The Italian's Price

by Diana Hamilton

  He hadn't once said he loved her she reminded herself on a flood of nervy anxiety. Then told herself to grow up and swiftly assured herself that no man in his right mind would ask a woman to marry him, share his life and bear his children if he didn't love her and, anyway, he probably had a whole load of stuff on his mind to do with his up-and-coming extended business trip.

  Too much stuff to give much thought to his fiancee when he would, with man-like pragmatism, consider enough had been said on the subject of what he felt for her to make emotional scenes and the display of female insecurities plain annoying. Make him think that she would prove to be a demanding wife whining and complaining when he put business first throwing a hissy-fit if he ever dared to be late home by as much as a single minute.

  Reaching that sensible conclusion, she flicked off the bedside light and closed her eyes only to open them again almost immediately as the door opened and Cesare wearing a towelling robe was illuminated by the light from the broad passage behind before the door closed again and he was at the bedside breathing, ‘Forgive me, mi amore' He reached for her in the darkness pulling her into the circle of his arms.

  ‘I ignored you' he confessed rawly. ‘I couldn't look at you, talk to you, without aching to have you in my arms, to kiss you! I need you so much I would have given our secret away. Nonna may be old but she's far from stupid' He breathed in very deep, his lips against the side of her neck. 'say you forgive met'

  'Anything! I forgive you anythingl' Melting against him, Milly slid her hands beneath his robe, her fingers splaying against the hard muscular planes of his chest breathing in the aphrodisiacal scent of warm male and a slightly tangy aftershave her head swimming dizzily on a wave of love and longing and annoyance with herself for feeling any insecurities whatsoever.

  Immeasurably flattered because he'd admitted he couldn't look at her without betraying a primitive urge to make love to her her brain reeling with the knowledge of her feminine power, she lifted her head and put her soft mouth against his lips, very gently, and teased softly, 'Then I know what I must do to test your Mowers of endurance to the limit, don't I’

  ‘It is just as well I am to be away from the temptation of you while Nonna completes her recoveryl' And then he claimed her mouth with a passionate intensity that made her heart beat wildly and somehow his robe got lost in the vortex and her T-shirt went the same way as his tongue mated with hers with driven hunger until he reared away, flicking on the bedside light.

  ‘I need to look at you, amole mia. I need to feast my eyes,' he announced raggedly. He laid her back on the bed.

  ‘I need to touch.' His voice thickened. 'Here-' Reverent fingers brushed her tight nipples and her breath caught in roughened gasps as those same fingers stroked over the flat planes of her tummy, then lower. 'And here-' As his hand brushed through the golden curls at the apex of her thighs and discovered the aching, molten heat excitement had her writhing against him her every enticing movement begging him to take the burning ache for him away. As if he understood her uncontrollable hunger, he kissed her with such sweet tenderness she thought she might die from it and murmured softly, sallowly, mi amole.

  Tonight I will take you to Paradise many times I promise you.'

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  IT WAS POURING with rain and the flat felt damp and chilly. Shorn of the curtains and rugs, the brightly coloured cushions she'd bought one cold winter day in an attempt to make their home look more cheerful, the place looked what it was, drab and dingy.

  Milly's throat tightened at the thought that her mother, living in pleasant, leafy suburban comfort while her husband had been alive, had been reduced to this during her final years. And all because of Jilly's wildly selfish schemes.

  Surveying the assembled packing cases, Milly felt a stab of deep sadness they represented the sum total of her mother's life. Pathetically little.

  She'd packed the remainder of Jilly's possessions and had taken the more respectable items of hers and her mother's clothing to a charity shop and even now removal men were taking the packing cases and furniture into storage because at some time in the future Jilly might need some of it if she returned to set up home in England and she felt bad about disposing of everything without consulting Jilly first.

  That was if her sister ever turned up! She didn't know what she felt most, anger at her twin for her less than honest behaviour and her blithe disregard for her family, or deepening anxiety at her mysterious disappearance.

