“Does he belong to you, Peaches? It’s not our problem if you can’t hold on to your man, now is it?” Bria was ready to kick the attitude right out of the woman’s ass, but I wasn’t in the mood for a bloody scene straight out of The Godfather.
“Leave it, Bria. The bitch isn’t worth the effort.”
Boobzilla lunged at me, but her friend grabbed her arm. “Not here, Anna,” she said.
Bria and I thought it best to leave before the evening went south. A bathroom brawl wasn’t the best way to impress on a first date, although the idea of ripping off the bitch’s bra and whipping her with it was a satisfying one. But that would have to wait.
JOE
It was a good twenty minutes before the women emerged from the crowd.
“We thought you girls stood us up,” Fabio yelled over the music.
“We’ll tell you about it later,” Eleanora said as she and Bria gave each other a look.
“Come on then, ladies, let’s get out of here.” I took Eleanora’s hand as I cleared a path to the door. We were wet and sweaty, and as soon as our bodies hit the cool air outside, steam rose from our clothes.
The café was within walking distance to the club. Fabio and Bria walked ahead of us, laughing and chatting away.
“Looks like Fabio has met his chatterbox match in Bria,” I said, as Eleanora and I followed behind.
“She’s no shrinking violet that’s for sure. Fabio looks like a man who can look after himself. Have the two of you been friends for long?”
So, she was testing the waters with a bit of small talk. Smart girl. I knew my way around headstrong women—my mother was a firecracker. I’d learned from the best.
“We’ve been best friends since childhood. What about you and Bria?”
“We started high school together. It wasn’t smooth sailing at first—I thought she was a spoiled princess, and she thought I was stuck up. It took a few misunderstandings before we grew close. Now, I can’t imagine my life without the nutter.”
Her eyes smiled as she spoke of Bria. I wanted so badly to kiss her right there in the street, but I thought better of it. Raucous, hungry clubbers filled the café to capacity.
The owner nodded as he spotted Fabio and me at the door with our beautiful ladies. He waved us over to a table and greeted us with a jolly handshake.
“Ah, welcome, welcome,” he said as he used his cloth to wipe the surface of the table. “I haven’t seen your father for a few weeks, Joe. Is he well?”
“He is; thank you, Giovani. I see you’re doing well—this place is pumping—must be your lovely wife’s excellent cooking.”
“You’re a charmer just like your father, Joe. Watch yourself around this one,” Giovani said to Eleanora with a wink, “he’ll steal your heart before you can say ‘rigatoni.’”
“I’ll be sure to keep a close eye on him. Thank you, Giovani.” Eleanora gave him a warm smile. I’d thought Giovani got it wrong. I was the one who’d have to watch my step—she was an intriguing beauty, and I was falling hard.
Giovani took our food order and sent a bottle of chianti to our table. The café was only slightly less noisy than the club, so we leaned in close to talk.
“What happened at the club? You ladies were gone from the table for a long time,” I commented after we’d poured our drinks. The girls looked at each other before Eleanora spoke.
“We had a run-in with one of your fans. A tall, busty brunette with serious attitude and dagger eyes reprimanded me for sharing oxygen with you.”
“Oooh, Anna strikes again, my dear Joe.” Fabio rolled his eyes as he looked at me. I was beyond annoyed.
“Who’s Anna?” Bria asked. “She’s lucky Eleanora stopped me from kicking her skinny ass. The woman’s a bitch on wheels.”
“Should I be looking over my shoulder?” Eleanora joked as she gave me a teasing smile.
“Anna is an interesting story. Don’t pay any attention to her. She’s sour because she couldn’t ensnare me in her trap. I’ll tell you about it, someday. I don’t want to lose my appetite now or spoil our evening.”
Eleanora seemed satisfied with the answer. I was thankful that she wasn’t the jealous type. It would be a refreshing change in my world. The food was a hit and the company a blast. Bria was crazy funny. She and Fabio had us in stitches. Eleanora was charming, smart as a whip, and if I had a penny for every time a man stared luridly at her during dinner, I’d have left the café with a trunk full of cash.
“Can I see you again?” I asked her at the end of the night as we walked back to the club.
“You sure Anna won’t jump out from behind a bush and attack me with a shovel if she catches us together?” Her sarcasm was a turn on.
“I’m sure you can handle it. You seem like a very capable foe” I retorted after she’d chuckled.
“I’d like that, Joe.”
“Good, I think we need to work on our dance moves. Especially the slow ones.” I didn't kiss her goodnight. I thought it best to hold back a little, make her hungry for me—or so I told myself.
Chapter Two
Eleanora
On the drive home, Bria talked my ear off.
“Okay,” she said, “spill it! Is Joe as yummy as he looks?”
“He’s better. He makes my knees weak. How about Fabio? You like him?”
“He’s great fun. We had a blast, but I don’t think either
