‘I can’t pretend to understand what’s wrong. But you have to stop running away, Athena.’
CHAPTER EIGHT
‘ARE YOU AFRAID of me?’
‘No...’ It was a thread of sound. Her voice would not work properly. Athena looked up at Luca and saw not anger but concern in his eyes. ‘No,’ she said more firmly, ‘I’m not afraid of you.’
‘But you are, or have been in the past, afraid of someone?’ He had seen fear on her face moments ago when she had pulled out of his arms—the same look he had seen when he had kissed her in their hotel room in Las Vegas.
‘It was years ago.’ Her voice cracked. ‘I don’t know why I can’t forget about what happened.’
Luca stared at the tears mingled with rain running down her face and felt a strange sensation, as if a hand was squeezing his heart. ‘What did happen?’ He thought of her fearful expression. ‘Did someone hurt you?’
Silence, and then she whispered, ‘Yes...’
Athena remembered the livid purple fingerprints that Peter Fitch had left on her breasts. The bruises had eventually faded, but the memory of his assault was like a festering wound in her mind.
Blood was running down her legs from her grazed knees. Luca wanted to find out who had hurt her—and where he could find the person so that he could mete out retribution—but first and foremost he needed to take Athena inside, away from the storm.
He scooped her up into his arms, ignoring her startled protest as he carried her into the house. His steps did not falter as he strode across the entrance hall and up the stairs, giving instructions in Italian to Geomar, who had not been able to hide his surprise when he had seen Athena, wet, dishevelled and bleeding.
Twenty minutes later her grazes had been washed and bandaged and she was sitting in an armchair in her bedroom, sipping hot, very sweet tea. Luca had dropped four sugar cubes into her cup, but she didn’t tell him the tea tasted like syrup when he was being so kind and taking care of her.
Outside, the storm had passed, and the air felt fresher as a soft breeze drifted into the room through the open window. Luca was relieved to see that Athena had regained some colour in her cheeks. Her wet hair had dried into loose waves, and not for the first time he felt as though he could drown in her sapphire-blue eyes.
‘Do you want to talk about what happened to you?’ he murmured.
No, if she was honest, Athena thought. But not talking about it for all these years since Peter Fitch had assaulted her hadn’t helped her to get over it. Perhaps if she had been closer to her parents she might have confided in them, but instead she had kept the assault a secret that had festered inside her.
Luca had a right to know why she had blown hot and cold with him. She looked at him, standing by the window. He had changed into dry jeans, and the denim moulded his powerful thighs. His shirt was open at the throat to reveal his dark bronze skin and a sprinkling of black chest hair. Even casually dressed, he was effortlessly elegant—and so utterly gorgeous that Athena quickly glanced away, her heart thudding.
She took another sip of tea and searched for courage. ‘When I was eighteen I was assaulted...sexually...by a friend of my parents.’
Luca said nothing, but she knew from his intent gaze that he was listening.
‘He was a university professor and my parents had arranged for him to give me private Latin tuition so that I might stand a chance of passing my exams to get into medical school.’
In her mind she was back in Peter’s study. She could see the dark mahogany furniture and the brown leather sofa, see herself sitting opposite Peter at his desk, trying to concentrate on Latin verbs that might have been Greek to her.
‘You look hot, my dear. Why don’t you undo a few more buttons on your blouse? In fact, why don’t you take your blouse off, and your bra, and let me see your breasts?’
Athena remembered her sense of shock at Uncle Peter’s suggestion.
‘One day Peter asked me to take my blouse off and show him my breasts,’ she told Luca in a low voice. ‘At first I thought he was joking. But he carried on saying awful things—calling me Aphrodite and telling me how much he liked my body and what he wanted to do to me.’ She swallowed. ‘He said he knew I would enjoy him touching me because...because I looked hungry for sex, and I obviously wore low-cut tops because I liked to tease him.’
She twisted her fingers together.
‘My clothes were not particularly revealing, but I was eighteen and I was starting to experiment with fashion. I suppose a couple of my tops were a bit daring...’
‘Just because you wore a low-cut top that did not give your tutor the right to assault you,’ Luca said grimly.
‘He said my body sent out signals that I wanted sex. I was scared,’ Athena admitted. ‘This was a man I had known for most of my life. I called him Uncle Peter, and his wife was Auntie Jean. I tried to run out of his study but he had locked the door.’
Luca cursed softly. ‘What happened, carissima?’
‘He ripped my blouse and forced his hand into my bra,’ she said tonelessly. ‘He kept squeezing my breasts and saying I would like what he was going to do next. And then he...he...’
Luca’s heart stopped. ‘Dio—did he rape you?’
She shook her head. ‘He put his hand up my skirt...between my legs. I believed he was going to rape me and I felt sick. I didn’t know how to stop him.’
She drew a shuddering breath.
‘It was like an answer to a prayer when Peter’s wife knocked on the study door. It was so bizarre. Uncle Peter was trying to force himself on me and Auntie Jean was asking if we wanted a cup of tea. Hearing her voice must have brought him to his senses. He asked Jean to go and make tea, and when he heard her go downstairs he unlocked the study door and let me go. I put my cardigan on over my torn blouse and ran out.’
