Pregnant with the De Rossi Heir

by Maggie Cox

  She would be lying if she said she hadn’t had any fears surrounding telling him she was pregnant. A man as wealthy and influential as Gianluca De Rossi would hardly be interested in a relationship with a mere PA like Kate, she’d reasoned painfully. Having seen the incredible mansion he lived in, and witnessed for herself the opulent lifestyle he enjoyed, it was obvious they were poles apart in almost every way she could think of! It still seemed like a miracle to Kate that Luca had set his sights on her that night, when there had been so many more stunning women to choose from! Women dressed to kill in outfits that probably would have cost Kate more than a year’s wages! And, no…not even one of them had had the courtesy to speak to Kate. They had probably guessed from the outset by her shop-bought dress that she was nobody important.

  To give Luca his due, he hadn’t treated her like that. Which made it even sadder that she had let herself be beset with doubt and fear that he would ultimately reject her when she woke up to find herself in his bed. That chilly but sunny December morning in Milan Kate should have been feeling on top of the world after the pleasure Luca had given her, but instead she’d let those old debilitating feelings of inferiority get too much of a grip. Feelings that had been exacerbated by her grief over her mother’s death and what had happened with Hayden. And when she’d returned to her friend’s apartment to pack for her flight home she’d desperately tried to convince herself that Luca wouldn’t give her a second thought when he woke and found her gone….

  When he returned she was busy typing letters. The door opened suddenly in the outer office, and Kate heard it slam. She tensed as she heard him stride across the room to his desk, and her shoulders practically flew up around her ears when he made a detour almost straight away into her room. With him he brought the earthy scent of the outdoors, and his dark hair was boyishly ruffled, she noticed—if not by his fingers, then by the elements.

  ‘Any messages?’

  For a moment, the intensely blue eyes that bored into hers made her fall into a trance. Would her baby inherit that same divine colour? she mused.

  ‘Just a couple…Clients returning calls, but nothing urgent.’ She tore off a page from the pad she’d scribbled on and handed it to him.

  His glance was brief, almost dismissive. ‘Like you said, nothing urgent.’ Scrunching up the paper, he threw it into the wastepaper basket. ‘I have been walking in the park,’ he told her.

  ‘Oh, yes?’

  ‘I have been doing a lot of thinking.’

  Her throat swelling with tension, Kate said nothing.

  ‘And I have made some important decisions.’

  Still Kate remained mute, but she had the definite feeling that her life was about to take a new dramatic turn and her heart skipped a beat.

  ‘I have decided that you cannot continue working when you are clearly not well and need proper rest. I have been needing to take a break from work myself for some time also. Therefore I propose that we go back to Italy for a while. The atmosphere there will be much more conducive to rest and relaxation, and the sooner we can leave the better. Tomorrow would be ideal.’

  Staring at him in astonishment, Kate marvelled at his skill in making such a potentially contentious statement with such apparent ice-cool calm! As if he were merely saying to her, Take a letter, Miss Richardson instead of Risk everything…your job, your livelihood, your way of life…and fall in with my plans wherever they might lead you! But even though she sensed many obstacles ahead if she were to comply, Kate also sensed a jolt of excitement go through her at the idea of returning to Italy with Luca.

  ‘It’s not that I’m unwell,’ she said reasonably. ‘I’m pregnant—that’s all!’ Even as the words left her mouth, she thought about the genuine toll early pregnancy had taken on her body and mind, and realised she would welcome a holiday…however short or long. But the unresolved issues between her and Luca nevertheless made her less than easy about the prospect.

  ‘Yes, you are pregnant,’ he acknowledged, with a flash of what appeared to be concern in his vivid blue eyes. ‘And I do not think it best for you or the baby for you to be putting yourself under the unnecessary duress of working full-time when you do not have to!’

  ‘Do you think I’m working just for the fun of it, then?’ Kate burst out, her ingrained sense of independence and self-sufficiency kicking in like a well-oiled machine that had never been given the chance to get rusty. ‘How else do you think I can earn the money to support myself?’

