by Sara Craven
the people I introduced to you.’
That, she thought indignantly, isso unfair, but she could not deal with it now.
She swallowed. ‘Then Simon must know them too.’
‘Signor Aubrey,’ he said with distaste, ‘knew only what I told him to say and what I told him to do. You see, I guessed,
Emiliamia , that you would wish to avoid me if you could. Acting under my instructions, he provided you with the means
to do so.’
He paused. ‘And he sent you here. To me.’
‘No,’ she said. ‘He wouldn’t do that. We—we’d found each other again, Simon and I. We had plans…’ Her voice tailed
away, then she rallied. ‘You must have tricked him.’
‘Of course.’ There was harsh mockery in his tone. ‘I tricked him into allowing me to pay the worst of his debts. They
were considerable.’
‘How did you know he owed money’
‘I promised your father I would protect you,’ Raf said. ‘Therefore, I needed to know what Signor Aubrey was
doing—especially when he ignored an earlier warning and came back into your life—with his plans.’
She gasped. ‘You mean you’ve been having him—watched Investigated’
‘Of course.’ His tone was brisk. ‘I have to be away a great deal, so how else could I obtain the information I needed
And the money he owed featured prominently in the reports I received.’
‘That’s nonsense,’ Emily said, her voice shaking. ‘Simon has his own successful business.’
‘There is no business. He has only what his wits can provide,’ Raf said curtly. ‘And he is running out of options.’ He
shrugged. ‘I did not choose that you should be one of them.’
‘Do you know what you’re saying’ she whispered. ‘You’re telling me that the man I love only wanted me because I’m
my father’s heiress.’
‘Yes, Emilia, I am telling you exactly that.’
‘And what about me’ she asked, dry-mouthed. ‘Have I been—watched too—in your absence’
‘Si, naturalmente.’
‘I don’t think there’s anything natural about it,’ she said furiously. ‘How dared you spy on me’
‘I am a rich man, Emilia, and you are my wife. In some circles this would make you a target.’ He shrugged. ‘I knew you
would not accept a bodyguard at the Manor, so I chose the only alternative.’
‘And all from the most altruistic motives, of course.’ She radiated scorn. ‘But who watches you, pray’
‘I can look after myself,’ he said. ‘You, I wished to keep safe in accordance with my promise to your father.’ He paused.
‘Also, I needed to prevent you from making a fool of yourself over Simon Aubrey.’
There was a taut silence, then he added curtly, ‘I regret that I have had to distress you. But it is time you knew the whole
truth.’
‘I don’t—I won’t believe you.’ She snatched up her shoulder bag, extracting her mobile phone. ‘I’m going to call Simon
right now. Prove you a liar.’
‘Then do so,’ Raf said and picked up his bag. ‘But first tell me where I will be sleeping.’
‘You’re not staying here.’ She looked up, white-faced, her eyes blazing. ‘Do you think I’d have you under the same
roof’
His voice was level. ‘It is not the first time. And I fail to see how you can stop me.’ He paused. ‘Fiona told me there are
two bedrooms. Do I turn left or right at the top of the stairs’
Their glances met—clashed, and it was Emily who looked away first, realising he was totally determined.
‘To the right,’ she said icily. ‘I suppose. As, sadly, I’m not physically capable of throwing you out. But Simon can, and he
will, when he finds out what you’ve been saying. He’ll be here tomorrow.’
‘Your faith is admirable,’ he said quietly, ‘but misplaced. However, make your call if you must. But first ask yourself this.
If I am a liar, how is it that I have found you so easily’
Emily watched him walk up the stairs, her mind whirling in circles.
She could hardly comprehend what he’d said. It was too monstrous to be true. She couldn’t give it credence.
Simon loves me, she thought, and Raf’s got a grudge against him because of those stupid things I said to the lawyers
about getting married again. That’s all it is. It has to be.
And yet she couldn’t escape the memory of Simon’s odd behaviour the other day—the edgy, reluctant way he’d offered
his assistance. As if he felt guilty—or ashamed…
When Raf returned ten minutes later she was still sitting in the same place, the phone dangling from her fingers.
‘Well’ he enquired curtly.
She shook her head. ‘I can’t get through. There’s no network available. It must be the mountains.’ She looked around.
