Everything inside tugged me in Elio’s direction, everything but my heart. I wanted him to work for it. He pulled out my chair, and I eased onto the velvet fabric.
“Would you like a glass of wine to start, or would you like anaperitivi?”
“Either is fine, thank you.” I pulled my napkin on my lap and hesitated with the menu.
“What’s wrong?” He picked it up and started to read, and I hid my delight that I was allowed to order on my own, unlike when I was with Mariano.
“What’s good here?” I avoided his question.
“Everything, so order anything that interests you.”
“Mr. Capri.” An older man came over and offered a hand. “It’s lovely to have you back. I do hope everything is up to your standards?”
“It always is.” Elio glanced at me. “I would like you to meet my date for the evening, Sienna Giovanna.”
“Ciao belle.” He offered me a hand. “I’m Gusto.”
“Lovely to meet you, Gusto.” I returned his warm smile.
He suddenly snapped his fingers, and a young sommelier who looked nervous but excited held up a bottle of wine.
“A new batch just arrived, sir, and when we heard you were coming, we thought we’d offer you some.”
“Would you like to try it?” Elio asked me, and the sommelier turned the bottle so I could see the label.Gattavecchi Vino Nobile Di Montepulciano.
“I’m sure it will be wonderful.”
Elio motioned with his hand, and the young man opened the wine to give us both a taste to make sure we were happy with it. We both agreed it was delicious, and I did notice they both sighed with relief as it was set aside to breathe. We soon placed our food order, and as Elio thanked Gusto, I leaned back and let myself relax.
I found myself watching Elio. He had two very strong sides to his personality. One was the boy I had fallen madly in love with, and the other was much darker and commanding. I was pleased to see that for the most part he was the same boy I once knew, but oddly, his dark side piqued my interest in the most arousing way. One I hadn’t seen coming.
“What are you thinking?” His raspy voice shot right to the center of my stomach. While I blinked, trying to recall his words, he tilted his head and smirked. “You have a face when you’re thinking naughty thoughts, Sienna.”
“Is that so?” I licked my lips and reached for my water. He watched me, and his eyes wandered down to my throat and dipped low on my chest. He fingered his cufflinks, looking relaxed as one hand absently stroked his chin. Not wanting to give away my private moment, I decided some answers were going to have to be given tonight if I was going to be okay with Elio being in my life again.
“Is Gusto the owner?” I changed topics.
“He is.”
“And you get the entire patio whenever you bring your dates here?”
“Whenever I come here, yes.”
“Seems like a lot of lost revenue for them.”
He looked away for a moment. “I make it worth their while.”
“Do I want to know what you do, Elio?”
His gaze darted over to mine, and I felt my stomach tighten. He held me in his gaze until I finally broke his hold. “I’m not sure yet.”
“Fair enough.” Why wasn’t I running away? Normally, there would be a burned path out the door, but for some reason I just knew I was going to be okay, because it was Elio. I absentmindedly reached for my necklace and rubbed the pendant he had given me.
“Why did you leave without a goodbye?” came flying out of my mouth, and I could see the fear that raced across his face. “Wait.” I held up a hand, feeling a sudden panic sweep over me. “Don’t answer that.”
“I will answer that question, I promise you, Sienna, but can we address that one another time?” His face told me it wasn’t the time or place. I gave a curt nod, hating that I wanted to run from the answer.
“Can I ask you a few questions?” He kept his voice soft.