She missed her husband.
Maggie concentrated on breathing and struggled through the raw pain. One day at a time. She’d be okay; she was a survivor. But who knew surviving was so much less than living?
“Well, you can thank him properly because I got you a present.” Maggie tossed her friend the silky red negligee. “No details, please. Still too weird for you to shag my brother.”
Alexa laughed and examined the gorgeous piece of lace and silk in one hand. “Thanks, babe, it’s just what we needed tonight. Besides a babysitter.”
“I’ll take her one night this week so you can have a date night. I’m not going on any other trips for a while.”
Maggie flexed her hands. Her naked ring finger flashed in mockery, and she hurriedly clasped her hands in her lap.
Alexa studied her for a long while. Her voice was soft and comforting when she finally spoke. “Maggie, you have to tell me the truth. What’s going on?”
She shrugged. “Went to Italy. Saw Michael. Back now. Nothing else to tell.”
“Michael came to see me.”
Her head shot up and she gasped. “What? What did he tell you?”
Alexa marched over to the playpen, placed Lily in, kicked Simba gently off her leg, and joined her on the couch. Her blue eyes held a mixture of sympathy and support. “Michael told me everything, Maggie. About going to Italy and pretending to be his wife. About the priest making it real. And how he confessed his feelings to you but you ran away and threw them back in his face.”
Literal red blazed before her eyes from the sheer lies he’d uttered. She trembled and tried to speak rationally. “He didn’t give you the whole story, Alexa.”
“Then why don’t you?” Hurt shimmered in her face. “You’re my best friend.”
Maggie grabbed her hands and held tight. The tears threatened, then held. “I’m so sorry. I had a plan, but the whole thing misfired and now it’s a mess. I made Michael a bargain—I’d pretend to be his wife if he promised to stay away from you. I know he has deep feelings, and I was worried about you and Nick. He agreed, but when we got to Italy, things got complicated.”
“I cannot believe you are still stuck on this idea. There’s never been anything between us but friendship.”
“I know that now.”
“What happened? You started to fall for him?”
Maggie nodded. “At first I thought it was just sex. But then his family sucked me in, and the stupid cat, and then we had more sex and I began to get crazy ideas about a relationship between us. He told me he loved me.”
Alexa squeezed Maggie’s fingers. “And what did you say?”
“Nothing. I couldn’t say anything, because I didn’t really believe him. I was going to talk about it, but then I heard him on the phone with his friend Max.” She took a breath. “He didn’t believe I was good enough for Michael. Thought we were a terrible match, and he’s right.”
Alexa gasped. “When have you ever listened to anyone’s opinion?”
Maggie shook her head stubbornly. “I heard the conversation. I’m not right for him—I’m not the type of woman he needs. He wants a big family with pets and constant trips to Italy. He wants a nice, solid wife with a respectable career and a sweet manner. We fight. And I hate all those things.”
“Oh, Maggie.” Alexa gripped Maggie’s hands as tears filled her eyes. “My dear friend, don’t you know you are all those things? When are you finally going to believe it? Just your loyalty toward Nick and me and your willingness to protect us tells me you were meant to have a family of your own. Michael is a complicated man—something not many other women see or even know is there. But you do. You challenge him, and push him, and make him feel things more intensely. When he came to tell me everything, his heart was broken. He believes you don’t love him, can never love him, and he’s destroyed.”
Maggie fought tears. God, the idea of Michael hurt tore her to shreds. She loved him so fiercely, yet she knew Alexa couldn’t see the truth.
She needed so much more. Funny how she never believed she was worth the demand before. But Michael had changed her. In allowing herself to fall in love with him, she knew she’d always need to be with a man who felt the same way. Anything else may break her.
“I’m sorry, Al. I want to move on with my life and I never want to talk about Michael Conte again. If you’re truly my friend, you’ll do this for me.” Her voice broke. “Please.”
Alexa let out an annoyed breath. “But—”
“Please.”
She pressed her lips together. Then nodded. “Okay. I just want you to be happy, Maggie.”
The bleakness of her future descended on her like a cloud, and she forced a smile to her lips. “I’ll be okay. Now, let’s talk about something else.”
The rest of the hours passed and for a little while, Maggie pretended everything was back to normal.
* * *
Michael sat behind his desk and stared at his notes on the opening ceremony. In two days, his dream for his family and La Dolce Famiglia would finally come true. The first chain of bakeries would be revealed Friday night in a lavish presentation and party to rival all others.
The weather should hold, promising a beautiful crisp spring day with lots of sun. The bakery was prepared to fling open its doors with a variety of desserts, special coffees, and fresh breads. The downtown waterfront was a dream for a few investors who saw a vision like no other.
This should be the happiest week of his life.
Instead, grief wracked his body and tortured his heart. He decided to tell Alexa the truth in an effort to see if there was a way to reach Maggie. How her words had shred him, and her speedy departure only confirmed her harsh confession. She didn’t want him. Didn’t love him. And didn’t want the life he could offer her.