‘There has to be another phone somewhere.’
‘Only in the village.’ He shrugged. ‘Marcello and Fiona prefer to be here alone—without interruptions.’
The word ‘alone’ seemed to sound in her mind like a knell. It suddenly occurred to her that whenever she and Raf had
been together in the past there’d been other people around. Quite apart from acquaintances and guests, everywhere
she’d stayed with him had resident staff of some kind.
Now, for the first time, it was—just the two of them, occupying a relatively small space. ‘Without interruptions’ he’d said.
And the realisation sent chills through her.
Raf was prowling the room, inspecting everything, glancing at the books and ornaments on the shelves that flanked the
fireplace. He picked up the mug of cold soup and regarded it with disfavour. ‘Is this supposed to be supper’
‘Mine, yes,’ she said. ‘I’m not very hungry.’
‘But I am. So—what else is there to eat’
Emily gasped. ‘You really think I’m going to get you a meal’
He said softly, ‘You’re still my wife,mia cara , and, until now, your duties have not been too onerous. Besides, most
wives cook for their husbands—or hadn’t you heard’ He paused. ‘But maybe you are devoid of culinary skills.’
She said indignantly, ‘Everyone at my school learned to cook. The nuns insisted.’
‘Ah, the nuns,’ Raf said reflectively. ‘That explains a great deal. But at least some aspects of your education have
received attention, if not all.’
Emily lifted her chin. ‘And what is that supposed to mean’
‘It is not important. Are there eggs You could prepare a simple omelette, perhaps’
‘I could,’ she said. ‘But why should I’
‘Because a man needs to conduct negotiations on a full stomach,’ Raf said smoothly. ‘And we are here to negotiate, are
we not’
She took the untouched soup from him with a mutinous look, then stalked with it into the kitchen, pouring it away down
the sink. Under the circumstances, she thought, the word ‘comfort’, even applied to food, was a sick joke.
She filled the kettle and set it to boil. Tea bags and a small jar of instant coffee had been included in the welcome pack,
although she couldn’t imagine Raf relishing either. But then, he wasn’t a welcome guest, so why should she care
She found a shallow frying pan, added a knob of butter and placed it on the stove to heat gently. She was breaking eggs
into a bowl when Raf came in.
She didn’t look at him. ‘Do you mind This is a very small kitchen.’
‘I came to bring you this.’ He put a package on the worktop beside her.
With chagrin, Emily recognised an expensive brand of freshly ground coffee. She said coolly, ‘You think of
everything,signore .’
‘I need to,carissima , when I have you to deal with.’ He reached a long arm up to a top shelf and took down a box she
hadn’t even noticed, extracting a cafetière. ‘There is no espresso machine, unfortunately, but this will do.’
He rinsed it out and began to spoon in the coffee.
‘Do you want two eggs or three’ Emily asked, adding seasoning.
‘Four,’ he said. ‘I need to keep my strength up, don’t you agree, my lovely wife’
Caught unawares, she turned her head sharply, staring at him. ‘What do you mean’
His mouth twisted mockingly. ‘Merely, that if it continues to snow like this, I might have to dig us out—what else’ He
added laconically, ‘And your butter is about to burn,’ and went back into the living room.
Gritting her teeth, she moved the pan off the heat and slotted wholemeal bread into the toaster. She filled the cafetière and
took china and cutlery through to the living room.
Raf was lounging on a sofa, staring into the newly replenished fire.
She said curtly, ‘You do realise there’s no television here No computer or fax machine either. ‘
‘You feel that is a problem’
She shrugged. ‘It’s hardly the streamlined, high-tech, luxurious environment you’re used to. You can hardly test the
world’s financial pulse from here.’
‘Oh, I think the patient will live without me.’
‘But can you live without the patient’
‘For a while, certainly.’ He stretched indolently. ‘And it will be good for me to relax completely. It does not often
happen.’
‘You’ve forgotten the negotiations.’
‘I have forgotten nothing,’ he said and resumed his scrutiny of the leaping flames, leaving her to retire, baffled.
Emily beat the eggs with a fork and poured them into the hot pan, watching them with an eagle eye to ensure they did not
become leathery. But they looked pretty good, fluffy and golden, she decided with satisfaction, as she divided them up,
giving Raf the lion’s share.
