Stand-In Saturday (Love For Days #2) - Kirsty Moseley Page 0,87
eyes tighten again as she turns her attention to him, holding out her hand for a polite shake.
“Mrs Gordio, it’s lovely to meet you. You have a beautiful home.” Theo gestures around the hallway in example, shooting her a charming smile.
He looks so boyishly cute that I don’t know how she can retain her hard composure, but she does.
She nods. “Thank you, Mr Stone.”
“Call me Theo.” He grins and waves a hand.
Mamma doesn’t answer or return the gesture of telling him to call her by her first name. Instead, she turns back to me and switches to speaking in Italian, so Theo won’t understand. “How long has this been going on?” She inclines her head at him, but her accusing eyes don’t leave mine.
I switch to Italian too. “Not very long. Please be civil. He’s a genuinely lovely man. Besides, I wasn’t aware that I didn’t have a plus-one invitation for tonight.”
“But Lucas will be here.”
“Yes, you told me he would be.”
She holds my gaze for longer than necessary before giving a barely perceptible nod and pulling back, clasping her hands together. Her expression is that of a polite host now, and she switches back to English. “Well, come on in and enjoy the party. Are you hungry? We have lots of food laid out.” She turns to me. “I’ve ordered a big cake for Papà as a surprise. When they do the speeches, the catering staff is going to bring it out. Chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream and fresh raspberries inside. He is going to love it.”
“He will.” I grin and nod, loving the idea.
My parents live in this huge house, have several cars, and can jet off on month-long holidays at the drop of a hat, but at their core, they are still such simple folk. My father will be delighted when he’s presented with his favourite cake.
“Well, come on. We can’t stand in the hallway all night. Let’s go join the party,” Mamma says.
We follow her up the hallway, two pairs of stiletto shoes clacking on the marble tiles. As we walk, I reach out and slip my hand into Theo’s, holding on tightly, trying to soak up some of his confidence and the general air of ease he always has about him. With each step further into my parents’ house, my anxiety grows. My heartbeat pounds in my ears, and I feel a swirl of panic brewing inside. The thought of seeing Lucas and his new girlfriend is making my stomach roll. I don’t really know what to expect to happen tonight … or what I want to happen. I clearly haven’t thought this through properly. My brain is a bit muffled, like it’s stuffed with cotton wool.
Theo brings my hand up to his mouth, planting a gentle kiss on my knuckles, and my heart stutters in my chest as I look over at him. He sends me a cheeky wink and gives my hand a squeeze. And just like that, my panic subsides.
As we all step into the formal living room, Mamma turns and smiles. “I’m going to go find your father and tell him you’re here. You go say hello to everyone.” She waves to the room as she saunters off through the crowd.
My eyes widen as I take in the array of people standing around, drinking flutes of champagne the catering staff is handing out from silver trays. Everyone is dressed in posh evening wear—suits and formal dresses. My eyes scan the women, and I groan. They’re all in muted colours—blacks, navy blues, dark purples, greys.
My eyes drop to the floor as I brush some non-existent lint from my thigh, now wishing I’d worn something more inconspicuous. I’m going to stick out like a sore thumb in this red hooker dress. What was I thinking?
At my side, Theo steps closer to me, his free hand brushing against my hip as he dips his head to talk to me. “Are you okay? What did I miss in the hallway?”
“I’m fine. It was nothing.”
He frowns, and I long to reach up and smooth the lines away with my fingertips.
Going up on my tiptoes, I press a kiss on the edge of his jaw. “Honestly, Theo, it was nothing. She thought I was coming alone; that’s all.”
He nods, his arm snaking around my waist, hand resting on the small of my back as he pulls me closer to him. “Okay. So, give me the skinny on these people. Any good gossip I should know about as