  ‘From now on I will be taking care of all that. If it is my child you carry in your womb, then it is only right and fair that as the father I support and look after you both! I will ring the agency, explain what is happening, then arrange for our flights to Milan tomorrow. I suggest we leave the office around five today and go back to my house in Mayfair. We will have something to eat together and then I will take you home so that you can pack for our trip.’

  Having never had anyone say they would take care of things and look after her before, Kate silently acknowledged how appealing Luca’s declaration was. If more than a little scary! Could she trust that he would keep his promise when they got to Milan? That he wouldn’t regret it? Telling herself that he too was taking a massive leap of faith by trusting her enough to even suggest she return to Italy with him, Kate decided she would give his proposition a try.

  ‘All right, then.’ Folding her hands in her lap, she experienced at that moment an unusual sense of calm. It was as though by reaching a decision to fall in with his suggestion she was letting fate take control rather than try and fight it. Mainly because she was weary of fighting and weary of being afraid.

  Luca quirked a dark eyebrow at her response, clearly surprised. ‘You agree?’

  ‘Yes, I agree.’

  ‘Katherine? It is after five o’clock and time we left.’ The demands of work had helped the afternoon pass surprisingly quickly, and thankfully had left Kate little time to brood over her decision to go to Italy. Now suddenly Luca was behind her, holding out her jacket so that she could slip her arms into it, and she was so flustered by his nearness that it took two tries before she was finally able to pull it on. As she turned to thank him, he completely astonished her by reaching out his hand and touching the tips of his fingers to her stomach.

  ‘You hardly show at all yet,’ he remarked, a disconcertingly husky catch in his voice.

  Kate sucked in a breath, speech seeming to desert her. The faint brush of his fingers was enough to set her heart pounding and propel volcanic heat searing right through her core. Her need for him to touch her again became all-consuming, like a silent powerful mantra trembling in her blood. Touch me…please touch me.

  ‘I expect I’ll start to show a bit more any day now.’ Lifting her shoulders in a self-conscious shrug, Kate prayed that she’d been quick enough to draw a veil down over her longing so that Luca hadn’t seen it. What was it about this man that made her unravel? The compelling authority he wielded over her senses was like a powerful force of nature she’d never encountered before.

  ‘You look a little tired,’ he remarked, closely studying her features with concern, and registering the faint darkened circles beneath Katherine’s eyes with disagreeable shock. Regret radiated through Luca that he had not noticed her fatigue earlier. If he had been in any doubt about his decision to take her back to Italy so that she could get the rest she needed, all his doubts were suddenly and forcefully allayed.

  Pregnancy took its toll on a woman’s body. Pregnant women tired more quickly and were prone to becoming emotional. Therefore, besides eating well and avoiding stress, rest was a key factor for the mother-to-be. That was one of the things Luca had learned from the many medical books he had avidly read in his and Sophia’s desperate quest to have a baby of their own. Tragically, pregnancy was not a condition that his wife had been destined to experience, so there had been no opportunity for him to lavish the care and attention on her that he would have loved to if their hopes had become a reality.

  �
�Come…let us see about getting you home.’

  His hand now solicitously at the small of Katherine’s back, Luca led her from the office to his personal elevator just down the hall.

  The under-floor heating that radiated from the exquisite parquet flooring deliciously warmed Kate’s stockinged feet as she carried her glass of fresh pomegranate juice across the room with her. In Luca’s modern, interior-designed living room, the most breathtaking collection of art—stunningly lit—decorated the muted tone walls.

  When she’d acted as his hostess the previous night she had barely had time to consider the paintings, because etiquette had demanded she give her full attention to Luca’s guests. But now, narrowing her intrigued gaze at a portrait that took pride of place, she caught her breath as she realised this was no faithfully reproduced print or copy but the real thing. The artist was a Renaissance painter that Kate had studied for her final-year art exam at school, and she’d seen the painting before only in a book. That was why it had immediately commanded her interest. Its monetary worth must be in the region of millions of pounds!

