Phantom Marriage

by Penny Jordan

  Veronica closed her eyes, tears of relief leaking out. Being pregnant by Leonardo wasn’t ideal, but she didn’t want to miscarry.

  ‘It is Leonardo’s, isn’t it?’ the doctor asked gently.

  She nodded wearily.

  ‘Are you absolutely sure you’re pregnant?’

  ‘I did one of those tests. It was very positive.’

  ‘No need for a blood test, then.’

  ‘You can do one if you like.’

  ‘Knowing Leonardo, perhaps it would be best.’

  ‘Yes, I would imagine so,’ she said, somewhat bitterly. ‘Though he needn’t worry about my trying to trap him into marriage. Because I wouldn’t marry him, no matter what!’

  The doctor made no comment, just got a syringe out of his bag and took a sample of her blood. ‘You don’t love him?’ he asked after a while.

  She refused to answer, her emotions a mess, anger and distress mingling with fear. Leonardo was here. And he’d talked to her mother! What had they talked about? What had Nora told him?

  The doctor looked perplexed. ‘I think I should tell Leonardo to come in.’

  Before Veronica could protest, he stood up and carried his bag outside. Through the open door she could hear the murmuring of voices. And then there he was, standing in the doorway, looking as handsome as ever but rather strained. There were dark shadows around his eyes which held an expression of real concern.

  Or possibly she was mistaken about that. Maybe it was just controlled anger fuelling the tension in his face.

  After a momentary hesitation, Leonardo came in, closed the door and sat down in the chair the doctor had vacated.

  ‘Dr Waverly said you must rest easy for a few more days,’ he said coolly. ‘Your blood pressure is up.’

  ‘I feel fine,’ she returned stubbornly, and looked away from him.

  A silence fell in the room, Veronica aware of the pulse beating in her temples.

  ‘Were you ever going to tell me about the baby, Veronica?’ he demanded to know. ‘Or was I just to be a sperm donor, like Laurence?’

  Outrage had her head whipping back to face him.

  ‘Do you honestly think I would deliberately get pregnant by you? Or that I would choose to be a single mother? I know how hard that life is.’

  He nodded. ‘Yes, I can appreciate that. And, no, I don’t think you deliberately set out to get pregnant. But you were never on the pill, were you?’

  ‘Oh, God. Mum told you I wasn’t, didn’t she?’

  ‘No. I was just guessing. Your mother did tell me about Jerome, however. I think she wanted to explain why you mistrusted my intentions so much, and why you would try to bolt home once you realised you were pregnant. Which, by the way, was news to your mother. She said you did a test and it was negative.’

  ‘The first time it was,’ she muttered. ‘I did a second test later on and it was positive. If you don’t believe me, ask Dr Waverly. He’s taken a blood sample to double-check. I thought you might want proof,’ she threw at him, her top lip curling with contempt.

  ‘No,’ he denied with amazing calm. ‘Not really. I can see that you’re not lying. But you did lie to me about being on the pill, didn’t you?’

  ‘Not at first,’ she said with a frustrated sigh. ‘You asked me if there was any danger of a pregnancy and I told you there wasn’t. That was because I’m always very regular and I honestly thought there was no risk of conceiving that weekend. You just assumed I was on the pill and it seemed easier to let you think that.’

  ‘So what went wrong?’

  ‘I don’t know!’ she wailed, stuffing a fist against her trembling mouth and shaking her head. ‘I guess finding out about my real father upset my cycle somehow. I could hardly believe it when I was late.’

  ‘I see,’ he said slowly. ‘Don’t you want my baby, Veronica?’

  She opened her mouth to snap that of course she didn’t. But then she shut it again. She could not keep lying to him. She just couldn’t. So she didn’t say anything.

  ‘I want it,’ he said softly into the silence. ‘And I want you. I love you, Veronica.’

  Her eyes grew wide with shock, and the most awful hope.

  Oh, Veronica, don’t fall for the ‘I love you’ ploy, she told herself sternly.

  ‘You’re just saying that because you want your child.’

  ‘I am not in the habit of lying,’ he returned. ‘Which reminds me,’ he continued before she could laugh in his face. ‘Elena told me about the photos she showed you. Of me and Lila at the ball. I didn’t lie to you, Veronica. I went to that ball alone. Lila threw herself at me as soon as I got there and it was impossible to extricate myself from her cling-on tactics without making a scene. I wouldn’t have been so tolerant if she hadn’t been hopelessly drunk and very upset over a fight with her boyfriend. She wasn’t making a serious play for me, Veronica. We’ve known each other for years and there’s nothing between us. She was just trying to make her boyfriend jealous. And it worked too. They’re back together again. I was going to tell you all about it when I rang last Sunday night but you didn’t give me the chance. If you don’t believe me, I’ll have her come down here personally so that she can explain her behaviour.’

