Page 125 of Men or Paws

They showed footage of Josh pulling out the ring and getting down on one knee.

“Hey—there you are!” I said.

“Shhh!” Holly said.

“Rocco Romano was in attendance that evening,” the reporter continued. “And we’re told he was accompanied by his girlfriend, Beth Myers, coincidentally the sister of Josh Myers.”

So far, so good, nothing earth-shattering.

The news program showed video footage of Rocco kissing me.

Oh. My. God. The look on Rocco’s face as he kissed me melted my heart and filled me with warmth from my head to my toes. He looked like a man in love. In love with me.

Best of all, Rocco was kissing me on TV in front of the entire world.

And now they knew my name.

“An anonymous source has told us that Josh Myers and Rocco Romano were overheard backstage after the show discussing possible collaboration on a sitcom. That, of course, would be huge news in the entertainment world if they could make it happen.”

“Are you serious?” I said. “Someone was snooping backstage and leaked it to the press? How rude! Who was it?”

“Keep watching.” Holly hushed me again. “That’s not what they teased was coming up.”

The reporter continued. “But that conversation just forty-eight hours ago between two of Hollywood’s biggest stars may already be old news.”

A graphic appeared on the screen:Is Rocco Romano teaming up with Steven Spielberg?

Okay, that got my attention.

“Our sources also tell us that theCaptain Claptonstar is in negotiations with Steven Spielberg to star in a fast-paced action trilogy set in Rome, Italy. Romano is reportedly very interested in the project set in a region where he recently discovered through a DNA test that he had relatives. His life-long dream of working with Spielberg surely seals the deal.”

“That can’t be right,” I mumbled to myself.

The program showed footage of Rocco from the firstCaptain Claptonmovie.

“Word is that all three movies would be shot back-to-back over a two-year period,” the reporter said. “Of course, we’ll keep you updated on this story as it develops.”

All my energy was sucked out of my body.

Two years.

In Italy.

I clicked off the TV and tossed the remote on the couch.

My thoughts were all over the place.

“Did you know he had been talking to Steven Spielberg?” Holly asked.

“Yes,” I said. “Marcello mentioned the meeting with Spielberg when we were in the pool, but Rocco didn’t give me any details. He only winked at me and told me it was confidential.”

“Something didn’t make sense, especially after Rocco’s conversation with Josh. And especially because the man is mad about you. I saw it myself.”

If he cared about me so much, why wouldn’t he have shared the news with me?

Maybe it was true then.

Did this mean that the man I just fell in love with was going to leave me for two years? Was he going to suggest that we have a long-distance relationship?