Chapter 10
No Reservations
“I guess I should have asked you where you were dropping me off,” Victoria said, looking around.
Sebastian had parked in front of Al Porto Italia. A valet in a red and gold uniform was hurrying to open the door for him.
“I thought we’d get dinner first,” he said, not looking at her.
“It’s fine, Mr. Chase,” Victoria said, forcing a smile. “I can take the bus from here.”
But he had already gotten out. He walked around the car and opened the door for her. “I have something to discuss with you before you go,” he said. “You can either wait in the car, or join me.”
Victoria didn’t say anything for a few moments, then she nodded and got out.
Inside, a stout, middle-aged man in a suit greeted them cheerfully. “Mr. Chase!” he said. “I didn’t know you had a reservation with us tonight.”
“No reservation, I’m afraid, Aberto,” Sebastian said. “Will you be able to fit us in?”
“For you, of course!” Aberto gestured to a waiter, who nodded and left. “We will have a table ready for you and your lovely date in a few minutes.”
Victoria turned red.
“This is Ms. Victoria Slade,” Sebastian said. “Ms. Slade, Aberto owns Al Porto.”
“Lovely to meet you,” Victoria said, shaking his hand. “And I’m not his date,” she added shyly.
Aberto burst out laughing. “Sebastian, did you kidnap this young lady, perhaps? She looks like she is ready to run the moment we take our eyes off her.”
Sebastian smiled. “Ms. Slade is merely anticipating your seafood risotto,” he said. “I told her yours is the best one can get outside Italy.”
“Ah, we do our best. I am homesick most days, so I try to bring Italia to Los Angeles.”
The waiter came back to inform him the table was ready. Aberto escorted them to a table by a window, and excused himself to go back to the kitchen.
Victoria looked around at the plush interiors and elegant couples sitting at the white cloth-covered tables dining on wine and exquisitely plated dishes, and wished she were home. Her boss was angry with her, and the prospect of having to sit through dinner with him was not something she was looking forward to.
She smiled at the waiter who pulled out a chair for her. The young man responded with a smile. He had dark hair and fine features, and his eyes sparkled as he looked at her. For a moment her heart lifted. “Grazie,” she said.
“Prego, signorina.”
“I’ll have my usual, Marco,” Sebastian said. He sounded almost curt. “And the lady will have the same.”
“Very good, sir,” Marco said. But he looked back at Victoria, as though to confirm her order. She smiled and nodded, grateful for his consideration.
“Will you be having wine tonight, Mr. Chase?” Marco said.
“Your best chardonnay, please. Thank you.”
“Are you always this friendly to everyone, Ms. Slade?” Sebastian said, after Marco had left.
“I try,” Victoria said. “When you work in the service industry, you appreciate the little things.”
“Are your customers rude to you at work?”
“Sometimes,” she admitted. “It makes you appreciate kindness more.”
As she spoke, she felt a little ashamed of herself. Sebastian had been incredibly kind to her today, and the fact that he was a little too direct with the way he spoke did not change that.
“Are you and Ms. Williams old friends?” asked Victoria. “She’s amazing.”
“Deborah and I have known each other several years, yes.”
“Does she dress all your employees?”
“Only the really stubborn ones.”
Victoria grinned. “She does have a way with people,” she said. “I think I was more afraid of her than you.”
“I’m not surprised. It was her idea for you not to change back into your clothes, wasn’t it?”
“Yes,” she said, embarrassed. “I told her I didn’t have to get dressed, I was on my way home.”
“She did that so I would take you out to dinner.”
“Why—”
“Ms. Slade, you are not an unattractive young woman,” said Sebastian. “It will be unavoidable that people will suspect you and I might be... involved.”
Victoria swallowed. “I guess,” she said. “But surely they don’t expect you to be dating a waitress.”
Sebastian looked at her amusedly. “I didn’t mean ‘dating,’ Ms. Slade. I meant sex.”
The word hung heavy in the air between them as soon as Sebastian spoke it.
Sex.
He wasn’t sure why he’d brought it up. Perhaps it was the twinge of jealousy he felt when her face lit up as she smiled at the waiter Marco. Or the way her wine-red hair glinted in the dim light of the Al Porto Italia. The way her skin glowed made him ache to reach out across the table to caress her hand with his fingers.
Perhaps he wanted to unnerve her a little, the way he was bit by bit coming undone every second they were in the same room together.
The slight flush on Victoria’s cheeks gratified him only a little.
“I see,” she said, looking down at the place setting in front of her. She toyed with a spoon for a while, as though contemplating what to say next. “But you said I was here because you needed to discuss something with me. Was this it?”
