Max grabbed the man in a tight hug then clapped him on the back. “How’s Audrey? And the girls?”
Giorgio beamed at him. “Audrey’s fine, and the girls aren’t so little anymore.” He made a sad face. “But they give me grandbabies. Soon. Very very soon.”
“They’re pregnant? Wow, how long has it been since I came for pie?”
“Too long, my old friend, but it’s good to see you. I’ll tell Audrey you stopped by and she’ll be upset she missed you.”
Max’s smile turned sheepish. “You don’t have to do that.”
“Why? It’s the truth. You became one of the family all those years ago, Max. She misses you.”
When his cheeks turned pink, I felt sure I’d wandered into an alternate universe. What the hell was going on?
“You see here before you my favorite and most beloved and well-missed server,” Giorgio told me with a wide, mega-watt smile. “I’m Giorgio. Any friend of Max’s is a friend of mine.”
I blinked in bemusement. I wasn’t even sure why I was bemused. Which part was the part that stunned me?
That I’d suddenly picked up a new friend or that Max Greene, the aforementioned billionaire and hotshot playboy of the city, had been a server at this tiny restaurant.
Realizing I’d been gawking, it was my turn to blush but I immediately shot my hand out in apology and grasped Giorgio’s. “It’s a pleasure to meet you! I’m Jessica.”
Giorgio grinned again. “Jessica, piacere. It’s wonderful to meet you too. Now, less of the talk—you came for pizza, and the best pizza in the state is what you’ll have!” He clicked his fingers with a sweeping motion, turning around the six-by-six space as he sought out a waitress. The motion seemed to work because a harried woman in her forties appeared, shooting us a tight smile.
“Helena will be your server tonight, Max. Treat him like he’s royalty,” Giorgio warned the woman, who just nodded, then, after grabbing some menus, ushered us away from a still-smiling Giorgio into the body of the restaurant.
The place was narrow, thin, but long. Really long. Cushioned banquettes lined the walls with tables for two propped in front of them and spaced apart. There were forty tables all in all, so the place wasn’t as small as I’d imagined, but it still managed to retain a cute cozy feel thanks to the brushed pine tables and chairs, the red rattan tablecloths, and the ubiquitous candles propped in chianti bottles with the straw bases.
It was like something from the Lady and the Tramp, and I found it adorable.
As Helena guided us to our seats, I knew we’d got the best table in the house—a corner seat at the bottom of the restaurant that had been formed into a corner unit, with a matching area directly opposite. It seated six, but because Max was Max, I suppose that meant it didn’t matter there were only two of us.
How the other half live, I thought, amused.
As I slipped into the booth, my stomach made a huge growling noise. I froze, horror surging as it happened again. And once more!
For some reason, that seemed to break Helena’s flustered countenance, because she laughed as mortification swelled through me. “Even though I work here and should be immune to the scent of pizza, I’m not.” She patted her tush. “As my butt can attest. I’m a carb queen, what can I say?” she told us unashamedly.
Max surprised me, once again. I’d expected an Ice King, had thought that aloofness might appear in front of servers or the like, instead, he chuckled. “If I still worked here, I’d have to live at the gym. Pizza for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.” He sighed, closed his eyes. “Heaven.”
When I laughed, those eyes of his popped open and he speared me with a glance. I felt that look straight down to my core, and as heat flared to life, as I felt myself slowly start to burn up, I realized this man was what I needed.
He was going to be my tonic, and I’d had no idea that I needed one.
The thought cut my arousal down by half. Reminders, memories, the past…
It all swirled around me as I dove into the menu and looked over the options even though I knew I’d be having deep dish pepperoni. It was the only thing I ever had when I ate at pizza restaurants, so looking at the options like I was reading for the bar exam was kind of over the top, but it was the lifeline I needed.
Something Max seemed to sense like the Jessica Whisperer he was coming to be, because he kept the server engaged. So much so, she slapped a hand to her forehead after he made a pun about mozzarella. “I’m so sorry; I should have taken your drinks’ orders by now.”
Max preened. “I consider it a job well done if I’ve distracted you.”
The server chuckled and shot me a look; I was helpless to ignore her. In the depths of her gaze, I saw her appreciation of Max, as well as a ‘you’re one lucky sister.’
I blew out a shaky breath, accepting that I was lucky, and the shaky smile I sent her way told her I knew it.
Max was different, and different was good.
“I’ll have water please.”