Betty stood under the soft stream of warm water, letting it trickle over her shoulders and down her back. She stepped back into the water and felt it fall on her head and spill over her face. Running her fingers through her hair, enjoying the steam and the heat, she heard something and opened her eyes.

Gio, singing slightly out of key, in the bedroom.

She looked at her reflection in the glass door of the shower and smiled. She was surprised how comfortable she felt with him already. Here she was standing naked in the very next room, and the only nerves she felt were anticipation. She squeezed some lotion into her hands and massaged it into her arms, across her chest and shoulders, enjoying the smoothness and scent of it. She turned up the pressure and felt the stresses of New York, her family, Henry, Daniel, Daniel Jr and Wilhelmena wash away.

She realised Gio would probably want to shower too, so she flicked off the water, stepped out and wrapped herself in one of the large fluffy towels. She dried her hair a little, covered it with another towel, and crept out of the room.

Gio was sitting in the sunlight at the little table, leafing through a small notebook and humming to himself. He was still wearing the silky black boxers, but had put on a white singlet. His skin looked warm and soft, his strong arms relaxed, and his silver chain glinting as he breathed. She nearly jumped into his lap but instead turned to the closet to lift out a dark blue bathrobe and tie it around herself.

Gio sat very still, he could see her from the corner of his eye, and noticed that the towel covered only to her mid-thigh. Her coffee-coloured skin was slightly flushed from the shower, and it glistened in the damp heat. As she turned towards him he looked up, "good shower?"

"Yeah… the best" she smiled contentedly.

She looked refreshed, her eyes were sparkling again, and with her hair pulled back from her face she seemed majestic. He noticed how defined her cheekbones were, framing her eyes and her smile. She walked over to the bedside cabinet, picked up her glasses, and then sat in the chair opposite him. As she crossed her legs he noticed the robe fall away to the side, revealing her tiny feet and shapely calves. Betty noticed his gaze and tucked the side of the robe across firmly. He just smiled and looked up at her.

"I should probably call home" she said.

"No need, I talked to your Dad last night. And Daniel."

She was surprised, "When?... Oh." She realised that she must have fallen asleep very swiftly the night before.

The towel around her head began to slip, and she unravelled it from her hair, laying it on the back of the chair.

Gio watched as a damp strand of hair fell across her face. Her long brown locks were tangled and shining as they cascaded down her neck and over the collar of the blue robe. He leaned towards her, lifted a hand to touch her cheek, and kissed her gently on the mouth.

She closed her eyes and half smiled as she felt his cool hand on her face, his moist lips on hers. She leaned forward into the kiss and almost slipped from the chair when Gio pulled away suddenly.

"Right! Get yourself dolled up! I won't be long" he grinned, scampering off into the bathroom.

Betty slumped back into her chair, put her glasses on and turned to look out the window. It was a bright summer morning, the heat beginning to radiate in waves from the tiled rooves of neighbouring buildings. She saw the city of cream and copper coloured stone sprawled out into the distance under a vibrant blue sky.

She smiled in slight disbelief.

She'd never been out of the city by herself, let alone out of the country. And yet, here she was, half way across the world, in a beautiful hotel room with a man she barely knew. Well, that wasn't quite true. She did a mental check of all the things she knew about him.

Giovanni Rossi.

New York native.

One sister, Antonella (that she knew of).

Loves food, dancing, and reading.

Cocky, confident, funny, bossy, infuriating, and kind.

Sandwich-maker extraordinaire, sink-installer, carriage-driver…

It was then that Betty realised that he instinctively knew things about her which others had never bothered to find out. Sometimes she felt like he knew her better than she wanted him to. She couldn't lie to him.

She cursed herself for not knowing his age, not asking more about his family, not knowing when his birthday was…

She heard the water and his singing start up again.

"sings in the shower…" Add that to the list, she thought with a grin.

Betty jumped out of her chair and crept across the room to the hook where Gio's jacket hung. She'd learnt a little from her escapades with MODE, so she took a mental note of which pocket his wallet was in, then opened it and looked for his licence.

06/01/82

He would be turning 26 on the first of June. Betty counted on her fingers… That was only three days away!

She slipped the licence back in the wallet, but not before laughing at his uber-serious photo, then placed the wallet back in the right pocket of his jacket.

His birthday. Now she understood why this trip was so urgent for him. As Betty sorted through her clothes she resolved to do something special for Gio, to figure out a little bit of his fantasy and make it happen. She already had a few ideas, and she needed to make sure that he didn't work out what she was up to.

the best is yet to come, and babe won't it be fine…

As he sang, Gio grinned at his reflection in the shower door. 26. He closed his eyes as the water ran across his face.

Six months ago that thought would have depressed him a little. But now, with his five-year plan really underway, and Betty by his side, he was certain this would be the best birthday he'd had in a very long time.

the best is yet to come, come the day you're mine!

So he might have been a little selfish, pushing her to make such a big leap with him so soon after Henry. But he hadn't really planned it himself!

Well, he had always planned to come to Rome - as a boy his bedtime stories had been his papa's own versions of the great city and its history, his mama's lullabies were traditional canzoni. The timing had just seemed right, and as he saw how Betty glowed with pride and excitement at trying something new, he though a little push might be what she needed.

"Come to Rome with me"…

He remembered her reaction vividly, "Yes! … what?!"

What followed hadn't been so simple. Now they were here, he wanted to concentrate on making it an unforgettable first date.

…come the day you're mine… I got plans for ya babe, and baby you're gonna fly…

Gio stepped out of the shower and pulled a fresh towel from the rail. He buried his face in it, took a deep breath, and looked at his watch as it sat by the basin. 9am.

Betty was doing up the buttons on her purple blouse when she heard a knock. She walked over and unlocked the door, turned the handle and…

"Delivery for Miss Betty Suarez?"

The young woman held a bouquet of red tulips and white roses

"Ah, yes… um. That's me!" Betty blushed

"Good morning signorina," the woman smiled and passed the bouquet to Betty, "enjoy your stay in Roma."

"Thank you, I will."

The young woman nodded in response, and turned to leave with a slight smile on her lips. Betty beamed and turned back to the room, closing the door behind her.

She gazed at the flowers and walked over to sit on the neatly arranged bed. Gio must have tidied it while she was in the shower. For some reason that thought made her even happier, and she searched around the flowers for a note.

Thank you for saying Yes

Gio peeked his head around the door and saw Betty arranging the flowers in the vase he'd hidden in the back of the wardrobe. He let the door swing open and leant on the doorframe, a towel tied around his waist. As he did up the strap of his watch, he saw her bend to breathe in their scent and her hair fell across her face. He smiled.

She turned, walked to him, and went up on her toes to kiss his cheek, hands resting gently on his still-damp chest.

"You're welcome," she whispered in his ear, "Thank you for asking me."

As she leant to kiss him, he set his hands firmly on her waist. As their lips met, he lifted her towards him, took two steps forward and set her down slowly on the bed.

When he broke the kiss he saw her lying on the bed, looking up at him, the same surprised smile she had worn that day in the park.

He leant over her, dropped his head beside hers and kissed her neck, just below her ear. She felt his wet hair tickle her cheek and heard him whisper, "You're welcome. Now let's get you some breakfast"

Gio lifted himself to his feet and walked off to dress, and Betty rolled onto her side. As she watched him turn away it dawned on her that she might not be able to wait for dessert after all.