A Ring for Vincenzo's Heir
Wasted? The best days of her life?
Scarlett took a deep breath, struggling not to take it personally. “All right. I understand.” She was trying to understand, but her heart felt mutinous. She bit her lip, looking around. “We’ll need a little time to say goodbye—”
“You have two minutes.” Rising to his feet, he stalked toward the table where his bodyguards were busily flirting with two of the local girls.
Scarlett stared after him, shocked and hurt. The muscles around her pregnant belly clenched and she felt a sharp tinge in her lower back that made her leap to her feet.
“What is it?” Giuseppe said.
“I’m afraid we have to go,” Scarlett said. “Vin is anxious to get to Rome. You know he has the big business deal in the morning...”
“That is a pity,” Giuseppe said, rising to his feet. “You can’t stay the rest of the day?”
“Thank you.” Vin was suddenly beside her. He held out his hand to Giuseppe and said coldly, “It was a very nice wedding.”
“You’re welcome?” His father looked bemused as Vin shook his hand, then Joanne’s in turn.
“You can’t leave, Vin!” cried his sister. “You haven’t even cut the wedding cake! I’ve planned activities for the rest of the day. There’s a dance floor, and...”
“I’m sorry. As I told you from the beginning, I have an unbreakable appointment in Rome.”
“Oh. Right.” Maria looked crestfallen. Her fiancé, Luca, put his arm around her encouragingly. She bit her lip, tried to smile. “Of course, I...I understand.”
Scarlett didn’t understand. Why did they have to leave so soon, cutting off their wedding celebration? It seemed not just rude, but nonsensical. But she forced herself to hold her tongue.
Vin held out his hand to his sister, but the young brunette just brushed his hand aside and threw her arms around him in a hug. He stiffened, but she drew back with a smile. “We will see you soon, brother. Luca’s family lives in Rome. He’s trying to convince me to have our wedding there!”
“Oh?” His voice was cool.
“But we will see you sooner than that, I hope.” Looking at Scarlett, she said, “Call us when the baby comes.”
“Of course,” she replied warmly, trying to make up for her husband’s rudeness. “We will never forget all your kindness.”
“Not kindness,” Giuseppe insisted, patting Scarlett’s shoulder. “Family.”
She swallowed, blinking fast. “You’ve all been so wonderful...”
“Ciao.” Vin grabbed Scarlett’s wrist and pulled her away. She waved back at them, and they waved in return, until Vin and Scarlett were out of the villa and in the fresh air outside. The bodyguards were packing their luggage into the SUV.
“That was rude,” Scarlett said to Vin as he helped her into the passenger side of the two-seater.
Vin’s face was chilly as he climbed in beside her, starting up the engine. “You asked me to stop here for ten minutes, and we stayed for five days. What did you want, cara—to live here permanently?”
Without looking back, Vin pressed on the gas, driving around the stone fountain with a squeal of tires.
Twisting her head, Scarlett saw a crowd had poured out of the villa’s front door to wave goodbye and cry out their good wishes. “Vin, wait!”
He ignored her, pressing down harder on the gas pedal until they were on the cypress-lined road, out of the villa’s view, and all she could see were the bodyguards following in the big SUV behind them.
“What is wrong with you?” Scarlett demanded as she faced forward in her seat, folding her arms over her belly. “Why are you acting like this?”
“I’m not acting like anything. We stayed for the wedding. I thanked them for their kindness. It’s time to go.”
“We were rude! After everything they did for us—”
“Send them a thank-you card,” he said harshly.
Gripping the wheel of the car, he made record time down the tree-lined road across the wide Tuscan fields, and they soon returned to the main road.
Scarlett was fuming. Arms folded tightly, she glared out her window, lips pressed tightly together. The interior of the car was silent for a long time, until they were back on the heavily trafficked autostrada headed south toward Rome.