The Salvatore Marriage Deal

by Natalie Rivers

  She sighed as her mother disappeared into the airport departure-lounge. She couldn’t help being pleased she was gone. Quite honestly, having her mother around had made her feel more alone than ever.

  She turned and headed across the concourse to follow the path back down to the water, where Vito’s boat was waiting for her. It was June, and a plane full of Swiss tourists had just arrived at the airport. They were all pulling their cases down the same walkway to get a water bus or taxi, but with no luggage to hold her up Lily weaved her way quickly through them. She wasn’t anxious to be back at the palazzo, but she’d promised she’d visit Giovanni before lunch.

  Vito cut the connection to his assistant and slipped his mobile phone back into his pocket.

  He was pleased to have confirmation that Ellen had left Venice, but he was bothered by the news that Lily had gone straight from the airport to Ca’Salvatore.

  Before her mother’s visit Lily had started going to see his grandfather every day, and now that her mother was gone it seemed that she was getting straight back into the same pattern. Giovanni enjoyed her visits, so Vito had not put a stop to them. But it concerned him, not knowing what game Lily was playing.

  After their argument he had half expected her to try to leave him. But if anything she seemed to settle into her life in Venice with more determination. He didn’t know what she thought she’d gain by making a friend of the old man, but it wouldn’t do her any good. Vito was still calling all the shots.

  ‘Ah, my beautiful English Lily,’ Giovanni said, pushing himself up against the ornate carved headboard.

  ‘I hope you haven’t been waiting,’ Lily said, hurrying across the room to help him with his pillows.

  ‘I always wait for you.’ Giovanni smiled, and Lily knew it wasn’t a reprimand. Over the last few weeks, her visits to Ca’Salvatore had become a daily event that they both enjoyed.

  However, during her mother’s stay she’d only popped in once, briefly. It had been clear that the instant rapport she’d shared with Giovanni was not present between her mother and the old gentleman.

  ‘My mum is flying home today.’ Lily glanced at her watch. ‘In fact, she’s probably on a plane right now.’

  ‘That’s good,’ Giovanni said. ‘Now you can spend more time with your husband.’

  Lily blinked and stared at him, momentarily lost for words.

  ‘I’m old,’ Giovanni said. ‘I don’t have the time to pussyfoot around, watching what I say.’

  ‘Did you ever, even when you were young?’ Lily laughed, despite the fact his instruction to spend more time with Vito had unsettled her. She liked Giovanni, and couldn’t ever imagine being offended by him, no matter how directly he spoke. But of course he didn’t know—he could never know—the truth behind her marriage to Vito.

  ‘Hmm.’ He pretended to pause and think. ‘Not so much.’ He flashed a winning smile at her, momentarily taking years off his age. ‘But I’m serious.’

  ‘Vito’s been very busy,’ Lily prevaricated, letting her gaze drift across the fabulous fresco that decorated the wall. ‘Work…’

  ‘I can see you love him, and that he loves you.’ Giovanni spoke with assurance. ‘But there is tension between you.’

  ‘Well…’ Lily’s words dried up because she had no idea how to respond. Giovanni had seen love where there simply wasn’t any. Vito’s feelings for her were obviously the complete opposite of love—he’d made that plain enough. And, although she had once foolishly believed she was falling in love with him, now, after the awful things he’d said and the dreadful way he’d treated her, she’d be crazy to open her heart to him again.

  ‘You must fix it now,’ Giovanni said. ‘My grandson is a good man. But he is proud. He won’t make the first move.’

  ‘I’ll talk to him,’ Lily promised, because there was nothing else she could say.

  Lily walked through the twisting maze of alleys, past the fabulous jewellery shops and Venetian trinket-stores, deep in thought.

  Even her favourite gelateria, which she often stopped at on her way home, did not catch her attention. Even though she was hungry, and ice cream was one of her favourite foods, she didn’t feel like eating. She was thinking about the promise she’d made to Giovanni.

  She was also thinking about her mother.

