The Salvatore Marriage Deal Read online

  ‘I’ve missed this,’ Vito said, slipping her dress off her shoulders and pulling it all the way down under her hips.

  He let his gaze wander over her as she lay on the bed dressed in nothing but a lacy bra, French knickers, hold-up stockings and high-heeled shoes.

  She was gorgeous.

  ‘You are beautiful,’ he murmured, cupping one breast in each hand. They were deliciously warm beneath his fingers, and he felt her nipples harden instantly against his palms.

  She was moving restlessly on the bed, and he knew it wouldn’t take much to bring her back to a state of heightened arousal. She had been unbelievably responsive to him out on the lagoon, and knowing how he was affecting her had also been a powerful aphrodisiac for him. Not that she’d ever had to do much to turn him on—he’d been hot for her from the moment he’d first laid eyes on her. And tonight he planned to lay more on her than just his eyes. They were to be married, and he would make her his wife in every sense.

  With skilful fingers he slipped his hands behind her back to unhook her bra, and as he tossed it to one side he saw her start to tremble again. Her pupils were dilated with her building need, and as she arched her back, thrusting her breasts up towards him, he knew exactly what she wanted.

  ‘Oh!’ Lily cried out as his mouth closed over her nipple. Glorious feelings rippled through her body, as his sinuous tongue worked magic on her tingling flesh. ‘Oh, Vito!’ She said his name again. She couldn’t believe she was really here, that this was really happening. Vito was making love to her again, and everything would be as it had been.

  His hands were moving over her body, burning a trail wherever they touched, removing her French knickers and stockings, urging her pulse rate up and up.

  She lay naked on the bed, breathing raggedly as Vito finally lifted his head to look at her. A knot of sexual excitement twisted inside her as she gazed into his darkened eyes. She knew he wanted her as much as her body was aching for him.

  But he was wearing too many clothes. She needed to feel his skin against hers, run her hands over his hard, muscled body. She reached up to undo his shirt.

  ‘This is good.’ Vito’s voice was husky as he looked down at her fingers struggling with his buttons. ‘I should have remembered—eating out always made you amorous.’

  ‘No, it didn’t,’ Lily protested, finally tossing his shirt away. Then she paused and stared at him, suddenly thinking back to when they’d lived together. Some of their most romantic evenings had involved an evening out.

  ‘Ah—now you remember,’ Vito drawled, lazily pulling his black leather belt through the loop on his trousers.

  ‘It wasn’t eating out,’ Lily replied.

  A strangely hollow feeling moved through her as she suddenly realised that it had been more about having his attention. When he’d spent an evening with her—rather than working—it had made her feel special. Wanted. Worthy of him.

  When he’d slipped into bed beside her after a night spent in his office she’d always welcomed him into her arms. But it hadn’t been the same. She’d taken pleasure from knowing that he sought comfort in her arms after a long day of work. But it was never the same as when he’d spent time with her.

  ‘We’ll test it again tomorrow,’ Vito said, his voice tickling her stomach as he leant forward and scattered kisses over her sensitive skin. ‘We’ll go to Luigi’s.’

  Without meaning to, Lily felt herself tense.

  Vito sat up and looked at her sharply.

  ‘What is it?’ he demanded, his voice cold and hard. ‘When I mentioned Luigi earlier you acted strangely. Tell me what this is about.’

  ‘Nothing,’ Lily said, pushing herself up onto her elbows and suddenly feeling acutely conscious of the fact that she was naked.

  ‘Tell me.’ Vito swore and lurched angrily to his feet. ‘Is he the one? Is he the one you betrayed me with?’

  ‘No!’ Lily gasped. She hugged her knees up to her chest and looked at him in alarm. A terrifying change had come over him, darkening his features and making the room crackle with angry energy.

  ‘I’ll ask him!’ He snatched up his shirt and started to pull it on jerkily.

  ‘No!’ Lily cried in horror. She couldn’t let Vito storm out to confront Luigi. He’d been her guardian angel that night—she couldn’t bear him to suffer Vito’s rage because of his kindness. ‘Listen. It’s not what you think—I’ll tell you what happened.’

