Penniless Virgin To Sicilian's Bride (Conveniently Wed!)

by MELANIE MILBURNE

  ‘No. You?’

  Desire glittered and shimmered in his gaze. ‘Not yet.’ And his mouth came back down to hers.

  CHAPTER TEN

  GABRIEL LEFT FRANKIE to have a nap and went downstairs to the kitchen to get a glass of water. The glass of water he could just have easily got from the en suite, but he was forcing himself to stay away in case he was tempted to make love to her yet again. He was conscious of her inexperience and didn’t want to make her sore. He had expected the chemistry between them to be powerful, but not that powerful. More powerful than any other sexual encounter he had ever had. His body was still humming with the aftershocks, his skin tingling from her touch, the taste of her sweet in his mouth.

  Her response to him thrilled him in a way he hadn’t thought possible. He didn’t like acknowledging it, but sex had become a little pedestrian for him lately. It was a physical need he satisfied with short, no-strings encounters. He couldn’t remember the last time he had lain beside someone and played with their hair while they slept. He couldn’t remember wanting someone so badly. He couldn’t remember feeling a connection before that went beyond the pleasurable physical union of bodies.

  Something about Frankie was different. Unique. Special. Not just her lack of experience—although he’d be lying if he said he hadn’t felt honoured and privileged she had wanted him to be her first. He was a fully signed up member of the No Double Standards Club, but even so, the thought that, no matter what happened between them in the future, he would always remain her first lover was intensely delightful.

  Gabriel turned on the tap and filled a glass and drank it in a couple of swallows. He could have spent the rest of the evening in that bed with Frankie. The rest of the month. The rest of the year...which was a timely reminder their relationship was only temporary.

  One year and one year only.

  He had laid down the rules and she had agreed to them. She said she had no regrets, but how soon before she did? Had he made a mistake by making love to her? But how could he call the amazing sex they’d shared a mistake?

  No. It was a mistake not to make the most of their time together. They both knew the rules and he had no problem sticking to them.

  The only question being...would Frankie?

  * * *

  Frankie hadn’t realised she had drifted off to sleep until she woke to the sound of Gabriel’s phone ringing on the bedside table. She sat up but there was no sign of him. She glanced at the phone and her chest gave a tight spasm when she saw a woman’s name come up on the screen. Who on earth was Carli? One of his past lovers? A current lover he had put on pause while he was married to Frankie? She was tempted to answer the phone to find out but before she could reach out her hand, Gabriel came striding into the room.

  He came over to the bed and snatched up the phone. ‘Sorry. I forgot I left it here.’ He turned to one side and answered it. ‘Can you hold for a second?’ he said to the person on the line in Italian, and then gestured to Frankie that he had to take the call. He turned and walked out of the room, closing the door like he was putting up a barrier.

  Jealousy spiked in her like a thousand poisonous arrows, piercing her self-esteem as if it were little more than a child’s party balloon. But wasn’t that what she was? A child, for thinking Gabriel would not have his bit on the side? He was a man of the world, a playboy who exchanged lovers as easily as changing his shirt.

  Frankie got off the bed and dressed, not caring that her clothes were crumpled and creased. She couldn’t bear to look herself in the mirror. She didn’t want any reminders of how foolish she had been to make love with Gabriel. How foolish she had been to think she was someone special, someone he actually cared about instead of yet another sexual conquest.

  The rational part of her brain told her the woman called Carli could be a staff member of his, an employee in his business. But if so, why had he felt the need for privacy? The young woman was a pretty darned gorgeous-looking employee, however. Frankie had caught a glimpse of the photo of the woman that flashed up on the screen. A bottle blonde with big eyes and pouty lips.

  Why had Frankie allowed herself to be humiliated?

  * * *

  Gabriel had gone to his study on the lower floor to talk to his sister. For once, Carli’s call hadn’t been a distressed one but he hadn’t wanted to take any chances in front of Frankie. He wasn’t used to having an audience when he dealt with yet another of his sister’s dramas. His sister had rung to congratulate him—in her inimitable way, that was. Carli wasn’t easy to win over, and he worried she might offend or upset Frankie if he allowed them to meet in person.