  A frisson of shock ran up her spine. Having visited Luca’s mansion in Milan, she was well acquainted with the fact that the man must be in an elite bracket of extremely wealthy individuals. But to see a priceless painting in his living room was almost surreal!

  ‘Ah…you are enjoying viewing my little gallery of Italian art, I see.’

  So enraptured by the artwork, Kate hadn’t even heard Luca enter the room, let alone practically reach her side before she registered he was there. On their arrival at the stunning Mayfair townhouse, he had dismissed his housekeeper for the evening, brought Kate the fruit juice she had asked for, and very soon after had gone down to the wine cellar to select a bottle to go with the meal that had been left for them to eat when they were ready. Now he had reappeared and, withdrawing her attention from the painting, Kate was momentarily silenced by the sight of him.

  He had changed into casual chinos and a loose white shirt, and his tanned feet were bare. The breathtaking profile of sculpted, masculine beauty that was hers to savour and appreciate was in serious competition with the arresting woman in the portrait. So much so that Kate’s womb contracted with an almost shocking sense of violent sensual awareness in response.

  ‘How could I not?’ Answering his question, Kate clutched the glass in her hand as if to anchor herself in some sort of reality. ‘I studied this painting at school, so I know it well. Learning about the artist and how he worked was fascinating! If things had been different I would have loved to have studied art properly, perhaps even made a career of it.’

  ‘What stopped you?’

  ‘I simply couldn’t afford to spend time in further education. I come from a single parent family and I needed to work to help bring in some money.’

  ‘What a pity,’ Luca remarked. ‘But commendable too. I can tell by the tone of your voice that you are clearly passionate about the subject. It must have been quite a sacrifice to give it up!’

  ‘Not really. I’ve learned that life doesn’t always work out the way we’d like it to…but that’s okay. I don’t consider myself deprived in any way. I was able to help my mum when she needed me, and that’s all that matters. Hopefully, there’ll be other opportunities as time goes on.’

  ‘I do not doubt it.’

  ‘This painting…aren’t you afraid somebody will break in and steal it?’

  ‘I am impressed, Katherine, that you have detected it is the real thing and not merely a copy.’ As he smiled at her, Luca’s arresting blue eyes glimmered like priceless sapphires. ‘But do not be concerned about anyone breaking in to try and steal it. There is a state-of-the-art security system installed that is probably even more secure than the one protecting the Crown Jewels! I have the painting on display because great art should be on view, not hidden away in some vault! This way my friends can enjoy her beauty as well as myself.’

  ‘I’m glad you feel that way. She’s completely compelling!’ Kate breathed, a genuine rush of true appreciation flowing through her veins as she turned back to the portrait of the sultry brunette.

  ‘Hair the stunning black of a clear winter’s night, eyes the colour of the world’s most luxurious bitter chocolate…and lips—lips that were made for amore…An altogether sensual and stirring combination that is quite irresistible! She reminds me of someone I know.’

  Luca’s voice had turned warm as the amber gold of cognac heated over a flame, and all Kate’s senses leapt into vivid life as though his words had physically caressed her. ‘Really?’ Quickly she took a sip of the sharp chilled pomegranate juice to ease her suddenly parched throat.

  ‘You know I am talking about you, Katherine? You are easily as lovely as the beautiful Margherita.’

  ‘Now you’re mocking me!’ Embarrassed heat washed over her that Luca would praise her looks so lavishly. Many years ago, when she’d first seen a print of it, Kate had been mesmerised by the portrait—and to suggest that she in any way resembled the lovely creature depicted was nothing but pure unbelievable fantasy, in her opinion! But the man beside her was regarding her as though genuinely perplexed.

  ‘I did not make the comparison glibly, and I am certainly not mocking you! I meant every word,’ he insisted.

