Chapter Six

Jillian

I saw the shift in his demeanor before he avoided answering my question, but I couldn’t read him as well as he could read me. He took my hand as I got out of the car in front of a door I wouldn’t have even noticed if I’d walked right by it. Inside, the restaurant was much more casual than where we’d had dinner the night before. The homey vibe was warm and welcoming, as was the older lady who greeted us with a smile.

“Mio nipote!” She pulled Damon into her arms and rocked from side to side. “It’s been too long since the last time you came to see me. What, my nephew doesn’t have time for his favorite aunt anymore?” She didn’t give him time to answer before turning her attention to me. “Who is this pretty girl? Does your mother know about her?”

“Aunt Maria, this is Jillian Hart. Jillian, Maria is Uncle Leo’s wife. She owns this restaurant and makes the best veal parmesan and spinach ravioli in the city.”

She pinched his cheeks while wearing the brightest smile. “You only say that because your mama doesn’t live in the city. You’re a smart boy.” Turning back to me, she continued speaking. “It’s so nice to meet you, Jillian. Come, have a seat. Let me get you both something to eat. You’re too thin—you need food.”

She walked ahead of us and motioned to an empty table. “Have a seat. I’ll bring your food out.”

Damon recognized my confused expression. “Aunt Maria never lets me order from the menu. I eat whatever she wants me to eat.”

He pulled out my chair, and we settled in for what smelled like a delicious home-cooked meal. “What did she mean when she asked if your mother knew about me?”

Damon smiled—that dazzling smile rendered me speechless every time—and appeared almost boyish for a second or two. “About that. After we saw my dad last night, he told my mother about you, naturally. I called him this morning, and I was given strict instructions to bring you to our family dinner this weekend.”

If dying from hyperventilation were possible, I was sure my death was imminent. I’d met his father by coincidence, and that only lasted a couple of minutes. Dinner at his parents’ house was a whole new ball game—in a completely different league. My mouth opened and closed several times to speak, like a fish gulping for air, but nothing came out. Damon reached across the table and took my hand.

“Breathe, doll, before you pass out.”

Wouldn’t that cause a spectacle in his aunt’s restaurant?

“Damon, are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, we’ve moved fast as it is. But where I’m from, meeting the parents is a big deal. It’s a major step in a relationship.”

He sat back in his chair, his keen eyes assessing me and my words. “And?”

“And…when you tell her we only met a couple of days ago, she’ll hate me.” My voice was panicky, anxiety making the pitch ratchet up higher and higher with every word.

His aunt Maria bustled through the swinging kitchen door, carrying two large plates in her hands. Another woman followed closely behind her with a tray of salads, bread, and drinks. Damon stood to help them place the food on the table and kissed his aunt on the cheek.

“Can we get some wine to go with this delicious meal?” His charm was fully intact, with no hint of the turmoil at our table not three seconds before.

“Of course, of course.” Maria called to another employee to bring two glasses of Chianti to us. “Take a bite. I want to see your faces when you try it.”

Despite how my stomach still rolled from the news of dinner with his parents, I cut a piece of the cheese-covered veal. The look of pure indulgence on my face pleased Maria if her beaming smile was any indication. “This is delicious, Maria. Pure heaven.”

She looked at Damon. “I like her. And I love her accent. She’s coming to dinner Saturday, no?”

My fork, loaded with fettuccine Alfredo, stalled halfway to my mouth. Damon nodded to answer her, but his gaze moved to mine.

“Will you be there, too?” I asked her.

“Of course. The whole family will be there, like always. It’s tradition. You call me Aunt Maria, yes?”

Then she was gone. Apparently, questions were demands in his family. Damon sat, fork in hand to eat, but closely watched my reaction. “It’ll be fine, Jillian. My mother wants to meet you. Now that Aunt Maria has met you, we don’t have a choice but to go together. Mama’s feelings will be hurt if she’s left out.”

“You’re guilt-tripping me into meeting your mother.”

That smile. Again. The mischievous glint in his eyes. “Absolutely.”

I was beyond stuffed when we finished lunch, and Damon took me back to work. He walked me to the door, and when I thought he’d turn and leave, he pulled me into his arms and kissed me senseless instead.

“The only reason I’m letting you go back in with no panties is because I know you need your job to help your mother. Otherwise, you wouldn’t leave my side the rest of the day.”

I couldn’t help but smile. His words were sexist and crass, but the inflection in his voice and the expression in his eyes told me so much more. Our relationship, if I could even call it that, was complex. The sex was off the charts hot. The connection between us was strong. But we hadn’t had enough time to establish trust or even to get to know each other intimately, other than sexually.

“Damon, I know words only go so far, but I still want to tell you. I don’t know where this is going between us, or if it’s even going anywhere. But, as strongly as you feel about staking your claim on me, I feel the same about you. I’m not the least bit interested in any other man. I’ve never been one to date more than one guy at a time anyway, but I’d never disrespect you like that. Tell me now if you plan to see other women.”

“Would you walk away from me if I did?”

His question felt like a kick to my stomach, but only forty-eight hours of close contact didn’t give me much leverage. “Yes, I would.”