  He couldn’t possibly keep his sister a secret from Frankie for an entire year, but neither did he want Carli to get too close to Frankie, because it might complicate things when their marriage came to an end. He didn’t want his sister to get too invested in his relationship with Frankie. He didn’t want to get too invested either. His plan was for a clean break when the time was up.

  It would be fairer for all parties.

  He slipped his phone into the back pocket of his jeans and went back upstairs. Frankie was dressed in her travelling clothes and standing in front of the windows overlooking the ocean, her back as stiff and unyielding as an ironing board. Was it his imagination or was there a current of tension in the air?

  ‘Frankie? Are you okay?’

  She turned, her arms tightly crossed over her chest, her look so cold she could have snap-frozen him on the spot. ‘I hate to sound like a jealous wife, but who the hell is Carli?’ Her voice was strained as if she was holding back a torrent of emotions.

  ‘She’s my sister.’

  Her mouth opened and closed, her eyes widening in surprise. ‘Your...your sister? You didn’t say anything about having a sister.’

  Gabriel rubbed a hand over his face and sighed. ‘Yes, well, I like to keep her out of the public if and when I can.’

  Frankie’s expression had lost its coldness only to be replaced by puzzlement. ‘But I don’t understand...’ Hurt flashed through her gaze. ‘Why didn’t you say something to me before now?’

  ‘I’m sorry for not telling you. But I had my reasons.’

  Her eyebrows rose in twin arches. ‘Which are?’

  ‘Carli is...unwell.’

  Concern flickered across Frankie’s face. ‘Oh, no. What’s wrong with her?’

  He drew in a long breath and released it. ‘She has an eating disorder. I’ve been trying to help her overcome it but it’s a Sisyphean battle. I never know from one day to the next if she’s going to be okay.’

  She put her hand to her throat in a shocked gesture. ‘I’m so sorry. It must be absolute agony for you.’

  He sat on the edge of the bed, placing his hands either side of his thighs. ‘Yes, it is. But I can’t leave her to fend for herself. I have to do whatever I can to limit her contact with my father and brothers. They are not a good influence.’

  Frankie came over to the bed and sat beside him, one of her hands coming to rest on top of his thigh. ‘I’m so sorry for making such a ridiculous scene just then. I thought...’ She bit her lip and continued. ‘Never mind what I thought. The important thing is if Carli is okay. Is she?’

  Gabriel placed his hand over the top of hers. ‘She’s fine, for now. She was the reason I didn’t get to your father’s funeral. I had to stay with her for a bit until I felt she was out of danger. She was calling to congratulate us. I told her the other day we were getting married.’

  ‘Was she...surprised?’

  ‘A little.’ He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and gave another sigh. ‘I didn’t tell her all the details about our marriage. It’s best she thinks it genuine like everyone else. If she became annoyed with me, she would sell our secret to the press in the blink of an eye.’

  Frankie’s gaze was troubled. ‘I’d like to meet her sometime...that is, if
you think she would like to meet me? I wouldn’t let slip that we’re not really in love or anything.’

  Gabriel smoothed away her frown with his thumb. ‘I’ll see what can be arranged. Carli isn’t all that reliable when it comes to keeping appointments.’ He lowered his hand from her face and took her hand once more, his fingers absently stroking the back of her hand.

  ‘She’s younger than you, yes?’

  ‘By seven years. She’s the same age as you—twenty-five—but you wouldn’t think it in terms of her behaviour sometimes.’

  ‘It can’t have been easy for her growing up without a mother...’ Sadness swam in her gaze. ‘How old was she when...?’

  ‘Carli was only two years old when our mother died. She was still in nappies.’

  ‘Oh, how terribly sad,’ Frankie said. ‘Does she remember your mother at all?’

