A flashy Bugatti Veyron rolls to a stop in front of a high-class restaurant, and Vito exhales softly through his mouth, looking up at the magnificence in front of him. Some years ago, while roaming the streets of Milan, calling people's attention to his street food, he never thought he would reach this stage in his life. A stage where he will oversee some of the most renowned restaurants in different countries.
Pulling himself back to reality, he gets down from the car, leaning down to look at the driver.
"You can go now, Trey. I can handle myself from here."
The driver, Trey, looks like he wants to disagree but on second thoughts, nods, and drives the car down the street just as he has been ordered to.
Vito looks up at the bar, shaking his head and walking in. He can feel the eyes of people cutting through every part of him like they are analyzing him. It is the last name, he thinks. His last name is enough to capture people's attention because it means he is rich. Though he tries not to look like it too much, everything else gives it away. Vito shrugs the watching eyes off his shoulders, eyes searching for a familiar mop of blonde hair. When he catches sight of it, he walks towards him, sitting on the bar stool beside him.
"If it isn't the biggest man in Italy now." Agust greets him with a teasing smile as they shake hands and half hug each other. "Never thought I'll see you in the U. S. How has it been?"
Vito shrugs. "Same like old times. Raffaele insisted I come over here to oversee the startup of our cuisine. This is the second time I'm coming here."
Agust shrugs, looking at his cup. "You never told me you were around until I called you."
"I'm sorry, man." Vito sighs. "Being caught up with work and all those crazy numbers was making me more reclusive than I ever thought I would be."
Agust laughs, slapping his shoulder with a warm smile. His eyes twinkle under the beam of the chandeliers, and Vito relaxes, realizing that he has missed his best friend.
They had been closer before he disappeared, and he had been the only one to know about his whereabouts.
Agust had called several times to convince him to come back, but he was enjoying his new life. He never thought that cooking would be his calling until he found himself in Milan.
He has always felt it is much better for him to discover himself while away than to restrain himself at home. He hasn't seen the man that birthed him since he came back to the U.S. and he is hoping he doesn't. The last thing he needs is to ruin his mood and cancel the entire trip, getting nothing done.
But Agust is his reassurance that not everything he left over here is terrible.
"You know what?" Agust curls his brows at him, having a mischievous grin on his face.
"What?" Vito asks, startling out of his thoughts. "I don't like that look in your eyes. You always look like that when you have something crazy in mind. Are..."
"Don't you want to… unwind? Let loose? At least for one night?" Agust asks, interrupting him.
"Hm." Vito sighs, looking at his fingernails. "Nothing too crazy, though. I don't want my plastered face appearing on tabloids in the morning."
Another thing that came with his sudden popularity is the media, which looks for every avenue to capture his slip-ups.
When Raffaele adopted him, there was news flying around that he might have been his hidden illegitimate son. Though Raffaele had ignored all of it, he could tell it wasn't good to have news like that flying around about him. Since then he kept himself away from things that could paint him and the Arturo's cuisine in an unpleasant light, and he had done a good job so far.
"Nothing too crazy," Agust assures. "Come on; there's this new club not too far from here. I believe that might be a great place to get you to relax."
Vito nods, getting up from his seat and mentally preparing himself for the loud chaos that will be at the club.
•
When they enter, they are met with neon lights dancing above their heads and the soft thudding sound of music. It feels nothing like the clubs he has been to. The guests are dressed in classy outfits, and they drink slowly, conversing and laughing. There is another part of the club that is covered where the music is thudding from.
"This is the cool part of the club." Agust explains, noticing his confusion. "Minimal noise, food, drinks, everything that would get you to relax."
Vito nods, glad his friend didn't take him to a place he will not be comfortable. "Let's find a table then."
They walk towards a table at the far right of the club. The table grants them a full view of the entire room and even the entrance of the actual club where the dancing is happening. Vito leans back when Agust calls the bar attendant to their table, eyes darting around.
"What about you, Vito? What would you like to drink?"
"Gin and tonic would be fine."
They get talking as their drinks arrive. Agust has also set a big step for himself, being the leading creative director of Pixels, a huge digital marketing company. It is a wonder how he even got there because he has always wanted to study law. The two of them had their plans of theirs, but life dealt them a different card. They chatted, laughing at their past mistakes and drinking to while away time.
It has been so long since Vito has gotten to relax, and he is happy that he accepted Agust's offer and did not drown himself in work for the night. He settles in his seat as he listens to the man in front of him talk right until they are suddenly interrupted.
"Excuse me," a soft female voice says, wide eyes and brunette hair wildly rough on her head. "My friends said I couldn't do this, but here I am."
Vito stares at the lady in front of him; not a hint of alcohol in her system, but she looks high off the moment she is living. "Do what?"
"Well… are you taken?" She asks, staring at Agust.
"W-what? I have a girlfriend," he replies, looking flustered.
She pouts and sighs, turning to Vito with a sultry smile. "Well, are you taken?"
Vito doesn't hesitate with his response, feeling his body come alive. "No."
"Then come dance with me."
She pulls him up from his seat, getting cheers from her friends on the other side of the club. She stares back at Vito, who only smiles at her wild look.
"Pardon my manners. I'm Jaci. And you are?"
"Vito."
"You're my date for the night, Vito." She says, pulling them to the middle of the room and dancing without a care in the world.
Her body moves against him like he has never felt before, and each contact between them sends a spark down his bones. When she looks back up at him, he can see the lust swimming in her gaze but there is another thing that grips his attention; it's the look on her face and deep inside her eyes, it's as if she has longed for this moment all her life.
As if this is something she will probably get in trouble for later on but yet she can't help herself. He wants to question her but with her soft body pressed against him, he seems to have lost his senses and his thinking rate is zero as her beauty overwhelms him.
Her eyes shut as he pulls her closer against his body, and they grind against each other, their clothes stopping the heat from spreading further. She indeed is what he has been searching for. Jaci has been the exact thing he doesn't know he needs.
Which is why he can't stop himself from leaning toward her ear. "Do you want to do this again?" The question rolls out of his mouth so sweetly before he can hold back himself.Startain?" The question rolls out of his mouth so sweetly before he can hold back himself.