Chapter 14
14
I never thought – in a million years – that I would find myself wilfully socialising with my boss this evening – and being the star of the show (well, here with the star of the show, at least). Even more surprising than that, though, is the fact that I’m actually enjoying myself.
After a delicious dinner (the main course was pasta, and it was incredible) our party has moved down to the beach to finish our drinks. They have these firepits dotted around, surrounded by comfortable chairs, draped with soft blankets for chilling out on an evening.
The ocean roars in the background, and there is the faint buzz of life still coming from the restaurant, but otherwise it feels like we’re in our own world, here in our little bubble of light on an otherwise dimly lit beach.
I am currently sharing a one-person chair with Andrea, not quite on his knee, but with my legs draped over his. His arm is wrapped around me – he’s playing the part of my partner perfectly. I’m seriously impressed by his commitment to the bit.
‘Are you enjoying some time off then, Andrea? Seeing as though you’re between projects?’ Rick’s voice breaks through the chat, drawing everyone’s attention.
Andrea bobs his head from side to side.
‘Normally, yes, but not this time,’ he explains. ‘My sister’s wedding is next week, so things are pretty hectic at the moment.’
Rick’s face lights up at the tenuous confidence.
‘My wedding is next week too!’ he says excitedly. ‘You should come. As long as it isn’t on the same day as your sister’s, of course – Robin can fill you in on all the details.’
Andrea’s expression softens with gratitude.
‘ Grazie ,’ he replies politely.
Rick turns his attention to me, which causes me to shift in my seat a little. Rick likes me so much more when he talks to Andrea instead of me.
‘Robin, I imagine you’ll need some time off for Andrea’s sister’s wedding too, right?’ he asks with a warm smile.
I freeze, caught off guard by his question, because I have no idea what the right answer is. Obviously I don’t need time off, because I’m not going, but I can’t tell him that.
Sensing my hesitation, Rick is quick with a reassuring smile.
‘Don’t look so worried, Robin. You can take all the time you need to spend with Andrea. Family is what it’s all about,’ he says.
‘I thought work was what it was all about?’ James chimes in. It’s like he can’t quite believe his ears – I don’t think any of us can.
I can’t believe I’m saying this but James hasn’t been able to take his eyes off me and Andrea all night. It’s amazing how having a partner can suddenly make you more attractive to other potential partners.
‘Family first, then work,’ Rick corrects him, his tone firm but friendly.
I try not to furrow my brow, but I’m not entirely convinced by Rick’s words. I’ve never known it be anything but work first with him. I mean, come on, he’s even getting married on a work trip.
‘What are Italian weddings like?’ Cait pipes up.
‘I think I’ve only seen them in The Godfather ,’ Henry jokes.
Andrea leans back in his chair and smiles.
‘They’re a lot of fun,’ he says. ‘And my sister has put a lot of work into hers. It’s going to be big.’
Cait nods, intrigued.
‘How old is your sister, if you don’t mind me asking?’ she enquires.
‘She’s twenty-eight,’ Andrea replies casually.
‘I thought Italians got married quite young?’ Liz chimes in – and, again, there is suspicion there.
‘It’s more common to wait longer these days,’ Andrea explains, unbothered by her tone. ‘You know, until the right person comes along.’
Andrea flashes me a smile as he takes my hand, holding it for a moment, stroking it lightly – for all to see.
‘Yeah, gone are the days when families put pressure on their kids to marry,’ Rick adds, almost as though he’s ticking Liz off.
Suddenly I’m reminded of how all this came about. It was Andrea who kicked off the fake fiancée thing by misleading his parents about his relationship status. In fact, when you think about it, he probably needs a fake fiancée even more than I do.
‘Right, time to call it a night, I reckon,’ Rick says – although I suspect it is more of an instruction than a suggestion. ‘We’ve got our first meeting with Beppe Barone in the morning – over breakfast.’
He pulls himself to his feet then glances around at everyone, letting us know that we’re supposed to follow suit.
‘Andrea, are you still okay to translate for us during breakfast?’ Rick asks.
Caught off guard, Andrea looks to me for a moment, his expression silently pleading for assistance. Shit. There is no way I’m going to be able to find another translator before breakfast, is there?
‘Yes, of course,’ Andrea replies, probably realising the same thing.
‘Great, see you all bright and early in the morning,’ Rick chirps before making a move back towards the resort.
As the others make a move too, I hang back with Andrea so that we can talk, just the two of us.