  Whatever- She turned from the window and the unprepossesing view of the rain-soaked high street and the top of the removal van parked outside the butcher's shop and went to the poky apology for a kitchen to brew tea for the removal men. Fretting about her twin wouldn't solve anything.

  At least yesterday, the day of Cleo's wedding, had been warm and sunny. Her friend had looked beautiful and the groom proud enough to bust a gut she recalled determined to think of something cheerful .

  Besides she would be returning to Italy tomorrow after overnighters at an airport hotel and soon now, very soon, she would be seeing Cesare again.

  Her spirits soared. She'd missed him so much, but soon the waiting would be over. After his departure, in the weeks before she'd returned to England, he'd phoned the villa twice a week to speak to his grandmother and ask after her state of health and on a couple of occasions she'd been able to speak to him herself and those conversations had been heartwarmingly precious.

  She poured tea into mugs and set them on a tray. Cesare had even gone to the trouble of setting up a credit account for her use which was really generous of him because they weren't yet married.

  She was merely his secret fiancee though she'd been hard put to keep quiet especially as Cleo had done a lot of probing over what she called the ‘blackmailing Italian guy.'

  She'd longed to state that he was completely wonderful and soon to be her husband.

  Only her promise to Cesare to keep their plans secret had kept her from confiding her wonderful news.

  But Filomena was now as good as new. Or so the old lady had affirmed when Milly phoned her a couple of days ago. Already she was directing a major overhaul of the long herbaceous border and was anxious for Milly's return and her horticultural input. So that meant there would be no further delay on Cesare divulging their wedding plans! Her stomach flipped with electrifying excitement. He was all she could ever want and then some.

  And he wanted to marry her! Leaning against the chipped enamel draining board misty-eyed and moony at that world-shaking prospect the tea forgotten the shouts and grunts of the three men who were humping the ancient sofa down the narrow staircase receding, her imagination conjured up a blissful image of her wedding day, her fabulous dress-all white and floaty, or maybe satin and sleek-the clearest image of all that of Cesare looking stunningly fantastic his dark head turned his eyes drenched with love as she walked towards him up the aisle- ‘MiIly ! ' She tensed breath locked in her lungs, hazy romantic images dispelled by something so immediate and real it set her heart racing.

  Only one man made her plain ordinary name sound special. Only one man's voice could send shivers of delight skittering down her spine.

  Cesare!

  Galvanized, she fled from the kitchen and hurtled down the wooden staircase, erupting into his open arms with a squeal of welcoming delight. The sound was stopped right there in her throat as he lowered his dark head and kissed her with a ravishing thoroughness that left her feeling helplessly dizzy.

  ‘I needed that cara ' he at last announced with husky conviction holding her by her upper arms so that he could look at her properly.

  ‘Bella, bella. Perfection' Lushly veiled eyes drifted over the elegant pale lemon-coloured linen suit she had chosen to travel in with its waist clipping jacket and narrow knee-length skirt. 'You choose well when not constrained by near poverty,' he approved his eyes homing in on the swell of her breasts hinted at by the classy cut of the jacket.

  Milly squirmed, her lovely face flushing uncomfort
ably. She so didn't want him to think she was greedy, out for all she could get! But this suit had cost an arm and a leg and, dithering over it, severely tempted, Cleo had dealt the knockout blow. 'You must have it. It's perfect for youl' And the amount of credit on the card Cesare had set up for her was mind boggling.

  ‘Sally and I had a day in London before the wedding,' she confessed. ‘I had my hair done.' And that had cost a small fortune she recalled her blush reviving with a vengeance as she relived the guilt that had swamped her when she'd seen the size of the bill.

  In the past she had slipped out in her lunch hour and Marjorie in the salon just up the road had cut it for her for a minute fraction of the cost. But she had to admit that the London guy had done a much better job.

