As the door clicked shut behind Jade, the office fell into a momentary silence, the three men exchanging glances. Then Thiago leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest and smirking.
“‘She will be taken care of,’” he mimicked, pitching his voice lower to imitate Enzo. Milan chuckled, shaking his head, and Thiago grinned wider. “You sound like you’re in a mob movie, man.”
Enzo shot him a glare, flipping him off with zero hesitation. “Real mature.”
Milan, loosening his tie as he leaned against the desk, raised an eyebrow. “He’s got a point, Enzo. You went full godfather on her. I think she was two seconds away from dropping to her knees in terror.”
“She wasn’t terrified,” Enzo grumbled, though his lips twitched with amusement. “She was just… overwhelmed.”
Thiago let out a bark of laughter. “Overwhelmed? Is that what you call it? Because to me, it looked like she thought you were going to either fire her or eat her alive.”
“She did look like she might pee her pants, though,” Milan added, his tone teasing. “But I don’t blame her. You weren’t exactly subtle.”
Enzo rolled his eyes, pouring himself a drink from the crystal decanter on the side table. “Oh, please. If anyone was unsubtle, it was you two.” He pointed at Milan with his glass. “The way you looked at her? Like she was a damn puzzle you couldn’t wait to figure out.”
Milan shrugged, his expression as calm as ever. “She’s intriguing. I’ll give her that. But if you want to talk about being unsubtle…” He turned his gaze to Thiago, his lips curling into a smirk. “You couldn’t stop eying her up and down the entire time. I thought you were going to forget we were supposed to be interviewing her, not undressing her with your eyes.”
Thiago raised his hands in mock surrender, his grin unapologetic. “What can I say? She’s got presence. And a great set of legs.”
“Classy,” Milan said dryly, though the faint amusement in his voice gave him away.
“Don’t act like you didn’t notice,” Thiago shot back.
“I noticed,” Milan admitted, smirking. “Doesn’t mean I was drooling over her.”
Enzo snorted into his glass. “Sure, sure. Says the guy who couldn’t stop staring at her every time she stuttered. Admit it, Milan. You enjoyed watching her squirm.”
Milan’s smirk widened. “Maybe a little. It’s not every day someone walks in here and looks like they’ve wandered into a lion’s den.”
“She did, though,” Thiago said, laughing. “The way she kept glancing at you, Enzo, like she was waiting for you to pounce.”
Enzo rolled his eyes again but didn’t argue. Instead, he leaned against the desk, swirling his drink thoughtfully. “She’s different,” he said, his tone softer but still laced with intrigue.
“Different?” Milan echoed, raising an eyebrow.
Enzo nodded. “She’s not like the others who came in here today. Those girls… they were all trying too hard. Flashy, shallow, looking for an easy paycheck or a chance to brag about being on a private airline.”
“Agreed,” Thiago said. “Jade seemed… genuine. Nervous as hell, but genuine.”
“She’s got potential,” Milan admitted. “If she can hold her own around us—and handle the job—she might actually surprise us.”
Enzo smirked, his dark eyes gleaming. “This is going to be interesting.”
Thiago chuckled, leaning forward. “You think she’s going to last?”
“We’ll see what little Miss Nguyen brings to the table,” Enzo said, finishing his drink with a deliberate slowness. He set the glass down and crossed his arms, a wolfish grin spreading across his face.