Chapter 6 Sophia
I f there’s one thing I don’t have time for, it’s entertaining an overgrown, immature child.
“Let me make it up to you. How about dinner instead of coffee?” he offers.
My lip twitches with doubt. “I don’t think that’s a great idea, Lorenzo.”
“Call me Enzo.”
“I’d rather not,” I deadpan.
Having dinner with him is dangerous territory. If I have any chance of surviving this, I need to draw the line as soon as humanly possible.
This is what you get for having random one-night stands, Sophia. Here are the consequences of your damn actions.
Don’t I know it?
“Strictly professional. We’ll talk about the article and that’s it.” He raises three of his fingers. “Scout’s honor.”
A small laugh bubbles out of me at his ridiculous gesture. “Were you in the scouts?”
His lip twitches with a small laugh. “Oh, God no. But I do promise,” he says, sounding sincere .
I drop my shoulders with a sigh. The reality is, we need to talk about the article and come up with a plan. We’ll probably have to meet a few times so I can interview him. It’s not like I can avoid him forever. And more than anything, I take this job seriously.
He takes out his phone, handing it to me with the new contact page open. “Just give me your number and we’ll plan for this weekend.”
“This sure is a very complicated and creative way to get my number.” I glare at him, grabbing his phone.
Our fingers graze for a moment, and the simple touch makes me shiver from head to toe, making my body tense.
Lorenzo is a handsome man, there’s no denying that. After all, I let him give me multiple orgasms in a tiny cleaning closet for a reason—and it wasn’t for shit and giggles.
Oh, God. What is wrong with me? This meaningless sex needs to stop . That’s what toys are for. While my best friend is falling in love and getting married in a few months, I keep having these useless and meaningless one-night stands, knowing full well I wish for more . More than meaningless sex. More than random one-night stands. I want the type of love that consumes you wholly, to be with a man who makes my stomach flutter and my heart burst with a simple look. I want to feel that sting of electricity authors talk about in romance novels with every touch, every kiss, every look. To be protected and adored. But we can all agree those types of romances are just that— fiction .
“Nah. I’d rather you use the term original.” He winks.
With a scowl on my face, I finish putting my number in his phone before handing it back to him.
He shakes his head with a laugh, grabbing it. “I’ll pick you up Friday at 7? ”
“Do I even have a choice?” I mutter.
He laughs again and starts walking backward, not breaking eye contact. “See you later, Blue .”
Blue? Seriously? That’s the stupidest nickname I’ve ever heard.
He’s pretty far now, so I shout, “My name’s Sophia. Or did you forget already?”
He shrugs with a smile that makes his annoying dimple pop before getting in his car and driving away, leaving me standing in the busy streets of the windy city wondering what the hell I got myself into.
For the better part of my day, I worked mostly on doing some research Max needed, because God forbid he asks anyone else. On top of doing my regular job, I have to do these extra tasks he asks of me, and I always end up working insane hours. My concentration was shit, though, and between Lorenzo’s shenanigans and the looming knowledge of my sister reappearing in our lives, I’ve been slowly losing my mind. As soon as the clock hit four in the afternoon, I ran out of work as fast as humanly possible.
Inserting the keys on Aria’s door, I announce, “I’m coming in, if there’s anyone indecent, it’s time to hide. And yes, I’m talking to you, Damian.”
As I’m opening the door, I hear Aria’s fit of giggles and Damian’s exasperated sigh.
Covering my eyes with my left hand and with my other hand extended, I walk into the apartment, moving it left and right, trying not to bump into anything. “Everyone decent?”
“Yes,” Damian drawls. “That happened one time. Are you ever going to let me live that down?”
“Never,” I quip. “I am forever scarred.”
I drop my hand, my eyes finding my best friend on the couch, a cozy blanket draped over her as her head rests on her fiancé’s shoulder. My heart tugs with longing at the sight of them. It would be nice to spend my days with someone, cuddled up and watching my favorite comfort shows. To find someone who can love me passionately and unconditionally, despite all my annoying little quirks.
Sounds like a nice little dream.
“I thought it was girls’ night, but I can leave,” I say, pointing to the exit with my thumb.
Aria gets up with the blanket still wrapped around her, walking up to me and shaking her head. “No, stay. Damian was about to leave anyway. It’s just us today, though, Isabella can’t make it. She had a dinner with her family she couldn’t skip.”
