Scandal and the Runaway Bride (Heirs to an Empire 1)

She’d called him Will. Twice.

Over the last twenty-four hours he’d tried to push that thought aside and failed. Why should it matter so? And yet the sound of her voice, soft and yet strong, speaking the truncated version of his name, repeated over and over. She’d gotten into his head, hadn’t she? Into his blood, like a drug he needed more of. The thought sent a shaft of panic through his veins. All those years ago, he’d been looking for thrills, adventure, and the element of danger had been attractive. The reasons why he’d gone off the rails didn’t matter. What mattered was that he was worried that reckless person was still inside of him somewhere, waiting to emerge and undo all his hard work.

Was that the real reason he’d insisted he come along? To get his Gabi fix? It couldn’t be. No. He was being careful. Protecting his family, like he’d promised to do four years ago. And Gabi was not to blame, not for this. Not for the undeniable attraction and...dammit, need for her. She’d done absolutely nothing to try to tempt or manipulate him. He wasn’t sure she was capable of it. No, this was all on him.

Now they were in a rented car, climbing the hill to her family’s villa outside Perugia. Umbria was not a region he’d traveled to often, and he was captivated by the rolling hills and abundant olive groves. Gabi drove at eye-watering speeds through the turns, and more than once his fingers tightened in his lap while Gabi seemed perfectly serene.

Perhaps she was. She was getting her way, after all. Except for one sticking point. Stephen would be arriving on Tuesday.

He and his brother had had a huge argument about it. First about the photo, which he’d had to explain as best he could, leaving out the truth that Gabi had so plainly revealed during their argument yesterday. They did have chemistry, and a lot of it. She was also right that to ignore it would be a big mistake. Nothing like that scene on the bench—or yesterday’s kiss—could happen again.

Once he’d calmed Stephen down, he’d put forward the case for him visiting the Baresi villa. He’d expected it to be a harder sell, but once they’d shifted into business talk Stephen had been far more amenable. It came down to what was good for Aurora, Inc., and the rest be damned.

He loved his brother, but even William was losing patience with Stephen’s cold, calculating manner. He’d treated his wedding like a business merger. No wonder Gabi had fled. She deserved better. Even if she’d threatened to reveal the truth to the press, he understood an act of desperation when he saw it. She wasn’t mercenary. She was fighting back. He admired that, even if it made her a pain in his neck.

And once more, he was the mess cleaner-upper. Which meant he had to keep her from making good on her threat. He was feeling pulled in about six directions, but he could manage. Finding the right thing to focus on and then coming up with solutions was something he’d discovered he was good at during his time in the trenches at Aurora. It was why his mother had put him in charge of the division, or so she said.

Clean up the mess. Run a division. Make everyone happy. No pressure at all. He’d redeemed himself and proved he was up to the task.

“William?”

“Hmm?” He turned toward her, found her smiling. The sight shouldn’t affect him at all, but her full lips curved happily and a light in her eyes sent a warm sensation through his chest. When she was happy, she was breathtaking.

“You weren’t listening. Look. You can see the villa from here.” She pointed out his window.

A stone villa stood proudly atop the hill. Even at this distance he could tell it wasn’t massive but was a good size, tall and strong. Massimo Baresi had built his business and provided for his family. As they wound their way up the drive, he noted healthy-looking olive groves and slopes of leafy grapes. Dust swirled up from their tires as they neared the house, and when they pulled to a stop, a woman who had to be Gabi’s mother stepped outside the door, shading her eyes with her hand, a huge smile breaking over her face.

Gabi barely waited for the car to stop before she jumped out and rushed across the gravel, calling, “Mama!”

They hugged tightly for several seconds before Gabi stepped back and turned toward the car.

William took it as his cue, so he opened the door and got out, then shut it carefully behind him.

Signora Baresi said something in Italian as her gaze traveled over him, assessing. William lifted an eyebrow as Gabi laughed, but she gave her head a little shake. He’d ask her later what her mother had said, but there was a twinkle in the older woman’s eye so he guessed it couldn’t be anything too bad.

“Signora Baresi, it is so good to meet you.”

She looked up at him, her eyes sharp. “We were surprised that you were coming with Gabi, and not Stephen.”

“He’ll join us on Tuesday.”

Signora Baresi let her gaze slide to her daughter. “Oh, well, that’s good.”

Gabi’s smile was weak. “It’s the first he could get away.”

“Get away? You were supposed to be on your honeymoon this week!”

At Gabi’s panicked look, William stepped in. “I’m afraid that’s my fault,” he interjected as smoothly as possible. “I asked Stephen for help on a project. I thought it would keep his mind off things.”

Signora Baresi looked at Gabi again. “And you’re feeling all right?”

“I’m fine now. Is Giulia here?”

“Tomorrow. She’s been staying with friends in Rome since the wedding. I mean, since the wedding was canceled.”

Gabi flinched. Clearly the Baresi family had been in favor of the marriage, and the delay wasn’t going over well. William quickly realized that Gabi had wanted to come home, but she’d also known that she’d have to keep up the lie of why the wedding didn’t happen. She loved her parents. Lying to them had to be killing her.

Did they realize how much she would sacrifice for their well-being?