Chapter 5
Melina took a shower and put on her PJs. She decided to sit on her sofa and watch some Netflix, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t focus on what she was watching. She kept thinking about Marco. “Is he going to text?” she thought, but quickly told herself she shouldn’t waste any time thinking about him. She realized he might be either someone important—or at least rich—since he had a driver, and this thought contributed even more to pushing herself to stop thinking about him. She was just an immigrant who had just moved to the country. She had nothing to offer him, and he surely wouldn’t be interested in her when he clearly could have anyone he wanted. While she was having these thoughts, her phone chimed.
?: Did you decide whether you will accept my invitation? I promise I won’t lure you into my van with candy. Just ice cream. Somewhere public. —Marco
Melina laughed at the text. She definitely gave off the impression that she was scared.
Me.: Strangers usually have the best candies, but I’ll take the path of caution. Ice cream in a public place sounds relatively sensible.
Ma.: I never measured my choices based on how sensible they are. That’s a whole new world for me.
Me.: Ah, a risk taker then. You’ll be bored with me before you finish your first scoop.
Ma.: Something tells me there’s nothing boring about you, bella.
Me.: Don’t say I didn’t warn you. To help out, you can Google how to end a date fast. There are some interesting options out there.
Ma.: I don’t do dates, bella.
Me.: Hmm… since I’m not interviewing for a job and I’m not related to you, what’s the purpose of us having ice cream together then?
Ma.: You pointed out you wouldn’t get in my car because we were strangers. It’s a way to not be strangers anymore.
Me.: So you want us to get to know each other so next time I’ll get in your car?
Ma.: Yes. Is that so wrong?
Me.: I have kidney stones, so my kidneys won’t fetch a good price on the black market.
Ma.: Huh?
Me.: If we’re not going on a date and you just want to get me in your car, I’m assuming you want to harvest my organs and sell them.
Ma.: 😂 I knew you weren’t boring. But no, bella, I don’t want to harvest your organs. I just don’t want us to be strangers.
Me.: So you want us to be friends?
Ma.: I wouldn’t say no… to benefits.
Me.: Hmm. You don’t do dates, and I don’t do friends with benefits or one-night stands. I think this is doomed before it even starts. I don’t think having ice cream is a good idea. It was lovely chatting with you. Say hi to Johnny from me. Bye.
Melina put her phone away. She was disappointed that he was like most of the guys she had met. It was all about sex and no commitment, but that wasn’t really cutting it for her. She was really drawn to Marco, but she knew herself—and she would fall for him, and then she would be heartbroken. It would be better to just focus on her new job and forget about him.
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Marco read through the thread of texts again, stunned by her last message. No woman had ever shut him down before, and Melina had done it twice in the same day. He didn’t know how he felt about it, but the thought of not seeing her again made him feel very... strange. He had never felt like this before, and he didn’t like it.
His phone chimed again, and for a moment he thought Melina might have changed her mind. But when he saw Alessio’s name on the screen, he grunted in disappointment. He opened the text. Alessio had sent him everything he had found on Melina via email. Marco opened the file.
Melina Gkalis, 25 years old, born in Athens, Greece. Bachelor in Psychology and MBA.
Smart girl, Marco thought.
He continued reading. She had moved from Greece to Los Angeles a few days ago on her own. No family in the city. No profile on dating apps. Her employment was set to start in two weeks at DeAngelo Corp as a Commercial Strategy Manager.
Interesting, Marco thought. The owner of DeAngelo Corp was his cousin, so he would definitely take advantage of that. The file also included links to her social media, and Marco took the time to scroll through them.
All in all, it was evident that Melina was not the type of woman he was used to having around. Her social media held memories of her with her family and friends. There were no inappropriate or provocative photos, which showed she respected herself. She was smart and talented—otherwise, his cousin wouldn’t have arranged a work visa—and she was brave enough to move far from home on her own. Her file and social media suggested she had a loving family, so she wasn’t running from something. She just wanted to prove herself.
Marco found himself admiring this young woman, and he realized that she would never agree to be with him the way all the other women had been. He told himself he wasn’t the relationship type, so he should leave Melina alone.
Yes, he would leave her alone.
He decided to focus on work and started reviewing the papers on his desk—but no matter how hard he tried to concentrate, all he could think about were her green eyes and her melodic voice.
Fuck, he thought.
At that moment, he realized he couldn’t let her go. He didn’t know why, but he wanted to get to know her, spend time with her, be there for her. He had never felt this way about anyone before.
He checked the time. It was late, but he decided to message her anyway.