‘I think his reaction speaks for itself, so please remember this moment and never let him down.’ Sadie’s cool voice filtered through the veil of emotions he’d never thought possible. He deserved that warning, but why did she always make him feel as if he had to prove something?
‘In that case, shall we go inside and get married?’ It wasn’t intended as a question, but he wanted to give her one last chance to say no, to turn away.
‘What about witnesses?’ The tremor of doubt in her voice intensified his emotions as he stood with Leo in his arms and looked down at her.
‘All dealt with. My good friend Sebastien and his wife, Monika, have flown in from England to be our witnesses.’
Her brows raised a little, but she didn’t say anything and after a moment she walked inside. As he followed her he couldn’t quite believe that in just a short time he would be a husband and father.
Was this what Sebastien had envisaged when he’d sent him on the challenge? He shook his head and smiled at Leo. He already knew those two weeks hadn’t been about proving he could survive on a paltry two hundred euros, but had they been about challenging him to the role of fatherhood? Had Sebastien known about Leo or had his plan been to throw him and Sadie back together, hoping they would discover the kind of love he and Monika had?
* * *
Words of Italian and English seemed to rush through Sadie’s mind as she stood with Antonio. Behind them stood the couple who were witnessing it all, and holding Antonio’s hand, as if he feared he’d never see him again, was Leo. She should have been happy. A family and father for Leo was all she’d ever wanted, but at what cost? How long would it be before Antonio moved back to his playboy lifestyle, lived so voraciously in the fast lane of life? It was that question which held her back, prevented her from giving in to the ever-growing attraction.
‘You are now husband and wife.’
She blinked at the words which united her with this man, making her and Leo his family. Then she made the mistake of looking at Antonio. The dark spark of desire in his eyes didn’t fool her. He obviously wanted his friends to think they were so madly in love that they’d rushed off to get married after finding each other again.
‘And now I will kiss the bride.’ Antonio pre-empted the next line and took one step towards her and brushed his lips over hers in a lingering kiss filled with the promise of so much more, if she was brave enough. She wanted to be brave, wanted to find what they’d shared once before.
‘Bravo.’ The friend of Antonio’s who’d witnessed the marriage clapped and she took the opportunity to move back, away from the temptation of something that could hurt her all over again.
She glanced at the tall man, a little older than Antonio, and his lovely blonde wife. Love simmered between them as they smiled at each other, as if sharing a secret only they knew. Would she and Antonio ever be like that? The question flitted through her mind like a bird through the forest, but the answer was obvious. They could never be like that. Love was an emotion Antonio had no concept of. He didn’t want to allow it into his life.
Leo tugged at her dress, trying to find some adult attention, and as she gathered him up in her arms she recalled how Antonio had held him outside when they’d arrived. Whatever it was he’d felt had shocked him. Could that tiny step be the start? Was he opening his heart to his son?
‘I will take my bride to our new home,’ Antonio said, directing his attention to his friends. ‘Sebastien and Monika, we’d love you to join us.’
‘Monika and I would like that very much,’ Sebastien replied, and then he smiled at her. ‘If, of course, your bride doesn’t mind the intrusion?’
‘Intrusion, no,’ she said. She couldn’t thank him enough. The last thing she wanted was to be alone with Antonio now, especially after that kiss had unleashed the sizzle of desire she’d only ever experienced with him. Leo would soon tire and need to go to bed, leaving her alone with Antonio. Company would be perfect. ‘We’d be honoured to have you as our guests.’
She had no idea how Sebastien and Antonio knew one another, but the bond between the two men was more than apparent.
Feeling more as if she were in a dream, Sadie carried Leo back out into the early summer sunshine, unable to completely comprehend that she was now married to the man who’d stolen her heart four years ago, giving her the most precious gift of a son. Marriage had been all she’d wanted initially, but now something was holding her back, stopping her from feeling happy and secure, even though Antonio was the only man she’d ever really wanted.
Such distracting thoughts raced through her mind as Leo sat next to Antonio in his special seat and the car took them through Rome’s traffic. It was a while before she realised they were leaving the city behind. As the question of where they were going almost left her lips the car turned off and up a long driveway towards a grand villa.
She felt Antonio’s gaze on her as she watched the villa come nearer. It wasn’t a hotel, which had been her first thought, and a stab of disappointment lurched through her. She’d hoped Leo could have a bit of freedom to run around on the extensive lawns. He hadn’t had such freedom since coming to Rome, but it would be impossible to allow him to roam in a private home.
‘Where are we?’ she asked and looked at Antonio.
Infuriatingly, he just raised his brows in a sexy and suggestive manner and got out of the car when it stopped in front of the villa. She unclipped Leo, but he lunged forward, not wanting her any more, wanting only to be with Antonio, his new hero. A little deflated, she stepped out into the sunshine, warm with the promise of a long hot summer, and looked at the villa. What must have been the original building had been added to in a tasteful and stunning way. A covered veranda ran its length and her first thought was that the shade would be welcome in the height of summer.
‘Welcome to your new home.’ She turned quickly to look at Antonio as Sebastien’s car turned in at the bottom of the long driveway.
