A Ring for Vincenzo's Heir

He’d made her feel wanted. Adored. Even...loved.

“I’ve wanted you so long,” he whispered against her skin. Her heartbeat tripled in her chest. “Say you’ll marry me, Scarlett. Say it...”

“I’ll marry you.”

His handsome face lit up with joy and hope, and she realized what she’d just said. With an intake of breath, she met his eyes.

“Do you mean it?”

She saw in his dark eyes that he wanted her to marry him. Desperately. And she...

She wanted to be in his arms. She wanted her baby to have a father. She wanted her child to be safe and loved and live in a comfortable home. Was she a fool? Of course she wanted those things!

But only if their marriage could be real. If she and Vin actually cared for each other, they might have a chance at happiness...

Will you take a chance on me, if I take one with you?

Vin was willing to marry her without a prenuptial agreement. He was taking the biggest risk. Was she willing to take a smaller one?

For the potential happiness—for all of them?

Yes.

“I’ll marry you,” she choked out and realized she was crying. She had no idea why, until he pulled her into his arms and held her tight, and she knew.

Vincenzo Borgia, so handsome and powerful, could have chosen any woman for his wife.

But he’d chosen her. Not only that, he was giving her incredible power over his life. If he could be brave enough to do that, so would she.

She’d be brave enough to make the choice based on her hopes, not her fears...

“I’d never take advantage of your trust,” she whispered.

“I know,” he said with a private smile, then kissed her tenderly. “You’ve made me so happy.”

“Me, too,” she said, smiling through her tears.

“Let’s marry as quickly as possible.” He caressed her cheek. “But the marriage laws are much stricter in Europe. My assistant says the quickest options include Gibraltar and Denmark, but at your state of pregnancy, I’m not sure you’d find a long car ride comfortable. I also have to be in Rome in five days to close a business deal.”

“What deal?”

“A controlling interest in Mediterranean Airlines. After I lost the deal with Air Transatlantique so spectacularly a couple of weeks ago—” he gave a wry smile “—I’m determined to get it. It’s a closely held company and the founder insisted on meeting with me before he’d sell his shares.”

“So let’s get married in Rome.”

He hesitated, then nodded. “It’ll take a little longer to get married there, with the required paperwork, but if we drive straight through, we could be in Rome by late tonight. I think I even own a house there.”

She gave an incredulous laugh. “You think you own a house? You’re not sure?”

A ghost of a smile traced the edges of his sensual lips. “I haven’t been back to my birth country for twenty years. I grew up in Rome, but—” his lips twisted bitterly “—my memories aren’t terribly happy there.”

His voice was strained, and his jaw tightened in a way that suggested she shouldn’t ask any more questions. But Scarlett was dying to ask them. It occurred to her that she knew very little about his past, or what had driven him to become a self-made billionaire who was cynical at the thought of love.

But before she could try to think of a way to formulate the question that he might actually answer, Vin took her hand and led her across the grass, back to the clinic’s parking lot, where the bodyguards waited with the cars.

As they walked, Scarlett glanced down at Vin’s hand holding her smaller one. Feeling the warmth of his rough palm against hers, skin on skin, his fingers wrapped so possessively around hers, made her tremble as she walked. Her lips still tingled from his kiss.

“Congratulate us.” Vin brought her to the three hulking, scowling bodyguards. “Scarlett has agreed to be my bride. We’ll be married in a few days.”

The three bodyguards lifted up their mirrored sunglasses, and their scowls gave way to bright smiles. They looked almost human as Vin introduced each of them by name. Each man shook her hand, murmuring congratulations. It was amazing how much less scary they suddenly seemed. Scarlett couldn’t help smiling back.