Take Flight - Josie's journey #Wattys2017

Chapter 23: Dancing with a Hottie

"Andrew, this place is gorgeous!"

My eyes were wide open as I took in the ambience surrounding us. I'd linked arms with Andrew and I could feel his hand squeeze mine while I marveled at the view in front of us. We were leaning against a balustrade and looking down at the streets of Rome. To our feet ran Tiber, the water making its inevitable way to the ocean. Washing away the dust and dirt from another day in the eternal city. The sun had set and we were provided with the lighting beneath us and chains of lights that had been hung up all around the terrace. Like fireflies they glowed along the balustrade, the wooden pillars of the wine bowler and even above us between the leaves of the grapevine. 

"Better than the terrace two nights ago?"

Memories of the horrible night at the club flashed through my mind, causing my cheeks to blush with embarrassement. The two locations couldn't be more different. Andrew had brought us to this tiny restaurant in a house right next to  the river and after we had dinner, he'd led us up here. The terrace was part of the restaurant and an insider's tip among Romans. How an English man found out about it, would remain a mystery. 

"What do you think?"

With a content smile I gave him a gentle jostle before resting my head against his shoulder. Closing my eyes I listened to his soft chuckle and took in a deep breath of his faint perfume. The scent was so familiar to me already, I knew I'd recognize it everywhere. 

"Fancy a drink?"

I opened my eyes and let Andrew lead me to the bar. We sat down on two bar stools and turned away from the counter while waiting for our drinks. For a minute or two we watched the live band. They were playing a version of Stand by me and the dance floor in the middle of the terrace was dominated by couples. It didn't take us long to find Mim and Paul among them. 

"Who will you be dancing with tonight?"

Andrew winked at me with his charming smile and handed me my glass of white wine. We clinked our glasses and took a sip, never breaking eye contact. Was he asking me to dance with him? The thought of it sent my heart into overdrive. 

"I don't know yet?"

Not sure about his intentions, my answer sounded rather uncertain and more like a question. Andrew's lips parted in a jaunty smile as his eyes wandered around the terrace. Looking at him, two women sitting on a table a few feet away from us caught my attention. They were whispering, both staring at us. One of them, a gorgeous brunette with striking blue eyes, couldn't take her eyes off Andrew. The other one was looking me over in a blatant manner before wrinkling her nose and whispering something to her friend. The brunette reacted to it with a melodious laughter that was a little too loud to sound natural. I felt a nasty sting in my heart and quickly looked away. 

"We have to find you a hottie to dance with. Don't tell me you've forgotten about it."

My eyes wandered back to Andrew. He was looking at me and didn't seem to notice the two women. The stinging subsided and I concentrated on his words. So he didn't want to dance with me. Why not?

"Uhm, right. No, I haven't. Let's find someone."

Half-hearted I started to look around. I didn't feel like dancing with a stranger and the thought of leaving Andrew behind didn't make me happy. I was certain that the brunette bimbo would make her move on him the moment he was on his own. The mere thought of Andrew talking to her made me want to throw up. 

"What about that guy? He's clearly checking you out."

Andrew nodded towards a table and I followed his eyes. Was he really trying to set me up with someone?