An Italian Dream

Stella nodded. ‘What does your uncle do?’

‘He works in fashion; my father in property.’

‘And what do you do?’ she asked.

‘I work in property – the family business. It makes sense. My sister does too and I’m sure one day our children will as well, if it is their desire. What do you do back in England?’

‘I’m a Global Operations Strategy Associate for a takeaway app.’

Luca frowned.

‘You’re pulling the exact face most of my friends do when I try to explain my job.’

‘You like it, your job? It’s a good one?’

‘It pays the bills and I’m good at it, so that’s a win in my eyes. You sell property?’

‘Sell, yes, and invest in. Investing is how my family made money.’

Stella rested her elbow on the table and leant her chin on her hand. She looked at him intently. ‘You’re obviously extremely wealthy, right? I mean, I know this yacht isn’t yours, but it belongs to your family. You have money.’

He nodded and gave her a cheeky grin. ‘You are right. I have money.’

‘Well, what advice would you give to someone who has recently come in to a lot of money?’

His smile remained, but his eyes narrowed as he focused on her fully. ‘By someone, you mean you, si?’

‘Yep.’

Stella was aware of the others, but Amber was still deep in conversation with Desi and Chloe was out of earshot, lounging on the deck with the other two, sipping her prosecco.

‘How you get the money?’ His frown increased.

Stella laughed. ‘Not through dodgy means, I promise. I won the Lottery in the UK towards the end of last year.’

He whistled. ‘And you need advice about how to spend it?’

‘Not exactly spend it, but the smart thing to do with it.’

‘You not get advice from who you win it from?’

‘Oh yes, there’s all kinds of support and financial advice, but I’m interested to hear your thoughts, being someone who has money and I assume is quite smart about it. I’d like to know what you’d do.’

‘How much you win?’

‘A lot.’ Stella lowered her voice. ‘The only people I’ve told about my win are here with me in Capri.’ She leaned closer until she was an inch from his ear. ‘And I haven’t been completely truthful with them either. I’ve won a lot more than they realise.’

He smelt delicious. A spicy, sensual aftershave. She pulled away a little and looked into his smiling brown eyes.

‘The best thing you can do is invest at least some of the money. Property, if you are smart, is always a good choice.’ He pressed his hands to his chest. ‘You talk to the right person.’ He lowered his voice and leaned closer until his breath was hot against her neck. ‘How much did you tell them you won?’

‘Just over a million.’

‘How much you actually win?’

Stella met his cool, brooding gaze.

‘Twenty-seven point five million pounds,’ she whispered.