CHAPTER SIX
BETH pressed one hand to the pounding pulse in her throat.
‘So this well is magic.’
Luca shrugged. ‘I was passing through.’
‘Don’t say you came here to make a wish, too?’ Beth tried to laugh, but found she could not make any sound at all. He said nothing. Instead he prowled around the well until he was standing right beside her. The nearness of him forced words from her with the desperation of a woman drowning in guilt.
‘I—I found some loose change. There’s no point in keeping it rattling around—all it was doing was rubbing holes in the lining of my purse,’ she gabbled, nervously running her hands up and down her arms.
‘You look cold, Beth.’
She stopped. A shaft of moonlight glittered over his dark hair and made his sad, sweet smile look almost perfect. It twisted her heart until she had to look away.
‘I’m all right.’
‘No, you aren’t.’
His fingers slipped gently beneath her chin. Turning her head until she had to face him again, he gazed into her soul.
‘I shouldn’t have brought all those old frustrations to the surface again. I’m sorry.’
‘You don’t need to apologise for anything, Luca.’ Beth sighed. ‘I was a stupid fool.’
‘No. You were misguided, though. Were you wrong to leave me? Of course.’ He allowed himself a small chuckle, but it faded into silence long before his final words. ‘But never call yourself stupid.’
He moved closer to her and Beth found herself enfolded by his warmth, wrapped up in his arms and intoxicated by the fragrance of him.
‘You were spectacular this evening,’ he breathed, ‘but then you always were. Why do I try and fool myself?’
Beth’s hands went to his chest, her fingers spreading over the fine fabric of his shirt like a plea. She could feel his lightest breath whispering over her hair, running over her skin until she was delirious with possibilities. But what could she do? Whenever she tried to reach out to him now, he rejected her. Despite his words, she could not bring herself to try again. Her head sank. Disappointment was already shining behind her eyes and she did not want him to see it.
‘Beth?’
Luca spoke her name softly. She trembled. He was holding her close to his body, and must have felt her move. When his fingers traced their way around the heart-shaped outline of her face, she looked up. Tears were threatening to fill her eyes, but before she could apologise for it he kissed her.
In an instant, all her fear and pain slipped away. Desire filled the void he had left in her body. The warmth of longing infused her. It was such a long time since he had held her with genuine passion like this. She relaxed, savouring every second of the experience. She was in Luca’s arms. Nothing could hurt her when life was as good as this.
For long moments he held her as though she were a piece of fine porcelain, cradling her body with the greatest care. Luca’s mind was as finely tuned as a set of balance scales. Right now, he was weighing up his options. Pure chance had led to him taking this short cut to his suite at the same time Beth came downstairs. Approaching her had been a gamble. He could have remained hidden in the shadows, keeping his presence a secret. But spying on a woman was not his style. He had to do the right thing, and let her know he was there. And now this…
The past taunted him. They had been here before, so often. Whatever the crisis, whatever the argument, Beth always managed to worm her way back in. She was at work now, beneath his fingertips, but Luca was not going through that again. Beth had almost managed to ensnare him, that last night in Balacha, but he had called her bluff. He wouldn’t let her invade his spirit a second time. Life ran on Luca’s terms now, and he was determined to keep a tight rein on this situation.
He ran his hands over the bodice of her dress. All the fine velvet and corsetry in the world could not disguise the delicate framework it held. It can’t hide the points of her nipples either, he thought, feeling a surge of testosterone as he remembered the silhouette she had made as he had watched her from the shadows. A man would have to be carved from stone to resist such temptation. Luca was all male, and he never missed an opportunity to prove it. One kiss is nothing, he told himself.
‘Luca…does this mean…?’ Beth breathed as he drew back from her.
He was crushing her so tightly to his body she could barely get the words out.
‘Could there be another chance for us?’ she managed to say.
He was looking down as though he could devour her, body and soul; he held her for an eternity. His fingers dug into her back in an agony of possession. And then he spoke.