‘Presumably you went straight to the police?’
Luca frowned when she shook her head.
‘Why didn’t you? You were subjected to a serious and terrifying sexual assault.’
‘Before I escaped from his study Peter warned me that no one would believe me if I reported what had happened—because he was a highly respected university professor and I was a silly, over-imaginative girl.’
‘Your parents would have believed you, surely?’
‘Peter was my father’s best friend from school. He was vice chancellor of the university. Everyone liked and respected him. I didn’t know how to tell my parents,’ she said miserably. ‘I tried to forget about the assault, but I couldn’t—especially when I went on a few dates with guys and they tried to kiss me. I felt...dirty.’
Luca said something under his breath in Italian. ‘You were not to blame for what this man did, piccola—of course you weren’t.’
Somehow he controlled the white-hot anger that had surged through him when Athena had told him the details of the assault. What she needed from him was sympathy and understanding. He imagined how terrified she must have been during the attack and once again felt a strange sensation—as if his heart was being squeezed in a vice.
He crossed the room and hunkered down in front of her. ‘You were the victim of a dreadful crime, and the perpetrator should not have got away with it just because he is a friend of your parents.’
‘That’s what Lexi said when I told her about the assault a few years after it happened. She persuaded me to report Peter to the police, but before I could do so he died suddenly of a heart attack.’
Athena had been left in limbo, without the sense of closure she might have gained if her tutor had been brought to justice, Luca realised. The sight of tears rolling down her cheeks moved him unbearably and stirred his protective instincts, so he scooped her into his arms and sat down in the chair with her on his lap, just as he had done with his daughter an hour earlier.
A thought occurred to him. ‘Did you tell Charlie about the assault?’
She shook her head. ‘I couldn’t bear to talk about it, even though we were meant to be getting married. I suppose that should have made me realise I didn’t love him,’ she said ruefully.
It felt good to rest her head on Luca’s shoulder. Athena did not know how long she sat in the safe circle of his arms, only knew that she did feel safe with him. Seeing his gentle patience with his daughter had shown her a different side of him from his playboy image. She had dreaded speaking about the sexual assault, but now she felt lighter somehow—as if by bringing it out into the open it was no longer a shameful secret from her past.
They had both learned something about each other today, she mused, her thoughts turning to Rosalie. The realisation that Luca had been prepared to pay her a million pounds to marry him so that he could keep his disabled daughter in the home where she was happy had altered Athena’s perception of him.
But her awareness of him hadn’t changed—if anything it was fiercer than ever, and she felt desire unfurl in the pit of her stomach as their eyes met and his gaze burned into hers.
He dropped a gentle kiss on the tip of her nose. It was no more than a butterfly caress, but it evoked a yearning inside her for more. Her lower lip trembled as he traced his thumb pad over it. Suddenly she did not want to think about the past or the future, but simply live for the present and enjoy the anticipation of knowing that Luca was about to kiss her.
They both jumped when the house phone rang, and he cursed softly as he reached towards the bedside table to pick up the handset.
‘That was Geomar, saying he needs to see me,’ he told Athena. ‘He also said that Elizavetta is about to serve dinner. Do you feel you can eat something? Good,’ he said when she nodded. His eyes held hers and his smile stole her breath. ‘I’ll meet you downstairs in five minutes.’
Her dress had a streak of mud down the front from when she had tripped and landed on the garden path, and her knees were grazed. Athena was about to put on her jeans, but then she changed her mind and searched through the clothes Luca had bought her, finally selecting a pair of beautifully tailored cream trousers and a pink silk shirt that showed off her curves.
For too long she had allowed the memory of Peter Fitch to dictate how she lived her life, and she had worn clothes that disguised her hourglass figure. But Luca had made her see that taking pride in her appearance and wearing sexy clothes was not an invitation to be sexually assaulted, as Peter had told her.
As she walked down the stairs, Luca came out of his study. His unsmiling face filled her with unease.
‘I’ve had a call from Kadir,’ he said abruptly. ‘Lexi gave birth to a baby boy earlier today.’
‘That’s wonderful news...’ Athena’s swift burst of delight faded and her feeling of foreboding turned to dread. ‘Luca...what’s wrong?’
‘Apparently there is a problem with the baby’s heart. It’s possible he will need surgery to correct the fault.’
‘Oh, God—Lexi must be out of her mind with worry.’ In an instant Athena’s priorities changed. Nothing was important compared to the health of her sister’s newborn son. ‘I have to go to Zenhab and be with Lexi,’ she said frantically.
‘I have already instructed my pilot to prepare the jet for our flight.’ Luca ushered her into his study and handed her the phone. ‘Kadir is on the line. He will be able to tell you more about the baby’s condition.’
Kadir’s deep voice was taut with concern. ‘We have named the baby Faisal,’ he told Athena. ‘He is beautiful, and he has a strong cry. I’m sure he will be as feisty as his mother.’
‘How is Lexi?’
‘Holding up.’
Athena heard her brother-in-law swallow hard before he continued.
‘She’s tired after a long labour, and she is worried about our son—we both are,’ he said huskily. ‘Lexi has asked if you will visit...’
