Cooked Through

"Is there something on my face?" Matteo asked, with a raised eyebrow. "You seem to be staring at it a lot."

"It's nothing! I was just wondering if your food tastes good," Amelia said, her mind quickly looking for an excuse. She couldn't tell him that his face was arrestingly handsome in the soft candlelight of the restaurant, that it conjured up an entire colony's worth of butterflies in her stomach. 

Mentally, she reminded herself that this date was a stunt. The camera flashes that nearly blinded her when she first entered the restaurant were a testament to that. The fact that Matteo didn't book the entire restaurant also showed that he wanted people to see them, to talk about them, and to spread the word that they were together. 

There were no real feelings involved in this damage control attempt, and she shouldn't be so foolish to fall in love with Matteo over a full-course meal.