It felt good to be wheeled outside to her parents’ limo. They made her comfortable before driving her back to the castle. Yet not at any time had they or the medical staff mentioned that Rini Montanari had been a visitor.
She’d really experienced a whopper of a dream to imagine he’d left his office to fly to Crotone in order to find out if she was all right. Alessandra was terrified it would take years, maybe a lifetime, to get over him. But what if she couldn’t? The ache in her heart had grown acute.
Instead of going upstairs, she told her mom she wanted to stay in the day room and curled up on the couch under a quilt to watch television. Supplied with water and nuts, she didn’t lack for the creature comforts. Alfredo wandered in and jumped up on her lap. He supplied the love she craved.
“Alessandra?” She lifted her head to her mother. “Are you up for company?”
“If it’s anyone from the diving group, could you tell them I need a few days?”
“It’s Rinieri Montanari.”
She reeled in place.
“He said he visited you at the hospital, but the nurse put something in your IV and you fell asleep. He’s anxious to know how you are.”
Rini had been there!
She hadn’t dreamed it after all and couldn’t believe it. Thrilled, yet tortured by what her mother had told her, she couldn’t concentrate on anything else. “I—I look terrible.”
“That would be impossible,” her mother assured her, “but if you want me to send him away, I will.”
“No—but don’t tell him to come in yet. Could you hand me my purse? It’s over on the credenza.”
Her mother did her bidding. Alessandra’s hand trembled as she brushed through her hair and applied a coat of lipstick.
“Ready?”
Alessandra nodded. While she waited, she checked her phone to find a dozen texts from friends, one of them from Bruno, who wanted to know how soon she’d be back. Fulvia had sent her love and condolences. She wanted a good talk with her when she was feeling better.
Alessandra’s editor was thankful she was all right and told her not to feel pressured about delivering the book. He hadn’t given her a deadline. But there was no message from Dea, the one person Alessandra wanted to talk to. The pit grew in her stomach as she realized her own sister hadn’t tried to contact her. Why?
“You don’t look like you’ve been sick,” said the deep, familiar male voice she was dying to hear.
She looked up at the sinfully gorgeous man. “You’re right. I’m a fraud.”
Rini walked over to her. He’d dressed in jeans and a pullover sweater in slate blue. Combined with the soap he used in the shower to assail her, his presence had put her senses on overload. He reached down to scratch behind the cat’s ears. “You have the right instincts, Alfredo. I’d trade places with you if I could.”
In the next instant he leaned down and pressed a warm kiss to her mouth. “Welcome back to the land of the living. Your doctor told me you lost consciousness down there.”
“Only for a moment. My buddy Gino knew exactly what to do. It all happened so fast.”
“We can be thankful the divers with the institute are experts.” He stood there looking down at her with an intense expression.
She squirmed. “Rini?” Her voice shook. “Why are you here?”
“Though I had my reasons, I treated you badly when I left here the first time without saying goodbye. My behavior was worse when you flew to Positano to see me and I wouldn’t explain myself. I thought I was doing the right thing both times, but your accident has changed the way I feel about everything.
“I love you and I’ve never said that to another woman in my life. Almost losing you has made me realize I could no longer let my reason stand in the way of being with you, so I’m back to find out if you’d be willing to start over again with me.”
While she sat there in shock, Liona wheeled in a tea cart laden with a meal for them. “If Alfredo is bothering you, I’ll take him out.”
“Oh, no. I love him right here. Thanks, Liona.”
After she left, Rini got up and served both of them a plate of food and her favorite iced tea. His gaze found hers. While they ate he said, “Life has given both of us a second chance. What I’d like to do is invite you to my villa for a week where we can spend real time together.”
Alessandra couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She said the first thing that came into her head. “Can you take a vacation?”
“Of course. I want to get to know you without work or interruptions getting in the way. The nice thing about being CEO is that I can arrange it when I want. The doctor told me you shouldn’t dive for at least two more weeks. You’ve shown me your world. Now it’s time I showed you mine.”
She smiled. “Like fishing?”
“Only if you’d want to.”
“Rini, I adore the outdoors. Hiking, camping, all of it.”
“The mountains are beautiful this time of year. Could you talk to your editor and ask for an extension to turn in your book?”
“He already told me to take all the time I need.”
If only Rini knew she loved him so much she felt like she could move mountains for him, but she was afraid. “When the week is over, then what? Will you consider you’ve done everything possible to obtain my forgiveness?
“Will we say goodbye like sensible people who’ve enjoyed their interlude together but knew it had to come to an end? You’ll go your way because you can’t offer me any more than what you’ve already done? I’ll go mine?”
His jaw hardened. “Why don’t we stop worrying about the future and just take things one day at a time? I need help because I’ve never done anything like this before.”
She took a deep breath, surprised to hear the vulnerability in his voice. “Like what?”
“Invite a woman I care about to stay at my house.”
“I’ve never done anything like it, either.” Talk about needing help...