  ‘Speak quickly,’ Vito said, reaching for his jacket. ‘Then, when I’ve heard your lies, I’ll go and hear what Luigi has to say.’

  ‘He’ll tell you how he found me alone, with nowhere to go, on the night you threw me out!’ She stared up at him, painful memories bombarding her.

  ‘Continue,’ Vito grated, his face dark with barely contained fury.

  ‘The fog closed the airport.’ She took a breath, but she knew her voice was still shaky. ‘It was a few days before Easter—everywhere was fully booked. I couldn’t find a hotel—’

  ‘Are you trying to tell me every hotel room in Venice was full?’ Vito demanded. ‘Don’t be absurd.’

  ‘It was already late when I left here,’ she said, remembering how sick and miserable she’d felt, dragging herself from hotel to hotel. ‘I’d stopped for a moment, down the alley near Luigi’s, trying to think what to do. He saw me standing there, alone with my luggage.’

  ‘Go on.’ Vito’s frown was thunderous, creating a deep vertical crease between his brows and casting his eyes into dark shadow.

  ‘He was very kind. He took me to his mother’s house, because she has a spare room,’ Lily said quietly. ‘That’s all.’

  She looked up at him, anxious that he should believe her—as much for Luigi’s sake as her own. But he remained ominously silent.

  Suddenly she found herself wondering how Vito felt. Did he care at all that she had been alone and unprotected that night in Venice, with no one to turn to and nowhere to seek refuge? She hugged her knees tighter, pressing her forehead against them and letting her hair fall forwards in a curtain around her.

  He didn’t care. He’d never really cared about her. A passing acquaintance had cared more for her well-being that night than Vito.

  Humiliation gnawed at her. What was she doing here? Why was she here with a man who didn’t care about her and didn’t even have the slightest respect for her?

  ‘Don’t hide from me.’

  Vito’s voice cut through her misery like cold steel. She lifted her head in time to see him reaching for her—then suddenly she was standing beside the bed facing him.

  ‘I wasn’t hiding.’ She tossed her hair back over her shoulders defiantly, despite the fact it bared her breasts to him again. She was completely naked, while he was almost completely dressed. But she refused to let herself think about that.

  ‘We will never discuss the night you left Venice again,’ Vito said. ‘Tomorrow we eat at Luigi’s—showing everyone that we are an ecstatic couple about to be married.’

  ‘As you wish,’ Lily responded stiffly, thinking that Luigi was bound to be curious as to what had happened.

  ‘It is unacceptable that you turned to Luigi,’ Vito continued, his voice throbbing with intensity. ‘Mark my words—you will never again take our problems outside of this bedroom. Whatever happens,’ he grated, ‘our affairs are private.’

  ‘You threw me out!’ Lily cried in her defence.

  ‘But now you’re back.’ Vito’s eyes swept over her, leaving a trail of sexual awareness prickling over her naked body. ‘And you must take the consequences of your actions.’

  ‘What is that supposed to mean?’ Lily stood tall, resisting the urge to fidget under his hot eyes.

  ‘That you are mine.’ His voice was loaded with sexual possessiveness. ‘And you will do anything I want.’

  ‘I’ve always done whatever you want,’ Lily threw back at him.

  It was true, she realised to her shame. Except when they’d been together it had always seemed that they wanted the
same thing.

  ‘Not always,’ Vito growled, seizing her roughly and dragging her up against him. He loomed over her, plunging his hands into her hair and pulling her head back so that their faces were only inches apart. ‘But now you’re mine—only mine. No other man is ever going to touch you again.’

  He dragged her closer, bumping their hips together erotically. Lily gasped at the intimate contact just as his lips closed, hot and demanding, over hers.

  His tongue pushed into her mouth, stoking the sexual fire that was suddenly raging between them once more. Desire for him rushed through her veins, making her insides tingle and her legs turn to water.

  A pulsing point of sensation starting throbbing between her legs, and the feel of his hands running over her naked skin was driving her wild with her own need to touch him.

