She stands there like a statue made by Antonio Lombardo. The way her body curves as if the wind moves with her. I’ve never seen anyone glow like that before. She’s haunting in a way that will stay with you for life. It’s the type of aura a man would kill for.
Now I know why Helena started a war.
After the most intense photoshoot of the century, we decided to sit down and eat at the restaurant to take a break from the tiring day. It’s comfortably silent as we all eat like we haven’t eaten in days. Let’s just say we haven’t taken a food break all day.
“This is the best pasta I have ever had,” I hear Xavier say beside me.
Miss Castillo nods in agreement. “I’m currently having a food orgasm.”
They both hum in agreement as they devour every piece of pasta left on their plates.
“I was thinking, since we already paid for a night in the nice suite, why don’t we stay here until morning? That way, you guys can have the whole experience.”
“Oh my god. Did Mr. Donatello actually think about someone other than himself for a change?” I shake my head at her.
“I would love to see the rooms here as well. They all have a story specifically picked by Gianni himself.” Miss Castillo nods at my statement.
“What about you, Xavier?” He stops shoving bread into his mouth.
“I don’t mind,” he says.
“Okay, it’s settled then.” I wave the waiter over and ask him for the check. He nods, then quickly walks over to get us the bill.
A few minutes later, he returns with the check in hand. Grabbing it, I check all the costs. I’m dropping my Amex onto the table when Miss Castillo stops me with her hand.
“You’re not going to pay every bill here. Remember, we make almost as much money as you do.” She quickly picks my card up off the table and throws it to the side, placing her card on top of the receipt.
Grabbing the black leather checkbook, she signs her signature on the small piece of paper and gives them a tip. I sit in shock. I would have told her no, but I don’t want her to be offended. I know she feels strongly about equality. Everything should be the same between men and women, and I agree, but that doesn’t stop me from feeling bad that she paid.
Getting up out of my chair, the others do so as well. We make sure we place the chairs back where they were when we arrived, and then head to the lobby towards the elevator.
Finally making it to the gold elevator, we take it up to the second floor. Walking down the hallway, we see a door at the end of the hall. In sizable letters across the door, it says, “Empire Suite”. Putting my key card in, I open the door to a massive room adorned in maroons and light blues, an odd color match, but very Versace.
One massive bed sits in the middle of the room, which means one of us will have to sleep on the floor. That person will most likely be me.
Miss Castillo walks through the room in an extremely attentive state. Running her fingers down the curtains and murals on the walls, you can see the fascination in her eyes. “This used to be his room. Gianni’s,” she says out loud, catching me off guard with her words.
“Doesn’t that seem creepy to you in any way?”
“No, not really. It’s actually a cool experience.”
“Sleeping in a dead man’s room is a cool experience for you?”
“That’s not the point; it’s his legacy that captivates me. This is where he thought, created, ate, slept, and lived. This is an experience to honor the legend’s legacy.” She shrugs.
Absolutely not. As an Italian, I disagree, but it might also be my family’s bias all throughout my life.
“We have to figure out this sleeping arrangement,” Xavier blurts out as he lays on the bed that he jumped on as soon as we walked in.
“Well, I’m not sleeping on the floor,” Miss Castillo says, her snarky comment directs me in a completely different direction to my original thoughts. All I want to do is get a reaction out of her now.
“Well, I’m not sleeping on the floor either.”
“Well, I guess I’m sleeping on the floor then,” Xavier says as he starts getting up from the bed, sighing. Realization runs through me while I look into Miss Castillo’s eyes. If he sleeps on the floor, that means... Miss Castillo and I would have to sleep in the same bed.
Fuck. No.
Realization hits Miss Castillo a few seconds after me. “NO!” we both yell in unison at Xavier, he just sits there in shock at our abrupt outburst.