Harlequin Presents--April 2021--Box Set 2 of 2

by Dani Collins

  Paulo she wasn’t so close to, but she and Nicki were supposed to be best friends.

  It was a question of trust, Ariana realised.

  Deep in her soul, Ariana realised that she did not trust the woman who sat by her side and it had nothing to do with Gian’s opinion of Nicki...

  The answer had arrived in its own time and the conclusion Ariana came to was all hers.

  Ariana said nothing, of course. She just smiled through the proceedings and raised a glass when Dante announced in his speech that he and Mia were expecting twins—likely the reason for her showing so much. Not that Nicki corrected her earlier assumption. ‘You’re going to be an aunty...twice!’ Nicki screeched, and called to the waiter for another bottle of champagne.

  ‘Make that two bottles,’ Paulo said, and Ariana’s eyes actually scanned the room for Gian, as if hope and need might make him somehow appear.

  He did not.

  Apart from his absence, it was a wonderful wedding, their love so palpable it made Ariana both happy and pensive.

  ‘It will be your turn soon.’ Nicki smiled as they took a break from the dancing. ‘And I shall be your bridesmaid...’

  ‘You’ll be the oldest bridesmaid in Rome if you wait for me,’ Ariana said. ‘I want a career.’

  ‘Why?’ Nicki frowned. ‘It’s not as if you need to work. You have Daddy’s trust fund. Didn’t he leave you an apartment in Paris? We should go there and check it out...’

  ‘It’s not enough—’

  ‘Please,’ Nicki scoffed. ‘Poor little rich girl.’ Her narrowed eyes snapped back to wide and friendly and she pushed out a smile. ‘Let’s join Paulo.’

  ‘You go,’ Ariana encouraged. ‘I’ll just sit here awhile.’

  Her rare absence on the dance floor did not go unnoticed. ‘Get off your phone, Ariana,’ Dante called. ‘Come and dance...’

  Except it wasn’t her own phone that Ariana was going through, it was her friend’s. Some might call it dishonest, or an invasion of privacy, a breach of trust...

  Except, from where Ariana now sat, those titles belonged to Nicki.

  There was a sneaky little shot of Mia in profile as she made her vows, a definite confirmation of the pregnancy that had been announced only to family and friends. That could be excused, though, as lots of people had been taking photos.

  What could not be excused was an earlier image of Mia and Dante, locked in a passionate embrace. It was the photo that had been taken at the ball, the one that had caused so much pain.

  To a heart that Ariana had thought could not be broken further, the knowledge that her friend had betrayed her added another river of pain.

  The ridiculous part was that the one person in whom she would have confided, Ariana had asked not to attend.

  She missed him.

  Even with his selfish guidelines as to what a relationship with him might entail, she needed him tonight.

  ‘Ariana!’

  Her name was being shouted by lots of people now.

  Maybe she had grown up some, because instead of confronting Nicki and causing a scene at her brother’s wedding, she did the right thing.

  Ariana put down the phone, topped up her lipstick...

  ...and danced.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  ARIANA WASN’T AVOIDING sorting out her life.

  If that had been the case, then she would have said yes to Gian’s offer to be his mistress. She would have left her chaotic family and Janus friend and headed for Florence to be wined and dined and made love to over and over.

  Instead, she faced the mountain that at first had looked far too high to climb. Yet, bit by bit, she found the tools to tackle it, some of which had been given to her by Gian.

  The doorman received a stern warning that from now on Ariana’s whereabouts were to remain private and heaven help him if an unannounced guest arrived at her door. She declined nights out with Paulo, to be seen, for she had felt Gian’s exasperation and knew he was right.

  It wasn’t just Gian’s suggestions she followed, though. She also took Dante’s perpetual advice and finally turned off her phone.

  Apart from Eloa’s hen night, where red lips were certainly required, most were spent sitting on her apartment floor, eating ice cream and finally sorting out her photos into albums.

  Ariana chose to withdraw from the endless vacuous socialising and learned to rely on her own company, arranging her past into a more honest shape as she prepared for a new future. Finally, she was ready for a couple of nights in Luctano, where she spoke at length with Roberto and got to know her father, a little too late, but a whole lot more.

