Chapter 5 Dominic pov
Dominic
I should have been thinking about the alliance.
Instead…
My eyes found her again.
She stood near the dance floor with two women I assumed were her friends, laughing so hard she nearly spilled champagne down the front of her dress.
She wasn’t elegant about it.
She wasn’t trying to be.
She simply laughed.
Loudly.
Unapologetically.
I had spent enough years around people who measured every smile, every word, every movement.
Elisa Romano did none of those things.
She simply…
Existed.
And somehow managed to command attention without asking for it.
“You’re staring again.”
I didn’t bother looking at Mark.
“I’m observing.”
Lucian appeared beside us, a glass of whiskey in his hand.
“No,” he said. “You’re staring.”
“I know the difference.”
“So do we.”
I ignored them.
Across the garden, Elisa was arguing with one of the waiters.
For exactly three seconds.
Then she burst into laughter, stole another dessert from his tray, and walked away while the poor man shook his head with a smile.
“That’s the third cannoli,” Lucian muttered.
“The fourth,” Mark corrected.
“You’ve been counting?”
“I got bored.”
Lucian looked at me.
“You know she robbed you earlier.”
“I’m aware.”
“And you’re letting it go?”
“It was a cannoli.”
Mark frowned.
“No.”
“It’s the principle.”
“The principle?”
“She stole from you.”
“I noticed.”
“And?”
I looked at him.
“Would you like me to declare war over dessert?”
Lucian laughed into his drink.
“I think I like her.”
I said nothing.
Because I was beginning to think the same.
Not like.
Not yet.
Interesting.
She was… interesting.
There was a difference.
A little boy ran straight into Elisa’s legs while chasing another child.
He fell backward onto the grass.
Before his mother could reach him, Elisa was already kneeling.
“You okay, little man?”
The boy nodded bravely.
“I wasn’t crying.”
“I know.”
She smiled.
“You’re tougher than me.”
“You?”
“I cry every time someone steals my fries.”
The boy giggled.
“Really?”
“Absolutely.”
“Even ketchup?”
“Especially ketchup.”
He laughed so hard he forgot he’d fallen.
His mother thanked Elisa before leading him away.
Elisa dusted the grass from her dress as if nothing had happened.
No audience.
No cameras.
No reason to perform.
She simply cared.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
“You’ve been watching her for fifteen minutes.”
Mark’s voice pulled me back.
“Eighteen,” Alfred corrected from behind us.
Lucian blinked.
“You’ve been timing him?”
“No.”
“You just know?”
“Yes.”
Lucian sighed.
“Sometimes you scare me more than Dominic.”
“You should be scared of both.”
“I already am.”
My security chief never smiled.
Today…
I caught the faintest hint of amusement in his eyes.
Barely noticeable.
Gone a second later.
The music changed.
A slower song drifted through the speakers.
Couples moved toward the dance floor.
Andy found his wife.
Parents joined their children.
Older couples smiled at memories only they understood.
Elisa…
Did the exact opposite.
She grabbed both of her friends by the wrists and dragged them into the middle of the dance floor.
They immediately started dancing like complete idiots.
No choreography.
No grace.
Just laughter.
One of them spun too fast and nearly crashed into another couple.
Elisa caught her before she could fall.
All three of them collapsed into another fit of laughter.
“They’re embarrassing.”
Lucian sounded entertained.
“They’re having fun.”
“There are important people here.”
“So?”
“So…”
He gestured toward the dance floor.
“…they’re making fools of themselves.”
I watched Elisa throw both hands into the air as she sang along to music she clearly didn’t know the words to.
The guests around them started laughing.
Instead of being annoyed…
Several joined them.
Within minutes…
Half the dance floor was smiling.
One woman.
One ridiculous dance.
One impossible amount of energy.
She’d changed the atmosphere of the entire reception.
Without even trying.
I looked around.
Even my men had relaxed.
One guard who hadn’t smiled in years was quietly tapping his foot to the music.
Impossible.
Mark noticed too.
“What the hell…”
I didn’t answer.
Because I was wondering the same thing.
How could someone affect an entire room simply by being herself?
A voice interrupted my thoughts.
“Mr. Moretti.”
I turned.
One of Andy’s capos approached nervously.
“The office has been prepared if you’d like to finish discussing the shipping schedules.”
“Later.”
He looked surprised.
“Of course.”
He quickly walked away.
Mark stared at me.
“You just postponed business.”
“I did.”
“You’ve never postponed business.”
“I know.”
Lucian smirked.
“This is becoming entertaining.”
I ignored him.
Again.
Elisa left the dance floor, slightly out of breath, and disappeared through the open doors leading into the mansion.
I watched her go.
A few seconds later…
An elderly waitress stumbled while carrying a heavy tray.
Without hesitation, Elisa caught it before it crashed to the floor.
The older woman looked embarrassed.
“I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
Elisa smiled warmly.
“Looks heavier than it looks.”
The waitress chuckled.
“It is.”
“Come on.”
Elisa took the tray from her.
“I’ll help.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I know.”
She carried the tray all the way to the kitchen herself.
No one asked her to.
No one applauded.
No one even noticed.
Except me.
I found myself walking toward the kitchen entrance before I realized what I was doing.
I stopped.
What exactly was I planning?
To thank her for helping a waitress?
Ridiculous.
I turned around.
“Boss?”
Alfred’s voice was calm.
“Yes?”
“I’ve never seen you hesitate.”
“I didn’t.”
“You took twelve steps toward the kitchen.”
I looked at him.
“You counted?”
“I always count.”
Of course he did.
Mark folded his arms.
“So…”
“What?”
“You going to tell us what’s going on?”
“Nothing.”
Lucian laughed.
“I’ve known you for twenty years.”
“And?”
“I’ve never seen you interested in a woman longer than five minutes.”
“I’m not interested.”
“No?”
“No.”
Mark looked toward the kitchen.
“Then why are we still talking about Elisa Romano?”
Silence.
Because I didn’t have an answer.
Not one I understood.
Finally, I looked at Alfred.
“Find out everything.”
He nodded once.
“About the Romano family?”
“No.”
I glanced toward the kitchen doors where she’d disappeared.
“About Elisa.”
No one spoke.
Not Mark.
Not Lucian.
Not even Alfred.
Because they all understood what that request meant.
I had never asked for information on a woman before.
Ever.
As Alfred quietly walked away to carry out my order, I looked toward the mansion one last time.
Something told me my life had changed the moment a stubborn redhead stole my cannoli.
I just didn’t know how much.
