Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 96129 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 481(@200wpm)___ 385(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96129 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 481(@200wpm)___ 385(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
He searched my eyes for a moment but didn’t say anything until I shut my eyes again. “Do you ever go back to Providence?”
“No.” I felt my body tense, my senses rearing up for a flight response. If he brought up our Thanksgivings together over there, the lid on the emotions I’d been trying to contain may just pop. I’d tried to keep only the good memories from back home, but after the tragedy, even those looked like lies. “Do you ever go back?”
“No.”
“So you’ve never seen the memorial or visited the graves.”
“It doesn’t interest me. Mom’s not there. They are not there,” he said, pulling back slightly. I opened my eyes and met the sadness in his.
“I know,” I whispered. “I kind of want to go, though. Just to see the memorial at least once.”
“If you go, I’ll go.” He leaned in and planted a soft kiss on my lips.
“Even if it doesn’t interest you?”
“You interest me.” He smiled. It was a charming smile that made my heart flip. It reminded me of the boy who used to visit the ice cream shop all those years ago. “And you’re spending Thanksgiving with me.”
“What?” I blinked. “Where?”
“With my family.”
I froze momentarily. He’d said it was a day that was supposed to be spent with people you love, but surely, he didn’t mean . . . no. Definitely not. He was definitely just being kind.
“With your family where?” I asked warily, remembering that he’d left for Italy after the tragedy to live with his father and remaining family. “I don’t have a valid passport, and I really do work Saturday. I can’t go to Italy just like that.” I snapped my fingers for show.
“Relax.” He chuckled. “Unless Palermo has relocated to Greenwich, you should be back in time for your performance.”
I breathed against him and felt myself relax, finally going to sleep.
25
ROSIE
Dom had been gone all day, so I asked Marco to drive me to the grocery store. I needed to get something to take to his friend’s – family’s – house. He’d said the couple lived in an apartment on the Upper East Side but had a second home in Connecticut, which was where we’d be spending Thanksgiving. He’d also told me to pack a bag since we’d been staying overnight. For some reason, that made me even more nervous about all of it. I couldn’t help thinking how awkward it would be if they hated me or vice versa.
In the car, I checked my email to make sure Veronica hadn’t sent me any clients. I wasn’t surprised to find an email from her that just wished me a happy holiday weekend. Billie’s kids were picking her up for the week and the man, Jack, that I’d accompanied to dinner, had a son in town. The fact that I’d only had two clients while I’d been working at Oui was something Yari endlessly made fun of. She knew it was Dominic’s doing and she found it “both hot and annoyingly machista.” I was starting to think it was messed up since it meant I was making less money, but Yari reminded me that the company capped at two clients a week and that went for everyone. Besides, I couldn’t quite complain about the money, since I was making one thousand on behalf of the company and close to one thousand on account of tips and gifts provided by both Billie and Jack. I was so close to setting aside ten thousand, I could taste it. Once I had it all, I’d meet with Tommy himself and be done with all of this.
I was in the wine aisle and had no clue what I could buy, since I had no idea what was good and what wasn’t, when a man appeared in the same aisle. I glanced up and saw him. He was wearing a jean jacket and a baseball cap, his back facing me as he looked at the after-dinner bottles. I went back to my task, walking up and down this section. France, Italy, Spain, California, what was good? I glanced over at the other side of the aisle, where Marco stood. I would’ve asked him for help, had he not been closer to my brother’s age than mine. I knew for a fact he didn’t know about this stuff either. I sighed and started reading each description. Thankfully, the employees had rated and given their thoughts on some of them. Based on the logic that I would probably be having dinner with a bunch of Italians, and they might appreciate the gesture, I narrowed my search down to Italy. I heard a shopping cart coming down the aisle, but thought nothing of it, until it sounded louder, faster, as if a kid was riding it and letting it glide. I looked up too late, my entire body pushed back as the cart hit me on the side. I inhaled sharply, looking at the cart which was filled with boxes of sodas, probably the reason it felt like I’d just been hit by a ton of bricks and would definitely bruise. My eyes traveled up to the man in the baseball cap and I was met with Anthony’s cold blue eyes. I opened my mouth to scream, to say something, but he turned and walked away quickly, leaving the cart where it was.