Emily - Lunch
1066 Words
Emily didn’t recognise the office when she next entered. If it wasn’t for Davide lounging in a leather office chair, one leg over the arm, she would have thought she was in the wrong office.
“I love what you did with the place,” Emily said, looking around. A large desk was the first thing on the left as you came in, and comfortable seating area with red sofas on the right. But it was the four canvases displayed along the back wall that caught her attention. A riot of colour fought together to produce the Colosseum, St Peters, the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain in slashes of pinks, blues, silvers. “Where did you get them? They are gorgeous.”
“You are looking at the artist. I’m not just a pretty face, you know.” He looked pleased with her reaction.
“Evidently.”
Davide spun the chair around before hopping up to greet her. A kiss on both cheeks left her woozy. She would have to build up an immunity to him, she couldn’t get all flustered every time she saw him. Like he said, he was more than a pretty face.
He led her to sit in the office chair. “This is all yours.” It was all set up. A red MacBook, a printer underneath, POS machine. Leaning over her shoulder, Davide showed her their booking and email systems.
The hairs on her arms stood to attention every time he brushed against her as he pointed things out. He was doing it on purpose, this slow increase in contact. It was making her heart race.
“I’ll leave you to get acquainted with the company but first a tour of the rest of the office.” He strode to the back of the office, where his and Rick’s desks hid behind cubed shelving and opened the door. There was a bathroom and a small kitchen. A further door led to the inner sunny courtyard. “One reason I was happy to rent this place, it's next to one of the best restaurants in the area.” He waved at the chef through their open door.
Emily spent the rest of the morning reading about what Divine Tours offered in Rome and further afield. They offered a complete service, suggesting hotels, restaurants, arranged airport pick up and drop off and even personal shoppers. It was a company that catered to every budget and she was impressed at the groundwork already in place.
Davide had nipped out to distribute more of their leaflets in hotels and planned to meet some AirBnB owners who would be interested in sending guests our way for a small commission.
The door opened and a beautiful girl hesitated when she saw Emily.
“Hello, can I help?”
“This is Divine Tours, right?” she asked breathlessly. “Davide works here?”
“Yes, but he isn’t here at the moment. Can I help you with something or if you would like to leave a message, I'll pass it on.”
The girl bit her lip and twisted the hem of her short dress. “Can you just tell him…Jess came by and uh… could he call me back?” With a weak smile she backed out the door and wandered away.
With a sigh, Emily realised she was probably going to have to deal with many more girls like that in future. Glad it had been Rick she met when she came in to ask about the job, she nipped to the bathroom. When she came back, through the large front window, she saw that Davide was just getting off his scooter. His messenger bag empty of leaflets.
He grinned as he came in, “That was a productive morning. Let’s celebrate with some lunch. Shall we see what they are cooking next door?”
“Sure. You just missed Jess, by the way. She asked if you could call her back.”
His grin fell slightly as he breezed past her to the back door. “Will do. Thanks. Come on, then.”
Confused, Emily followed him out to the courtyard where there was now a table set for two outside their door. He pulled out a chair for her, and with a flourish, laid a napkin across her lap. His fingertips trailed lightly across her the bare skin of her thighs as he did so. Squeezing her legs together, she picked up the menu and gave him a demure smile.
It had taken her ages to decide what to wear this morning, settling on a professional black dress. In future, however, she was going to ensure less skin was showing for him to caress or brush against. He was teasing her. And like hell, was she going to throw herself at him and become another desperate girl following him around with puppy dog eyes.
An older curvaceous woman came bustling out of the kitchen door. Davide stood up and said, “Emily, let me introduce you to Mama Giorgia. Her family have owned this place for years.”
Emily was enveloped in a warm hug that smelled of ragu and coffee, and with a stream of pleasantries she went back to stand by Davide. With a hand on his shoulder, she rattled off the specialties and her recommendations. Emily looked at the prices and her eyes must have betrayed her thoughts.
“Emily, I can treat my staff to lunch now and then. Don’t concern yourself. Shall I order for us?”
She nodded and hoped he wasn’t about to order the steak or something crazy.
As it turned out, lunch was two plates of tagliatelle with wild boar sauce and a bottle of Barolo.
“Drinking during work? Are you sure?”
“I told you, we’re celebrating and you’re with the boss so it’s fine.”
They c*****d glasses and she took a sip. It was a perfect match for the pasta and she savoured a mouthful with her eyes closed.
“You like it?”
“Hmm, yes. It has been a while since I’ve had the pleasure.”
“I'm intrigued, you know Barolo, yet now you can’t afford to eat. I want to know all about you.”
“It’s not that interesting. I shouldn’t have said anything, even in jest. You said we are celebrating?” She tried to change the subject and twirled her pasta around her fork. She took a huge bite, hoping a full mouth ought to discourage further questions.
He laughed, “I won’t be put off that easily. However, we have our first tours booked for this week. I’ll put them into the system after lunch.” He leaned back, glass in hand. A smile played on his beautiful mouth. “I’m waiting.”
- Writer
