“Mama, there is no reason to be married and have children so young.”
“You are already too old for that. You’re almost thirty.”
“I’m twenty-six,” Sofia corrected.
“Exactly. The clock is ticking, Sofia, and you can’t afford to waste time. I’m going to invite Dylan over for dinner and the five of us can talk.”
Sofia wanted no such thing, but she couldn’t figure out who the other person was. “Five?”
“Salvatore. He will want to talk to Dylan too.” She turned around and grabbed two plates with the order already prepared. “Now go and do your job. Your father and I will handle the rest.”
Sofia knew she should just come clean. It’d be so much easier than waiting. Once her mother reached out to Dylan, it would be out anyway. So what was holding her back? Maybe I’ll get lucky and a meteor will land on my apartment and I won’t ever have to worry about any of it. She looked one last time at her mother before leaving the kitchen. She seemed so…filled with joy. How could she break her heart?
As soon as this shift was over, Sofia was giving Dylan a call. Her acting skills better be strong, because she was going to need to convince Mama and Papa that she and Dylan were anything but a match for each other. It wasn’t going to be easy, but really, she could think of this as one large stage and her chance to have the lead role. Of course, she didn’t have a script, and the critic was her mother. And no dress rehearsals, either.
Carrying the dishes out to the dining area, she remembered there was someone else who needed to be on board with this as well. Dylan Lawson, this was your bright idea, how are we going to fix it now?
Although she should have been home studying for the play, it seemed like she was going to need to see Dylan. This could be handled over the phone, but the faster they nipped this in the bud, the better. One thing about the Marciano family, their excitement could get the better of them and things quickly got out of hand.
All this because of one stinking kiss that she couldn’t stop thinking about. And it was so worth it.
Dylan had called her in the morning but hadn’t left a message. It was Saturday, and his first thought was Sofia had opted to sleep in. Then after speaking to Charles, he stood corrected. Sofia worked seven days a week. It was no wonder she was exhausted. He actually felt bad about keeping her out so late on Thursday. At least a small part of him did. He enjoyed her company. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t have been with her.
But with everything else going on in her life, he was surprised to get a text from her asking if they could meet tonight. Of course, he agreed, but she hadn’t given any indication as to why. His gut told him it wasn’t because she missed him. Oddly enough, he did miss her.
There was no doubt there was a physical connection, and he found their conversations intriguing, but she wasn’t his type. She was family oriented, whether she wanted to admit it or not. Sofia could tell him anything she wanted, but deep-rooted values were exactly what bound her to the restaurant. Not that Dylan didn’t respect his parents, but even from a young age, he’d done what he wanted, not necessarily what was asked or expected of him.
He’d offered to help her so she could attempt to follow her dream, but he knew she never would. Not that she couldn’t make it as an actress, it was very possible; she was amazing. Yet, she took ‘honor thy mother and father’ very seriously. Her talent took the backseat. Dylan wasn’t sure if he respected or hated that about her. Either way, it showed him how different they were.
Nothing stood in Dylan’s way when he wanted something. The more time they spent together, the more difficult it was becoming for him to know exactly what that was. At first, he was just helping Sal’s kid sister. No big deal. It’d be a few weeks, then back to normal for them both.
Yet Sofia had to know she wasn’t making it easy on him. Boldly kissing him like she had almost sent him over the edge. Holding back from taking it to the next level was getting harder each time he laid eyes on her. She was beautiful in the most natural way. At the restaurant, she didn’t even wear any makeup. And when they went out, even then, only a touch.
It was so much more than just her stunning looks. He crossed paths with beautiful women every day in the city. But combine her looks with her spirit, and she was as unique as a de Vinci painting. Someone could try to replicate her ways, but you’d always know they weren’t the real thing.
Even now, with all the distractions around Aunt Audrey and the Hendersons, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. Dylan needed to let her know this was a mistake. He had to focus on his shit right now. It was yet another night when he could be accomplishing something, either at Lawson Steel or Grayson Corp., and instead he was about to knock on her door. He was here, because he wanted to be. That troubled him more.
A quick knock and she opened the door. Sofia was on her cell phone trying to calm someone down.
“It’s okay. I can drive there now and pick you up. No. I don’t want you taking a bus. You just stay right there and I’ll come for you.”
He watched Sofia as she walked around her apartment and started grabbing things and tossing them into her purse. Dylan wanted to ask who she was talking to, but it really wasn’t any of his business. From the looks of it, if he’d gotten there a few minutes later, Sofia wouldn’t have been home. Did this call have anything to do with her asking him here? He’d need to be patient and wait to find out. Not one of his virtues. For Sofia, he’d make more of an effort. It was killing him, because he could tell by her body language, she was concerned about the other person on the phone.
“Please promise me you won’t do anything stupid,” Sofia said. “No, I’m not saying you are stupid. Just don’t do anything rash. I’ll be there in a few hours. I’ll rent a car if I have to. Just wait for me,” she ordered.
Dylan could eliminate a few people off the list. It wasn’t her parents or Sal on the phone. He wished he could hear the voice to determine if it was a male or female on the other end, but Sofia wasn’t standing still long enough for him to get close. Finally, she ended the call and turned to him.
“I’m really sorry, but I have to go,” she blurted. Sofia grabbed her keys and headed for the door.
Dylan grabbed hold of her arm and said, “Sofia, I’m not sure you should be driving.”
She looked down at his hand then up to face him. “Why?”
“You have only one sneaker on. Unless that was planned, I think you’re a bit…distracted at the moment.”
Sofia rolled her eyes and started looking through her purse. Sure enough, she pulled the other one out. “What the hell?” She walked over to the couch and started putting it on. “You might be right, but I have no choice, I have to go.”
It’d be so easy just to let her leave, but the words came out anyway. “Go where?”