by Sue MacKay
The bigger girl beside him grimaced. ‘You think?’
Her white knuckles gave him an excuse to hold her hand. Not that he needed one. They were still lovers, though how that would play out now they were staying with her parents was anyone’s guess. He wasn’t ready to let Elene go yet. Somehow he doubted he ever would be. Which was why he was in this tin can shaking all over the sky instead of back in Sorrento considering his next operation. He loved Elene. Articulating that wasn’t happening. He’d tried the night before they’d left Italy, had taken her out for a special dinner in a stunning location and opened his mouth to utter the words and nothing came out. At least she hadn’t guessed what was on his mind and made him look a fool.
For now he’d continue showing his feelings, not telling her. It was the best he could manage, and better than nothing.
Thud. The plane made it onto the ground.
‘Phew.’ Elene wiped her brow. ‘Welcome to my turf.’ Her smile was wry. ‘Thank goodness I packed jackets for Aimee and myself.’
‘Minus three is a little cooler than twenty-four,’ he admitted.
Elene had taken her phone off flight mode and messages were pinging. ‘Dad’s waiting in the terminal. Everyone else’s stayed back at the house because of the appalling road conditions.’
The inquisition was on hold for a little longer. ‘That’s probably a wise move.’ Mattia unbuckled his seatbelt and stood up to collect their gear from the overhead lockers while Elene unstrapped Aimee.
‘Relax,’ she admonished. ‘No one’s going to eat you.’
‘Easy for you to say.’ He wasn’t too concerned about what Elene’s family thought of him, but more how they felt about her moving to Italy permanently. They, and Elene, didn’t know about his appointment with the head of the orthopaedic department at Wellington Hospital in two days’ time. He never went without a back-up plan, in case things turned to custard.
‘Done it all before.’ She grinned. ‘And lived to talk about it.’
‘Sì. Let’s go get another stamp in our passports.’
Transitioning from the plane to the luggage carousel to Immigration and out into the arrivals hall went smoothly and a lot quicker than he’d have believed. As he watched Elene being engulfed in a hug from the man who’d raised her, Mattia felt a tug at his heart. He was asking her to give this up for him. Aimee would be happy growing up in Wellington or Sorrento, but Elene? He wasn’t so sure.
Then his hand was being gripped and shaken by Jeff Lowe. ‘Thank you for coming all this way with Elene. I know the flight over to Italy knocked her a bit.’
‘A lot,’ he told her father. ‘But she’s one tough biscuit.’
‘I know.’ Pride filled the older man’s eyes. ‘Come on. There are some very impatient females at home who’ve been texting nonstop for the past hour to see where you all are.’ He took two of their bags and led them out to his car.
Accepting of him or not? Mattia wondered.
Elene talked all the way to the house and then ran up the path to the women rushing out to greet them, regardless of the cold.
Mattia held Aimee and felt his heart tighten as he watched this family reunite as though they’d been apart for months, not weeks. ‘I can’t do this to her.’
Beside him Jeff turned and said, ‘You’re not. It’s Elene’s choice. She’ll only do what she wants, and what’s right for Aimee.’
‘What if the two are at opposing ends of her wish list?’ He couldn’t ask her to make that decision. She already had, though.
‘Who says that?’ Jeff asked. ‘I know my girl and if she believed she couldn’t make it work you wouldn’t have stood a chance.’
‘That’s true. She’s the only woman I know who rides roughshod over my expectations and demands.’
‘You like that even if you’re not admitting so.’
Damn, this man had him sussed in minutes. Words failed him and he was grateful for Rebecca Lowe approaching with her arms wide to take her granddaughter into her embrace. Except Rebecca included him in the hug.
‘Welcome to our home, Mattia. It’s lovely to finally meet you after all that’s happened.’
He had to blink rapidly so as not to embarrass himself. ‘I’m glad to be able to spend time with you too.’
Just like that, he seemed accepted. No one gave him a grilling about how he’d treat Elene in Sorrento or why he couldn’t move to Wellington. No one tried to change their plans, or demand he bring Elene and Aimee to visit every so many months.
‘Told you it’d be okay,’ Elene gloated that night as they recovered from a fast but passionate lovemaking session.
‘Your father didn’t want to whip me for sharing your bed.’ He grinned in the dark. They were in her cottage, two streets away from her parents’ home, where they’d first planned on staying. And yes, he’d succumbed to Elene’s wiles because...because he couldn’t help himself. He was going to have to rethink not going anywhere with this relationship—fast.
‘His way of keeping you on your toes,’ she said with a laugh and ran a hand down his chest and on down, down, down...
