Page 54 of Ruin

He steps back and laughs drily, but the smile doesn’t reach his eyes. “A rental, huh? Brutal.”

“Keeping your ego in check is my public service,” I deadpan.

He glances at his watch, then back at me. “So, you keeping my ego in check over dinner or what?”

“Not a date,” I say firmly.

“Not a date,” he echoes, mock solemn.

“I’m serious, Antonio. Just dinner as friends.”

His grin creeps back. “Perfect. But wear that dress from last time.”

Tommy’s dress? Ugh, no. “That dress is cursed,” I groan.

“Then let’s un-curse it. On you, it was…” His gaze lingers. “Incredible. Come on, Marino. No dress, no dinner.”

When he sees me pause, he shakes his head at me. “Don’t say no.” He leans in close to me, and I freeze, terrified he’s going to try to kiss me. Instead, he breathes in deeply and pulls back to look at me thoughtfully.

“As hot as that dress is, it’ll look even hotter when—”

I hold up my hand. “If you say ‘it’ll look even hotter on my floor,’ dinner is canceled.”

He smirks. “Interesting that that’s where your head is at. I was just going to say that it would look even hotter with those boots you wore that night. Wear those too?”

I shove him, fake grin in place as bile rises in my throat. I have to convince Antonio to drop this charade. If I have to wear a stupid outfit to make him more amenable, so be it.

On my way up to my room to get ready, I text Lexi.

I need a bailout call in two hours.

Can you do that?

Bailout calls are something Lexi and I do for each other when we want to get out of a boring meeting or a bad date. When Lexi calls in a couple of hours, I’ll be able to fake an emergency and end the dinner with Antonio before it gets weird.

On it. Why?

Dinner with Antonio. I’ll fill you in later.

21

Tommy

Not being good enough for Giovanna, not being able to give her the life she deserves, is something that weighed on me long before Lorenzo’s rant.

But after the other night, waiting was no longer an option. If I can’t give her everything she deserves right now, the least I can do is make a place she would want to come home to. A place that is hers as much as mine.

I told her we’d haul the last of her stuff out of her parents’ house, but I was always bringing it here to Dragovari Tower. But after Lorenzo’s little rant, I walked in the door of my suite and saw it the way she might: a bare-bones bachelor pad with a single couch in the living room and metal chairs around a card table.

I went to work immediately, making it worthy of her. At first, I was just cleaning. Then one thing led to another, and by 3 pm, I was sanding down a battered coffee table, then patching scuffs on the wall and painting by dinner, then I decided the lighting was wrong.

Matti took one look and started calling in favors. Bymidnight, I had a shipment of throw pillows, leather couches and a dining set brought in by staff, and the hotel’s electrician crouched in the corner expanding the wiring. And I didn’t stop.

I lost my phone in the mess and didn’t notice the hours slipping by, didn’t hear it buzz until a notification went off when I was practically standing on it. I grab it, realizing with a start that it’s been almost two days since I started this project. I haven’t slept. I barely ate. I start to call Giovanna, but a text from Lexi comes in.

Don’t think this means I like you but I

owe you one…