  Veronica stared at him for a long time without blinking. Could he be telling the truth? Maybe he did care for her. Maybe he even loved her. Just the hope of it sent her head into a whirlwind.

  Leonardo leant over and took both her hands in his. ‘I care deeply for you, Veronica. It took me a while to accept my feelings but they are real, I assure you. When I rang you last Sunday and you said what you said, in such a cold voice, I was devastated. Because I’d arrogantly thought you cared for me back.’

  ‘I… I do care for you,’ she said hesitantly. ‘But…’

  ‘But you think I’m a playboy who is incapable of commitment and true caring.’

  ‘Yes…’

  ‘I have been a bit of a bad boy in the past, I admit. But I haven’t been all that bad for some years now. Yes, my girlfriends don’t last long. Perhaps because I didn’t fall in love with any of them. But I never cheated or treated them shoddily. If nothing else, I’ve always been a gentleman.’ And, lifting her hands to his lips, he kissed every finger gently. Reverently. Lovingly.

  Veronica’s heart turned over.

  His head lifted at last and he looked deep into her eyes. ‘I love you, Veronica. More than I ever thought possible. Dare I hope you love me back?’

  She could not speak, her heart too full. Tears flooded her eyes. It was all too good to be true. She found it almost impossible to believe.

  His sigh was heavy. ‘I see you still don’t trust me. Understandable, considering what you went through with that other unconscionable bastard. But, if you just tell me that you love me, I will move heaven and earth to prove to you that I am a man of my word.’

  ‘I… I do love you. But how…how do you propose to prove yourself?’ she asked, moved by his passionate declaration.

  ‘By not proposing marriage, for starters, even though that is my dearest wish—to have you as my wife. I have a lovely home in Milan where I think we could be very happy together. But I can see you are not ready to take that step yet. So this is what I propose instead. Your mother said I was welcome to stay at her home whenever I liked, so I will take her up on her offer. I can run my business over the Internet. I have excellent staff who are very capable. So I will come to Sydney and live there with you—without sex—until you can see first-hand and up close what kind of man I am. An honourable man who will make you a good husband and a very good father.’

  ‘You would do that for me?’ she choked out, overcome with emotion.

  ‘I would do anything for you.’

  ‘Oh!’ she exclaimed, sitting up and throwing her arms around his neck.

  He held her close, kissing her hair and tellin
g her over and over how much he loved her.

  Veronica could scarcely believe the wave of happiness that claimed her. She’d been so unhappy for so long. So cynical as well. But Leonardo had blasted that cynicism to pieces just now with his incredible offer. She wasn’t too sure about the ‘no sex’ part, but if he could do it then so could she.

  * * *

  And so it was that just over three months later, on the evening after they went together to have their first ultrasound—the baby was healthy and a boy—Leonardo took Veronica out for dinner where he produced the most glorious ring and asked her to marry him.

  * * *

  Leonardo would remember the look on her face for ever. It was filled with a joy which came not just from love but absolute faith. It had taken time for her to totally trust him. Time and sacrifice on his part. He was not a man used to denying his male urges. But it had been worth it in the end.

  ‘You were the right girl that Laurence talked about,’ he said as he slipped the diamond ring on her finger. ‘This was what he wanted when he made sure that we would meet.’

  ‘That thought did occur to me once too,’ she replied, surprising him.

  He was very thankful now that he’d never told her what he’d found on Laurence’s phone. He hadn’t been sure that she would be pleased with her father researching the female biological clock the day before he’d gone to London and changed his will. He would not have liked Veronica to assume that her father was more concerned about her being childless than anything else. It was possible, he supposed, but Leonardo preferred to believe that his friend wanted his daughter and his friend to meet, fall in love and hopefully marry.

  Whatever his motives, it had all worked out in the end.

  I have found a new dream, Laurence. A better one. I am going to be the best husband and father in the whole of Italy. Maybe even in the whole world!

  Hopefully, if Laurence were able to observe things from heaven—or wherever he was—he would approve.

  As for Leonardo’s own family, they would be over the moon now that marriage was on the horizon. His mamma was already making preparations for a big wedding on Capri. Nora had been in constant contact with her and the two women were happy little conspirators.

  He smiled over at Veronica, who was touching her ring and looking very thoughtful.

  ‘What is it?’ he asked, very in tune with her feelings by now.

  ‘I was just wondering…’

  ‘Wondering what?’

  ‘If I could spend tonight in the guest room. With the man I adore.’

  Leonardo took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as emotion claimed him. He’d always thought that nothing would ever surpass winning a race on the ski slopes.

  He was so wrong.

  EPILOGUE

  March the following year…

  ‘YOU LOOK ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL,’ her mother said, her voice catching.