“No.” Sebastian paused as Marco arrived to pour water into their glasses.
“I’ll bring your wine momentarily, Mr. Chase,” said Marco. Sebastian nodded.
“However,” Sebastian continued after the young man had left. “I’m bringing this up so we’re clear on the limits of our... professional relationship, Ms. Slade.”
“I didn’t think there was any confusion about it, Mr. Chase.” Victoria frowned. “If you think I’ve behaved inappropriately in any way—”
“No,” he cut in. “I wasn’t implying ... What I meant was, you’re a young, unmarried woman working in my household. And as such, people may... infer a great deal more about our relationship than what it is.”
She looked at him in silence for a few moments. “Then,” she said. “Shouldn’t you be speaking to them?”
“My concern is you, not other people.”
“But as you say, I have not behaved inappropriately, so I don’t understand what you’re trying to tell me.”
Sebastian sighed. “What I mean is you must expect people making assumptions—”
“I don’t think I should be expecting anything except to be treated like a professional,” said Victoria. She pressed her lips together tightly, then went on. “I expect this most of all from my employer. I haven’t made a move on you, Mr. Chase. Neither have I confessed to having feelings for you. I do my job the best I could. You barge in my other place of work, drag me away to buy me clothes, and make me have dinner with you at a ridiculously romantic Italian restaurant. And yet you sit there telling me that people might see us as having a relationship outside of our professional one. Don’t you think that’s a bit unfair?”
She took a long drink of water, set it back on the table, and waited for his reply.
He sat in silence for a while, reeling from her words. They stung him more than he was willing to admit, and he tried to keep his face impassive as he tried to think of what to say.
“This won’t happen again,” he said. “If that’s what you’re afraid of. I don’t make a habit of dining out with my staff.”
Someone behind Sebastian cleared his throat. It was Marco, approaching them with their wine. He poured some for Sebastian, who took a sip and nodded his approval.
Victoria smiled and thanked the young man as he poured her wine. Marco smiled back, his eyes raking over her face appreciatively.
Sebastian was almost sure the boy did that to annoy him, and he tried not to glare at his back as he left.
“You don’t understand, Mr. Chase,” Victoria said. “I’m saying I don’t care. I did what you wanted, I got myself clothes for work. And I’m here now because you say you need to discuss something with me. What Deborah or Aberto or anyone thinks about what goes on between the two of us doesn’t concern me. I’m only trying to do my job.”
“Then we shouldn’t have a problem.” He took a drink of his wine to mask swallowing the sudden lump in his throat.
“We don’t.” She gave him a small smile, and Sebastian wondered if she did that to soften the blow of her words. “If you like,” she said, “we could discuss that other thing now, so I can leave you to enjoy your dinner.”
“Ms. Slade, people may think we’re on a date, so the last thing I want is for them to assume I said something so terrible that you would leave me in the middle of dinner.”
After a long pause, she smiled a little and nodded.
“So if you will permit me,” he said. “I would like to take you home. After we’ve had dinner.”
“All right.”
“Do you like wine?”
“Yes, I do.” Victoria ran her fingers over the base of her wine glass. “This Chardonnay smells really good.” She hesitated, then asked, “What did you want to discuss?”
It was clear she wasn’t going to relax until he’d finally tell her what he wanted to talk about.
“I’ve set up a meeting between you and Benson’s homeroom teacher on Friday morning,” he said. “It’s standard procedure whenever a student has a new tutor. You’ll go over the curriculum for the semester and discuss the areas where Benson needs to improve. Will you be available? You’ll be accompanying Benson to school, and meeting his teacher after first period.”
“Oh of course,” she said. “What time should I be at your house?”
“You’ll leave at six-thirty. I suggest you spend Thursday night at the house to save you time.”
“Spend... the night?”
Sebastian winced inwardly, although it didn’t show in his face. It was an awkward suggestion, considering he’d just brought up the topic of their professional relationship. Benson’s previous tutor had occasionally spent nights at his house when it was needed. He shouldn’t have issues requesting the same of Victoria.
Except he did. The thought of her sleeping in his home brought up images he would rather not have in his mind with her sitting across from him.
“Yes.” He did his best to sound casual. “It seems a waste of time having you go home tomorrow night only to come back early the next day. I’ll have Mrs. Sellers prepare a room for you. I will compensate you for your time as well.”
“Thank you. That would be more convenient, I suppose. And I could use the extra pay,” she said.
He nodded. “Considering the meeting was a rather late request, I’d like to make it easier for you to attend it.”
Sebastian tried very hard to believe his own words.