“So what does that get me?”
“Pizza.”
He’s not joking. He pulls up to a pizza shop in downtown Providence. The place is busy for a small shop. It screams classic Italian pizza with red-checkered tablecloths, a mannequin with a dark mustache, and the overwhelming smell of greasy pizza.
“Gio!” a man with a thick Italian accent and a white chef’s coat greet us within seconds of entering.
“Sal.” The two men do a quick one-armed embrace. “Sal, this is Annie.”
“Ah, you brought a lady.” Sal takes my hand and places a light kiss on my knuckles. “Piacere di conoscerti caro.”
“I uh, don’t speak Italian,” I tell him confused. I have no idea what the man just said to me.
“He says nice to meet you.” Gio interprets.
“You’ll have to learn then.” Sal’s face is amused. “Gio here is fluent.”
“Really?” I turn to look at him. There is still so much I don’t know about this man.
“Si, bella ragazza.”
“What does that mean?”
Gio leans in close, moving a loose strand of hair behind my ear before whispering, “Yes, beautiful girl.”
I can feel the pink heat rising to my cheeks.
“Here,” Sal gestures to a table in the back that has a view of the entire restaurant. “Your favorite table is available.”
“This table was definitely not available when we walked in.” I muse, once we are seated and Sal insists he’ll bring out an assortment of food.
Gio looks pleased. “Probably not.”
“Do people just part the seas when you enter?” I tease.
“Something like that.” he deadpans.
I laugh amused, I can’t say I didn’t already know that the man has a high level of self-esteem.
“How do you know Sal?”
“He’s an old family friend. He and my pop grew up together.”
I hum under my breath.
“My turn to ask questions now.” Gio declares.
I lean back into the fake leather of the chair. “Shoot, I’m an open book.”
“What do you want to do?”
“Like with life?” I ask. “I guess nursing, that’s what I’m going to school for.”
“Mmm,” Gio nurses the glass of whiskey Sal placed in front of him. This place doesn’t look like it has a bar, but I assume that it doesn’t matter when it comes to Gio. “But what do you really want?” he asks again.
My life has always been one thing after another. One problem solved, then onto the next one. I never really had time to hope and dream with the family I was given. I was always focused on them. Helping them, getting them out of trouble. Nothing was ever about me.
“I want to help people.” I finally say. That’s true. I want to help those who need it. The sick, the poor, the people who can’t help themselves. I want to be the person who helps get them through. That’s why I love nursing, I want to help everyone.
“Yeah,” Gio takes another long sip. “But who’s gonna help you?”
The next choice is fast or slow which has me doing a double-take.
“Fast.” The word rushes from my lips before I can think about it.
“Good choice.” he grins.
I find myself at a garage on a large plot of land outside the city less than twenty minutes later.
“What are we doing?”
Gio only smiles and grabs my hand to lead me into the garage.
“You’re not gonna, like, kill me right?” I ask, only half-joking.
“No.” His look is scolding. “I’m not gonna fucking kill you, sweetheart.”
Inside the garage, he flips on the lights revealing the overwhelming smell of dirt and gasoline.
Front and center is a bright cherry red Tesla model S. The sleek and smooth design is mesmerizing. One the other side is a shiny black Mercedes Benz SUV. How many cars does one man need?
“Have you ever ridden in one of these?” Gio asks, running his fingers along the side of the Tesla.
“Nope.” I’m entranced by the hundred thousand dollar car sitting in front of me.
“It goes zero to sixty in 2.4 seconds.” Gio is gushing over the stats like I imagine a car salesman would.
“Are you, like, a car guy?”
His brown eyes flash up. “Seriously? You don’t have to be a car guy to appreciate this beaut.”
His enthusiasm makes me smile. “Okay then.”
“Get in,” he commands. “We’re going for a ride.”
The interior of the car is impeccable, the tan leather feels like butter against my skin as I sink into the passenger seat. The center dashboard is replaced with what looks like a huge iPad. The whole car screams money.
Then again, Gio himself screams money
“You think you’re ready?” he asks before placing the car into gear.
“It drives itself right?” I ask, eliciting a smirk from Gio.
“Yeah, that’s one feature, but we’re gonna go fast.”
He pulls out of the garage and onto the long strip of uninterrupted road. “Hold on,” he tells me as he presses the pedal to the flooring causing the car to speed forward. The pick up is so quick it presses my head back against the headrest.
As quick as he hit the petal we’re going sixty, then seventy, then eighty.
“Yes!” Gio howls, beating his palm against the steering wheel. “That’s what I’m talking about.” his laughter fills the car. This is the first time I’ve seen him like this.
Wild.
Unfiltered.
Free.
Damn, did I love the sight of it.
His hair flows, the gel he uses loosened, he tosses me a wide grin as he continues speeding down the path. I take a mental picture, I want this image sealed in my brain forever. This is the way I like Gio DelGado.
“Slow, slow!” I laugh, finally coming down from the high of the fast car. “I choose slow now!” I tease.
He chuckles, looking at me with a sly grin. “Yeah