‘I’ve told you before, Beth. I don’t need complications in my life. I have too much authority and too many responsibilities already. From now on, I’m only interested in independence. But as for this…’
He robbed another kiss from her. It left her breathless and weak, desperate for more. Feeling the effect he was having on her, Luca pulled away. Beth felt the agony of rejection all over again. Unless she managed to make something out of this situation, she would lose him for ever. If she couldn’t, she would sink beneath the weight of her guilt and loss and there would be no escape. Her hold on him tightened, but this time her need for support was completely physical. She clung to him because her legs could no longer support her. All she wanted was for Luca to sweep her into his arms and carry her off. She would do anything, go anywhere he wanted if only she could have the chance to show him how much she needed him.
His kisses moved from her lips to her nose, and then to her forehead. Beth relaxed totally into his arms and was taken up into heaven. Luca caressed the silken sheen of her hair with his cheek, while the fingers of one hand worked through its thickness with a relish she could sense and appreciate. She had thought dancing with him was wonderful. This was infinitely better. It was heavenly beyond her wildest dreams. She wasn’t going to do anything to burst the bubble of her happiness. If it meant she had to stand here until the end of time, she was more than happy.
It didn’t take that long.
‘Why don’t we continue this conversation somewhere more comfortable?’ he breathed. The words whispered as softly as a sigh through the darkness. Her heart was too full for her to reply. It was impossible to put into words what she felt so she nodded.
He savoured the moment for a long time. Then both his hands went to her hair. He stroked it gently, before moving over her shoulders. She shivered again, but this time it was with anticipation. His fingers continued their journey over the fine fabric of her dress. Reaching her waist, he encircled it with one arm, and then drew her towards the stone staircase leading to the second floor of the palazzo.
Beth walked up the steps in a dream. Leaning against him, she watched the toes of her shining satin court shoes flickering in the blue-white moonlight.
‘This is like the old days,’ he murmured.
Beth giggled. ‘Hardly…! We’re not in the middle of a war zone.’
‘No, but I spent the evening watching you enjoy yourself. You were a credit to the firm tonight, cara.’
That single word wasn’t much, but Beth knew it was something she could build on.
‘It was my pleasure. Luca, you can always count on me if there’s anything I can do to help FFA become more successful.’
He placed a kiss on the crown of her head. His lips lingered, and Beth knew he was revelling in the fragrance of her hair again. As they reached the landing he stopped.
‘This takes me back,’ he breathed, then lifted his head. Beth looked up to question him. His expression was ambiguous. He took two slow steps towards his wing of the palazzo—stopped—and then turned, drawing her in the opposite direction instead.
‘I thought perhaps you were going to sweep me off to your rooms, Luca.’ She smiled, but her voice was hesitant, questioning.
‘No, not tonight.’ He shook his head.
She reached up. He had left his tie somewhere, and the top thre
e buttons of his shirt were undone. She slipped her hand inside. He caught her wrist.
‘I like to have a private bolt-hole, especially after evenings like this one. The pressure is on me to perform, to put on a good show and provide everything my guests want. And you wouldn’t believe how much that is, tesoro. Everybody needs a piece of me. I have all the friends in the world—as long as I keep behaving exactly as they want, and handing out the cash.’
‘That’s terrible!’ Beth was shocked. Her alarm was magnified a hundredfold as he started to laugh.
‘And that’s irony, coming from you.’ He pulled her roughly against him and kissed her again. ‘You made it bearable for me tonight, Beth. Seeing you at that party, keeping everyone entertained, but without running to me every few seconds was a revelation.’
So he had noticed her! That must be why he had been on the spot so fast when the drinks were spilled. Beth glowed with the idea of Luca watching her secretly all evening—her guardian angel, just as he had been in the past. Her heart was bouncing. This was the closest they had been so far, but she dared not let her feelings show. Luca was such a private man. To say something like that must have cost him a lot, and so she couldn’t risk losing the ground she had gained. Mouth dry, heart pounding, she forced herself to keep her response low-key.