  ‘He loved you,’ Roberto said.

  ‘I know.’

  She did.

  On the Thursday before she headed for home, ready now to visit his grave, Ariana spread an armful of gorgeous hand-picked daffodils, which meant truth, rebirth and new beginnings, and a little sprig of violets, for peace in the afterlife, and told him about Stefano and Eloa’s wedding, which was just two days away.

  ‘I am his wedding padrihnos, or wedding bridesmaid,’ Ariana told her father. ‘It basically means I am Stefano’s best man.’ She knew that would make him smile, wherever he was now. ‘And Nicki is coming over tomorrow and I shall be telling her she is not welcome at the wedding and I don’t want to see her any more.’ Ariana swallowed. ‘I still haven’t told Dante about the photo.’

  It wasn’t her brother’s wrath that worried her, more that he would, of course, tell Gian. She couldn’t bear the thought of him rolling his eyes, for he had warned her about Nicki more than once.

  There was something else too, something she hadn’t told anyone yet, not even herself, but she admitted it out loud now. ‘I am in love with Gian, Papà.’

  She wouldn’t be the first in her family to act in her own interests and keep it secret, were she to become his mistress, but despite how she felt about Gian, she could not reconcile herself to it. Not now she was finally becoming someone she could be proud of.

  * * *

  ‘You’re not ready!’ Nicki frowned, when she saw Ariana dressed in a pale grey dress and flat sandals and with her hair wild and her eyes all puffy and swollen.

  ‘Actually, I am ready,’ Ariana corrected. She had been up all night, completing the finishing touches to gifts for her loved ones, and she had worked through the day, only stopping to refuel with coffee, thinking about what must be done. ‘Come in, Nicki.’

  It was up there with the hardest things she had ever done, because Ariana had truly thought of Nicki as a forever friend. Confronted with the evidence of what she had done, Nicki attacked her friend, and Ariana didn’t have the energy to muster a defence against the tirade of abuse she was subjected to. Instead she listened and then said, ‘I think you should leave now.’

  ‘But we have the wedding tomorrow,’ Nicki flailed. ‘It’ll look odd if I’m not there and we have our trip to Paris—’

  ‘I have a wedding tomorrow,’ Ariana interrupted. ‘You’re no longer welcome at Romano family events.’

  It hurt and it hurt and it hurt, and once Nicki had gone, she cried for a while. But Ariana wanted this chapter of her life firmly closed, which meant that she had to tell Dante and Mia that it had been her friend who had invaded their privacy and outed them to the press.

  And in turn they would tell Gian.

  Only that wasn’t right, Ariana knew. It wasn’t up to Dante to tidy up after her. It was her friend who had caused this, and it was Ariana’s mess to clean up. With that thought in mind, she grabbed a wrapped parcel from her bed. She had intended to mail it, but that was a cop-out and so she walked, or rather marched, her way down cobbled lanes and packed streets then pushed through the gorgeous brass door of La Fiordelise and towards his office, where she was met by his gatekeeper, Luna.

  ‘Gian is in a meeting at the moment,
’ Luna said.

  ‘It’s my fault for arriving unannounced...’ Ariana shook her dizzy head ‘...but if he can spare me a moment when he’s done it would be very much appreciated.’

  ‘Of course.’ Luna nodded. ‘Would you like some refreshments while you wait?’

  Ariana guessed she was being sent to the Pianoforte Bar, or, as his lovers should name it, the Relegation Bar, and her braveness evaporated. ‘It’s fine.’ Ariana had changed her mind. ‘I’ll catch up with him another time.’

  ‘No, no...’ Luna said, and it dawned on her that she was not being sent to the Pianoforte Bar. Instead, Luna gently suggested that she freshen up and pointed her towards a powder room. ‘Still or sparkling?’ she asked.

  ‘Sorry?’ Ariana frowned.

  ‘Acqua,’ Luna said patiently. ‘Would you like still or sparkling?’

