Emiliana
Giovanni was on my mind ever since he kissed me on Christmas Day. I still remembered how his soft lips caressed my cheek before his syrupy voice whispered in my ears.
I tingled at the thought of his breath fanning across my cheek, the subtle wetness of where his lips had pressed sent a red hot flush of emotions through my body.
I wasn’t sure if he had done it out of pity for my solemn state or something more. Whatever his reasons were, we had refused to discuss it and I happily accepted the fact. I wouldn’t have known how to bring it up without causing an awkward silence so we both did what we did best. We didn’t talk at all.
My mind was reeling with possibilities as we approached The NoMad Hotel in South Central
EmilianaI felt the bed dip beside my weak and hungover body. Last night became a blur of alcohol and emotions after the New Year countdown and I couldn’t quite remember how I had got into bed, naked. Only noticing my thin underwear against the silky covers as I lay slumped and motionless in my bed.My hair was swept across my face by a delicate finger. I groaned into my pillow at the invasion of space, feebly swatting my hand in the air.“Em,” a smooth voice called out to me in the abyss of my mind. It was dreamlike and I didn’t want the apparition to stop. “Em,” the voice was more urgent this time.“Ugh.” I responded to my tormentor. Whoever was breaking up my sleep, better have a good explanation.
EmilianaI stared at my avocado and toast in front of me, my fork playing piggy in the middle with the thick chunks. Nausea had wiped me and saturated all of my energy. I couldn’t think of anything worse than finishing my breakfast.“You don’t have to finish it.” Luciano waved his fork in the air as he wiped his face with the napkin. His blue eyes crinkled at the corners as his smile travelled across the table.I pushed the plate away, unable to look at it anymore. “I’m sorry.” I mumbled softly to him. I felt bad that it was Luciano’s first day back in the city and he had chosen to spend it with me. I was ruining it for us both with my incapacitating hangover.“Don’t be sorry.” He
Giovanni It killed me seeing Luciano all over Emiliana as they left the apartment. I sat on the kitchen stool, mulling things over in my brain, overthinking the slightest thought. I loved the fact she dared me to kiss her. It was her way of telling me she wanted it just as much as I did. In The way she felt against my lips, how she melted into my arms. Every time I thought about her was another kick to my stomach. She was dating Luciano, a total slimeball, a typical New York bachelor, and it pissed me off that she was so infatuated with him. Yet, I could see the way she looked at me. It wasn’t the same as how she looked at Luciano. I nursed the cup of coffee in my hands, smirking at the thought of Emiliana’s conflictions. She couldn’t deny
EmilianaConcentration usually came easy to me, but so did distraction. When I was tormented by so many thoughts and feelings, I couldn’t focus. I was caught up in a tornado of conflict.Giovanni’s signature scent wafted past me, my eyes lifted excitedly at his presence. It was a brief and disappointing appearance. After hearing his sultry voice, I wanted nothing more than to hear it again.My eyes drifted back to my iPad, before a large mug of coffee was placed in front of me and I watched as Giovanni carefully lowered himself to the seat opposite me. Lust enveloped us both, I could feel that much. But there was something bothering Giovanni and he refused to tell me.I stared down at the figures in my lap. The numbers I had pr
EmilianaExhaustion consumed me like a heavy blanket by the end of the day. I had been staring at figures, meeting with each department and talking to managers all day. My feet ached, my throat was raw and scratched and my head pounded. I slumped down on the couch in my office, racking my brain for some kind of resolution to my problem.A light knock on the door startled me and before I had time to respond Giovanni had opened the door. His emerald gaze held mine for a moment, it was a look I knew too well. It was time to go home.I didn’t even have the energy to comment on Giovanni’s attempted joke that morning as we stepped out onto the New York streets. The whirling cold air whipped and lashed at my face as I struggled to walk through the impending storm approaching.
EmilianaAfter the earlier phone call with Luciano, I had no energy to face the outside world, let alone jump in the shower. All I wanted was to go back to bed. The constant anxiety blended with frustration and exhaustion was beginning to make me sick and I couldn’t afford that at this point.I had dropped Oli a message asking to cancel on the off chance I could repair some of my disturbed sleep but he insisted on coming over and bringing lunch with him.“I can’t believe you!” Oli slammed his mug down on the table. “Hooking up with…” He glanced behind him, checking he wasn’t being listened to before mouthing “the help.”“Oli, he isn’t ‘the help’.” I shook my head. I h
EmilianaThe sound of Dolly Parton’s ‘9 to 5’ played loudly in the background as I sat with a loaded plate of toast and sipped my coffee. I was feeling one hundred times better after the last few days, resigning to the fact that I needed a break.The last few months were a collision course of paperwork, meetings and overwhelming stress. I had been so consumed with everything that I hadn’t taken a moment for myself and being thrown into this world had taken its effect on me.Giovanni smiled briefly at me, stepping into the kitchen with my belongings in his grasp.“Is it time to go already?” I asked brightly and rhetorically. Giovanni had returned to providing me with his silent company. His complexity was confusing m
EmilianaI paced nervously back and forth in my bedroom. Luciano was taking me out and I was still figuring out what to wear. I owned millions of dresses, outfits, and various garments but as usual, I couldn’t find the right one.The bedroom was in a complete state of disarray. Clothes were sprawled out, jewelry overlapped and intertwined through the material as I tried to make and head and tail of my current situation.I finally opted for a simple black bandage dress. Stitched fabric with a matching stitched geometric design. The inch-wide straps crossed over my back, accentuating my bust slightly but hugging my curves perfectly.I felt the lingering eyes penetrate my back as I gazed at myself approvingly in the mirror. Turning to m