And the click of connection that made her feel she had a home. Something deep inside her needed Mancini’s. But she wouldn’t go back only to be fired again.
“And you need me?”
He rolled his eyes. “You Americans. Why must you be showered with accolades?”
Oh, he did love to be gruff.
She slid her hand into the crook of his elbow and pointed to her table at the bistro. “I don’t need accolades. I need acknowledgment of my place at Mancini’s...and my coffee. I’m freezing.”
He pulled his arm away from her hand and wrapped it around her shoulders. She knew he meant it only as a gesture between friends, but she felt his warmth seep through to her. Longing tugged at her heart. A fierce yearning that clung and wouldn’t let go.
“You should wear a heavier coat.”
His voice was soft, intimate, sending the feeling of rightness through her again.
“It was warm when I came here.”
“And now it is cold. So from here on I will make sure you wear a bigger coat.” He paused. His head tilted. “Maybe you need me, too?”
She did. But not in the way he thought. She wanted him to love her. Really love her. But to be the man of her dreams, he would have to be different. To be warm and loving. To want her—
And he might. Today. But he’d warned her that anything he felt for her was temporary. He couldn’t commit. He didn’t want to commit. And unless she wanted to get her heart broken, she had to really hear what he was saying. If she was going to get the opportunity to go back to the first place in her life that felt like home, Mancini’s, and the first people who genuinely felt like family, his staff, then a romance between them had to be out of the question.
“I need Mancini’s. I like it there. I like the people.”
“Ah. So we agree.”
“I guess. All I know for sure is that I don’t want to go back to New York yet.”
He laughed. They reached her table and he pulled out her chair for her. “That doesn’t speak well of your fiancé.”
Hauling in a breath, she sat, but she said nothing. Her stretching of the truth to Rafe about Paul being her fiancé sat in her stomach like a brick. Still, even though she knew she was going to reject his marriage proposal, it protected her and Rafe. Rafe wouldn’t go after another man’s woman. Not even for a fling. And he was right. If they had a fling, she would be crushed when he moved on.
One of his eyebrows rose, as he waited for her reply.
She decided they needed her stretched truth. But she couldn’t out-and-out lie. “All right. Paul is not the perfect guy.”
“I’m not trying to ruin your relationship. I simply believe you should think all of this through. You have a place here in Italy. Mancini’s needs you. I would like for you to stay in Italy and work for me permanently, and if you decide to, then maybe your fiancé should be coming here.”
She laughed. Really? Paul move to Italy because of her? He wouldn’t even drive to the airport for her.
Still, she didn’t want Paul in the discussion of her returning to Mancini’s. She’d already decided to refuse his proposal. If she stayed in Italy, it had to be for her reasons.
“I think we’re getting ahead of ourselves. I have a few weeks before I have to make any decisions.”
“Two weeks and two days.”
“Yes.”
He caught her hands. Kissed the knuckles. “So stay. Stay with me, Daniella. Be the face of Mancini’s.”
Her heart kicked against her ribs. The way he said “Stay with me, Daniella” froze her lungs, heated her blood. She glanced at the red rose sitting on the table, reminded herself it didn’t mean anything but a way to break the ice when he found her. He wasn’t asking her to stay for any reason other than her abilities in his restaurant. And she shouldn’t want to stay for any reason other than the job. If she could prove herself in the next two weeks, she wouldn’t be boarding a plane depressed. She wouldn’t be boarding a plane at all. She’d be helping to run a thriving business. Her entire life would change.
She pulled her hands away. “I can’t accept Louisa’s hospitality forever. I need to be able to support myself. Hostessing doesn’t pay much.”
He growled.
She laughed. He was so strong and so handsome and so perfect that when he let his guard down and was himself, his real self, with her, everything inside her filled with crazy joy. And maybe if she just focused on making him her friend, a friend she could keep forever, working for him could be fun.
“I can’t pay a hostess an exorbitant salary.”
“So give me a title to justify the money.”
He sighed. “A title?”
“Sure, something like general manager should warrant a raise big enough that I can afford my own place.”
His eyes widened. “General manager?”
“Come on, Rafe. Let’s get to the bottom line here. If things work out when we return to Mancini’s, I’m going to be taking on a huge chunk of your work. I’m also going to be relocating to another country. You’ll need to make it worth my while.”
He shook his head. “Dear God, you are bossy.”
“But I’m right.”
He sighed. “Fine. But if you’re getting that title, you will earn it.”
She inclined her head. “Seems fair.”
“You’ll learn to order supplies, check deliveries, do the job of managing things Emory and I don’t have time for.”
“Makes perfect sense.”
He sighed. His eyes narrowed. “Anything else?”
She laughed. “One more thing.” Her laughter became a silly giggle when he scowled at her. “A ride back to Louisa’s.”
He rolled his eyes. “Yes. I will drive you back to Louisa’s. If you wish, I will even help you find an apartment.”
Leaving the rose, she stood and pushed away from the table. “You keep getting ahead of things. We have two weeks for me to figure out if staying at Mancini’s is right for me.” She turned to head back to the hotel to check out, but spun to face him again. “Were I you, I’d be on my best behavior.”
* * *
The next morning, she called Paul. If staying in Italy was the rest of her life, the real rest of her life, she had to make things right.
“Do you know what time it is?”
She could hear the sleep in his voice and winced. “Yes. Sorry. But I wanted