‘Luca is arranging a flight to Zenhab.’
‘What is going on, Athena? I’ve heard reports that you and Luca are married. Lexi is worried about you, too.’
That was the last thing Athena wanted. Her sister had enough to worry about. ‘It’s true that Luca and I got married in Las Vegas,’ she told Kadir. ‘I know it sounds crazy, but...’ she glanced at Luca ‘...we realised we had fallen in love with each other when we met at your wedding, and we decided to marry in secret and tell everyone afterwards.’
Kadir laughed. ‘I always suspected that Luca was a romantic at heart. Lexi will want to hear all the details of your wedding when you get here.’
As Athena replaced the phone she was conscious of Luca’s eyes boring into her.
‘I couldn’t tell Kadir the real reason for our marriage.’ She bit her lip. ‘Kadir is putting on a brave front, but I know he and my sister will be distraught about the baby’s health problems and I don’t want Lexi to worry about me as well. While we are at the royal palace we’ll have to keep up the same pretence that we married because we are madly in love.’
* * *
Luca had suggested that Athena should try to sleep on the flight to Zenhab, but she found it impossible to relax when she was so concerned about her new nephew.
A limousine was waiting at the airport to take them to the palace. The last time Athena had driven though the capital city, Mezeira, the streets had been decorated with white-and-gold ribbons for the wedding procession of the Sultan and his bride. But today she did not feel any sense of excitement from the Zenhabian people, and knew that Kadir had delayed announcing the birth of his son and heir until baby Faisal had been examined by the world-renowned heart specialist who was flying in from America.
‘I know it’s hard, but try not to worry,’ Luca murmured. He wrapped his hand around hers to stop her unconsciously twisting her fingers together. ‘Your sister will need you to be strong.’
She glanced at him, and it struck her that he must know exactly what it was like to be worried about a child’s health. ‘It must have been a terrible time when Rosalie became ill and was diagnosed with her illness.’
‘Ironically, I only knew I had a daughter because Rosalie became ill.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I was not with Rosalie’s mother during her pregnancy.’ Luca exhaled heavily. ‘Do you want to know the whole story?’
Athena nodded. ‘Were you married to Rosalie’s mother?’
‘No. Jodie describes herself as a free spirit. She’s from New Zealand, and I met her when she was travelling around Europe and came to stay in a village near Villa De Rossi. I was a young man, and life at the villa with my grandparents was tense and frankly unbearable. Jodie was a breath of fresh air.’
He shrugged.
‘I fell for her hard and I thought she shared my feelings. I hoped we would stay together for ever. But she grew bored and wanted to continue exploring the world. I couldn’t go with her because my grandfather had named me as heir of De Rossi Enterprises, and I was also trying to establish my own fashion label.’
He hadn’t thought about Jodie for a long time, Luca mused. Sure, he had been hurt when she’d left him—but he had got over it. So much for everlasting love, he thought cynically.
‘Jodie cleared off while I was at a business meeting in Milan, without saying where she was going or how I could contact her. She effectively disappeared out of my life, and I had no idea that she was pregnant with my child when she left. She later admitted that she had decided to bring up our daughter on her own and not tell me I was a father. She only came back to find me when Rosalie started to show early signs of Rett’s.’
Athena remembered that Luca had told her Rosalie’s mother had been unable to cope with the news that their daughter had an incurable degenerative disease. ‘So Jodie left you to care for Rosalie alone?’ she murmured.
She thought of the two women Luca had loved in his life. His mother and Jodie. They had both abandoned him, and in Jodie’s case she had also abandoned her sick child. It was small wonder that Luca was so scathing about love.
The car drove through the palace gates into a huge courtyard where the helicopter that Lexi had often piloted before her pregnancy was parked. Kadir descended the palace steps to greet them.
Similar in height and build to Luca, his swarthy skin and jet-black hair made a stark contrast to his white robe and headdress. Athena adored her ruggedly handsome brother-in-law, who had made her sister so happy, and she flew into his arms.
‘How is baby Faisal?’ she asked urgently.
‘He’s okay.’ Kadir gave a strained smile. ‘The heart specialist has seen him and things are better than was first thought. I won’t go into too many medical details, but Faisal has what is known as a hole in the heart. It might require surgery to repair it in a few months, but there is a chance that the hole will heal on its own.’
They had been walking through the palace while Kadir explained the situation. He hesitated now, outside the nursery.
‘Lexi is trying to hide it, but I know she was terrified we could lose Faisal. I want to keep her as calm and unworried as possible.’ He glanced from Athena to Luca. ‘I must admit we were both shocked when we heard that you two had got married.’
Athena felt herself blush, and she did not know what to say as Luca slipped an arm around her waist.
‘I know our decision was sudden,’ he said smoothly.
He looked down at Athena’s and his sexy smile made her toes curl.
‘But once we realised that we felt the same way about each other we didn’t want to wait for months while we planned a big wedding—did we, carissima?’
Luca was back in performance mode, as he had been in front of the paparazzi in Las Vegas, she reminded herself. The tender expression in his eyes was not real but for Kadir’s benefit.
A Bride Worth Millions Page 13
