VITTORIO'S MISTRESS

by Kimberley Reeves

  “They are not pleased by our arrangement?”

  “What do you want me to say? They’re old fashioned, Dante. They don’t approve of having babies unless you’re married and they don’t approve of me living with you.”

  “Because we are not married.”

  Paige nodded. “They think it will send Daniella the wrong message.”

  “They are right, cara. I do not want my daughter to grow up thinking she can live with a man without first becoming his wife.”

  “That’s a very antiquated way of thinking, not to mention hypocritical.”

  Dante leaned back in his chair. “Would you marry me? If I was to ask you right now, would you consent to be my wife?”

  It wasn’t exactly the proposal she’d dreamed of, but for one fleeting moment she almost said yes. “No.” She rose from the table and started cleaning off the remains from their dinner. “It’s getting late, you should go home.”

  Dante stood up, watching her hands flutter nervously as she tossed the styrofoam containers and cups in the trash. She was desperately trying to maintain a stone façade but he knew her too well. The carefully averted eyes, the rosy tint to her cheeks, the lips that she kept pressed so tightly together; all of those things told Dante he’d hurt her, though he wasn’t exactly sure just why. She loved him. Hadn’t she confessed to it when she’d come running to him as he was leaving? So why would his proposal of marriage upset her?

  “You did not even take time to think about it,” he said when she finally stopped fussing with the trash on the table.

  “What’s there to think about? Moving in with you doesn’t require a wedding ring.”

  “No, but it makes sense for us to get married.”

  Paige crossed her arms. “And why is that, Dante? Because you want Daniella with you and the only way to make that happen is by marrying me?”

  “Yes, I want Daniella with me but that is not the only reason I think we should get married.”

  “Really,” she said dryly. “Except for appearances sake, what other possible reason can there be?” Paige scowled when Dante’s eyes moved slowly down her body and back up again. “So help me God if you say it’s for the hot sex, I’ll never speak to you again!”

  Dante chuckled as he pulled her into his arms. “Do not be angry with me, carissima. Can I help it if I want to kiss you senseless every time I look at you?”

  “You had more than kissing on your mind, Dante Vittorio.”

  “So what if I did? You want it too,” he murmured against her lips. “We could have it all, Paige.”

  She pulled her head back in an attempt to elude the intoxicating affect he was having on her. “What is it that we’d have, a marriage based on great sex?”

  “Great sex, mutual respect, compatibility, a child. We have a great deal in common, cara mia.”

  “You’ve left something out. What about love, Dante? Or isn’t that important to you?”

  “Of course it is important.” He drew her closer. “You love me, Paige, you said so yourself. Is that not reason enough to marry me?”

  She didn’t try to deny it, but loving Dante wasn’t enough, not when she knew he didn’t feel the same. “When or if I ever get married, it will be to a man who loves me just as much as I love him.”

  Dante was too shocked by what she’d said to respond right away. How could she not know how much he loved her? Surely Paige didn’t think he threw marriage proposals around just for the hell of it. Okay, so he’d been an insensitive ass when she’d told him she loved him, but it was only because he’d been afraid of having his heart torn to shreds again. Even now he was terrified of losing her but he couldn’t go on pretending that a life without her was any life at all.

  “Then you have no excuse not to marry me,” he finally said. “I love you, Paige, and I…”

  Paige twisted away from him, furious with herself for wanting so desperately to believe him, and furious with Dante for playing on her emotions. Something inside her snapped. Mindful of Daniella, she kept her voice low though her eyes were blazing when she whirled on him.

  “You’d do anything to get your own way, wouldn’t you? To think I was afraid you wouldn’t want anything to do with Daniella, but you want to be a part of her life so bad you’d actually marry me even though we both know you don’t love me.”

  “Apparently you were not listening. I just told you I loved you and I meant it.”

  “Right,” she scoffed. “That’s why you blackmailed me into becoming your mistress, because you loved me so much. You see, I was listening then, Dante. I was listening when you told me good-bye and when you admitted you’d done it for revenge. All those times when I thought we were making love, you were working out your vengeance, extracting the retribution you thought I owed you.”

  Dante’s jaw flexed. “I did not realize I was still in love with you until it came time for us to part. Why do you think I followed you and Marc? The thought of another man touching you drove me insane with jealousy. I was going to tell him about us and where you had been every night for the last month.”

  Paige gaped at him in disbelief. “Why would you do something like that?”

  “Because I wanted you back,” he said fiercely. “I would have told him anything to get what I wanted, I…” Dante stopped abruptly when he realized what he’d just said.

  “You would have said anything to get what you wanted,” she repeated dully. “You didn’t want me, Dante, but you didn’t want anyone else to have me either because then you couldn’t go back to your mansion and celebrate your victory knowing how much you’d made me suffer for my past sins.”

  “Paige…”

  “I loved you,” she choked out, “that was my biggest sin. I loved you so much I was willing to give up my own happiness so you’d be able to realize your dream of being a successful business man. And it worked,” Paige half sobbed, “because you’re worth millions now and I’m miserable as hell.”