  He pulled away from her abruptly, and shrugged his jacket off. Lily stood shakily, taking shallow breaths as she watched him discarding his clothes. Her gaze drifted up to his face.

  What she saw made her heart miss a beat.

  He was furious.

  She could see the anger burning in his eyes, pulling the muscles in his face taut with tension. He was still absolutely livid about her supposed infidelity, and this was an act of vengeance.

  ‘No.’ Lily took a step backwards.

  ‘You can’t back out now.’ Vito moved towards her, and lifted his hand to cup her breast. His thumb toyed with her nipple, and an answering ripple of delight spread through her body. ‘You are mine to take, whenever I choose.’

  ‘You’re not going to make love to me out of anger,’ Lily said, trying to ignore the feel of his hand on her breast and the sensual pleasure his touch was giving her.

  ‘I’m taking back what is mine.’

  ‘I was always yours.’ Lily’s voice was small and steady, despite the turmoil of emotions and physical sensations that was assailing her.

  Almost before her words were finished, he moved forwards and pulled her into his arms again. His mouth came down to kiss her, and as his tongue thrust between her lips it was as if he was staking his claim in the most basic way.

  Her treacherous body was responding to his. Despite her mind protesting that this was not right—that she had to stop him if she was to maintain any self-respect—her flesh was aching with her need for him. Deep inside she was vibrating with her desire to feel him lying on top of her, thrusting into her. Making her his again.

  Suddenly he pulled away.

  His breathing was ragged as he stood looking at her for a moment, his expression utterly impenetrable. Then he turned on his heel and walked out.

  Lily stared after him—beset by conflicting emotions.

  It was what she’d wanted, wasn’t it?

  Then why did she feel so bereft?

  Lily stood by the window, looking down at the canal below, wondering how she could make things better between Vito and herself. It was several weeks since they’d been married, and she was still having trouble adjusting to it.

  It was hard to believe it was actually real, especially as Vito had hardly come near her since the night he had stormed out of the bedroom. At first she’d assumed he was simply cooling off—she’d known how angry he was. But then the wedding had come and gone, with only the bare formalities discussed between them.

  It had been a small, private ceremony, and the simple occasion had scarcely caused a blip in the passage of time. It was extraordinary that such a momentous life event had slipped past without greater impact. But then it had not been a normal wedding. And as the weeks had continued to pass it was painfully clear that it was not a normal marriage.

  She almost felt like she was stuck in a time warp—with nothing really changing and every day the same. Vito had continued to share the bedroom, but he worked late most nights, often coming to bed after midnight. And, although weeks had passed, he’d never touched her.

  She knew he was worried about his grandfather. His instinct that his grandfather’s health was not right on Lily’s first day back in Venice had proved to be correct, because Giovanni had soon gone down with a nasty chest-infection. But, from the little information Lily was able to glean, that appeared to have cleared up now.

  She turned away from the window, planning to sit and read for a while before going out for a walk, when a movement from the doorway caught her eye.

  ‘Vito.’ She said his name in surprise. It was barely ten o’clock in the morning—he never came home from work during the day. ‘Is everything all right? Your grandfather…?’

  ‘Yes,’ Vito replied. ‘In fact that is why I am here. My grandfather’s health is much improved. This morning would be a suitable time for you to meet him.’

  ‘I’ll go and get my bag.’ Lily walked towards the door, then hesitated as Vito didn’t step aside to let her through. She held her breath and slipped past him, feeling the hairs on her arms stand up and her heart-rate increase, as she couldn’t help brushing lightly against him.

  She tried to ignore the feeling as she ran up the stairs to the bedroom. She paused in front of the mirror to check her appearance, and was disconcerted to see her flushed cheeks and animated eyes.

  Was it the simple contact of brushing against him that had caused the light in her face? Or was it the prospect of spending a little time in Vito’s company?

  Whatever the case, she didn’t ponder it, and as she didn’t need to change her clothes she hurried back down the stairs. Ever since the first morning in Venice she had taken trouble with her appearance. She didn’t want to give Vito another opportunity to humiliate her.