  Living her life according to Reggie Morton’s rules had taken a terrible toll on Ellen. She’d lost her confidence and her independence. Finally she’d become so scared of life that she’d buried herself in project after project, which in turn had left her preoccupied and unable to have a proper relationship with her daughter.

  That was what scared Lily the most. She loved her mother, and knew that she was loved in return, but Ellen hadn’t even realised that Lily was facing the biggest crisis of her life. There was no way that she was going to let her child grow up like she had—with no father, and with a mother who’d had her spirit eroded away to the point where she couldn’t communicate meaningfully with her daughter.

  Lily had married Vito for the sake of her baby. Nothing had changed about that. But Vito still refused to acknowledge the baby and, if she didn’t do something to make him see the truth soon, before she knew it she’d be out on her own again with no further chance to talk to him.

  She took a deep breath and steeled herself to have a proper conversation with Vito—whether he wanted to or not.

  Vito was late home from the office that night. He opened the door of the bedroom quietly, expecting to see Lily lying still as a mouse in bed and pretending to be asleep. Instead he was surprised to see her sitting in a comfortable chair, reading one of her paperback books. She put the book aside and stood up immediately, automatically smoothing her hands down the lightweight fabric of her cappuccino-coloured dress.

  ‘We need to talk,’ she said, pushing her sleek blonde hair behind her and straightening her shoulders.

  ‘What about?’ Vito crossed the room without breaking his stride and tossed his jacket onto a chair.

  ‘About us,’ Lily said. ‘About our marriage.’

  ‘There’s no “us”,’ he said curtly.

  ‘But there is our baby,’ Lily said.

  ‘I thought you understood never to make that claim again.’ Vito reached up and tugged his silk tie off jerkily. He could feel his anger at her betrayal rising once more. ‘I won’t tell you again.’

  ‘Why won’t you give me a chance?’ She sounded calm, but Vito could see the colour warming her cheeks.

  ‘Because you betrayed me.’

  ‘When you proposed you said it was for the baby’s sake,’ she appealed to him. ‘But that was a lie. You know how horrible it was for me, always knowing my father didn’t want me. How can you do that to your own baby? It’s unforgivable.’

  ‘It’s not my baby,’ Vito grated.

  The heartfelt emotion in her voice scratched down his nerves like nails on a chalkboard. She was the one who had done the unforgivable. Everything he had done was for his family—for his grandfather’s sake.

  ‘I don’t know what else to say to convince you.’ Lily stared at him, a feeling of helplessness suddenly looming up through her misery.

  If she could never prove her innocence to him, what was the point of her staying in Venice? Had she made a mistake staying so long?

  Should she give up the fight to make Vito realize he was the father of her baby, go back to London, and see if her old boss, Mike, would let her try out for that job? If only she hadn’t given up the opportunity when it had been available to her.

  ‘Don’t say anything,’ Vito said. He was studying her in return, and she could see the tension evident in every plane of his face. ‘I keep telling you that.’

  ‘I just wish there was something I could do to make you believe that I wasn’t unfaithful,’ she said. ‘If only I knew why you think you’re not the father…’

  His blue eyes were cast into shadow by brows that were drawn low, but she saw a flash of emotion suddenly flare within them. Emotion so
raw it was as painful to witness as it must have been to feel. Then, as she stared up at him, a muscle started pulsing stubbornly beneath the dark stubble on his jawbone.

  Without thinking she lifted her hand to touch his face.

  A shock wave of sexual awareness surged through her, and she snatched her hand back. But not before she’d seen an answering glint in Vito’s eyes.

  ‘Can’t we move past this anger and mistrust?’ she asked, trying to speak calmly, despite the way her heart was beating out a furious tattoo in response to the sizzling energy that was suddenly flowing between them. ‘We can’t go back in time and alter what’s already happened between us—but we could try to get along. Maybe then you’ll be able to trust me again.’

  Perhaps she was being too honest, too open about her desire to see Vito acknowledge his child. But it was dishonesty and lies that had led them to this impasse, where it seemed impossible to get through to him, and pointless for her to stay with him.

