Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 80715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 323(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 323(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
A couple minutes later, we made it to Il Gabriello, a restaurant that was constructed underneath the street. After a steep walk down the stairs into the cavern, we were taken to a table right next to the curved rock that reached overhead. Constantine had to be mindful of the walls because he was not built to be underground.
The second we took a seat, he ordered a bottle of wine and still water for the table. He didn’t even look at the menu, like he already knew exactly what he wanted because he’d been there before.
I was still flustered by the ride here. “I’m sorry about—”
“Don’t be sorry. It’s fine.”
I knew he wasn’t just saying that to dismiss the conversation, because he’d always been truthful with me. “I don’t know why it makes me uncomfortable.”
“Because you aren’t used to it,” he said. “I won’t put you in that situation again.”
I didn’t want to ruin the night before it even started, but he seemed to be okay with it. “You already know what you’re getting?”
“The steak with pepper sauce.”
“You really love your steak, don’t you?” I teased.
“This place makes the best steak I’ve ever had.”
“Ever?”
He nodded once. “Ever.”
“Wow, you’re really selling it.”
“Go for it. I would love to buy a woman a steak.”
“You never have?”
“Maybe my mom one time . . .”
The waiter came back with the wine and the water, and Constantine ordered for the two of us, getting each of us a steak and a side of greens and potatoes for us to share. He always took the lead so I didn’t have to say a word.
When the waiter was gone, he turned his complete focus back to me, staring at me intently like we’d never met before. Like he needed to get to know me all over, commit my features to memory, study me like he didn’t know my body underneath the black dress.
“Your mom must really hate that you live here, especially after your brother passed away.”
He didn’t flinch at the mention of his twin. “She was really upset about it, initially. She’s gotten better about it. Or at least she’s gotten better about keeping it to herself.”
“So, she does know . . . what you do?”
He nodded. “The main points, yes. But she’s asked me to spare her whatever details I can—otherwise, she’ll never sleep again.”
“She must be proud of you, though. I would be if you were my son.”
His body remained rigid, but there was a change in his gaze, a hardening of his stare. A hint of a smile crept on to his lips, just a ghost of it, and then it was gone. “I’m glad you feel that way. That’s what I’ve always wanted in a woman.”
I realized I’d shoved my foot into my mouth, made a step toward him that I hadn’t meant to make, a commitment that still seemed out of reach.
“A woman who will always stand by me. A woman who believes in what I do just as much as I do.”
I wasn’t sure if that was me, judging by the way my heart pounded. “You said you would never hire a woman because it’s not a safe environment. So, how does that work with a partner?”
“Because everyone in the Roman Republic is there to serve the Republic—including me. We understand and accept the risks. But my partner is not under the same obligation. She’s not a part of it whatsoever.”
“But based on association—”
“She is my Roman Republic. My Roman Empire. And my first job, before everything else, is to serve and protect her.” We hadn’t even gotten our food yet, and we were already in the thick of it. “I would let Rome burn to the ground before I let anything happen to you, Aurelia.”
Everything was perfect between us, but the more we discussed it, the more I was uncertain what I wanted. Constantine was the ideal man, and I should be the one begging him to be with me. But I wasn’t stupid. I knew a life with Constantine would be different from one with someone else. Full of guns and danger and instability. And while my heart went wild for this man, my mind continued to question it all.
When he spoke again, his tone was quiet. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“That I’m crazy about you but not crazy about this.” I blurted it out because I couldn’t contain it in my chest for another second. I should be more calculated in my responses, but all of this made me so uneasy that I couldn’t.
“I promise nothing would happen to you.”
“You can’t make a promise like that, Constantine.”
He suddenly looked provoked, as if I’d said the wrong thing. “Yes, I can.”
“You said you don’t like to lie, and if that’s true, then there’s no way you can say that—”