“The doctor told me you need rest and that you shouldn’t fly until tomorrow. So if I leave you now, will you think about my invitation? I’ll call you in the morning. If you decide you want to come, I’ll arrange to pick you up in the limo and we’ll fly in the company jet to Positano.” He stood up.
“Where will you be in the meantime?”
“At the airport in Metaponto. I’m working in my office on the jet and will stay in the bedroom overnight. I’ll give you until ten a.m. to get in touch with me. If I don’t hear from you by then, I’ll be flying back to Naples.”
She knew he meant it. This was it.
“If you’ll give me your phone, I’ll program my number for you.”
Alessandra handed it to him. “Rini, whatever my answer is, I promise to call you.”
Lines marred his arresting features. “I can’t ask for more than that.” He put the phone on the table. “You need rest now. Take care of yourself, adorata.”
The second he disappeared from the day room she wanted to call him back and tell him she’d go with him right now. But she needed to keep her wits about her. The decision to spend a week with him would change her life forever.
She kissed the cat’s head. “Who am I kidding, Alfredo? My life changed beyond recognition the day he approached me in the foyer.”
He said they’d take things a day at a time. She had no choice but to do what he wanted because at this point she knew she couldn’t live without him. If it was only for a week, so be it. The man was so complicated it was driving her crazy. Somewhere in the mix, Rini’s inability to give a woman a child had stunted his vision of life. She wanted to help him explore the world of adoption so he’d realize he could know total fulfillment.
With her heart ready to burst from the joy his invitation had brought her, she lay down and didn’t awaken until
hours later, when she heard her parents’ muffled voices talking about her sleeping her life away.
Alessandra sat up, disturbing Alfredo, who jumped to the floor. “What time is it?”
“Time for you to be in bed. Let’s get you upstairs.”
Later when her mother tucked her in bed she told her about Rini’s invitation. “I want to accept it, but I’m afraid.”
“Don’t let what Francesco did keep you from reaching out for your own happiness.”
If her mother only knew this had nothing to do with Francesco. But at least she had her parents’ blessing.
Liona brought her breakfast at eight, after which Alessandra pressed the button programmed to phone Rini.
“Am I going to hear what I want to hear?” he answered in that deep voice. She thought she heard a trace of nervousness and loved him for it.
“Maybe, unless you’ve had a change of heart during the night.”
“Alessandra—don’t keep me in suspense.”
Her mouth had gone dry. “I want to come, but I need time to pack.”
“How much?”
She chuckled. “Do we have to leave by ten?”
“I don’t care when we leave today as long as you’re with me.”
“Then can we say noon?”
“I’ll be at the castle at twelve and we’ll eat on the plane during the flight.”
“It sounds wonderful. Ciao, Rini.”
After ringing off, she hurried around her room to get ready for her trip. She needed to pack everything under the sun. Normally she traveled light, but not this time. Besides sportswear for their outdoor activities, her plan was to bring a few new bikinis and evening dresses that would knock his socks off.
She turned on her radio to some light rock music. The cat wandered in her room and probably thought she was out of her mind as she danced around filling her two suitcases.
“Alfredo? You should see his gorgeous villa.”
“Whose villa would that be?” asked a familiar female voice.
Alessandra spun around. “Dea!” After being caught off guard, she hurried over to her sister and hugged her. “I didn’t know you were coming.” With Rini coming for her, she couldn’t believe the bad timing.
“Evidently not. Papà told me about your accident so I came home to see how you are. I thought you’d still be in bed recovering. I never expected to find you flying around your room having a conversation with the cat. What’s all the packing for?”
“I—I’m going on a trip,” she said, her voice faltering.
“I gathered as much.” Dea’s eyes looked at the bags on the bed. “I do believe you’ve emptied your drawers and closets. Are you finally giving Bruno Tozzi a chance? He’s been after you for over a year.”
“Not Bruno. I’ve never been interested in him that way. Actually I’m going to be a guest at Rini Montanari’s villa.” She’d had no choice but to tell her sister the truth.
At the mention of his name, any goodwill Alessandra had hoped could be resurrected between her and Dea on this visit had vanished. Her sister paled. Rini really had hurt her by not asking her out again. “Are you talking about the one in Naples or Positano?”
Of course her sister would know all about Rini. She’d danced with him on his friend’s yacht. “I assume Positano.”
“Is this because you showed him around the property for Papà?”
“Dea? Please sit down so we can talk.” Alessandra closed the lids on her bags. “He’d been scuba diving with me. It’s a sport we have in common. When he heard about the earthquake, he flew down. Yesterday he came by the castle to invite me to stay with him for a week.”
“You mean he hasn’t been here all month?”
“No. He’s been gone for weeks on business. I was surprised to see him again.” So surprised she’d thought she’d been dreaming when he came to her hospital room.
Dea’s eyes followed her around while she packed her cosmetics. “I was shocked to learn he had business with Papà in the first place.”
“Let’s agree it was a shock all the way around.” Alessandra was so uncomfortable she could hardly bear it.