‘I’ve learned to stand on my own two feet,’ she said evenly as they reached the door to the bridal suite.
‘And very beautiful feet they are.’ He smiled.
Stopping, he gathered her into his arms for a long, lingering kiss. It swept every thought out of Beth’s head as her body liquefied beneath his strong, warm hands. To feel him so close, wanting her after all the agony of separation…She knew with a certainty that burned like fire they must never be parted again.
‘Oh, Luca…’ she sighed as he eventually released her from paradise. Her hands slid from his soft dark hair to the flawless white of his shirt. In the darkness she heard his hand operate the door handle behind her. The door to her suite swung open and the rich warm fragrance of roses and lavender stole out to perfume the air around them. ‘How I wish I’d never told you I was only going to work here for six months. Can I take it back? I’d do anything to keep this job at FFA. If only you knew…’ She sighed, wishing she could tell him the whole truth about her love and her longing for him. But that was exactly what he didn’t want to hear. Painful experience had taught her that, so she was careful to conceal her real meaning. ‘I need this job so badly—’
His reaction was totally unexpected. Straight away, his hands began sliding down her body. They were ebbing away from her, his touch filled with regret.
‘Of course you do. I suppose it’s because of the money.’ His voice became flat and cynical. ‘How much do you want?’
‘Nothing! Oh, Luca, I’d never ask you for money!’
‘Why not? I get begging letters all the time. Why should you be different from anyone else?’
She stood back from him, alarmed. ‘I don’t want your money! I want my independence. That’s never going to come through someone else’s bank account, and certainly not yours.’
Although his hands abandoned her, his expression melted slowly from suspicion to curiosity.
‘So what are you talking about?’
Beth drew in a long breath. It was painful. Luca had put the shutters up. He was standing before her, one hand in his pocket. The rattle of his loose change fell through the night like hailstones.
‘When Dad died, he left enormous debts. I’ve had to sell virtually everything, Luca. The only thing left is a storage unit full of antiques. I was too sentimental to get rid of the things Dad loved when he died, but the time is coming when I’ll have to do it.’
His face was grave. When he sighed now it was a faintly irritable sound, not the low, smooth seduction that had filled her heart only a few moments earlier.
‘I’m at my wits’ end, but don’t worry—I’m not expecting you to put in an offer, Luca. Dad may have spent a small fortune on antiques in total, but he was a magpie rather than a connoisseur. Even with my limited knowledge of the trade I know none of it will be of any interest to Francesco Fine Arts.’
There was enough light from a nearby table lamp to see he looked relieved at that, so she carried on.
‘But I was wondering—I do need some information, Luca. It would only be to help me get the best prices. Although…after the way you spoke about Giulio Rosso’s plans to make money out of his connections with FFA, I thought it best to be completely honest with you about it, as soon as possible.’ She finished slowly, watching his expression for any signs of anger.
He caught the fabric of her skirt and pulled it through his fingers. The hissing sound it made rustled through the darkness between them.
‘You are only passing through. Rosso may try to poach our business, which is why I resent his plans. It is not as though you would be setting up in opposition to me,’ he said thoughtfully.
Beth breathed again. ‘That’s true. I’d be working in a completely different market, and hundreds of miles away—’
‘So you really won’t be staying in Venice?’ he said quickly, but covered his reaction with a laugh. ‘Oh, of course not—it will be cheaper to sell off Gerald’s stock in England, to English people.’
‘That’s exactly what I thought.’
Beth started to think there might still be some hope for them, after all. She reached out her hand to him, but he appeared not to notice.
She tried harder. ‘If you taught me the secrets of your success, Luca, I might be able to carry it further and actually set up in business on my own account.’
‘Of course.’ His voice was emotionless. ‘As I said, it always comes down to money in the end.’
‘I want a proper career, so no man thinks I’m going to sponge off him,’ she said with steely determination.
