Phantom Marriage

‘Not at all,’ he denied. ‘I am a very kind man. But at the moment I’m also a very single man. And enjoying it,’ he added with the wickedest glance thrown her way.

A sexually charged shiver rippled down her spine, heat spreading through her lower body. Her nipples hardened and her belly tightened. All from just a look.

Oh, my.

‘Go back to taking your photographs, Veronica,’ he ordered thickly. ‘And I’ll go back to making sure we get down safely. There’s a strong wind blowing over Capri and this is a very light machine.’

He got them down safely, but he was right about the wind. It whipped her hair into a right mess on the way to the waiting taxi, which thankfully wasn’t Franco’s. No way did she want to make idle conversation with Franco who, she suspected, was somewhat of a gossip.

Finger-combing her hair into some semblance of order, she climbed into the taxi ahead of Leonardo, who told the driver to take them to the Hotel Fabrizzi. She winced at this, not wanting to endure talking to any of Leonardo’s family, especially not his mother.

‘It’s all right,’ he whispered to her. ‘Mamma will be busy inside. You can dash off up the path to the villa and I’ll follow shortly. I just have to collect a few things for my overnight stay.’

‘But what will they all think?’ she whispered back.

He shrugged again, that dismissive shrug he used a lot. ‘I refuse to live my life by other people’s expectations. Now, hush up.’

She fell silent then. And so did he.

It was only a short drive from the helipad to the hotel. But the silence made it seem longer. It was so sexy, that silence, sending Veronica’s head spinning with desire. By the time they turned into the courtyard she was agitated beyond belief. She hurried out of the taxi then rushed away from him, under the pergola and up the steep steps. She didn’t look back. She knew he would soon come after her; knew they would soon be together.

Another erotic shiver raced through her as she dived into the pot to retrieve the front-door key. No, not a shiver this time. A shudder. The kind of bone-shaking shudder that a floundering ship might make. It reminded Veronica of her earlier idea that she and Leonardo were ships passing in the night.

If only that were true…

They weren’t ships passing in the night, without consequences or complications. They were on a collision course.

Veronica shuddered again as she ran inside. She was still nervous but not afraid. She should have been afraid. Why wasn’t she afraid? Why was it that she didn’t care about consequences or complications? Was this what lust did to you—made you reckless and foolish? Made you uncaring of anything but the promise of pleasure?

Not that Leonardo was a promise of pleasure. He was pleasure.

Such thinking made Veronica feel hot and sticky all over. She winced at the thought that she might smell of perspiration. And other things…

She’d always been very particular about personal hygiene, hating it when clients came to her without having a shower first. Would she have time for a quick shower? she wondered.

It had only been a minute since she’d left Leonardo. Surely it would be at least another five minutes before he made an appearance? His mother was likely to collar him and ask him innumerable questions about their day together.

Veronica was already stripping as she hurried towards the master bedroom with its lovely en suite bathroom.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

LEONARDO WAS GRATEFUL that the hotel was rather chaotic inside, with guests coming and going. He was able to slip into his room and get what he needed for the night without being accosted by his mother or father. Elena did grab him on the way out from where she was stationed behind Reception.

‘Going somewhere?’ she asked in Italian after eyeing his overnight bag.

‘I’m staying in Laurence’s guest room tonight,’ he replied, also in Italian. ‘I can’t stand the noise when this place is full.’

‘Veronica doesn’t mind?’ his sister asked with a knowing glint in her eye.

‘Why should she mind? She came here to find out about her father. I had more to do with Laurence than any of you so I can tell her everything she wants to know.’

Elena smiled. ‘She’s very beautiful. She’s also very nice. She would make some lucky man a good wife.’

He just smiled, told her not to meddle and left.

But his smile didn’t last for long.

It annoyed him lately, how much his family were trying to press him into settling down. He had no intention of marr