‘This is excellent,’ he commented after his first mouthful. ‘You have hidden talents,mia cara .’
She kept her eyes fixed on her plate. ‘Let’s hear it for Sister Mary Antony.’
She had to force down her own portion against the nervous tightness of her throat, but somehow she managed it.
Because it was important not to show she was on edge in front of Raf. Shock and anger at his unexpected arrival were
permissible—just—but being scared was not.
Cool indifference, she thought, was the thing to aim for.
The meal over, she refused politely his equally courteous offer to assist with the washing-up. The idea of Rafaele Di Salis
with a tea towel in his hand was too ludicrous to contemplate, she decided, her lip curling. More importantly, the kitchen
was indeed far too cramped for easy sharing. Especially with him.
When she went back into the living room, she saw, with surprise, that a bottle of wine and two glasses had appeared on
the small table in front of him.
‘Did you bring that too’ she asked.
‘I did not have to. Marcello keeps a small store in the cellar for his own visits.’ He poured the wine and handed her a
glass. ‘He gave me the key to the cupboard.’
‘The kind of friend to have,’ Emily said with constraint.
She didn’t want to sit drinking with him, yet to refuse might send out the wrong sort of signal. So she took a cautious sip
and put the glass down.
My God, she thought bitterly, this—ambush had been carefully planned. But it was becoming plain that it couldn’t have
succeeded without Simon’s active connivance, and that this was only one of the ugly truths she might have to accept.
In spite of herself, she couldn’t forget the missing items in the drawing room at High Gables and Simon’s casual dismissal
of her query.
If he was short of money, why didn’t he turn to me she asked herself almost despairingly. Why pretend he was a
high-flying entrepreneur working from home, when she was bound to find out the truth eventually
‘You look angry,carissima . Is the wine not to your liking’
‘It’s fine,’ she said. ‘However, it doesn’t make your invasion of my privacy here any more acceptable.’
He shrugged. ‘But then you have never made me particularly welcome, Emilia, wherever you happened to be.’
‘Well,’ she said, ‘that hardly matters. I’m sure you’re greeted with open arms everywhere else.’
And could have bitten her tongue out. Because she’d just broken her own cardinal rule and made a reference, however
veiled, to the other women in his life.
But Raf did not pick up on it immediately, as she’d feared. He leaned back against the cushions, drinking his wine, his
glance meditative. ‘It did not occur to you,mia cara , that deliberately running away from me might seem—a form of
enticement That I would be bound to follow’
She stiffened. ‘No.’
‘How little you know of men,’ he murmured.
She tossed back her hair with a fierce gesture. No point in hedging any more and to hell with the consequences. ‘I
certainly know about you,signore ,’ she said bitingly. ‘And I’d have thought you had enough—enticements in your life
already.’
She took a deep breath. ‘So why don’t you say whatever it is you came here for, then get back to your real world And
leave me in peace.’
He looked at her for a long moment, then he got to his feet, picking up his glass and the bottle. ‘I suggest we resume this
conversation tomorrow,’ he said. ‘When perhaps you may be more—amenable. More prepared to listen to reason.’ He
paused. ‘Now, am I permitted to take a bath, perhaps, before I retire’
‘Yes, of course.’ It was only a small respite, but, as things were, she was thankful for anything. ‘You—you’ll find extra
towels in the airing cupboard, I think.’
‘Grazie.’ He inclined his head courteously. ‘I understand that the hot water supply is limited, so I will try not to use it all.’
‘I’m sure it’s fine,’ she returned quickly. ‘And your friends obviously manage.’
‘Ah,’ he said, casually. ‘But then they bathe together.’ He sent her a swift, impersonal smile, then went unhurriedly up the
stairs and out of her sight.
That, thought Emily, furiously aware that she was blushing, was altogether too much information.
Once again, Raf seemed to have caught her on the back foot. And with very little effort on his part.
Why did I think I could ever take him on she asked herself despondently. I should have hired myself a legal team of my
own and let them battle it out.
Only it was too late for that now. He was here, by his own admission, to make her see reason. In other words, to meekly
submit to his particular point of view, she thought, biting her lip.
Well, she was damned if she would. She’d fight him every step of the way.