  Of course he did! Kate cynically reflected. Men would say anything to get a woman into bed. Some men were even prepared to fake being in love to get what they wanted! And even then one willing woman wasn’t enough! Recalling with dismay that Luca had not been at all shocked by the revelation that Kate’s ex-boyfriend had had another lover, she now found herself desperately needing to know if he had one. Was she being totally naïve in hoping that he did not? He had claimed that he was unattached, but—being intimately acquainted with his passionate nature—it did not strike Kate that he was a man who would happily go without a woman in his bed for long. How would she handle the news of a lover when her attraction for him had grown into a ceaseless yearning she could barely contain? And in the not too distant future she was going to give birth to his baby. Was she destined to be always on the periphery of some man’s life and not at the centre, as she so desired?

  ‘Katherine?’

  ‘Let’s talk about something else, shall we?’ Affecting a careless shrug, Kate suddenly found she needed some breathing space. Moving across the room, she went to sit down on one of the sumptuous leather sofas by a ravishing Persian rug containing all the sensuous exotic colours of a Marrakesh bazaar in its hand-woven threads.

  ‘Tell me what is troubling you.’

  It shouldn’t have surprised her that Luca would notice her unease, but somehow it did. In her limited experience of men, Kate had discovered most of them gave the discussion of personal issues a very wide berth. But apparently Luca was not one of those men.

  Now he dropped down easily onto the sofa opposite hers, with a sensual loose-limbed elegance that transfixed her. It would have been so easy to just sit there, paying silent homage to the kind of heaven-sent looks a woman conjured up in her dreams, but Kate was suddenly in no mood to be so easily distracted. She might have agreed to go to Italy for a while with Luca, but a holiday together was no guarantee of a shared future, and suddenly she found herself feeling quite desolate about that. She had personal knowledge of how tough it could be as the child of a single parent, and her dreams of having children had always included the father being permanently in the picture.

  Placing her half-finished glass of juice on the stylishly designed coffee table by her side, Kate tucked one slender leg beneath her and faced Luca with an unwavering stare. ‘I need to know what will happen after I’ve had the baby. You indicated before that you wanted to help raise the child, and I need to know what arrangements we’re going to come to if that’s the case. I can’t spend the next six months in limbo!’

  ‘I agree. And if the baby is indeed mine then I am only too anxious to put some firm arrangements in place too.’

  The equivalent of a large cold stone s
eemed to sink inside Kate’s stomach. He still didn’t believe that the baby she was expecting was his. Misery filled her. How could she bear to wait until a paternity test could be done to prove to him she was telling the truth? Underlying her frustration was a growing sense of anger at not being believed.

  ‘I don’t know what I can tell you to convince you that what I’m saying is true. You seem determined to prove me a liar!’ In an unguarded moment Kate let the despair and strain of the past few months creep into her voice. Months when she had berated herself regularly for not leaving Luca a forwarding address or a number that morning in Milan.

  When she saw Luca rise up from his seat and move towards her, she really did not know what to expect. Suddenly she found herself staring fixedly down at his undeniably sexy tanned bare feet, with tears swimming hotly into her eyes. Taking her hands in his, Luca silently coaxed her into standing.

  ‘I do not want to distress you further, but trust has to be built, cara mia, and a man like me has perhaps more to lose than you realize, hmm?’

  ‘You were the one that insisted you wanted to support this baby when I told you I was pregnant! It’s not as though I’m hanging around hoping for a relationship or anything! That’s the very last thing I need after what happened to me!’

  ‘But, putting aside the baby, and the fact that you do not want a relationship,’ Luca breathed throatily, smoothing some soft dark strands of hair away from where they fell against her cheek and then doing the same with her tears, ‘what about this irresistible force that keeps on drawing us together? What do you want to do about that, Katherine? Ignore it?’

  CHAPTER SIX

  HOW could she ignore her own passionate nature? Kate had always sensed it was there, lurking beneath the prison of clothes and conformity, but since that night with Luca in Milan this ache beyond all aches had nagged away at her, until she was afraid she could not turn her back on its call one more second. And it would no longer allow her any peace when this man was near.