  'And I bought a few things. Not too many, I promise ' she ended on an uncomfortable whisper.

  ‘Amore mie-' He dropped a kiss on her luscious mouth. 'What is mine is yours.' He smiled into her wide emerald eyes. ‘As my wife you will have the best. I expect it. No, I demand it,' he stated firmly, moving her aside as one of the removal men clattered down the stairs with the rolled up rug that had softened the bare boards of the tiny bedroom set aside for Jilly's use.

  ‘We found the tea Iuv' He gave her a broad wink and Cesare enquired ‘how much longer'?'

  ‘Jush finishing, gov.'

  Cesare glanced at the slim gold watch that banded his flat wrist. ‘Five minutes, tops.'

  Receiving an assurance, he turned his attention to Milly. ‘Ready to leave?'

  ‘I've just got to fetch my case.' A new one to hold the lovely things she'd bought. She felt her cheeks turn pink again and hurriedly informed herself that he seemed fine about her spending some of his money, so she really had nothing to feel guilty about.

  One day soon she was going to have to make him understand that his wealth meant nothing to her. She'd marry him if he was a pauper and she'd happily go out scrubbing floors to put bread on the table! Mounting the stairs at a rush, she wondered what the hurry meant. That he couldn't wait to be alone with her? Her heart beat faster. In one of his recent phone calls to his grandmother he had probably heard that today she would be packing up and leaving the flat and had dropped everything to be with her.

  Wondering if he could get a seat on her flight back to Italy tomorrow, she decided that his all-fired rush to get out of here at least meant she didn't have the time to get maudlin over the sad memories she was leaving behind. That was all to the good since she had such a blissful future to look forward to.

  He took the case from her the moment her feet touched the bottom stair and, while she was locking the outer door and posting the key back through the letter box for the landlord to collect, she smiled up at him through the drizzle. ‘I didn't expect you. I'm so glad you came.'

  ‘Nonna told me you were due back at Pisa Airport tomorrow. I cut into my itinerary and took the chance that you would still be here. There is a chauffeured limo waiting to take us to the airport. The company jet's ready to fly us south.'

  ‘My! You certainly know how to whisk a girl off her feet' She grinned up at him, feeling immensely privileged and proud to be about to be married to a guy who only had to click his fingers to have his needs of the moment catered to immediately. The sort of guy whose personal magnetism made him stand head and shoulders above the rest regardless of wealth and standing.

  He didn't return her smile. His classically gorgeous features were stamped in stern mould and shaken she voiced a sudden fear. ‘Is anything wrong? Filomena'?'

  ‘Nonna is fine.' He hooked an arm around her shoulders and began pacing towards a sleek silver limo. 'Your sister has finally been located. Working in Naples. I am here to take you to her.'

  ‘I don't see why I shouldn't go to her now ' Milly stated as Cesare emerged from the en suite bathroom rubbing his hair with a towel. She turned from watching the brilliant sunset from the enormous soundproof windows of the luxurious modern hotel room he had brought her to explaining that although there were older more atmospheric places he could have chosen Naples was a noisy city and such raucous bombardment of their auditory senses would not be conducive to a decent night's rest adding with a slashing grin that made her heart flip that a decent night's rest wasn't his top priority.

  'The morning would be best.' He tossed the towel aside.

  Milly sighed. He looked heartbreakingly gorgeous with his damp dark hair mussed, his impressive torso delineated by a black T-shirt that topped beautifully cut stone-coloured chinos. She quelled the immediate urge to go to him snuggle up, forget everything else. She had an entirely valid point to make.

  ‘She'II be at work in the morning.'

  'She's working now.' He paced to her rubbed a light fingertip over the frown line between her eyes. 'Your sister now rejoices in the name of Jacinta Le Bouchard and works as an exotic dancer and hostess in the type of nightclub I wouldn't expect or want you to go near.'

