Page 45 of XOXO

A loud scream made me open my eyes. My sister was hugging another woman as they continued to dance awkwardly. They pulled away and my stomach dropped. Vi and I looked at each other in shock. She looked damn good with a dress that dipped low, showing cleavage.

“Matteo, this is my friend, Vi. We met in England,” Paola yelled in my ear, unaware that we knew each other.

Vi smirked as Paola said something to me. Memories of Levi, her and I together flooded my brain. I grew hard.

It was the alcohol, and that was my excuse. I grabbed her hand, bringing her to my lips to kiss them, leaning forward and whispered, “Hey, Vi.”

“Hey, Grumpy,” she said in English.

I almost smiled as I leaned back. Paola raised her brows like she was asking what the fuck was going on.

“We need drinks and for you to tell me how you know my brother,” Paola yelled in Italian, grabbing Vi’s hand.

We followed her weaving in and out of the crowd until we reached the bar. Paola ordered for us as we stood by her, awkwardly.

“When did you get to Milan?” I asked in English, getting a little closer than necessary.

“Two days ago, and you?” She leaned against me.

“A little over a week,” I said, getting a great view of her breasts.

“Here you go,” Paola gave us our drinks and she pulled Vi.

I had no idea what my sister was doing as she weaved through the crowd finding a corner that wasn’t as packed and just slightly less noisy.

“So how do you know each other?” Paola asked in Italian, taking a sip of her Hugo.

“I met Levi on Rendezvous,” Vi said first. “And Matteo hates me.”

I rolled my eyes, so fucking dramatic.

“Matteo hates anyone who isn’t his best friend,” Paola laughed.

“Wait, you know Italian?” I asked, a little shocked.

“Yeah, if you asked questions or paid attention. I know a lot of languages,” she said, taking a sip of her drink.

Her Italian was good. There was no accent and she spoke with ease.

“So, all of you hung out on this date?” Paola asked, her brows up in suspicion.

Vi laughed, “No, I met Levi in Paris and I happened to see them at a music festival last week. We had fun together. Honestly they made the festival better, I was getting to leave before I saw them.”

“Girl, festivals alone are awful,” Pao said. “I’m glad you found them. Festivals are dangerous.”

“Yeah, I was feeling that when I ran into them,” Vi said, glancing at me.

“So, what are your plans for Milan?” Pao asked and they started talking about Vi’s travels.

Pao was very excited to have her in Milan, suggesting a plethora of places, which would take weeks for Vi to do.

“What about Lake Como?” I asked.

I don’t know why I asked like I didn’t know she wanted to go. Her eyes immediately lit up.

“I want to go to Lake Como or Dolomites so bad, but everything is so expensive and only the very expensive suites are available,” she said, tucking her hair behind her ear like she was a little embarrassed.

“Girl! We need to go! Matteo, can we go?” Paola pleaded. “You’re not leaving yet, right?”