Oh, thank God.
If it’s just the two of us I can tell her about my… situation . I love Isabella to death, but she’s going to sit me down and tell me why, for the hundredth time, I need to stop sleeping around. I know she cares, but sometimes a girl doesn’t want to hear it.
Damian walks after Aria, giving her a quick kiss before striding to the exit. He stops in front of me abruptly, his eyes eyeing me cryptically. “How do you know Enzo?”
My stomach flips at the sound of his name—well, nickname . “Your cousin?” I tilt my head, pretending to ponder. “I don’t know him at all.”
He glares at me, raising his eyebrows in suspicion, but doesn’t pressure the topic and leaves. At the sound of the door locking, my shoulders sag in relief.
Aria crosses her arms with a knowing grin. “Why did you lie to him?”
I pull off my heels with a satisfied groan and drop them at the entrance, flexing my numb toes to get the feeling back. I head to the kitchen and open the fridge, where I find the usual wine we love so much. Skipping the glass, I crack it open and drink straight from the bottle. It feels more badass this way.
Aria follows me to the kitchen and watches me as I chug. “One of those days, huh?”
I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand. “You have no idea.”
“Wanna talk about it?”
Aria and I have been best friends since childhood—two girls from a small town in Kentucky who even went to the same college. She knows everything about me, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Telling her about Lorenzo should be easy, but she’s always there when I mess up, and it makes me feel like a charity case. I can’t afford to let my real emotions show, because people depend on me—my mom depends on me. I have to keep being the Sophia everyone expects: loud, funny, and always smiling. If not, they might see my scars, and that’s a vulnerability I refuse to expose.
I turn around, rest my hip against the kitchen island, and look up for a moment, trying to gather the strength to confess this to my best friend. “I lied to Damian. I do know Lorenzo.”
She laughs, folding the blanket and placing it in one of the island stools then mirroring my pose and crossing her arms. “I figured. Do you forget I know you pretty well?”
I roll my eyes without a reply .
“So,” she prompts. “How do you know him?”
“You remember Mr. Three-Orgasms Guy?”
“Of course. You slept with him like a year ago, he gave you three amazing orgasms, and you still regret not getting his phone number—” She stops talking abruptly, her eyes bulging.
I grimace before taking another big gulp of wine. I need the liquid courage if I’m going to try to get through this conversation without wanting to crawl into a hole and die.
“Wait.” She gasps. “You’re telling me the Lorenzo Mancini is Mr. Three-Orgasms Guy?”
“You can’t tell Damian,” I rush to say, already regretting my confession and feeling guilty for asking her to lie to her fiancé of all people. “It’s embarrassing enough as it is.”
Aria takes the bottle of wine from my hands, taking a sip of her own. “I won’t tell him, I promise. It’s not my secret to tell.” She shrugs. “I can’t promise Enzo won’t tell him, though. They’re practically brothers.”
I grab a stool and sit, resting my arms on the island counter as I massage my temples with my index fingers. That’s what I was afraid of. I just love it when my stupid decisions bite me in the ass. As if I don’t have enough to worry about. I stupidly decided to unblock Amelia’s number and she’s been calling and texting nonstop. That’s the one thing I can’t tell Aria, even if I’m dying to. She’s Amelia’s number one hater. Granted, she has every right. While I know Aria tries to be supportive, she’ll never understand why I put up with so much. No one understands. And I don’t expect them to. This is a problem I will always shoulder on my own.
“And I’m not done.” I sigh. “You remember when he said Max had reached out to him to do an article on him or whatever? ”
She nods, looking at me expectantly.
“He basically told Max he’d only accept it if I was the one to write it,” I say, biting my lip. “So now, on top of everything else, I have to work with the guy, too.”
Her shoulders shake with a soft laugh. “I’m not surprised. That sounds like something Enzo would do.”
Yup. Figures . Another thing I was afraid of. Lorenzo Mancini seems like the out-of-control playboy he’s known for. While that’s what makes him exciting, it’s also what makes him dangerous. He’s a distraction I don’t need. My life is already a clusterfuck of drama. I can’t handle any more of that. Even when my body tells me to give in, to have fun.
Playing this game is dangerous. A danger I cannot afford.