The night had been a mess. He’d spun a crazy tale of a sick uncle and had to play the proper part to convince his mother and sisters everything was okay. He left the next day and had his driver deliver the luggage she left behind. Michael pressed his fingers against his aching temple. Dios, what a mess. He’d finally fallen in love, and the woman didn’t even want him. How would he ever get over her?
Her image taunted him nonstop. The way she surrendered in his arms and shattered with climax. The way she bullied him, and laughed with him, and challenged him at every step. The tenderness she showed his family, and the way she catered to Dante, though she swore she disliked him. Contradictory and loving to a fault, she was meant to be his. He never confessed his past to other women. No woman had ever dug deep enough to even bother to ask about his dreams. But Maggie understood, acknowledged, and supported him.
A deep grief beat within his heart, and needing to drown it, he quickly reached for the bottle of cognac and poured himself a glass. The burning liquid slid down his throat with ease and exploded in his belly. Maybe if he got rip-roaring drunk, he could finally sleep without images of her naked and open beneath him.
His cell rang. He muttered a curse and looked at the ID. Paused a moment. Then hit the button. “Alexa? Is everything okay?”
He listened for a long time as she spoke. Suddenly, the jagged pieces slid together and fit. His heart sped up, and he stood from his chair as his friend detailed the conversation. A plan formed, and he knew what he needed to do.
It would be his last stand, but she was worth fighting for.
He only hoped it would be enough.
* * *
Maggie stood in the crowd near Alexa and watched the ceremony take place. Her luggage had arrived on her doorstep yesterday. A simple note came attached to the handle in his elegant scrawl.
I will adhere to our bargain and file the necessary papers to dissolve the marriage.
She ignored the disappointment and concentrated on the satisfaction that her family would be left alone. The emptiness in her gut drove her to reach for the phone and set up some jobs overseas. She needed to get out of New York and keep busy. She’d arrive in London by the end of the week.
Maybe she needed lots of distance to heal.
Distinguished sailboats and water ferries cut their way gracefully through the water, lending to the perfect backdrop of the buildings. The designs all seemed to flow with the majestic mountains and water, the lines fluid and sleek and low, enhancing rather than blocking nature’s view. Limestone lent a cool, fresh air to the spa, and the lush gardens snuck around each of the buildings set up with benches, sculptures, and trickling fountains. The sushi restaurant boasted an ancient Japanese tearoom, and the bamboo walls and gorgeous red silks blended in a visual feast of the senses. Bright murals had been painted on the old brick walls that once housed a broken-down train station. Fully restored, the waterfront now reminded her of what creativity, TLC, and a little money could accomplish.
La Dolce Famiglia was the final store to be revealed. A sprawling cloth with the logo imprinted on it covered the building, the ropes ready to drop at the sign from Michael. The crowd stirred with excitement, and the band struck up with dramatic flourish.
Alexa hooted and hollered when Nick cut the red ribbon, and Maggie joined in as pride rushed through her. Nick had worked hard and believed in his vision to transform the waterfront into something beautiful. He believed in his dreams. Maybe it was time she did the same. She may not get the man she loved, but she had the ability to change her career for a deeper satisfaction. After flipping through the photos she’d taken in Bergamo, an inner calling to shoot something more meaningful rose within her. Usually she ignored such instincts. This time, she decided to explore her need to capture some of the beauty in the world with her own unique vision. She planned day trips around her regular shoots, and made arrangements to meet with some magazine editors in England she knew to discuss some new options for her work.
Michael stepped up to the raised podium. Her heart tripped. Every cell in her body screamed for the right to smooth back his hair, touch his hard cheek, and revel in this moment with him. Dressed in an elegant charcoal suit with a purple tie, he took up the entire stage with his presence and immediately quieted the crowd. His dark good looks and sexy brooding stare made the women around her giggle and chatter. Maggie fought the primitive instinct to tell them to back off. Instead, she remained silent.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” he said into the mic, “I’m pleased to be with you to finally reveal the culmination of a family dream. My family built their first bakery in Bergamo, Italy, with pastries cooked out of my mama’s kitchen. With a lot of hard work, the Contes opened stores throughout Milan, and always dreamed of coming to America to share our recipes. That dream is finally here, and I thank all of you for sharing it with us.”
People clapped and roared. He went on to thank Nick and Dreamscape Enterprises, his business partners, and a variety of other members who helped along the way. Then he paused. Looked out into the crowd. And stabbed her with his gaze.
Maggie caught her breath.
His eyes seethed with emotion. He spoke as if they were alone, each word drilling into her mind and her heart with a deliberate intimacy that made shivers run down her spine. “Family is very important to me. This is something I believe in. The name of La Dolce Famiglia is a sign of my beliefs and my pride in what I hold dear. In what I love above nothing else.”
Her palms grew damp as she stood rooted to the ground, transfixed by his voice and his eyes and his presence.
“I have now discovered a new type of family. I have fallen in love with an incredible woman, one who made me believe in happily ever after. One who cracked my world open and made me whole. But, alas, she does not believe me. Words are not enough to convince her that I need her in my life. That she makes me whole. Therefore, I am proud to reveal my new bakery, and a new chain to open in America, where I have met the woman I want to be my wife.”
