Chapter 5 #2
Giana pasted on an innocent-looking expression, but he knew her too well to believe it was true. “Oh, were you looking for me?”
“Who told you?” Enzo was grumpy and he didn’t even want to hide it.
Not only had she probably ruined his chance at painting that gorgeous blank wall, she’d been advertising to Will—hot, delectable Will—that he couldn’t get a date on his own.
“I don’t know what you mean,” she claimed.
“Come off it, I know what you did. You didn’t even bother to ask Will about the mural. You do realize we need his permission to paint his wall, right?”
“I thought he’d be honored,” Giana said with a sniff.
“You’re kidding, right?” Enzo made a face. “It really wasn’t cool. And it really wasn’t cool for you to be soliciting dates for me. I can get my own dates.”
“Can you?”
Enzo groaned. “Mom, I’m not interested in Will, no matter what you think. I’m busy. I’m going places. I’m crazy busy right now. I don’t need to settle down, or whatever it is you’ve decided I should be doing.”
“You don’t even have a home. You’re living out of a suitcase.” She leveled an experienced Moretti stare at him.
“And?”
“And it’s sad. I want more for you, darling, than just an empty hotel room and a duffel bag full of clothes.”
“I have more than that,” Enzo said between clenched teeth. “In any case please stop trying to throw me at Will. It’s embarrassing.”
“Because you like him! Because you think he’s cute! Oh, he is cute, isn’t he? I thought so the moment I saw him. And then Luca told me he was gay, and I knew he was perfect for you.”
“He’s not anything for me,” Enzo repeated as patiently as he could. “And because you interfered, now he’s pissed at me and doesn’t want me to paint the mural. That’s not only disappointing, but it makes me look unprofessional, Mom. And I am a professional.”
“Oh, of course you are a professional, darling! You’re so good at your job. Brilliant, really.” Giana made a face. “I’m sorry. I just thought it would be such a lovely surprise.”
“The mural? Or Will?” Enzo asked dryly.
“Well, both,” she retorted fondly. “Did you not think he was cute?”
Enzo had no intention of telling her how cute Will really was. At least if Giana was attempting matchmaking in earnest now, she had good taste.
“That’s not the point,” Enzo said. “You’ve got to stop doing this stuff. I’m my own man now.”
Her face fell a little, and that guilt he was far too familiar with swamped him yet again. “I know,” she said in a quiet voice. “I suppose I should have talked to him about it.”
“Asked his permission,” Enzo stressed. “And I should have asked more questions. Made it a more formal proposal. Now I’m not going to get to do it, and that’s disappointing.”
Giana looked as disappointed as he felt. Maybe she’d been harboring some secret hope that even if her overt matchmaking didn’t work out, Enzo painting Will’s building might lead to more.
“I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I didn’t know. I didn’t realize.”
Enzo resolutely shoved the guilt to the side. “Yes, you did. But it’s okay.” He reached out and took her hand. “I get it. You just want me to be happy. But I am happy.”
She didn’t look convinced. Enzo didn’t know if it was because she didn’t understand what did truly make him happy or because he wasn’t quite convincing enough.
He was happy. Though maybe he did wonder, just a little, whenever he saw his cousin and his husband together what it would be like to have a partner like that. A love like that.
But then he remembered that falling in love that way would mean nailing him down to a single spot, and he couldn’t deal with that.
Couldn’t live like that again.
“Alright, darling,” she said. “Do you want me to talk to him?”
“No, no. You’ve done enough damage, already.”
“You don’t think I’d make it worse, do you?” she asked with surprise as she set her cup onto its saucer.
“Oh, of course not. You’d just try to convince him to date me again,” Enzo grumbled.
“He should want to date you.”
“Well, it’s not happening. He’s . . .” Gorgeous. And even cuter when he’s annoyed with me, which he is now, thanks to you. “He lives here, Mom. And I don’t.” He tried to say it with as much gentleness as he could, but she still frowned.
“I understand,” she said and stood. “I’ve got to meet Joy. We’re going to Charleston to find some antiques for the expansion of the Inn.”
Enzo didn’t remember his mother being quite so close to Joy Billings. Eighteen-year-old Enzo would’ve been thrilled at this development, but twenty-seven-year-old Enzo was just confused why he’d missed this happening.
“I didn’t know the two of you were so close,” he said casually as she wrapped him up in a quick hug.
“Oh, since I moved back to town, yes. She’s a delightful person, Enzo.”
“Just like her son, I’m sure.” But there was no heat in his voice. He’d gotten over Oliver ages ago.
“Are you going to stay here?”