  ‘What are you doing now?’ Vito asked, his sensual lips spreading into a predatorial smile. ‘You failed to convince me with your emotional appeal, so now you’re trying to tempt me with another more basic form of persuasion?’

  ‘No, I’d never do that!’ Lily gasped, feeling her cheeks flame as she realised what Vito was implying.

  ‘You’re not offering sex as a way to manipulate me?’ He stepped closer and lifted his hand to mimic Lily’s earlier action. Except when a frisson leapt between them he didn’t withdraw his hand—he pushed it further, slipping his fingers deep into her silky hair.

  A shiver skittered through Lily as her body responded instantly to Vito’s touch. But she couldn’t let him continue to think the worst about her in every way.

  ‘All I meant was maybe we could try to patch things up between us, find a way to build bridges. End the hostility between us.’

  ‘I’d like to build bridges,’ Vito said, sliding his free hand around her waist, and pulling her hard up against him so that she could feel his erection pushing against her. She knew what kind of bridge between them he wanted to build—and she wanted it too.

  ‘No, that’s not what this is about,’ Lily said, despite the way her body was trembling with sudden, urgent desire for Vito. ‘I’m just trying to find a way we can reach a truce—find a way to communicate.’

  ‘You’re right—we always communicated best through sex,’ Vito murmured, leaning close so that his words tickled her ear. He paused to push her blonde hair aside and pressed his lips against the sensitive skin of her neck.

  ‘That’s not what I meant.’ She drew in a shuddering breath and tried to keep her voice steady as she spoke, but it was difficult with Vito’s tongue flicking a delicious trail down towards her collarbone.

  ‘It doesn’t matter what you meant,’ Vito said, putting both arms around her. ‘It’s what you want. What we both want.’

  ‘Yes.’ Lily couldn’t fight the tide of rising passion any longer. She didn’t want to fight any more. She closed her eyes and leant into his embrace.

  Anticipation coiled deep within her and, almost without conscious thought, she lifted her arms to loop them about his neck and tilted her face towards him. He responded in a heartbeat, bringing his mouth down over hers.

  His tongue swept past her open lips and she felt herself start to melt in his arms. She kissed him back, revelling in the sinuous feel of his tongue against hers, marvelling in the glorious flood of sensations that washed through her body.

  She lifted her hands to cup his face, and gently caressed his stubbled jawline with her fingertips. The feel of his masculine features beneath her fingers was intoxicating. She wanted to touch him all over, run her hands over his body in a way that she knew would drive him mad with desire—but not before she had driven herself wild with growing need.

  She pulled back from his kiss breathlessly, and gazed up into his gorgeous face through a haze of longing. He was still holding her close, his hands buried deep in her long, loose hair, and for a moment she was lost in the darkening depths of his blue eyes. Then in one smooth movement he took hold of her zip and pulled it all the way down her sensitive spine.

  She shivered in response, waiting to feel his hands slip inside her dress and caress her back, but instead he brought his hands up to ease the dress off her shoulders and pull the front down so that her lacy bra was revealed.

  ‘Your breasts are even fuller,’ Vito murmured, tracing their shape through the lace then reaching behind her to undo the fastening.

  ‘A little, I think,’ Lily agreed, hearing the breath catch in her throat as Vito cast the flimsy undergarment away. He guided her backwards and pushed her down so that she was sitting on the edge of the bed. Then he knelt between her knees and took one tingling nipple into his hot mouth.

  ‘Oh!’ Lily cried out. Either pregnancy had made her breasts even more sensitive than usual, or her body had gone too long without Vito’s exquisite attention. But, whatever the case, wonderful sensations swirled out from her breasts, filling her body with a mounting, shuddering need for more.

  As if he sensed her need—which of course he did, Vito always seemed to know exactly what her body craved—he pressed in further between her legs, and lifted the skirt of her dress up over her hips.

  His tongue was still moving deliciously against one hard nipple, filling her with wonder at the incredible feelings he was creating. She hardly noticed when, without breaking away, he tugged her briefs down and tossed them to one side.