  “Do not cry, mio bello,” Dante tried to gather her in his arms but Paige jerked away from him as if she couldn’t bear to have him touch her. “You are tired,” he spoke gently. “Lie down and get some rest. I will watch over Daniella and let you know if she wakes up.”

  Paige brushed away her tears but they were only replaced by a steady stream of fresh ones. She took a few minutes to stand over Daniella’s bed before curling up on the extra bed Dante had arranged to have brought in and would have fallen asleep immediately if she hadn’t been so aware of Dante’s presence.

  He’d gone to sit by Daniella’s bed and was murmuring in Italian, his deep voice calm and reassuring, and despite how emotionally distraught she’d been only moments ago, Paige was comforted by it. She closed her eyes and drew in a slow, even breathe and let the scent of his spicy cologne fill her senses. It shouldn’t hurt like this, she thought as she drifted off to sleep. Loving Dante shouldn’t hurt like this.

  ****

  Dante’s thumb moved absently back and forth across Daniella’s tiny hand while he watched her sleep. She was going to be as beautiful as her mother when she grew up, but he had the sinking feeling she’d inherited his single minded determination in getting what she wanted. A smile tipped the corners of his mouth when he realized the little scoundrel had already wheedled a promise out of him for a kitten.

  He supposed he should have been concerned about Mireia’s reaction to bringing an animal home because his housekeeper was damn near militant when it came to keeping his house spotlessly clean. But he knew she’d take one look at Daniella and fall in love with the child just as he’d done.

  It seemed amazing that he could love his daughter so much when he hadn’t even known she existed until today. How he longed to hold her, to hear her laughter, and watch her eyes light up when he walked into the room just as he’d seen them do when Daniella woke after surgery and saw Paige.

  Dante’s gaze wandered to the other bed where Paige was still sleeping. He couldn’t really blame her for not believing he was in love
with her, but that didn’t make it hurt any less. After being alone with his thoughts for the last three hours he’d come to realize a few things about himself and about Paige. It had never been about revenge, though he’d done a good job of convincing himself and Paige that is was. It had been about taking back what he’d always believed was his and regaining the part of himself he’d lost when she left him.

  The greatest pain he’d ever known was on the day he discovered she was gone, and until a few hours ago he would have wagered every penny he had that nothing could make him hurt that way again. But hearing the anguish in Paige’s voice when she told him how she’d given up her own happiness for his sake had stabbed at his heart until the ache in his chest became a genuine physical pain.

  How wretchedly lonely she must have been during the long months of her pregnancy because through it all, Paige had loved him. Even the joyous occasion of Daniella’s birth had to have been tarnished because he wasn’t there to share it with her. While he’d been conjuring up stories in his mind about how selfish and cold-hearted she was for having left him the way she did, Paige was preparing for the birth of their child.

  She hadn’t been lured away by another man or hungered for someone with money who could set her up in style, and she hadn’t lacked faith in Dante’s ability to be successful either. None of the shallow reasons he’d concocted to explain why she’d run out on him even came close to the truth. She’d loved him; it was as plain and simple as that. Everything Paige had done, everything she’d gone through was because of that love.

  It was her love for him that made Paige agree to become his mistress; that was another revelation his hours of reflection had revealed. Yes, paying off the loan would have tightened up her purse strings considerably but it would hardly have left her in dire straits. She’d given herself to him; body, heart, and soul, and ironically, while he’d been so intently focused on making Paige fall in love with him, Dante hadn’t even realized how the depth of his own love had grown.

  Somehow he had to make it right, but he’d have to wait until she and Daniella were settled into his house. She was hurt, angry, confused, and the emotional roller coaster Paige had been riding on over the past several hours had taken its toll. She wasn’t in any condition to make decisions about their relationship and it wouldn’t be right to push her, not when they both needed to concentrate on getting Daniella well again.

  Dante rose wearily to his feet. He leaned down and brushed a soft kiss to his daughter’s forehead then quietly made his way to the bed where Paige was still sound asleep. Memories of the nights he’d spent with her curled against his side made him ache all over. It wasn’t sexual in nature, though his desire to make love to her was never buried so deep it couldn’t be aroused with even the slightest of encouragement on her part. What Dante wanted, what he needed right now was to simply feel the warmth of her body next to his and to breath in her sweet scent.

  He lowered himself down onto the edge of the bed and slipped his shoes off then stretched out on his side, partially because he wanted to be able to look at her but also because the bed wasn’t wide enough for him to lie on his back without crowding Paige. She stirred for a moment and let out a soft whimper before inching over until she was nestled against his body. Maybe she’d gotten used to sleeping with him or maybe it was because subconsciously she needed the comfort of being held in his arms.

  Whatever the reason, it felt good, it felt right, and come hell or high water he was going to make Paige see this is where she belonged.