Her sister studied her for a minute. “Be honest with me. Are you going with him because of what happened with Francesco?”
“No, Dea—not at all! How can you even think that?” Alessandra cried. “Whatever happened is long since buried in the past.” She sank down on the end of the bed. “What do you want me to say?”
“Have you fallen for him?”
“I care for him very much.”
“As much as you did Francesco?”
“You can’t compare relationships. Francesco was my first boyfriend. I was young. As you reminded me, he ended up being a loser.”
“Don’t you know why I told you that?”
Alessandra frowned. “What do you mean?”
“He wasn’t interested in me. Within a day of his arriving in Rome, he was chatting up another model.”
“Oh, Dea—I didn’t know that.”
“I thought Mother would have said something. I’m telling you this to warn you about Rinieri Montanari.”
Alessandra didn’t want to hear it.
“On the yacht, his best friend’s father, Leonides Rossano, confided in me that Rinieri was Italy’s most eligible bachelor—as if my best friend, Daphne, and I didn’t already know it. I read between the lines and deduced he’d been a player for years. Alessandra—he might end up breaking your heart after he gets what he wants from Papà.”
“You’re wrong about that, Dea. He doesn’t want anything from him,” she replied, defending Rini. “He withdrew his proposal weeks ago and has been looking elsewhere for oil in the southern part of Italy.”
“I didn’t know that. Sorry.” Dea stood up, but Alessandra could tell the revelation had shaken her. “How soon is he coming for you?”
“At noon.”
She looked at her watch. “It’s almost that time now. I don’t want to be around when he arrives, so I’ll join the parents while you get the rest of your packing done. I’m glad you’re recovered. Even gladder that I wasn’t the one under the water when the quake struck.”
A rush of warmth propelled Alessandra toward her sister. She put her arms around her again. “Thank you for coming. You don’t know how much it means to me.”
Dea hugged her back. “You’ve always been the brave one.” She kissed her cheek before disappearing from the bedroom. Alfredo followed her out the door.
The brave one?
An hour later those words were still chasing around in Alessandra’s psyche as Rini helped her out of the limo to board the Montanari jet.
Once they’d attained cruising speed, his steward served them an incredible lunch of lobster pasta with sfogliatelle for dessert. The shell shaped pastry had a divine ricotta filling with cinnamon. The wonderful flavor was beyond description.
They sat in the club area by the windows. His dark eyes never left hers. “I’m glad to see a smile. When I picked you up, you seemed preoccupied. For a moment I was afraid you still didn’t feel well enough to come. We could have left tomorrow.”
“I’m fine, Rini, but I have to admit I’m still a little tired.”
“After what you experienced, that’s understandable. When we get to the villa, you can rest all you want.”
She looked out the window, wishing she felt the same excitement he’d engendered in her when she’d told him she would accept his invitation. But Dea’s unannounced arrival had taken her by surprise. Though touched that she’d come to see her after her scuba-diving accident, her sister’s questions about Rini had put a damper on this trip.
He was doing everything in his power to make her comfortable and had no idea Dea had been at the castle when he’d picked her up. She
didn’t want him to know, let alone tell him what her sister had said. Dea hadn’t been unkind. Alessandra had been grateful for that, but she couldn’t help feeling that her sister was suffering in some way.
Alessandra remembered how she’d felt when she’d first talked to Rini in the castle foyer. The immediate, overpowering attraction she’d felt for him had to be swallowed in the knowledge that he’d already been with Dea. She’d wondered then if she’d ever be able to get over him.
Yet today, her sister had to handle the news that Rini wanted to be with Alessandra enough to invite her to his home. If Dea had felt the same overwhelming attraction to him that night on the yacht, then who knew how long it would take her to get over Rini, especially if he ended up being in Alessandra’s future. The thought haunted her.
“I think you really are tired.” Rini got out of his seat and adjusted hers so she could lie back. “Our flight won’t last long, then we’ll put you to bed in the guest bedroom until you’re feeling your old self.”
“Thank you.” But she no longer knew who her old self was. Life had taken on new meaning since she’d met him.
* * *
Something was wrong beyond Alessandra’s fatigue. Rini had sensed it the moment she’d met him outside the castle doors with her suitcases. He’d expected to be invited in to speak to her parents, but she’d whisked them away as if she was in a great hurry. Rini hadn’t questioned her about it. In time he’d get answers. They had a whole week. Today was only the beginning.
Once the jet touched down, the helicopter flew them to the villa. He carried her luggage while she made her way along the path that led to the back patio. She looked over her shoulder at him. “You truly do live in a garden. At home I smell the sea air. Here, I’m assailed by the most heavenly scents.”
“After living in Naples with the occasional scent of sulfur from Vesuvius in the air, I chose this flower-filled mountaintop on purpose. Follow me through the house. Your room faces on the pool. You can walk out the French doors at any time and take a swim. Come on. Let’s get you in bed.”
The Billionaire Who Saw Her Beauty Page 10