Page 28 of Gin & Trouble

“That’swhat you took away from everything I said?” Using my free hand, I gave him a little shove while attempting to drop the wine glass into my bag.

And missed.

Dante knelt to pick it up and took his freaking sweet time staring.

I could practically feel the heat of his gaze searing me from my feet to the hem of my dress. When he stood, he had the audacity to brush his knuckles across my collarbone. “What were you drinking? I’ll get you another.”

I couldn’t exactly demand he give me the empty glass without seeming like a complete lunatic, but I needed Enzo’s spit. I glanced over the crowd and caught the chef downing a water bottle near the kitchen.

“Il Duca Rosa Imperiale.” I nodded to the far side of the restaurant. “They don’t have it upfront. You’ll have to ask for it at the bar near the wine room.”

“I’ll be right back.” Dante strode off like a man on a quest to slay the Dragon of Merlot.

Part of me felt bad. I had no idea if Enzo even carried the sparkling red, but I’d bought myself some time with the lie. Rather than standing there watching Dante’s ass as he walked away, I wove my way through the crowd to the kitchen…just in time to see Enzo disappear into an office at the end of a hall.

I pressed my back to the wall and tried to look normal.

What felt like eons later, he emerged without the plastic bottle.

Jackpot.

Praying the door wasn’t locked, I waited for him to walk into the kitchen before hurrying down the hall. It seemed my luck had finally changed when the knob turned in my hand.

I slipped inside the office, found the trash can, and sighed.

Seriously? Hasn’t this guy never heard of reusable containers?

The freaking basket overflowed with plastic bottles. I had no way of knowing for certain all of the empty bottles were his. Figuring the more samples the better, I shoved three into my bag.

“Can I help you?” Enzo Marchionni’s voice filled the room.

Gasping, I pressed my hand to my chest. “Holy smokes, you scared me.”

“Forgive me for startling you, but why are you in my office?”

Good question. Shit. Not the time to have a brain glitch.

“I…um…” I thought back to Sophia’s advice and arched my back to give the girls a little lift. “I’m with cybersecurity. I’ve been having a problem with the camera feeds in this room. I thought I’d check them… You know. Since I’m here.”

Ignoring my breasts, he glanced at the camera mounted near the ceiling. “Do you need a stool to stand on?”

“Yes, please. That would be helpful.” I smiled but judging by his weirded-out expression, I must have looked like a maniac. Or worse, he thought I was flirting with him.

“Wait here.” Enzo gave me one more confused look, shook his head, and walked out.

I sank into one of the leather chairs in front of the desk, but my nerves got the better of me. I stood and wandered to the photos on the credenza. Starting with a wedding picture, I studied Enzo’s features.

There might have been some resemblance between him and my father, but it was hard to tell. I moved on to a candid shot of the Marchionni brothers. It had to be several years old because it had been taken before Joe was killed.

It struck me as odd that while five of the men had their arms draped over each other’s shoulders, Enzo stood off to the side. Not only was he apart from his brothers, he seemed alone. I lifted the frame to get a better look and gasped.

His eyes. Oh my God. He has Dad’s eyes.

“That one was taken in Comiso, Sicily the year before my brother died,” Enzo said from the doorway.

Embarrassed, I hurried to put the photo back in its place—and dropped it.

The frame hit the terrazzo floor shattering the glass.

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