‘Andria won’t thank you for thinking PA work isn’t a proper career.’
‘I didn’t say that, because it is,’ Beth said, keen to defend her choices. ‘I love the job I’m doing now, but I’m never going to progress while I’m working for Ben. It’s like reinventing the wheel every day. I need more satisfaction from my life, Luca. And I intend to find it,’ she finished meaningfully.
He did not act on the hint that she had changed. A sudden shaft of moonlight lit his face. But his expression no longer held the promise of seduction she so desperately needed. The light in his eyes was guarded now, not teasing.
‘All right, Beth. I’ll see what I can do. A masked ball, followed by a little nepotism and intrigue—what could be more fitting in a place like this?’ He raised his arm towards the vaulted ceiling in a furl of silk.
‘Luca! I’m being serious.’ She laughed, and tried to cuff him playfully. For a second it was the old days all over again as he caught her raised hand.
‘So am I.’
Then he bent his head close to hers, and his lips brushed her on the forehead.
This time it was nothing more than a kiss between friends, Beth thought with a falling heart. She had spoiled it all again. Luca was showing her business and pleasure did not mix. Why hadn’t she realised he would think like that? He was a professional, above all things. Mentioning her plans had driven a wedge between them, when she had been so desperate to avoid it.
‘I don’t want to rely on anyone else ever again, Luca,’ Beth said when she had swallowed her disappointment.
‘Good. That’s very good—and exactly what I would want.’ He nodded. ‘So I’ll think about it…’
His voice whispered like a dream as his hands rested on her neck. Then his touch moved lightly over her shoulders. The rasp of his fingers against her satin skin made her tingle with anticipation.
But then he withdrew his touch and turned to walk away. Before Beth could swallow her disappointment, he threw some words over his shoulder.
‘There—I’ve thought about it, Beth. I’m flying to Paris tomorrow. Come with me.’
She was sta
ggered.
‘Luca…what are you saying?’
He turned back to look at her. ‘I need a top-class PA on hand for my meetings next week. What I don’t need is a girl who can’t survive without a man. I normally spend any downtime doing research, networking and making new contacts. You can watch, and learn as I do it. It will be your introduction to working my way, in this business. You’ll have a week to show me how willing you are.’
‘And what will you want in return, Luca?’ she asked, hardly daring to hope.
He laughed.
‘From you, Beth? Not a cent. All I’m offering is a temporary position as my PA. You’ve managed to work for Ben Simpson for this long without murdering him. That proves to me you are the world’s best at the job—hard-working, an independent thinker, discreet and loyal. This trip to Paris will show if you’ve got the spirit to translate those skills into a different arena. You’ll exchange your qualities for my expertise and contacts.’
Just when she thought she had lost him again, Luca was offering her the chance to work at his right hand. She would be spending every minute of her working day beside him. The whole idea made Beth feel light-headed, but one tiny corner of her mind carried on working.
‘What about Andria? You can’t just replace her with me!’
‘That’s not a problem. Andria knows better than to challenge any decision I make. But if you were wondering about the effects this trip might have on your friendship with her…how badly do you want to make this career change?’
Beth swallowed hard. ‘I’ve only ever wanted one thing more, Luca.’
He gave a slow, satisfied smile. ‘That’s not on offer, I’m afraid.’
Startled at his tone, Beth opened her eyes wide. Her reaction amused him.
‘You will have to make do with just my company, Beth. My fortune and my palazzo are most definitely off this menu.’
‘Why should I think otherwise? What do you mean?’ She gasped, following him towards the stairs.
‘Don’t look like that. It’s perfectly obvious what I mean. While we are in Paris I shall be offering you the benefit of my knowledge and experience, while you work as my PA. And then as evening falls…’ he paused, and then made a totally impulsive gesture: reaching out, he pushed his fingers through the fine luxuriance of her soft blonde hair again and cradled her head in his strong, square hand ‘…we will each return to our own private suites.’
Her Ruthless Italian Boss Page 8