“When do you have to be there?”
“Six thirty.”
“Okay.”
Tourists and souvenir vendors milled around the Colosseum. We were surrounded by fragments of conversations, English mixed with Italian. We found the group easily, right next to the entrance, in the shade. It was a small group, just ten participants.
“I am not going to talk all the time,” the guide said. “I will give you all the information when we reach a new level, and then you can just walk around at your pace, soak it all in. A word of warning: if you’re not in good shape, reaching the top will be challenging. The steps are old and very steep.”
I grimaced a little, because while the general mayhem at the hospital meant I was always on the move, climbing wasn’t my thing.
“I’ll carry you, if you want,” Cole whispered in my ear. I swatted him away playfully.
“We’d look ridiculous,” I whispered, but the idea didn’t sound half bad.
“I don’t give a fuck.”
“Might break your back, mister.”
“Lucky I have this sexy doc with me. She can take care of me.”
“I’m not equipped to heal a broken back right now,” I said.
“I’m sure we can find something that would work.” He was looking at me intently. I burst out laughing even as heat rose in my cheeks. I had no idea how he could make me blush and laugh at the same time. I couldn’t wait to discover what else he could do. My stomach bottomed out as I realized he was leaving in a few hours. I was still feeling a little off-kilter as the guide asked us to line up.
The Colosseum was honestly one of the most impressive constructions I’d ever seen.
Looking at something of this size that was more than two thousand years old was surreal. We started with the arena floor. Stepping onto a reconstructed wooden plank, we went right to the center of the arena where the gladiator battles took place. Being surrounded by these ancient stones while listening to the bloody, violent history gave me goose bumps.
“Oh, before I forget. Need to send my parents a selfie.” I held my phone so that the stands were visible and smiled brightly.
“The Wi-Fi isn’t working; I checked.”
“I’ve got one of those portable modems in my backpack, and I’m already connected. I can give you the password.”
“No, don’t tempt me. I’m staying offline, otherwise I’ll go down the rabbit hole checking emails, and I just want to focus on you.”
“You mean our tour.”
“No. You.” This man! I couldn’t believe he was flirting so openly... or that I liked it so much. He grinned and, probably realizing I was in a dilemma, dropped it. “Why the portable modem?”
“I’m sending pics in real time, otherwise I forget. And when it’s late in the evening here and I’m out and about in the city is also when my parents are awake, so we can easily communicate. They love my pictures. Actually, I think they’d love Rome. They can’t afford to travel, but as soon as I finish my residency, I’ll make enough money that I could easily pay for their vacations. I told them this once, but they won’t even hear of it. For now.”
“You’re a remarkable person.”
“Thank you.”
“I mean it.”
He grinned. “For now, huh? I like how you think.”
“I don’t really get it. If I can afford it, why won’t they let me do something nice for them?”
“I know a thing or two about parents’ pride. Between my siblings, my cousin, and me, we wanted to buy an apartment for my mom and her husband. This is my mom’s second marriage; long story to tell another time. Anyway, she raised hell. We eventually managed to convince her to let us chip in for the down payment. It was the toughest negotiation. We had thought the same thing—we all make decent money, so why not let us take care of her?”
My stomach was full of fuzzy feelings. Isabelle had told me a few things about the Winchesters. They’d moved from Boston to New York many years ago when their dad left the family and practically started over... kind of like me.
I also knew they were well off. The sisters, Tess and Skye, owned a lingerie store. Ryker was working somewhere on Wall Street, and Cole and their cousin Hunter were at the helm of Caldwell Real Estate. Isabelle had emphasized they were good people, but in this case, good didn’t even begin to cover it.