Page 76 of Operation Sunshine
She rolled her eyes. “Heisallowed to get one day off a week, don’t you think? And Mondays are usually pretty peaceful, so I don’t expect to be run off my feet.” She held a spoon out to him. “Wanna try this new sauce I’ve been working on?”
Franco waved a hand. “Not right now. I need to talk to Ben.”
Lexie smirked. “I don’t suppose you two spend too much time talking, do you?”
He pointedly ignored her teasing and headed for the office.
Ben was seated at his desk, his sleeves rolled up, his broad shoulders hunched over as he peered at the laptop, his brow furrowed in concentration. The sight of him did something to Franco’s chest he couldn’t explain.
It felt precarious.
“Morning,” Ben said without looking up.
The effort to act normal took everything Franco had.
He walked around Ben’s desk and leaned back against it, trying for casual. “I missed my morning kiss.AndI had to make the coffee myself.”
Ben glanced up, one eyebrow lifting, his lips twitching. “You want coffee?” He pointed to the bookcase. “There’s a pot.”
Franco’s grin was automatic, but his hand slipped into his pocket, his thumb brushing his phone as if it was a secret.
Tell him. The email. The offer. The chance of a lifetime. Tell him before it swallows you whole.
Franco’s throat tightened. “Actually? Something’s happened.”
Ben closed the laptop, his gaze sharpening. “What?”
This was it. The words were right there on the tip of his tongue.
I got the offer of a lifetime. Chef Gallo. Florence. Three months. And I don’t know what to do because of you.
But when Franco opened his mouth, what came out was: “I just found another of those buttons you lost.”
Ben’s eyes danced with amusement. “ThatIlost?Whowas ripping my shirt off me, exactly? Or are you suddenly suffering from selective amnesia?”
Franco cackled. “Then you really need to invest in sturdier shirts.”
Ben exhaled through his nose, smiling. “You’re impossible.”
Franco laughed too loudly, his heart hammering, his stomach clenching. “And yet, you still keep me around. That’s on you.”
Ben shook his head, but then he brushed his hand against Franco’s in passing. Franco felt the pull, the ache, the urge to blurt it all out. To tell him about Florence, about the fear of making the wrong decision, about how terrifying it was to imagine leaving and how much worse it was to imagine staying.
He swallowed it down.Not here. Not yet. Later.
He’d find the words, he promised himself.
Except, deep down, Franco wasn’t sure if “later” would ever come.
I have to talk tosomeone.
His heartbeat raced. “Is it okay if I take an hour off this morning? Before it picks up for lunch? There’s someplace I need to be. An appointment I completely forgot about.”
Ben frowned, then checked the clipboard on his desk. “I don’t see why not. Chloe’s in this morning. Sure.” He tilted his head to one side. “Is everything okay?”
“Oh, yeah, everything’s fine,” he lied.
Everythingshouldhave been fine.