  They were alone in the master bedroom of Laurence’s villa, getting ready for what was going to be the wedding of the year on Capri. The official invitations numbered over three hundred, with guests coming from all over the world, their expenses paid for by Leonardo. The wedding was to take place in Santo Stephano, the main church on Capri, the reception at the Grand Hotel Quisisana, a five-star hotel which exuded both history and luxury.

  Veronica didn’t like to think of what the bill might be, Leonardo having brushed aside her worries with his usual savoir faire.

  ‘I am not going to stint on our wedding, Veronica,’ he’d said when she’d broached the subject. ‘You deserve everything I can afford to give you.’

  It seemed that what he could afford was one hell of a lot. Her wedding dress had been designed by one of the best designers in Milan, with Veronica not even having been told what it had cost. And the gown was, in truth, a breathtakingly lovely creation, designed to hide perfectly her six-and-a-half-month baby bump without compromising on elegance.

  There was a floor-length under-dress made in white chiffon, which was princess-line in style and sleeveless, with a scooped neckline and softly gathered skirt. Over this lay a long, white lace coat that had long sleeves and flowed out the back in a train. There was only one button, just under her bust, though one could hardly call it a button. It was a jewelled clasp, made of pearls and diamonds, as were the drop earrings that Leonardo had given his bride as an additional wedding present. Her hair was up, a circlet of flowers crowning her dark tresses. Attached at the back was a simple tulle veil that had a small face veil which could be brought over her face then lifted during the ceremony.

  Veronica looked at her mother and smiled. ‘I do look good, don’t I?’

  ‘I think that’s an understatement, my darling daughter. Laurence would be so proud.’

  ‘I like to think so,’ she said, still feeling a little sad when she thought of the missed opportunities with her father.

  ‘Come, now. No sad thoughts today. You are on your way to be married to one of the nicest, most sincere men I have ever met. Not to mention the most generous. But first, we have to join the others and have photos taken on the terrace.’

  The ‘others’ were considerable. Veronica had been unable to resist asking both Elena and Carmelina to be her matrons of honour, Leonardo going along with her by making Franco and Alfonso his best men. All their children were in the wedding party as well as flower girls and page boys. They were thrilled to pieces to be asked and promised to be very good, even the precocious Bruno having given his solemn word. The matrons of honour were in sky-blue silk and carried white bouquets, the flower girls in white with white-and-blue posies. All the men—and boys—had chosen to wear black tuxedos, all made in Milan, their lapels carrying white roses.

  Nora—as mother of the bride—had chosen pale lemon, her elegantly styled suit also having been made by a top designer in Milan. She looked lovelier—and happier—than Veronica had ever seen her. Her mother was in the process of selling her home-help business and moving to Capri, where she would live in Laurence’s villa, looking after it for Veronica and Leonardo for when they could come and stay. Which Veronica vowed would be often. The happy couple had already made their permanent home in Milan, the nursery all ready for their son’s arrival. Francesca, Leonardo’s housekeeper, was very excited at the thought of having a baby in the house. Luckily, she and Veronica liked each other, which had pleased Leonardo greatly.

  Last in the wedding party was Dr Waverly, who’d agreed to give Veronica away. He’d seemed a good choice, being a friend of her real father, and of his vintage.

  The photos took a good while, the sky being a little cloudy, though every now and then the sun would peep out. At least it wasn’t raining. The weather on Capri in March could be very capricious. At last the photos were all finished to the photographer’s satisfaction and it was time to head to the waiting cars, the bride having chosen to travel in Franco’s yellow convertible, the rest in other equally colourful taxis. Just as Veronica made her way off the terrace, the sun came out again, bathing the villa in glorious light. Veronica glanced over her shoulder and thought how her father’s home had never looked more beautiful.

  Her father…

  Yes, she hadn’t known him in life, but she’d got to know him in death, lots of people having filled her in on his character. No, he hadn’t been a perfect man, but he had been a good man, and a brilliant scientist who’d made a difference in the world through his work. He’d also been a man capable of great love. Veronica felt she had inherited that quality from him, because she loved Leonardo and their unborn baby more than she could ever have thought possible. She could not wait for her son to be born and to see what their genes would produce. A very special child, she was sure. Very special indeed.

  But none of this would have happened, she thought as she gazed back at the villa, if her father hadn’t left her his home in his will.

  ‘Thank you, Dad,’ s
he murmured, her heart filling with gratitude and love. ‘Thank you.’

  * * *

  Their son was born in May, three weeks early, obviously impatient to come into this world. He was perfect in every way, captivating everyone who saw him. They called him Antonio Laurence Alberto Fabrizzi. His grandfather was thrilled. At last, a boy who would carry on his name. Antonio’s two grandmothers were besotted, but not as much as his parents, who vowed to have more children as soon as possible.

  * * * * *

  ISBN-13: 9781488083730

  The Italian’s Unexpected Love-Child

  First North American publication 2018

  Copyright © 2018 by Miranda Lee

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

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