When Stella finally made it home at the end of an exhausting and confusing day, the first thing she did was check her inbox for messages from her suppliers, her insurance company and customers. Among the fifty new emails, one in particular caught her eye. She pulled her chair closer to the desk in her home office, straightened her back, and clicked on it.
Stella,
Please find attached the references you were after. I hope I meet with your satisfaction.
Luca
What the? She read it again.
Please find attached the references you were after. I hope they meet with your satisfaction.
Right. That made much more sense.
She thought back over her encounter with Luca. She felt as though she hadn’t looked at a man—or really noticed one—in years. And there had been flirting. Oh yes, that’s what had happened today. No one had flirted with her in forever. She’d heard it in Luca’s words, had seen it in his smile. In the intense way he’d watched her when she was swigging water from her bottle. And when they’d shaken hands, there was a certain heat and pressure from his fingers. God, she missed flirting. That was the downside of working in an environment that was all about women.
Stella had intentionally created a man-free zone out of her business and, really, her life since returning to South Australia. Her accountant was a woman. So were her bank manager and her insurance agent. The only men she saw regularly were her friends’ partners, and she wasn’t especially close to any of them. There was a reason she’d run from Sydney and men at exactly the same time. She tried not to think about Sully. It had been five years since he’d snorted away almost all her money. Five years without a word—or a dollar—from the man who’d almost ruined her life. And ruined her.
She read Luca’s email again and let herself think about what it would be like to work with him. And then she let herself fantasise for a moment about all the things she wouldn’t mind doing with Luca Morelli. In an alternative universe, that is. Because Stella didn’t let anyone in any more.
So fantasy was what she did now. It was safe. As well as incredibly unfulfilling, but that was her lot and she would live with her choice. Her eyes returned to Luca’s email. ‘I hope they meet with your satisfaction,’ she murmured. Then she clicked on the attachments. She closely read two glowing references from people who didn’t share the Morelli name and, in fact, didn’t sound Italian at all. That removed any hint that he’d called in favours from extended family. She saved the references to a folder titled Operation Survive and closed her laptop.
Two hours later, Stella had finished dinner, cleaned up and poured herself a glass of wine to see the day out.
It was eight thirty and the sun had almost set on summertime Port Elliot. A few local people sauntered by on their way to the pub, but there were no cars, only the whisper of the sea breeze in the street trees. And a demanding cat staring at her from the front window ledge.
Stella set her wine glass on the coffee table and opened the front door. Mouse sauntered inside with a meow, languidly rubbing himself against Stella’s leg.
‘Why come in. Do sit down.’
Mouse obediently obliged by jumping onto the sofa. Stella sat next to the fluff ball with a deep sigh. While she was still sore, Summer’s massage had done wonders and she felt, miraculously, loose and relaxed. Which was truly a miracle after the week she’d had. And it was still Monday.
She rubbed Mouse’s ears and the rumbling purr told Stella that the cat was in heaven. In her left hand, she held her phone. She checked the time again. Eight thirty-two.
She could have simply replied to Luca’s email, but she hadn’t yet. She craved the secret thrill of hearing his voice again and anyway, she rationalised, he might not see an email until the morning and she needed to move things along. Immediately.
Stella pressed his name and waited. She’d saved it into her contacts list when he’d called her the day of the fire. It rang twice and then connected. She began stroking Mouse’s tummy with a little too much force and the cat nipped her finger.
‘Hey, Stella.’ The familiarity of his greeting caught her off guard. She’d been expecting an official ‘Luca Morelli speaking’ or perhaps even ‘Morelli Constructions’. It was supposed to be a business call, after all.
‘Oh, hi, Luca. I got your email.’
‘Sorry?’ he shouted down the line and she could barely hear him above the voices laughing and glasses tinkling in the background.
‘I got your email. With your references.’ Stella looked around her living room as she spoke. Her house, like the town itself, was peaceful. Quiet. Sleepy, even. Just her and her cat. She was completely alone with a glass of wine for company and he was out doing young people things in the city. She suddenly felt like a grandma.
‘Right. So are we a thing?’
‘Yes. I’d like you to hire you for the job.’
There was silence down the line. More laughter. A woman’s.
‘Really? Hold on for a minute.’ And then the background noise slowly faded. ‘Don’t you want to see my quote? And what about your insurance? Have they given you the go-ahead?’
‘Yes, that’s all sorted.’ Thank god for her insurance agent. On the strength of the police report, she’d been given the go-ahead to begin the structural repairs, as they assessed the damage would only get worse if the building continued to be exposed to the elements. Stella took a deep breath and bit back a comment about it being none of his business. It was his business now that she was hiring him. And no matter how much she enjoyed the flirting and his handsomeness, she wasn’t hiring him for that. It was about him being capable and just starting out in a business of his own. It was about his loyalty to his sister. And it was about the spark she’d seen in his eyes when he’d looked around her shop.
‘So we’re in business.’
‘Your references told me everything I need to know. I’ll need to check things with my insurance as we go along, but I need to get cracking. And frankly, if I don’t give you the job I think Anna will boycott my shop, and then I’ll be in real trouble.’
When he laughed, his rich voice was like honey. And she found herself laughing too.
‘Gotta love my sis. I’m looking forward to working with you, Stella.’
‘Thanks.’ Stella hesitated before saying anything more. She had to remind herself that this was different from what had happened with Sully. Everything would be checked off by her insurance agent and she knew enough now that she would keep track of every invoice and dollar with a fervour bordering on the religious. Luca was a means to an end: that was all. And then he would be gone.
‘Listen. Sorry about this. Can I call you tomorrow morning? I’m waiting to confirm the glazier to come and fix your window.’
‘Sure.’
‘Hey, one more thing.’
‘What’s that?’
‘There better be good coffee in Port Elliot, that’s all I’m saying.’
‘We’re one coffee shop down but there are other places. I can definitely guarantee good coffee.’
‘Good. G’night then.’
‘Good night.’ Stella ended the call. Put the phone down on the coffee table. Closed her eyes and let her pounding pulse settle.
Okay. It was done. She was one step closer to getting on with her life.