  A second later he released her nipple and dropped down between her legs.

  ‘Vito!’ Lily gasped as she realised what he was doing, but at that moment his mouth came into contact with her most intimate feminine flesh.

  It wasn’t the first time he had kissed her there, had worked his tongue so expertly against the tingling epicentre of her desire. But her body had never responded with such an instant maelstrom of overwhelming sensation.

  Her breath was suddenly coming in short, panting gasps and every conscious thought was driven from her mind. All she was aware of was a building crescendo of hot, demanding passion. It was almost too much to bear—but at the same time she couldn’t get enough of it.

  She writhed beneath his mouth, trying to lift her hands to hold onto his head, but her arms were caught up in a tangle of fabric, still trapped in the sleeves of her dress. There was nothing she could do but lose herself on the spiralling rush of sensation that was surging through her.

  Vito lifted his hands to cup her breasts and she cried out again, letting herself fall backwards onto the bed, as wave after wave of pure bliss crashed over her and through her, carrying her on and on in an orgasm that was more powerful than any she had experienced before.

  But it wasn’t over yet. She had barely floated down from the pinnacle when Vito was moving over her. Somehow he had divested himself of his clothes and he lifted her further up the bed, freeing her arms in the process.

  He positioned himself above her, then without hesitation he plunged deep into her already quivering body.

  A sound she didn’t recognise moaned from her lips, and she gave herself over once again to a miracle of extraordinary pleasure. She lifted her knees and tilted her hips, desperate to feel his hard flesh filling her to capacity. She clung onto him, his muscled shoulders bunching beneath her fingers as he rocked backwards and forwards.

  Vito’s head dipped against her neck, and she could feel his breath coming in hot, harsh bursts in time with every powerful thrust. Her own breathing was also keeping time with his strong rhythm—high, panting moans that revealed just how lost she was on the rush of uninhibited passion that was storming her body.

  Her inner muscles were clenching hard around him, sensation was bursting through her, and once again she felt herself tipping over the edge of utter, all-consuming pleasure.

  ‘Vito!’ She cried out his name, then she felt her breath catch in her throat and she was sobbing, saying his name over and over again.

  Her head was th
rown back against the pillow and her eyes were squeezed shut, but tears were flowing freely down her face as her body trembled in the throes of another orgasm that seemed to go on for ever.

  Then suddenly she heard a shout as Vito came to his climax. He reared up above her, his body stopping still for a long moment. Then he shuddered mightily as he reached his own release.

  It took a long time for Lily to come back down to earth. She had never experienced anything so intense before, or responded so quickly and wildly to Vito’s love-making.

  There’d been hardly any foreplay. She hadn’t needed it—or even wanted it. With just one touch she had been ready for him, bursting with desire, desperate for him to make her his again.

  He was lying next to her quietly, and as she turned her head she saw he was looking at her. His blue eyes caught hers, and an instant shiver ran through her.

  ‘Was that too rough?’ he asked, rolling onto his side and placing his hand gently on her stomach.

  Lily frowned, startled when she realised what he meant, and instinctively lifted herself up onto her elbows to look down at her own body. It was a surprise to see the ruin of her dress bunched up and crushed around her waist. It wasn’t doing anything to cover her and, in a strange sort of way, it made her naked breasts and the exposed apex at the top of her legs appear even more wanton.

  ‘No, I don’t think so,’ Lily said. Her eyes were fixed on his large bronzed hand resting lightly on her small, neat bump. She couldn’t see his fingers properly as the crumpled dress was obscuring them, but she could feel the heat of his palm against her skin, and it was reawakening her sensual response to him.

  ‘Are you all right?’ Vito brought his gaze back up to her face, and he lifted his hand to brush her tear-stained cheek.

  ‘Yes,’ Lily said stiffly. She suddenly felt exposed and vulnerable in front of Vito. Of course he knew how powerfully she had responded to his love-making, and she was all too aware of how her body was already starting to sing again with renewed desire for him.

  ‘You never cried before,’ he said, smoothing her hair back from her damp face.