  She must thank Luna one day, Ariana thought as she splashed her face with water and ran a comb through her hair, because she still had a morsel of pride left, enough to know she had been saved from facing him looking so terrible.

  Terrible.

  Ariana hadn’t so much as glanced in a mirror since her confrontation with Nicki. It looked as if she’d rolled out of bed this morning and just pulled a dress on.

  She had.

  As if she hadn’t brushed her hair.

  She hadn’t.

  Her skin was all pale and blotchy, and her lips were swollen from crying so there was no point painting her usual red lipstick on. Still, she was grateful for the reprieve and the chance to freshen up somewhat, as Luna would no doubt have told him that yet another of his exes had shown up in a state of distress...

  No, not she!

  * * *

  ‘I have Ariana Romano in Reception, asking to see you.’

  Gian was just packing up his laptop, about to head to Florence. He had no time for theatrics. And yet, with each day that passed, he found that he missed the colour she had brought to his world, the drama and emotion she always brought to his table, to his bed...

  He wanted them.

  It had been hell missing his friend’s wedding because, despite his supposed lack in the heart department, under any other circumstances he would have moved heaven and earth to have been there.

  ‘I can tell her that you are due to fly out—’

  ‘It’s fine,’ Gian cut in.

  ‘I should warn you then, Gian, she seems distressed...’

  ‘Was she short with you?’ Gian asked, almost hopefully, because if Ariana was throwing her weight around with his staff, he could at least be aggrieved, but Luna shook her head.

  ‘Of course not. Ariana is always polite with me.’ Luna suddenly laughed.

  ‘What’s so funny?’

  ‘Ariana always makes me smile,’ Luna said. ‘Anyway, I’m just letting you know that it looks as if she’s been crying.’

  He nodded and nudged a leather-covered box of tissues to her side of the desk in preparation for her arrival. ‘Send her through.’

  Gian was certain he knew what this would be about. It had been a few months since the funeral, and there had been the ball, and of course what had taken place in her kitchen. Whatever way he looked at it, Gian was sure he was about to be told he was to be a father.

  Yes, there were always consequences, and not once, but on three separate occasions he had not taken the level of care he usually would, relying on her to take the Pill. It was his own fault entirely and he would handle this with grace, even if a pregnancy was everything he had always dreaded.

  Gian did not know how he felt.

  When she arrived in his office, she was most un-Ariana-like.

  Her dress was crumpled, her espadrilles tied haphazardly, her hair, dared he say it, a day past needing a wash, and her make-up but a distant memory. And yet, to his eyes, this was the real Ariana, the one who shot straight to his heart. To see her so fragile and clearly distraught had him fighting not to go straight over and take her in his arms.

  Instead, for now, he kept his arms to himself.

  ‘Ariana.’ He rose to greet her and they did the kiss-kiss routine she had referred to so painfully in their last conversation. He gestured for her to take a seat as they both tried to go back to a world where they hadn’t done more. ‘Can I offer you some refreshments?’

  ‘No, no...’ She shook her head. ‘Thank you, though.’

  ‘Some champagne?’ Gian suggested. ‘A bottle this time.’

  But she did not smile at his little reference and instead shook her head. ‘No, thank you.’ She took a breath. It wasn’t just La Fiordelise and the oasis he made that calmed her; it was Gian himself.

  Despite there being so much on her mind, there was a chance to pause, to just sit in the calming low light of his office and take a moment.

  That was what he gave her.

  Always.

  This tiny chance to pause, and it was in that moment Ariana knew that she really did want things resolved between them. No matter her blushes, it was time to face things head on.

  ‘Before I say what I came to say—’ before he got angry about Nicki ‘—I just want to clear the air. I’m sorry for asking you to miss Dante’s wedding. It wasn’t fair of me to do that.’

  ‘There were extenuating circumstances and it was right that you did,’ Gian said. ‘I’m sure we’ll get to managing steely politeness at family gatherings soon.’

  ‘Yes!’ She shot out a laugh and tried to glimpse a time when she wouldn’t want him, but it was such an impossible thought that her smile slid away.