‘My home?’
‘Sì. A home for my bride and my son.’ That sexy darkness was back in his eyes and a shiver of something tingled down her spine, rousing memories of being in his arms, being kissed until her head spun.
Before she could say anything, he bent down to Leo. ‘Would you like to live here?’
Wide-eyed, Leo looked up at him and her heart wrenched at the adoration he already had for his father. ‘All the time?’
‘Sì. All the time.’ Antonio laughed and ruffled Leo’s hair in a way which gave her the impression he was used to little children, something she hadn’t considered possible in a man such as him.
‘With you?’
The laughter deepened, but she held her breath, waiting for the answer that would break her son’s heart. She almost couldn’t bear to hear that he would be returning to his apartment in Rome.
‘But of course.’ Antonio looked up at her. ‘With you and your mother.’
Any further discussion was halted as Sebastien and Monika joined them. ‘I think it’s time we celebrated.’
She followed them inside, making polite conversation with Monika but in total awe of her surroundings. The villa was gorgeous and furnished beautifully. How and when had he done this?
The pop of a champagne cork startled her and Leo laughed—a sound which filled her heart with warmth—and she pushed away her doubts. For Leo’s sake she would enjoy this moment.
‘To marriage,’ said Sebastien as he raised his glass. ‘To the bride and groom—and Leo.’
Antonio raised his flute of champagne to her, his dark eyes intent and watchful, shining with unguarded emotion. ‘To my beautiful bride.’
She smiled shyly. She had been overreacting all along, getting carried away with pre-wedding nerves. Everything would be fine now they were married.
‘And let’s not forget the challenge you accepted and clearly excelled at.’ Sebastien’s voice slashed through that hope which shivered like a delicate spider’s web on a dewy morning.
‘Challenge?’
The word had left Sadie’s lips before she could stop it. What was Sebastien talking about?
Monika placed her hand on her arm and Sadie looked at her. Did she know what this was all about? ‘They’re teasing. They always challenge one another—over everything.’
‘I told you I worked in the garage to prove I could.’ Antonio’s voice jolted her attention and she looked at him, aware that Monika and Sebastien were exchanging glances with one another. They knew something she didn’t.
‘I challenged him to live for two weeks without his family name and wealth and he did.’
Sadie looked at Sebastien, her long slender fingers over her lips as she took in the full implications of what she’d learnt. ‘I had no idea.’
* * *
Antonio had seen the doubt and confusion rush over Sadie’s face and inwardly he’d berated Sebastien’s honesty. He’d watched, helpless to say anything, as Monika had tried to smooth things over with Sadie, but as usual Sebastien had calmed the situation down, telling just enough but nowhere near all the details.
Thankfully, Leo had chosen that moment to rush in from the gardens, full of excitement for his new surroundings, but now, with Leo asleep in his new room and their guests gone, it was just him and Sadie.
It was their wedding night, but the moment Sebastien and Monika had left the tension had intensified between him and Sadie, tension which was born out of the ever-present simmering sexual attraction between them. Already he was being drawn in, being forced to engage in emotions he’d long since thought withered within him—and that was just with his son. Sadie was even more of a threat to the equilibrium of his emotions.
‘I trust that our arrangement of separate rooms will continue.’ Sadie’s voice was sharp and unyielding as she sat with him on the terrace, the twinkling lights of Rome in the distance and the sounds of the night surrounding them.
Had she read his thoughts? Could she sense the turmoil within him that just having her around unleashed? He studied her as she looked out into the night, as if she couldn’t, or didn’t want to, look at him. This angry version of Sadie was not what he’d envisaged for his wedding night, but, with one disastrous marriage behind him, it seemed fate was after all casting doom over this one when it was only hours old.
‘If that is what you want.’ The granite hardness of his voice more than matched hers and she glanced at him as she stood up, obviously preparing to leave.
‘It is. Our marriage was only ever about Leo.’ Her words sliced through him, slashing the memories of the day he’d confided in Sebastien that Sadie was the only woman who’d made him want to open his heart to softer emotions, the kind which weakened even the hardest man. But he wasn’t weak and he would not be weakened. Whatever they’d once had was obviously long gone. All that remained was the spark of sexual attraction, which could easily be doused. Experience had taught him that.
‘Our marriage was about uniting for Leo’s sake, about enabling me to be there for my son.’ He couldn’t allow his thoughts to focus on what had once been. He had to remain firm. She’d accepted his terms of marriage—terms he’d made for the little boy for whom he’d do anything.
‘And how long will you be there for him?’ Finally she turned to face him, the censure clear in her voice and sparking in her eyes, even in the dim light of the evening. ‘A few days? A week or two?’
‘I intend to be there for ever for my son, so you had better get used to having me in your life.’ He bit down on the anger her words provoked but kept his gaze firmly fixed on her beautiful face.
‘I don’t believe you are up to that particular challenge.’ She glared angrily at him and he wondered if she had any idea just how he worked, how he could never envisage anything but success—in everything he did.
‘So it’s a challenge, is it?’ He couldn’t stem the amusement which rushed over him watching her expression change to one of shock when she realised what she’d done, that she’d issued a challenge to him.