  Milly felt her spine crumple. The hostess bit was obviously a euphemism, judging by the way his mouth had flattened with distaste. Surely her poor sister hadn't been reduced to selling her body to any man willing to hand over a fistful of money? No wonder that during the flight over he had said little more on the subject other than that his investigator had tracked Jilly down to Naples, reiterating his promise that she would have time alone with her twin initially in order to break the news of the loss of their mother but that he would then give her the lecture of her life, although he did not intend to press charges of theft.

  ‘I'm sorry, amore mia.' He folded gentle arms around her and splayed his fingers in her silky blonde hair as he drew her head against his heart. ‘If I could have spared you any of this I would have done. You are naturally worried for her future welfare ' he soothed. 'And for your sake I promise to find her more salubrious employment provided she agrees that her lifestyle must change.'

  He held her a little away from his body, 'And now I suggest you shower and change. I will order from room service and we will have a night of such pleasure that you will forget your anxieties over tomorrow. Yes'?' His dark eyes were brimming with tenderness and her love for him overflowed making it difficult to breathe.

  He was such an intrinsically good man. She adored him so much it hurt! For her sake he was willing to put his previously driven need to see Jilly clapped in irons behind him even to the extent of offering her a way out of the present seemingly dodgy career she had embarked upon.

  So for his sake she would put her twin right out of her head. Tomorrow morning would come soon enough .

  ‘I love you,' she breathed, distinctly disinclined to part from him even for the space of time she would need to take a swift shower and gained herself a fleeting kiss a mere butterfly brush of his lips against hers and a husky command to ‘Go now. Before you wreck my plans for a night to remember'

  And as she headed for the sumptuous bedroom and the luxurious en suite bathroom the blood fizzing in her veins over that promise of a night to remember he called softly, ‘Don't spend ages dressing up for me cara. I am not a patient maul' Patience was a virtue in short supply as Milly showered in record time and not even bothering to slip into the complimentary bathrobe sped to the bedroom to fling open her suitcase. As her fingers encountered cool silk a Mona Lisa smile curved her full lips.

  Perfect!

  The black silk nightie she'd been completely unable to resist when she'd laid eyes on it in a stylish London boutique had been earmarked for their wedding night. But what the heck! There was nothing to stop her wearing it for him now! It was an impractical confection of whispering sheer silk that had had Cleo breathing, 'Wow! Sinful, or what? Sure there isn't a man in your life-and I don't mean the stodgy Bruce either'?' Explosive heat erupted deep in her pelvis as she slipped into it her breasts tingling as they peaked against the cool fabric and her tummy fluttered as she encountered her image in one of the full length mirrors.

  The silk clung everywhere. It subtly moulded every last intimate contour of her body, only t
he just-above-the-knee length side split allowing the wearer to walk.

  The words brazen and siren slipped into her mind so she roughly pushed them out again. Cesare was her future husband.

  But he'd said that he'd found Jilly's in-your-face-sexy choice of apparel to be a total turn-off. Diving back into her suitcase she pulled out the matching negligee and slipped it on and if she still looked too come-and-grab-me she'd just have to start over dig out a dress and fresh underwear.

  An agitated appraisal did something to settle her nerves. Dressing like a vamp didn't come naturally to her-hadn't she loathed wearing her twin's cast-offs? The negligee helped. Sleeveless too it was generously cut, falling in graceful folds to her ankles, the edges banded with delicate silk ruffles.

  A little sigh of relief quivered on her soft mouth. Better. And anyway, what was wrong with a woman looking willing when she was about to spend the night with her soon-to-be husband? On a wave of renewed confidence she opened the door to the living area.

  Cesare was standing at the huge window looking down at the teeming city, his hands thrust deep into the pockets of his chinos. He looked so commanding, so gorgeous that she just stopped breathing. And as she swayed towards him-it was the only form of locomotion she could manage because of the tight cut of the nightie-he turned and watched her a smile of all-male appreciation wreathing his stunning features.