  ‘Dante understood,’ Gian said. ‘The wedding was at such short notice. He dropped by the other day, we had lunch, and he told me about the twins. So we’re all good...’ He was so certain that Ariana was here to tell him she was pregnant that he kindly gave her an opening. His eyes never left her face as he watched carefully for her reaction. ‘Twins must run in the family...’

  ‘Oh, please.’ Ariana gave a mirthless laugh. ‘Twins don’t run in my family, Gian. I assume my mother had more than one egg put back. Anything to keep up the charade!’

  ‘It wasn’t all a charade, Ariana.’

  ‘I know that now.’ She gave him a thin smile.

  ‘Are you talking?’

  ‘Of course we are,’ Ariana said. ‘I am hurt, yes, but I love her.’

  Lucky Angela, Gian thought, to have her Ariana’s unconditional love.

  A love he himself had discarded.

  ‘I have something for you,’ Ariana told him. ‘I’ve been sorting out some of my father’s things...’ She handed him a leather-bound book as she explained what she had done in recent days. ‘I’ve made one each for my brothers and one for my mother. The contents are different in each, of course...’ She was talking a little too fast, as she did when she was embarrassed, unsure if he would even want her gift.

  ‘An album?’

  ‘Yes, there were a lot of photos, and I thought you might like the ones you were in. But please don’t look at it now: that’s not what I’m here for...’ She took a breath. ‘Gian, there’s something I have to tell you. I wasn’t going to; I’ve tried to deal with it myself, but you do deserve to know...’

  Gian braced himself to hear the inevitable.

  ‘I’ve had my suspicions for a couple of weeks.’ Ariana’s voice was barely above a whisper, and she cleared her throat. ‘I should perhaps have come to you sooner but I wanted to be sure myself...’

  ‘You could have come to me,’ Gian said. ‘You can always come to me. You know that.’

  ‘Yes.’ She nodded. ‘I just wanted to be very sure before I said anything, and so this afternoon I confronted her.’

  Gian frowned, not sure what Ariana meant by that. ‘Confronted...who?’ he asked, surprised. ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘I’ve just come from speaking with Nicki.’ Ar
iana ran a shaking hand through her thick dark hair and then forced herself to look at Gian and simply say it. ‘It was Nicki who took the photo of Mia and Dante at the Romano Ball...’

  That was it?

  Ariana wasn’t here to tell him she was pregnant! Instead, she had found out who had sold the photos to the press! Gian waited to catch the smile of relief that should surely be spreading over his face.

  Except the smile didn’t come, and the anticipated relief didn’t course through his veins, as he looked at Ariana sitting tense and hurt, let down by a friend she had trusted.

  ‘You’re sure it was her?’ Gian checked.

  Ariana nodded. ‘At Dante’s wedding she was acting strangely, and when I got a chance I looked through her phone. I’m so sorry, Gian.’

  ‘You’re sorry?’

  ‘Nicki was my guest on the night of the ball. I know the photo caused problems for you—’

  ‘It’s fine,’ Gian cut in. ‘Well, it’s not, of course, but don’t worry about me.’ He wanted to go over and take her hands, which still twisted in her lap. ‘I’m sorry she let you down.’

  Ariana nodded.

  ‘Does Dante know?’

  ‘Not yet. It’s taken me a couple of weeks to get my head around it all, and I decided I would tell you first.’ She looked at the man she had always run to with troubles that seemed too big for this world. ‘I might leave it until after Stefano’s wedding. Really, I don’t think Dante will be too upset. After all, the photo forced things out into the open. I know it angered you, though, and that it was damaging for the reputation of the hotel.’

  ‘The only reputation that has been damaged is Nicki’s,’ Gian said kindly. ‘What did she say when you confronted her?’

  Ariana let out a pained, mirthless laugh. ‘Plenty.’

  He saw a fresh batch of tears flash in her eyes and knew that the confrontation hadn’t been pleasant and so he asked again. ‘What did Nicki say?’

  ‘That it was my fault. That I treated her poorly and always made her feel second best...’