“Yeah, I’ll have another cappuccino. Maybe sketch some.” What he wanted to do was sketch some ideas for the mural—but he wasn’t convinced Will would change his mind.
Maybe he should go back to Cherry’s and deploy some additional Moretti charm to persuade him.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to talk to him?” Giana asked. And Enzo knew exactly who she was referring to. “Maybe if I apologized, smoothed things over, he’d see things differently.”
He might. But Enzo couldn’t risk her pimping him out again.
“No, it’s fine,” Enzo said. “I have other work I can play around with. And maybe I can convince Rocco to play hooky.”
He pulled out a pencil and his sketchpad from his back pocket.
“You shouldn’t,” Giana said but she was smiling.
“I’ll see you later,” Enzo said. “Have fun with Joy.”
But before she could walk out the door, it was opening and there was Will standing there, in another of his tight white T-shirts, two cherries with their stems intertwined embroidered on the pocket.
“Oh, Will,” Giana said excitedly, beckoning him over and Enzo had to clamp his lips together so he didn’t groan out loud.
“I’m so glad I ran into you,” she continued, and Enzo was relieved that at least she’d pasted on her most contrite expression. “I wanted to apologize for the misunderstanding.”
Will raised an eyebrow. He didn’t look convinced by her show of remorse.
“It must’ve just slipped your mind to tell me,” Will said.
“Yes, exactly,” Giana said, giving him one of her brightest smiles.
Enzo recognized that smile and didn’t think Will would be able to resist it, and sure enough, he didn’t. He melted. Only a little, but it was enough.
“Well, no harm, no foul,” Will said, and then he turned to Enzo. “I was hoping I’d catch you here. I want to talk to you.”
Giana’s expression turned rapturous.
Enzo internally winced.
“About the mural,” Will added, with emphasis.
“Don’t you have somewhere you need to be?” Enzo asked his mother.
“Well . . .” She trailed off.
“Go meet Joy. Let me take care of this,” Enzo said.
She smiled and gave him a nod. “Alright. Enjoy yourselves. A lot.”
Even after she disappeared out of the front door, Will didn’t sit down. Just stood there, shifting his weight from foot to foot. “I was thinking,” he said. “What if I gave you a general subject for the mural and you took it from there?”
I’ve got him.
But Enzo had a feeling if he got cocky again, he’d scare him away again. “That’s not usually the way it works,” he reminded him. “But I promise, I’m not going to paint something completely ridiculous on your building.”
“I know,” Will said.
Enzo gestured towards the seat across from him. “Come on, sit down. Let’s talk about this.” When Will continued to hesitate, he added, “I promise, I don’t believe that if we sit together and share a conversation that we’re gonna fall wildly in love and get married.”
Will flushed but did finally sit down. “I didn’t imagine you would,” he said. “But Giana might.”
“She might,” Enzo agreed. It was best, he’d decided, to face this horrible awkwardness head-on. “I heard she was talking about me. But I . . .that’s not me. She doesn’t speak for me.”
“I get it,” Will said. “She just wants what’s best for you.”
“And who’s being egotistical now?” Enzo teased. “’Cause how else could you be so sure you’re what’s best for me?”
Will’s face went even redder, under his tan. “Uh, no, I just mean . . .you know what I meant.”
“I did,” Enzo agreed. But he’d liked making Will blush anyway. Liked flirting with him.
It was a hell of a lot more fun than Will angrily accusing him of vandalizing his building.
“We can . . .uh . . .pretend she didn’t get involved,” Will said. “I’d prefer that, in fact.”
Enzo wanted to tell Will that Giana was more determined than that, but he’d discover the truth after a while, so there was no point in scaring him away now. Especially not when he’d come to Enzo, only a few hours after claiming that he couldn’t paint his wall.
“So that was your best offer?” Enzo said. “You give me a subject and I give you a mural?”
Will shrugged awkwardly. “It’s a good idea, though Kate was actually the one who suggested it.”
“You got an idea?” Enzo found himself curious as to what subject Will wanted him to paint.
Curious. Nothing more.
“You could always paint the town story.”
Enzo made a face.
“What? What’s wrong with that?” Will asked, confused. “It’s such a beautiful story. I love hearing it. Especially when Joy tells it.”
“Of course you love it,” Enzo complained.
There were many things he didn’t like about Indigo Bay, but the story was one of the worst, ultimately so saccharine and fake sounding.
Like that could really happen in real life.
Nobody waited years and years for someone to come home, especially someone who was almost certainly dead.
Those stories never had those picture-perfect happy endings, the way this one did.
“What’s wrong with it?”
What was wrong with it? Everything, as far as Enzo was concerned. “It’s like the worst version of a Hallmark holiday. It probably didn’t even happen that way.”