Alone at last, I release a pent-up sigh, because I can’t quite believe we pulled that off as well as we did – not that it seems like it’s over yet, though.
I turn to Andrea, gratitude hopefully evident in my expression.
‘ Thank you so much for doing this,’ I tell him, putting extra emphasis on the ‘thank you’ part.
‘Ah, it’s okay,’ Andrea replies with a shrug, a hint of amusement in his tone. ‘It was fun, if a little strange. I enjoyed it. Your colleagues are a lot of fun.’
‘No. No, they’re not,’ I add with a laugh. ‘So double thank you.’
I pause for a moment, considering what I’m about to say, but it’s the best idea I have, and it feels like the right thing to do.
‘I have an offer for you,’ I start.
‘Are we back on to The Godfather again?’ Andrea jokes, lightening the mood.
‘Not quite,’ I reply. ‘What I’m proposing is this: if you stick around for the week, help me charm my boss, and translate during the meetings, then I’ll pretend to be your fiancée at your family wedding. We can figure it out as we go – maybe even stage a break-up where we both come out on top in front of our respective sides. What do you say?’
A big grin spreads across Andrea’s face, his eyes lighting up with what looks like mischief.
‘That sounds like a great plan,’ he agrees enthusiastically. ‘Let’s do it.’
‘Great,’ I reply, suddenly a little freaked out by how I just put myself out there. I mean, he could have said no, and he probably should have said no, but hopefully this helps him out as much as it helps me.
It’s a genuine shame, when you have to pretend you have a significant other, just to be taken seriously. But here we are.
‘You’re welcome to stay with me, in my apartment,’ I tell him.
I know there’s only one bed, but we’re adults. We can figure it out.
‘That’s okay,’ he replies. ‘I’ll drive back to my parents’ place. It’s not far. I can be back first thing in the morning, don’t worry.’
‘Have you not been drinking?’ I reply.
Not that I’m desperate to get him to share a bed with me – not much, anyway. It’s hard not to say what I just said without sounding like a bit of a weirdo, though, isn’t it? I probably need to try to seem less keen for him to spend the night with me, even as friends, because I’m coming off as a little intense all of a sudden. We’ve got a great plan, and the last thing I need to do is scare him away by seeming like I’m trying to put the moves on him.
‘I have only been drinking lime and soda, all night, I promise, so I’m okay,’ he explains. ‘I’ll walk you back to your apartment, then head for the car park.’
‘Oh, okay, perfect,’ I reply, trying to play it cool. ‘Thank you.’
Once we’re back on our feet, Andrea – like the gentleman that he is – offers me his arm to link mine with.
‘Such a dutiful fiancé,’ I joke. ‘I picked a good one.’
‘You really did,’ he replies with a playful smile. ‘Just wait until you taste my cooking.’
As I give his bicep (his bloody massive bicep – oh my God) a playful squeeze, I notice that I still have his mum’s ring on my finger.
‘Oh, your ring,’ I blurt. ‘Do you want to take it back?’
‘I think you’re going to have to keep wearing it,’ he replies through a chuckle. ‘It makes this whole thing more believable, no? Plus, if my mamma thinks you’ve rejected it, she might just reject you. Do you know how important it is for an Italian man to get his mamma’s approval when it comes to women?’
I assume that he’s joking – or at least kind of joking – if not, we better hope I made a good first impression earlier today.
Two things: one, how on earth could I have made a good impression, because all of the confusion just made it so, so weird. Also, was that only earlier today? Oh my God, I feel like I’ve been here forever already.
I suppose now – now that we have a plan and things are semi-sorted – the trip will probably fly by and I’ll be back home in England before I know it. Probably just in time for a season of summer storms, knowing my luck.
I need to forget that and focus on the here and the now. I’m here, I have Andrea on my side, and I actually stand a chance of achieving the things I can usually only ever dream of: (1) Impressing Rick and landing myself the lead role on a project. (2) Beating Liz, my work rival, to bag aforementioned lead role on a project. And (3) James finally seeming like he might be interested in me romantically.
If I play this right, and Andrea keeps up the high standard he’s already set, then maybe, just maybe, by the time we touch back down on UK soil I might just have everything I want. All of the pieces of the puzzle will fall into place, I’ll be taken seriously at work, Liz will back off, and James might just realise that he’s head over heels in love with me.
I guess we’ll just have to wait and see but, hey, whatever happens, it’s going to be a bumpy ride and I’m ready for it.