Page 67 of Crazed

I put my hand over my mouth, unable to stop my laugh.

"Ouch!" he says, holding his heart.

"Sorry. But why don't you know how to run a dishwasher?" I ask.

He shrugs. "I grew up in a household with housekeepers and chefs. There wasn't a need to know."

I reach for his face and pat it. "Okay, sexy. I'll teach you how to use the dishwasher."

"You're making fun of me," he mumbles.

"No," I claim, biting my smile.

"Yes, you are."

"Sorry." I wince, unable to hide my amusement.

He leans down, pecks me on the lips, then pats my ass. "Time to get moving."

We take the elevator to the ground level. It opens into a parking garage. Massimo's Ferrari is parked in the first space, next to the exit. He opens my door, and I slide inside.

Massimo gets into the driver's seat, revs the engine, and backs out of the space.

We get on the main road, and the sun hits the window. I put on my sunglasses, adding, "Spring is finally here."

Massimo steps on the accelerator, weaving through traffic. "Looks like it. Time for our vacation. Ask for the first available week."

The dread I can't shake reappears. In an attempt to buy some more time, I put my hand on his thigh. "Hey."

He glances at me. "What's up, dolce?"

"Can I please read the handbook tonight? I'll put in a request with Alicia tomorrow, I promise."

"Do we have to go through this again?" he seethes.

"Massimo—"

"There's no reason to stall. Look at the table of contents, flip to the page about your vacation time, and read it. I bet it'll take you less than a minute," he claims.

I remove my hand from his thigh and stare out the window.

"Katiya, what is this all about? If you don't want to go—"

"I do want to go. I just don't want to look dumb!"

"You won't look dumb," he asserts.

The city buildings become a blur from Massimo's fast driving. I breathe through my apprehension, wondering how I'm ever going to find Leo so I can get his blessing on all these changes.

"Dolce, I promise you won't appear stupid," Massimo quietly states when he pulls up to the library.

I turn my head toward him, confessing my truth. "Sometimes, I feel super ignorant."

He furrows his eyebrows. "How so?"

I shrug but admit, "You're very worldly. You know how everything in society works. Heck, I assume you've traveled to every continent. All I do is go to work and come home."

He circles his arm around my shoulder then tilts his head. "Ignorance doesn't mean you're stupid. It means you haven't experienced something. There's no shame in how you've lived your life. But all that's going to change, now that you're my girl. I'm going to show you the world, and this ignorance you feel will disappear. You'll see."

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