NO DOUBT [bwwm]

• 9 • The Dinner II

I hung up after saying bye to Tyler and exhaled. Dinner with the Ricci's. Giulia being strangely nice to me. Orlando blushing. Me, a personal assistant. A lot had happened in the past few hours. And it made me apprehensive as for how the rest of the night will turn out.

I made my way to the living room where everyone was in conversation. The three couches formed an open square in front of the chimney. Giulia and Stefano were facing Luca who sat alone on the large sofa, while Orlando and the pretty blonde from the other night faced the chimney. They all stopped talking once they noticed my presence.

"Josie!" Giulia stood up and walked over to me and stood beside me, "Josie gave us the pleasure to accept our invitation to dinner, so we'll be enjoying her company tonight."

"Oh, if anything, I'm the one who's going to enjoy your company, you all," I complimented, smiling.

"You flatter us too much, Josie," Stefano winked.

"I'm giving you two hours until we start getting on your nerves," Orlando joked.

"Fratello, you think too highly of us - thirty minutes and she's off running," Luca added in, making us all laugh.

The tension I was feeling was diffused by then and I joined the younger brother on his couch. The extremity of Orlando and his girlfriend's couch that was the closest to me was occupied by her, so I couldn't directly talk to him. I decided to turn to a smirking Luca, instead.

"Josie, it's been a while," he looked amused by the slightly annoyed look on my face.

"It's been five days Luca," I retorted.

"Five days, five minutes, forever, they all sound the same when they're spent not teasing you."

"Ah, so you're finally admitting that your sad attempts to flirt with me were not only fruitless, but ridiculous?"

"Josie, darling, how can I admit to something that's false? And I'll never stop trying," he gave me a devilish grin.

I sighed and, thankfully, the pretty blond adressed herself to me, saving me from Luca, "I don't think we've been properly introduced. I'm Francesca."

She held out a perfectly manicured hand that made me reconsider shaking it with my rather rough ones, though I did anyways. She smiled with a hint of bitterness, but I ignored it as I smiled back.

"Nice to meet you, Francesca, I'm Josie but you know that already," I awkwardly laughed and she politely did the same.

Her hand backed away to find that of Orlando, which she held onto possessively.

Francesca seemed nice, in all honesty. Tonight, she wore a burgundy wrap dress that did wonders to her slim figure. I felt out of place with my modest thrifted jeans, and my basic white sweater. Constantly smiling with those perfectly white and straight teeth of hers. With her full pink lips, her wavy flawless blond hair and her fairy blue eyes, she looked straight out of a fairytale. I'd easily see why Orlando would go for someone like her. Shit, I'd go for someone like her. Orlando eyed me reassuringly and I gave him a nod in response, allowing him to bring his attention back to his mother.