be time for the manager to return, she thought.
‘You speak wonderful English, Gio,’ she said, changing the subject. ‘You’ve obviously spent a lot of time in the UK.’
‘Explained by the fact that I was educated mostly there,’ he said briefly.
Now, why did it surprise her, Emily asked herself, that he’d gone to school in England? ‘Where did you go?’ she asked him.
‘Boarding school in Surrey, then Marlborough College in Wiltshire, followed by London University. And, before you ask, I gained a Masters in Business Law.’
Emily was almost bowled over by all this information! Despite being born in Italy, and in appearance and attitude being a perfect example of typical Latin charm, he was nearly as English as she was herself! She almost laughed out loud at the thought.
‘So,’ she said, ‘if you only help out at the shop, and at your friend’s bar when you’re in Rome, where else do you work?’ she asked. ‘Where has all that education led you?’
He waited a moment before reaching into his pocket and handing her a small business card. ‘Oh, I help my mother with a…um…family concern in Rome,’ he said. ‘Which means I have to come to the UK every now and again,’ he added briefly.
Emily looked down at the card he’d handed her. Giovanni Boselli, she read. Financial Consultant, followed by his qualifications and the telephone number and address of the London office he apparently used. An address which was just a few streets away from her own office in Mayfair!
CHAPTER THREE
‘WELL, I think that’s everything sorted—thanks to you, Gio,’ Emily said, glancing across at him as they travelled back into the city later. ‘It would have taken me a lot longer to find my own way around.’
‘My pleasure,’ he said easily. ‘And-you were satisfied with both hotels?’
‘Perfectly,’ she replied. ‘I shall be able to put ticks in all the right boxes.’ She leaned her head back, feeling satisfied with the day’s work. ‘It was lucky for me that you happened to be free this afternoon—and also that you saw me trying to hail a taxi,’ she added.
He looked across at her and grinned. ‘Lucky for me, too,’ he said. ‘I’ve certainly enjoyed seeing you in action, Emily. You knew exactly how to handle those two managers, leaving them in no doubt what you expected—what your clients expected—of holiday accommodation.’
Emily was genuinely pleased at what he’d just said. Although she’d never been particularly shy or retiring, she’d had to get used to meeting complete strangers in foreign places, and assess their establishments without causing offence. And it could be difficult sometimes, when she could see straight away that some were totally unsuitable and would not get her recommendation.
It was six-thirty before Giovanni drew up outside the hotel and, switching off the engine, he said casually, his eyes glinting mischievously, ‘As a small reward for having given you my undivided attention this afternoon, may I have the pleasure of taking you and Coral out for supper later?’ he asked.
‘Oh, but…I’ve already taken up far too much of your time, Giovanni,’ Emily began, and he interrupted.
‘Which I have very much enjoyed—as I’ve already said. So—why not make a day of it?’ He paused. ‘You’re going home tomorrow, aren’t you?’
‘Yes,’ Emily said, realizing that, for the very first time since she’d been doing all this travelling, she felt regretful that the trip wasn’t going to be extended for a few more days. And she was honest enough to admit that meeting Giovanni had something to do with that!
‘Well, I must speak to Coral about it,’ she said. ‘But thank you for the offer,’ she added, knowing full well that her friend would be ecstatic at the thought of spending the evening with Giovanni.
He tilted his head to one side in acknowledgement of her words. ‘You’ve got my card,’ he reminded her, ‘and my mobile number is on that. Give me a ring after you’ve mulled things over, and if you decide to accept my invitation I could pick you up at, say, eight-thirty or nine and take you to a place you’d probably never come across on your own—but which I can guarantee you’d like. But—’ he touched her arm briefly ‘—don’t worry if you decide to have an early night instead.’ He paused. ‘There’ll be other occasions.’ His lips parted in a brief knowing smile.
As soon as Emily got back to the room, she was almost bowled over by Coral’s excited welcome. ‘Oh—hi, Ellie!’ the girl exclaimed. ‘Had a good day?’ And, without waiting for a reply, she went on, ‘You’ll never guess what—I’ve pulled! We’re going out tonight!’
Emily sat down on the edge of the bed for a second and looked up at Coral—who had obviously fully recovered, her eyes shining with girlish excitement. ‘Go on—enlighten me. What have you been up to?’ she asked, a faint note of resignation in her voice.
‘Honestly, I haven’t been up to anything!’ Coral exclaimed. ‘But this afternoon I was feeling so much better that I went down to Reception to order a tray of tea and that gorgeous guy—Nico—was on duty. You know, the one we’ve spoken to a couple of times?’
‘Yes, of course I know who you mean,’ Emily said. Yet another dashing and attentive Italian, she thought.
‘Well, we sort of got chatting,’ Coral went on, ‘and I said I didn’t know Rome very well and guess what—he wants to take us out to show us the sights. He’s off duty at eight o’clock! What do you think of that?’ She looked at Emily searchingly. ‘It might be fun, Emily—and it is our last night.’
Emily got up and went over to put her laptop in the wardrobe, then turned to Coral. ‘Strangely enough, I’ve had an invitation for us as well,’ she said lightly, before going on to explain how Giovanni had arrived and had escorted her to the hotels on her list. ‘And he’s asked if we’d like to have dinner with him tonight,’ she added.
Coral was speechless—but only for a second. ‘How weird—that he should have turned up at just the right moment,’ she said. ‘But—now we’ve got two invites! Choices, choices!’ She paused, thinking it over for a moment. ‘But—it’ll work perfectly, Ellie. I mean, I wouldn’t want to turn Nico down—not after he was so sweet to me this afternoon—and you can’t possibly disappoint Giovanni. That wouldn’t be fair, since he’s obviously been so wonderful to you today. So there you are—we’ll go our separate ways tonight…and compare notes later!’ she added darkly.
Emily smiled, shaking her head briefly at Coral’s excitement. Her friend was obviously going to make the most of this final bit of her holiday—and what better way to end it than to be escorted around town by the handsome Nico?
Presently, as she washed away the day’s dust under a cool shower, Emily couldn’t help feeling pleased for Coral. Having an unexpected date was just the sort of thing to add a little sparkle to a holiday, she thought, and her friend was quite old enough—and sensible enough—to treat it as the light-hearted, inconsequential thing it was. And Emily had to admit that the thought of spending her last evening with Giovanni—just the two of them—held a little sparkle of its own! And why not? The occasional fleeting evening spent with an attractive man was the sort of thing which pleased her these days…No expectations, nothing heavy, which might threaten