‘You seem to thrive on them.’ The haughty and distinctly flirty reply fizzed in the air as the sexual tension notched up another level.
‘I do indeed.’ He couldn’t help teasing her. The only problem was that it increased his desire to kiss her, to make her his once more.
‘And, of course, getting me back in your bed is yet another challenge.’ The pointed retort found its mark, snuffing out the burn of desire which was escalating within him.
He laughed. The truth of her words made anything else impossible. She met his gaze, the green of her eyes sparking with anger. Anger which only lit the fuse of desire once more. He wanted her in a way he’d never wanted another woman, but then he wasn’t accustomed to being turned down by a woman—or wanting her all the more for that rejection.
He stood up and stepped closer to her, so close he could smell her perfume as it mixed with the heady scent of the array of flowers beyond the terrace of the villa. The urge to pull her against him, to feel her body pressed against his only exacerbated the confusion of emotions running riot within him. ‘If I wanted you in my bed, that is exactly where you would be and I wouldn’t need a challenge to achieve that objective.’
She glared at him, but, before she could say anything, he took her hand and raised her fingers to his lips. She didn’t resist as he pressed a kiss onto her fingers, his dark gaze locked with the sexy green of her eyes.
‘But I will wait for the time when you can no longer deny what still exists between us.’
CHAPTER SEVEN
SADIE’S FIRST NIGHT as Antonio’s wife had been restless and lonely. True to his word, he’d honoured her request to sleep alone, but the challenge he’d clearly laid down still sounded in her mind. She had spent much of the night staring into the semi-darkness, questioning if she’d done the right thing marrying Antonio and wondering if he would keep his word and allow her to sleep alone. Was everything, including their marriage, all part of a challenge?
Leo had been up for a while, exploring his new home with Antonio. As she stood now, at the edge of the olive grove beyond the immaculate grounds of the villa, and watched Leo and Antonio as they explored their new home, she felt herself being drawn closer and closer to the man she’d married. He didn’t look like the power-hungry billionaire she knew he was; he appeared content and happy with Leo.
Antonio glanced up and, on seeing her, took Leo’s hand and led him back towards the terrace. She expected Leo to clamber onto her lap, but he didn’t. It seemed his new home and father figure had instilled confidence in him, made him more independent. He ran across the immaculate lawn to explore further as Antonio stood beside her.
‘Leo has settled well. He is an inquisitive child.’ Antonio’s voice was gentler than normal. Was he succumbing to Leo’s charm? If so, how long would it last?
‘I am more than aware, thanks to Sebastien, that our marriage is some sort of challenge, but please remember your son is only a child.’ She looked up at Antonio, who seemed as surprised as she was by her sudden emotional outburst. ‘Don’t ever hurt him, Antonio.’
She wanted to look away from that dark and questioning gaze, behind which she knew simmered the same kind of sizzling desire she too was wrestling to control. What would happen if she allowed that attraction, that needy desire to show itself? All she had to do was go to him, tell him she wanted him, but she was resisting, protecting her fragile heart.
‘You don’t think very highly of me, do you, mia bella?’ Antonio’s voice was thick and heavily accented, his eyes darkening, the intensity within them making her pulse leap.
‘Can you blame me?’ she replied firmly, desperate to hide the way just a look could send her senses spiralling out of control. ‘You married me for a challenge. Was that what those two weeks at the garage were all about? A dare?’
Still he didn’t enlighten her and she walked away from him, sighing in frustration, berating herself inwardly for being such an easy target, for allowing herself to become just part of a dare.
‘Sì, I was
at the garage as Toni Adessi. It was a challenge.’ Antonio leaned casually against a pillar on the terrace, arms folded and with that arrogant expression on his face, looking far too sexy and dangerous. How could he so calmly stand there? ‘But I had no idea I would find you there—or my son.’
‘And you expect me to believe Leo and I were not part of the challenge, which looks very much like it was set by Sebastien?’
He pushed his body away from the pillar and walked towards her and although her heart thumped in her chest she refused to be intimidated. She had agreed to marriage partly to give Leo the father he needed, but also out of a misguided romantic idea that there was something from their weekend affair still simmering between them, something that might give the marriage a chance of success. Now, as he stood and looked down at her, so very close she could smell the fresh scent of his morning shower, she knew she’d made a big mistake. She might still have feelings for him, but Antonio was immune to that and certainly didn’t have any feelings for her, other than blatant lust. Nothing had changed.
‘You may believe what you wish, mia bella.’ For a moment she thought he was going to reach out and touch her face, the look which crossed his softening the hard angles, making her breath catch in her throat.
Aware her breath was coming hard and fast, she forged on, needing to know just what she’d done to Leo by marrying this man. ‘Why were you there, Antonio, living like a regular man? That is so not you; even I know that.’
‘Sebastien challenged me to survive two weeks without my wealth or family name. To live, as you put it, like a regular man.’ His jaw clenched, as if the idea that he’d done that, been that man, didn’t sit comfortably with him.
‘Did you choose to come to the garage in Milan?’ She held her breath as she waited for the answer.
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