  ****

  Light filtered through her eyelids but that wasn’t what dragged Paige from the heavy sleep she’d fallen into. It was a woman’s voice, speaking in a hushed tone followed by a little girl’s giggle. Daniella. The sound of it filled her heart and for a moment she lay perfectly still, so deliriously happy she was afraid to open her eyes for fear it was just a dream. But when Dante chuckled, Paige realized two things; she wasn’t dreaming, and she wasn’t alone in bed.

  Dante smiled at his daughter. “And just what is so funny, my little princess?”

  “You and Mama squished in the little bed,” Daniella giggled again.

  Paige groaned inwardly, forcing herself to open her eyes. A young nurse stood beside Daniella’s bed and had apparently put the bed in an upright position so Daniella could see over the railing, no doubt having been conned into doing it by her daughter. As nonchalantly as she could, given the circumstances, Paige slid her leg from across Dante’s thighs and shot him a reproachful glare before wiggling her way of his arms and climbing out of bed. The wretch just lay there with a huge grin on his face and watched her try to smooth out her wrinkled clothes.

  Ignoring Dante as best she could, Paige circled the bed and went to Daniella to give her a kiss and a hug. “How do you feel, angel?”

  “My tummy hurts if I touch it so Annie said don’t touch it and then you know what Mama? Annie said I could have a popsicle for breakfast ‘cuase they don’t have Coco Crunchies and I can have orange or grape or…or…” she turned to the young nurse.

  “Cherry,” Annie supplied. “Whatever flavor you want, sweetheart.”

  Daniella looked at Dante. “What should I pick, Daddy?”

  Dead silence followed as Dante slowly stood up, visibly struggling to keep his emotions in check. “I…” he cleared his throat and tried to speak again but his throat was so constricted, nothing came out.

  “I know,” Paige came to his rescue. “We’ll take turns guessing your favorite flavor. Just nod your head when one of gets it right, okay?”

  “Like this,” Daniella demonstrated by bobbing her head up and down.

  “I think it’s grape,” Paige made the first guess, then pretended to be disappointed when he shook his head.

  “Orange?” Daniella ventured. “Orange, orange, orange,” she chanted happily when Dante nodded.

  Paige cast a worried glance at Dante when he turned abruptly and hurried off to the bathroom. She knew he’d been taken by surprise when Daniella called him daddy but hadn’t realized just how hard it hit him until then. While the nurse went to collect the popsicles, she tried to explain to Daniella why it was important to lie still and not squiggle around as she was doing.

  “Is it normal to be this alert after an appendectomy?” Paige asked Annie when she returned.

  “With children, yes,” Annie replied. “They’re incredibly resilient and heal much faster than adults. She’ll be a little tender around the incision area for three or four days but I wouldn’t be surprised if she was back to normal by the end of the week. We’ll keep her on a liquid diet today but she really won’t require very much special treatment after she’s released.”

  Paige smiled at Daniella whose lips were now a pale tint of orange. “You finish your popsicle while I go talk to Daddy for a minute, okay?”

  Daniella nodded, and after making sure Annie was going to stay with her, Paige went to check on Dante. She tapped on the bathroom door before slipping inside and found him with in front of the sink with his hands planted on either side of the counter as if he needed something to lean on. His head was bowed and he neither moved nor spoke when she came to stand beside him. Worried, Paige laid her hand on his arm.

  “Are you okay?”

  Dante shook his head slowly. “I did not expect…I mean, I hoped, but I did not really think she would accept who I am so quickly.” His voice was thick with emotion, his limbs still a little shaky. “When Daniella called me Daddy as if it was the most natural thing in the world…I cannot even begin to describe how it made me feel.”

  He looked at her then and Paige nearly lost it herself when she saw the shimmer of tears in his eyes. “Maybe…maybe it’s because you’re not as much of a stranger to her as you think you are. Daniella loves looking at pictures, mostly the ones of herself,” she grinned, “but it’s something we’ve done together practically all her life. She likes to hear the stories about where she was when it was taken and what we were doing at the time.”
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  “I do not understand. What has that got to do with me?”

  A warm blush colored her cheeks. “Well I…I have other scrap books with pictures of people and places I’ve been before Daniella was born.”

  Dante’s breath caught in his throat. “Pictures of me, of us?”

  Paige nodded. “I never told her you were her father but Daniella knows you were someone special, someone I cared a lot about. So you see, you’re not really a stranger to her. She’s a very bright little girl and though she may not quite grasp what kind of role a father plays, I do think she understands there is a bond between you and her that doesn’t exist with other children.”

  “Thank you, carissima. Thank you for letting Daniella see the pictures instead of pretending I never existed.”

  Paige turned her head away, too ashamed to look at him. “Don’t thank me, Dante. I robbed you of three years with your daughter, three years that you can never get back. If I’d thought for even a minute you wouldn’t have resented the financial strain a child can put on you, I never would have kept it a secret. Maybe you wouldn’t have reached the level of success you have nearly as fast, but I know you’d have gotten there in time.”