“Good answer. Looks like you’re stuck with me, doll.” He sensed the change in me after that question, the doubt it brought to the forefront of my mind. The uneasiness that wasn’t there before. “Jillian, I’ve never taken a woman home to meet my mother, much less to attend our family dinner. That’s a big deal in my family. Everyone comes over—aunts, uncles, cousins—and our family is huge.

“I’m a man of my word, and I promise you’ll be the only woman I see. Honestly, I just wanted to know that you’d stand up to me if I pushed. And you didn’t let me down.”

“Fortunately, I have a big set of balls, and I even know how to use them.”

My smartass remark didn’t faze him. In fact, I think his smirk and amusement increased. “Funny, I didn’t find any balls when I thoroughly examined you with my tongue last night.”

“Don’t make me have to take them out of my purse.”

He leaned his head back and roared with laughter. “So feisty. I like it.” After another scorching hot kiss, he kept his arms around my waist and pulled his face back to look directly into my eyes. “I’ll be back to pick you up and take you to your apartment—where I’ll stay with you tonight.”

“All right.” I played it off like his declaration didn’t affect me, but it did. He affected me in so many ways.

With my focus on what our night together would hold, I went back to work in my temporary office. Every time I walked into that space, I felt like I was intruding on someone else’s life. Pictures of the man and his family still sat in frames on the credenza. His name was still displayed on the plaque on the door. His files and notes still sat on the corner of the desk. But Lisa, the woman in the next office, said he hadn’t called in or shown up for work all week. She said he’d been a good employee and everyone was worried about him.

Milo Bianchi left several personal items and a lot of unfinished work behind if he just up and quit.

I pushed thoughts of him aside and dove back into the work waiting for me. The other area of Blaine Financial I’d worked in the first several weeks after I arrived was in much better shape. The retirement funds were a complete mess. Maybe that’s why Milo quit without so much as a goodbye—making sense of the deposits, payments, accrued interest, and final balances was a nightmare.

A knock on my office door startled me, making me jerk my head up and release a slight yelp. Lisa chuckled, a warm smile covering her face, and pointed to her watch. “It’s after five o’clock on a Friday afternoon, girl. Are you ready to quit for the day, or are you spending the night here?”

After a quick glance at the clock, I stood and stretched, stiff from sitting in one position for hours. “I’m definitely ready to quit, but I’m nowhere near figuring this out. I think I’ll have to take this to my apartment and work on it more over the weekend.”

I packed my laptop and files in my bag, grabbed my purse, and hurried outside to meet Damon. When I stepped through the door, Damon’s angry glare stopped me in my tracks. “What’s wrong?”

He pushed off the car and stalked toward me. If looks could kill, his fierce expression would’ve already murdered me. As he approached, I realized he wasn’t looking at me—he was looking just over the top of my head. I turned to find Lorenzo close on my heels, his arm extending over me to hold the door open. I realized how my tardiness must appear. Lorenzo was a handsome man, close to Damon’s age, tall and well-built. His expensive tailored suits accentuated his good looks and fit him perfectly.

“Nothing’s wrong, doll.” Damon pulled my body into his and pressed his lips against mine. My automatic response had me melting into his touch. His tongue swiped across my lips, and I immediately yielded.

When we came up for air, I remembered Lorenzo was standing behind me. I glanced over my shoulder and watched as the sneer aimed at Damon turned into a friendly smile when his eyes moved to meet mine. “Good night, Jillian. I’ll see you Monday.”

“Good night.” A couple of seconds passed before I could reply, and my words came out stammered. He’d spoken to me only once before, but the familiar tone he used with me in front of Damon was different.

Damon’s hand on my lower back gently pushed me toward his car, so I decided to wait until we were inside to ask him about that heated, wordless exchange. He slid in beside me, with Benny behind the wheel, and closed the door. I stared at him for several long seconds, waiting for the muscle in his jaw to stop jumping,

“Something on your mind, doll?” His words were clipped, and his face held a hard edge, as if he barely held on to the little restraint he had.

“What was that all about?”

“What?”

“I’m a lot of things, Damon, but I’m not stupid. You know Lorenzo.”

“I know him.”

“Why didn’t you say anything when I told you he came to my office?”

“Because your boss and I are not friends. Never have been, never will be, and I didn’t want my personal dealings with him to cause you any discomfort at work.”

“So that public display of affection was nothing more than showing you were happy to see me?”

He dropped his head toward his lap, and a small smile played on his lips. “It may have been a little more than that.” His gaze lifted to meet mine, the small smile morphing into the full-blown irresistible one. “But, for the record, I am happy to see you.”

“I think you know exactly what that smile does to me,” I accused, narrowing my eyes at him while trying to hide my own grin.

His brown eyes darkened with hunger. “I didn’t know my smile did anything to you, but I’d love to hear all about it.”

The car stopped in front of my apartment building, and he jerked the door open, grabbing my laptop bag in one hand and my hand in the other. “Take the night off, Benny.”

“Thanks, boss,” Benny replied just before the door slammed shut.

Captivated by the desire in Damon’s expression, I felt the tingling in my belly multiply after his next words. “Instead of telling me what my smile does to you, I’d rather you show me. When we’re alone. And naked.”