  ‘No. Nothing.’ He gave a rueful grimace. ‘I wasn’t much of a replacement figure but I did what I could.’

  ‘But what about your father? Or other relatives? Aunts or grandparents or—’

  ‘My mother married my father against her family’s wishes. She was cast out of their lives and they didn’t even come to her funeral. It was as if she had never existed.’

  Frankie gripped his hand. ‘But how on earth did you manage? You were only a little child yourself.’

  ‘I had no choice,’ Gabriel said. ‘My father’s idea of looking after a small child was to leave her in her cot for hours on end. There wasn’t the money back then for a nanny or babysitter. There was barely enough money for food. I missed almost a whole year of school because I didn’t want to leave Carli with anyone my father chose to babysit.’

  He flattened his mouth and continued. ‘He’s the reason she’s so messed up. He was always shouting at her for crying, but what little kid doesn’t cry, even if they hadn’t just lost their mother?’ His chest ached when he recalled Carli’s piteous cries. He had done all he could to comfort her, suppressing his own tears because he hadn’t wanted to add to her distress. He had done such a good job of locking away his emotions that these days he struggled to access them when he needed them most.

  Tears shone in Frankie’s eyes. ‘Oh, Gabriel, it’s just so awful that you and Carli and your brothers went through such hell. I can’t believe how you turned your life around to become what you are today. How did you do it?’

  ‘I was determined to make something of myself, I felt I owed it to my mother. She hadn’t had a good education and I know it was one of the reasons she felt so powerless in her marriage. I wanted to honour her memory by taking every opportunity I could to make a decent life for myself and my siblings.’ He gave her a twisted effigy of a smile. ‘Not that I was successful in achieving that with any of them. Carli is probably the brightest of all four of us and yet she didn’t finish high school. It’s one of the failures that most tortures me. Her life is turning out like a train wreck and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.’

  ‘But you’re doing all you can and that’s all anyone can ask of you,’ Frankie said, her tone touchingly sincere. ‘You sound like the most amazing brother. She’s so lucky to have you watching out for her. Your mother would be so proud of who you’ve become. In spite of all the obstacles thrown at you.’

  Gabriel gave her thigh a little pat. ‘Enough of this dismal talk.’ He stood and drew her up from the bed, holding her loosely in the circle of his arms. ‘Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m starving. Have a shower and get changed for dinner. I’ve made a booking and I’ve called the driver to pick us up in an hour.’

  * * *

  About an hour later, Frankie was sitting with Gabriel in a fine dining restaurant in Marseille. They were seated at a table in a quiet corner, the lighting low and intimate, the décor plush and luxurious. She was still mulling over all he had told her about his sister. While it had stung her that he hadn’t told her about Carli before, she understood his reasons given his ongoing worries about her. She looked across the table at him as he examined the menu, wondering how she could have misjudged him so badly.

  He hadn’t come to her father’s funeral, not because he didn’t want to but because he had been looking after his sister. She had always thought him arrogant and a little closed off, but why wouldn’t he be, given the heartache and suffering he had endured from such a young age? He was still suffering it, each day a living nightmare of gut-wrenching worry for his sister.

  How could Frankie keep an emotional distance when he had those wonderful qualities? Qualities of love and loyalty and commitment to his sister no matter what. Frankie knew some of what he was up against in trying to help his sister make something of her life. Her work as a special needs teacher had taught her how much a child’s background could jeopardise positive educational outcomes.

  Gabriel looked up from the menu and caught her surveying him. ‘Have you decided what you’d like?’

  What Frankie would like was to start their relationship again. To put it on a different footing, a more permanent footing. But she could never say that. It wasn’t what he wanted—he had made that unmistakably clear. ‘I was thinking the bouillabaisse.’

  ‘Good choice.’ He smiled and closed his menu. ‘It’s a traditional Provencal fish stew that originated at the port of Marseille. But no doubt you knew that, sì?’

