quiet confidence has definitely won me over.
Without me even realizing, my eyes scan the area in search of him.
We had been in a conversation before we’d been interrupted. Surely, it’d be rude to just float away without a proper conclusion.
At least that’s the excuse I told myself. Truthfully, I just want to be around him again.
“Are you kidding me?” Lilly’s voice brings me back to the here and now. She’s standing behind me, drying her hands on a small paper towel. “I go to the bathroom for five minutes, and there’s a whole scene here? Is it true that security had to be called in?”
“It was nothing.” I shrug, “Just some guy who was trying to get a rise out of Enzo. He took care of it.”
Why am IdefendingEnzo? Not like he needs me to. Not that Ishouldbe. We only met less than an hour ago.
“Right, nothing.” Lilly grins at me. “I heard someone mention some rivalry? That’s something straight out of a movie.”
I shrug. “Who knows?”
“Well, you’d know more than I do.” Lilly laughs. “The two of you were looking quite cozy, talking to each other.”
“We were only discussing business.” I narrow my eyes at Lilly as heat floods my cheeks.
Silvano had made a similar comment when he called me Enzo’s ‘new flavor of the month.’ Did we really look like a couple?
Enzo and I—the conversation had flowed so easily between us. Even though it had been so long since I last dated, I knew chemistry when I saw it.
If the brief physical contact we had earlier when his fingers brushed against mine was any indication, this sort of chemistry is dangerous. It’s explosive and stirred a longing inside of me that I haven’t felt in years.
Lilly says something, but I’m distracted again, trying to look for Enzo. He’s apparently vanished into thin air, as he’s nowhere to be found.
I wonder if one of the other girls succeeded in getting through to him, giving away her Instagram ID. Hot jealousy burns inside of me, and even I’m surprised.
Get a hold of yourself, Quinn.
I’m here for business, not to have an affair. It’s ridiculous that the thought even crossed my mind.
I know better than to let myself get enchanted by a man. Not just that, I’m here to help promote his wine, nothing more. And he is old enough to be my father.
Dad.
I wince. It’s not like we are overly close, dad and I, and I often forget to reach out. I should call him. It’s been too long since we talked.
I take a sip from my glass in hopes of restoring some semblance of calm.
Lilly, oblivious to my internal monologue, is going on about some difficulty she’s having with negotiating with a sponsor.
I nod every now and then, smiling to let her know I’m listening when I’m really not.
It’s a good thing Enzo isn’t here. Just a small conversation with him was enough to send my mind into a tizzy. If I have any hope of not making a total fool out of myself, I have to stay far away from him.
Someone taps my shoulder, and I turn around to find one of the waiters.
“Sorry to interrupt, miss. But the event will be moving indoors now for the remainder of the night,” he informs us with a polite smile.
“Indoors?” Lilly groans, “But it’s so nice out here.”