  The walk to Ca’ Salvatore didn’t take long, and as they arrived at the baroque palazzo Vito took her hand in his. A charge of energy passed between them and, as Lily felt herself tremble, she realised it was the first proper physical contact they’d shared since the night they’d nearly made love.

  Vito had not touched her since then, and the fact that he had chosen this moment to hold her hand made it clear to Lily that his intention was to show all at Ca’ Salvatore that she was his. It was a reminder of how important it was to Vito that his grandfather saw them as a proper couple.

  He led her into the beautiful building and up to the second-floor room where Giovanni was resting in bed.

  ‘Nonno, there is someone I’d like you to meet,’ Vito said. He crossed the room to kiss his grandfather’s cheek. Then, putting his arm round the old man’s shoulders, he helped him up into a sitting position.

  ‘We’re speaking in English?’ Giovanni asked, squinting across the room short-sightedly. ‘Very intriguing. I’d better put my spectacles on.’

  Lily smiled. Despite her nervousness, she was already warming to the old man. His body might be frail, but his mind was certainly active.

  ‘They’re here, with your newspaper.’ She slipped around to the other side of the large bed and handed his spectacles to him.

  ‘Thank you, my dear. No, stay close,’ Giovanni added, his bony hand shooting out to catch her arm and pull her closer. ‘So I can get a proper look at you.’

  ‘Nonno!’ Vito chided gently. ‘Let go of Lily, and I’ll introduce you properly.’

  ‘Formalities!’ Giovanni scoffed, although he did release his grip. ‘What use are formalities at my age? Tell me quickly—who is this beautiful young English woman? And why have you brought her to meet me?’

  ‘This is Lily,’ Vito said. ‘And I’m very pleased to tell you that—’

  ‘Yes, yes—get on with it,’ Giovanni urged.

  ‘That she is my wife,’ Vito finished smoothly, not at all phased by his grandfather’s interruption.

  ‘Your wife?’ Giovanni said. ‘Why didn’t I know about this?’

  ‘You were sick, Nonno,’ Vito said. ‘I thought it best to go ahead with the wedding and tell you when you were feeling better.’

  ‘You were married without me?’ Giovanni said, sounding slightly affronted as he looked sharply at Vito, then across at Lily. ‘So you’ve finally come to your sen
ses and decided to settle down?’

  ‘Yes, Nonno,’ Vito said, hugging Lily in an open display of affection. She leant into his embrace, taking comfort from the feel of his strong arms around her, despite the knowledge that it was only for show. A whirl of conflicting thoughts and emotions was flowing through her, but she fought to keep a clear head and pay attention to the exchange between Vito and his grandfather. ‘It was a very small wedding,’ Vito added.

  Just how significant had Giovanni’s desire to see his grandson settled been in Vito’s sudden proposal? Everything had happened so quickly at first, and in the intervening time she still hadn’t come any closer to figuring out Vito’s motivation. She had married him for her child’s sake—but she didn’t really understand what was in it for Vito. Especially as he seemed to be avoiding her.

  ‘So you found the right woman after all?’ Giovanni probed, leaning forward and peering closely at Lily. ‘An English rose—or should I say an English lily? The name is certainly appropriate.’

  ‘The right woman,’ Vito repeated, placing a brief kiss on Lily’s cheek. ‘Si, Nonno. You always told me that in time I would find the right woman.’

  The old man snorted, wicked humour making his eyes brighten. ‘I said that, did I? I seem to remember talking to you just a few days before I got that wretched infection,’ he said. ‘I told you to hurry up and provide me with an heir. Is that what this is?’

  Lily barely managed to shield her shocked reaction. Her heart jerked painfully in her chest, and for a second she struggled to draw air into her lungs. Then she became aware of Vito beside her.

  He had gone utterly rigid. A horrible sensation cut through her. It was as if she could actually feel his pain as his muscles tensed with agonising intensity.

  ‘You went on a business trip to London,’ Giovanni said. ‘What did you do—propose to the first attractive girl you met?’

  ‘No, Nonno. That’s not how it happened…’ Vito looked at his grandfather’s face and suddenly ran out of words.