  ‘I did, actually.’ She gave a wry smile. ‘My boarding school education in London was not entirely a waste of time.’ She paused for a beat and continued. ‘Speaking of education... I could help your sister if she wanted to complete her schooling. Lots of mature age students do it and—’

  ‘It’s a generous offer but I think it best if we limit the contact between you and my sister.’ His tone had an undercurrent of intractability.

  Frankie frowned. ‘But why? Do you think me incapable of dealing with her? I’ve dealt with children from difficult backgrounds, children with complex emotional and physical issues and I’ve—’

  ‘I’ve engaged tutors for her before and it’s been a waste of time and money.’ His expression was grim. ‘Besides, I don’t want her to get too invested in our relationship.’

  ‘Because it’s not permanent?’

  ‘Precisely.’ The firm set to his mouth and the hardness in his gaze told her the conversation was now closed.

  The waiter came to take their order and once he had gone, Frankie sipped her wine in silence. She could understand Gabriel’s concern for his sister, especially if Carli developed a close relationship with her. It would be difficult when their marriage came to its inevitable end. But friendships were often maintained post-divorce between relatives of the couple, sometimes even between the couple themselves. Or was Gabriel so determined to eject her from his life once the year was up? Did he expect the end of their marriage would be the end of their friendship? For that was what she was coming to enjoy about their relationship—not just the amazing lovemaking but the sense of having someone to talk to, someone who understood and listened to her. Respected her.

  Gabriel reached across the table and took her hand. ‘Don’t be angry with me, cara. Think of my decision as damage control.’

  Frankie pulled her hand away and placed it in her lap. ‘Look, I’m not expecting you to introduce me to all your family. But Carli is obviously someone you deeply care about. What if I could help her?’

  The marble-hard screen came up in his gaze. ‘It won’t help her when we divorce.’

  ‘Are you and I to never see or speak to each other again? Is that what you’ve planned?’

  A muscle beat in his jaw. ‘A clean break will be better. Less complicated.’

  A tight ache spread through her chest, a cruel invisible hand clutching her heart. ‘Is that how you end all your other relationships? Goodbye and good luck and thanks for the memories?’

  ‘Works for me.’ The cold finality in his voice was as deadly as the drop of a guillotine.
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  ‘Well, it doesn’t work for me. I can’t just dismiss someone from my life like throwing out milk after the use-by date.’

  ‘Francesca, we discussed this at the outset. One year and one year only.’ The indomitable note in his tone was a perfect match for the tight set to his mouth.

  Frankie picked up her wine and glared at him over the rim of the glass. ‘You know what I’ve noticed about you? You only call me Francesca when you want to put a barrier up.’ She took a sip of her wine and put the glass down.

  His gaze didn’t waver from hers but something moved at the back of it, like the surreptitious movements of a stagehand during a performance. ‘I don’t want to argue with you.’ His tone softened but the tautness of his jaw did not. ‘My concern is you’ll want more than I can give, especially now that we’re sleeping together. Good sex can muddy the waters.’

  ‘But not for you, clearly.’ Frankie couldn’t take the barb out of her voice. ‘You have amazing sex all the time, don’t you?’

  ‘It’s hardly a crime.’ He let out a breath and placed his hand over hers where it was resting on the table. ‘I don’t want you to think what we shared wasn’t special because it was. Very special. I will never forget it.’ The warm press of his hand sent a current of electricity through her body, her skin recognising and welcoming his touch. Wanting more of it. Needing it. Craving it, no matter what his terms were.

  Frankie gave a twisted smile. ‘Nice to know I’m unforgettable.’

  He gave her fingers a gentle squeeze. ‘You are. Unbelievably so.’

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  THE NEXT TEN days were spent exploring the region on day trips, visiting some of the tourist hot spots but often going to more secluded places to get away from the crowds. Gabriel had organised picnics that they shared on quieter beaches where they could see the calanques up close. There had been dinners and dancing at nightclubs and several shopping trips where he had bought her outfit after outfit. She only had to look at something and he had it on the counter and paid for with a flash of his credit card.