With a nod, the ropes tugged, then released.
The elaborate scrolling sign with bold letters proudly displayed the name.
La Dolce Maggie.
The blood pumped through her veins, and the world blurred, tilted, and held. She blinked and turned her head toward Alexa, who fiercely held her arms and gave her a tiny shake.
“Don’t you understand, Maggie?” she asked with tears shining in her bright blue eyes. “He loves you. It was always you—but you have to be brave enough to reach for it. You have to believe you’re worth it. That’s what you told me the day Nick confessed his love for me, remember? If you love someone, you fight for them, again and again. My best friend is not a coward. You deserve this. You deserve love.”
Like a vampire coming back to life after a deep sleep, suddenly she saw every color and shape slide into sharp focus. Her senses exploded, and she began walking through the crowds, making her way to the stage, where Michael waited for her.
He met her halfway. She studied his beautiful face, the full curve of his lip, the shadowed stubble over his chin, the crooked nose, the seething heat in his onyx eyes. He cupped her face between large, hard hands and pressed his forehead against hers. His breath rushed warm over her mouth.
“My Maggie, mia amore, I love you. I want to live with you, grow old, and have bambinos with you. You wrecked me. Completely. I could never settle for another woman because I’d be bored out of my mind. Don’t you understand? I don’t want the typical wife you think would make me happy, because you were meant for me, all of you. Your sarcasm, and wit, and sexiness, and honesty. You belong with me, and I won’t give up until I finally convince you. Capisce?”
She choked back a sob and reached for him.
His lips came down on hers and he kissed her deeply, as the roar of approval from the crowds echoed in her ears. Her heart expanded in her chest and settled. A sense of peace and homecoming flooded through her, and she finally believed.
“I love you, Michael Conte,” she whispered fiercely when his lips released hers. “And I want it all. With you, your family, your bakeries, everything. I’ve always loved you, but I was too afraid to take it.”
He kissed her again. Michael grabbed her and lifted her high, laughing in joy. She stood wrapped up in the tight circle of his arms, finally complete.
With her own home and happy ending.
Epilogue
“Maggie, hurry up! The movers are here!”
She grumbled under her breath and looked once more upon the empty rooms of her condo, making sure she hadn’t missed anything. Moving into a mansion wasn’t easy. Hell, they’d already fought over placement of things and room arrangements. She licked her lips when she thought of all the lovely ways they had made up, also. Many rooms had been christened.
Fortunately, there were many more to go.
“Coming!” she screamed.
With one last glance at the bare mattress still lying on her bed, she paused as a memory took hold. Maggie walked over to the bed and stuck her hand underneath the mattress.
The list.
The love spell.
She gazed at the white ledger paper and unfolded it to look at her list. Thank God, Michael hadn’t seen it; she would’ve died of humiliation. Shaking her head at the ridiculousness of her actions, she glanced down at the list of items she had requested Earth Mother provide her in her husband. The qualities blurred together as her gaze slid over the paper.
A man with a sense of loyalty.
A man with a sense of family.
A man who is a good lover.
A man who can be my friend.
A man who can challenge me.
A man I can confess my secrets to.
A man I can trust.
A man with confidence.
A man with an open heart.
A man who will fight for me.
A man who can love me exactly as I am.
Maggie caught her breath. She reread the list, an odd sense of foreboding washing over her. Drunk, defenses down, and lonely; the qualities on this list would never have been composed in her rational mind. No, every item cried out for someone who could complete her.
Michael. Earth Mother had se
nt her Michael Conte.
The diamond ring shot icy glimmers of light as she carefully folded up the paper and crumbled it in her hand. Ridiculous. She was getting herself spooked. There was no such thing as Earth Mother. The perfect man and love spells didn’t exist.
Right?
Warily, she decided to throw out the book of spells. Where had she put that purple book?
Carina.
When they’d returned home from the waterfront the evening of their reconciliation, Maggie was shocked to find Carina on Michael’s doorstep. The best part was the massive ball of black fur she held against her chest.
As soon as Dante spotted Maggie, he’d jumped out of Carina’s arms and into hers like he belonged there. Carina confessed that once she’d told Dante she wanted to take him to see Maggie, he walked right into the cat carrier like he understood. And maybe he had.
Her family complete, Maggie realized what it meant to fully belong to others and swore she’d never forget it. Still, she didn’t like the idea of her new sister holding on to a book of spells that may actually work.
She nibbled on her bottom lip and wondered if she should say something.
Nah, what were the odds? It was a silly little thing, and Carina would probably read it, get a laugh, and throw it away.
Maggie shook her head and left the room and her old life behind her.
Acknowledgments
Since The Marriage Bargain hit the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists, I have been overwhelmed by the amazing support of readers and my fellow writers. There are just too many to thank here, but every time I need a laugh, or to share a good or bad moment, you are there. Here’s the short list: Wendy S. Marcus, Aimee Carson, Megan Mulry, Janet Lane Walters, Liz Matis, Barbara T. Wallace, Abbi Wilder, and Julia Brooks. Shout-out to Tiffany Reisz for being my deadline buddy!
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