Mila had made it three pages into the file before she realized she hadn't actually absorbed a single word of it.
The contracts blurred together in a way that had nothing to do with legal jargon and everything to do with the fact that Dante was sitting close enough beside her that every small shift in the back seat of the car brought their arms into contact again.
Apparently concentrating on anything other than him when he was around was going to be a recurring problem for the foreseeable future whether she acknowledged her feelings on the matter or not.
She went back to the top of the first page and forced herself to read the opening paragraph properly this time, ignoring the quiet murmur of Dante's voice as he answered his phone.
"What is it?" There was a slight pause while the other person replied to him. "Handle it yourself."
That was the entire conversation.
Mila kept her eyes on the file even after the call ended and turned the page like she'd finished reading instead of skimming the same three sentences twice in a row.
If he noticed, he didn't comment, which she appreciated more than she was willing to unpack right now. The last thing she needed was for him to start explaining basic financial projections out loud while she sat there trying to pretend she hadn't completely lost the thread of what she'd been reading the moment he opened his mouth to speak.
It was like Dante had a magical wand to wipe out every last bit of intelligence that she possessed and turned her into a brainless romantic.
Shaking her head, refusing to give into the desire to just watch him, she turned her attention to the second document. It was a development proposal for a commercial property downtown. Complete with revenue forecasts and municipal approval timelines, it suggested long-term planning rather than anything reactive or opportunistic.
It was structured in such a way that showed deliberate work that required patience and attention to detail. Not exactly what she would have expected from someone whose name tended to surface in conversations that had nothing to do with zoning permits.
She reached the end of the section and flipped the page without looking up, aware in a distant, irritating sort of way that she had already clocked him shifting in his seat three times.
Marco caught her eye in the rearview mirror at some point during the drive, like he was waiting for her to say something, but she didn't give him the satisfaction of a reaction and returned her attention to the file instead.
If he wanted to watch a show, he could find it somewhere that didn't involve her trying to keep up with quarterly projections in the back of a moving vehicle.
Besides, real-estate wasn't really her thing.
The car slowed down as they entered the city and the traffic started to thicken around them. Quickly enough, office towers replaced residential streets, and Mila finally looked up when they turned in toward a glass-fronted building with the name 'Falcone Development Group' displayed prominently beside the entrance.
Well, that explained the permits.
Dante pocketed his phone as the car came to a stop and stepped out on his side without waiting, leaving Mila to follow a moment later as Marco moved ahead of them toward the doors.
No one stopped him once they were inside, and no one asked why he was there, which was information in itself.
His own staff was as terrified of him as she was enchanted.
He pressed the call button for the elevator and the doors opened immediately, granting immediate access. Of course he was one of those CEO's with a private elevator. The only thing Mila didn't know was if the private elevator was more for himself or for his staff...
So they didn't have to be locked in a small box with him.
By the time the doors opened again, she had already reviewed the next set of financials twice and still couldn't have told anyone what they said.
The executive suite beyond was quiet, insulated from the general movement of the building below. It was like walking into the Principal's office at school. No one was going there voluntary so of course it was quiet.
A woman seated behind a desk near the windows looked up as they approached, her attention settling on Dante immediately like her body was primed for his presence.
"Good morning, Mr. Falcone."
"Victoria," replied Dante curtly with a brief nod of his head.
"Your ten o'clock is confirmed. The development team wants to go over the Harbor District proposal, and—"
"Reschedule it."
Her fingers paused above the keyboard before she recovered quickly enough that someone who didn't know what to look for might have missed it.
"Reschedule it?" she repeated, her voice going soft as she reconfirmed what Dante had said.
"Is that a problem?" Dante asked, raising a single eyebrow.
A brief tightening at the corner of her mouth was the only indication of objection before she shook her head and began typing. "Of course not, Sir," she replied, her voice stead even as her fingers shook. "It's is just that the Mayor has been trying to reach you and I thought..."
"Maybe that is your problem," chuckled Marco, his voice coming from behind Mila, causing her to jump just a bit. "Try thinking less and you'll do better."
Victoria dropped her head, but not before Mila could see the embarrassed blush on her cheeks. "Yes, Sir," she agreed. Then she looked at Mila like she was the reason both Dante and Marco had snapped at her. "Who is she?"
Her gaze shifted to Mila just long enough to assess borrowed clothes and practical hair before returning to Dante, waiting for his response.
"My new personal assistant." It was a statement, and an accurate one at that, but it still made Mila shift slightly. There were too many stories about bosses and personal assistants. And she wasn't looking to add her name to the stats.
Victoria's expression didn't change, but the atmosphere in the room did, subtle and immediate in a way that didn't require commentary to be understood. "I see."
She turned back to her screen without another word.
Dante continued down the hall toward a set of double doors at the far end, opening them without slowing and gesturing for Mila to enter ahead of him.
His office beyond was large enough to accommodate both a conference table and a secondary workstation without crowding the space. The smaller desk positioned off to the side at an angle that gave a clear line of sight to both the door and Dante's chair.
It was clear that this was an intentional placement.
"That's yours," he said as he started to unbutton his suit jacket.
Mila looked from the desk back to him. "I'm working in here?"
"Yes."
She crossed the room without hesitation and set the file down before taking the seat, already aware that focusing on anything productive was going to be significantly more difficult now than it had been twenty minutes ago.
Close quarters were manageable in theory; in practice, they were apparently going to require more concentration than she'd originally budgeted for.
Dante moved behind his own desk, shrugging out of his jacket as he opened his laptop without further explanation.
"Read the file," he said. "When you're done, I'll have more."
Mila picked it up again, fully intending to do exactly that.