* * *
‘How am I going to get all my stuff to Sorrento?’ Elene asked Mattia three days later. ‘There’s a ton of it.’
Yesterday, while Mattia had gone to the hospital to catch up with people he’d hung around with when working there, she’d taken an inventory of everything she’d like to take to her new life. There was a lot.
‘I want to talk to you about that.’
He sounded so serious she stopped folding the washing and sat down at the table beside him. ‘Please don’t tell me you don’t want me moving to Italy after all.’ Her family had been wonderful the way they’d accepted her decision and hadn’t pressured her to rethink it. They were adamant they’d find ways to be with each other regularly.
Mattia cleared his throat. ‘I wasn’t totally honest with you about why I went to the hospital. I had an appointment with Brent Underwood.’
‘The Head of Orthopaedics? Why?’
‘To see if there were any vacancies. Or if one might be coming up.’
Why? Hadn’t they decided on living in Sorrento?
‘Mattia, what are you saying? That you’re moving here instead of me going north?’
‘Exactly that.’ He stood up and paced across the small room. Turning back to face her, he continued, ‘I’ve seen how much you love your family, what you’ll be giving up for me. I can’t let you do that. You got homesick after two weeks. Expecting you to live in Sorrento permanently isn’t being fair.’
This was not going the way she’d thought. ‘What about your family? You’re all just as close.’
‘We are, but I’ll cope. There’s a new position opening up in August, and I’m going to apply with Brent’s backing.’
‘What about your position in Sorrento? Your charity work?’
‘The charity board will replace me, and what’s another change in my career?’
His shrug didn’t fool her. ‘I won’t let you give it all up for me. You can’t keep moving around changing jobs. Not when you worked so hard to get where you are now.’ Standing, she crossed to wrap her arms around him. ‘Don’t do this.’
‘I have to, Elene.’ His arms caught her to him and his chin rested on the top of her head. ‘I want to do it for you and Aimee. I can’t have you being lonely in Sorrento on my account.’
She stood in his embrace, absorbing the warmth from his body, breathing his man scent, holding him tight. Mattia was prepared to do all that for her. Did he love her after all? Or was he just being the kind, considerate man she’d come to know? If that was the case then they wouldn’t last long as friends. He’d get restless, would miss his family too much and start to blame her. Whereas she’d chosen to go to Italy, felt at home there and, while she’d miss everyone here, she’d have a family of her own with
Aimee and Mattia. Mattia, as in the other parent for their little girl, not her husband.
Pulling away, Elene slapped her hands on her hips and stared up at him. ‘No, Mattia. We agreed on me moving to Sorrento. You can’t just change the rules to suit yourself.’ He went to say something and she placed her hand over his mouth. ‘Listen to me.’ She was going to lay it all on the line. She had to. ‘If we were a couple, as in married, with our Aimee, would you do this?’
‘What’s the difference?’
‘Plenty. How much do you care for me?’
His eyes widened as he stared at her. ‘A lot.’
A lot. Better than she’d expected, but nowhere enough. Okay, heart, I apologise in advance if this turns pear-shaped and you get crushed but I’m not being honest if I don’t tell him. Her chest rose and fell as she struggled to gain composure. ‘Mattia, I love you. As in with all my heart love you.’ Shock registered in front of her. No surprise. Keep going. ‘Will you marry me?’
Silence reigned. Mattia stared at her as though he’d never seen her before.
Her stomach squeezed in on itself, making her nauseous, and her head spin. Why had she proposed to him? He was going to say no. Of course he was. There was no reason why he wouldn’t. Once he got over the shock of her being so forthright, that was. He liked to be in control and she’d just taken that away. She needed to regain some control of her own. ‘Right. Guess I know where we stand.’ Stepping back, she had to hold herself from running out of the door and down the street, away from the most embarrassing mistake of her life.
‘Elene.’ The tenderness in his low voice caught her, made her look at him.
‘Yes, Mattia?’
Slowly he reached for her hands. ‘Please come closer.’ When her hands were enfolded in his and her gaze on him, he cleared his throat. ‘You always have the power to stun me, and I love that about you.’
Not the same as he loved her, but it was progress.
‘Elene Lowe, thank you for your proposal, but—’
Her heart stopped.
‘But I like to do my own proposing. Elene, I love you with every fibre of my being. Will you please marry me and live with me for ever, wherever we choose?’
If she’d been able to speak she’d have answered, Yes, Mattia, I will marry you, love you for ever, and live in Sorrento.
But the words were glue in her mouth so she leaned in and placed her lips on his and kissed him.
‘Sì, sì, sì!’
Then Mattia swung her up into his arms and strode down to her bedroom to make love, slow and gentle and filled with love. Like no other time before.
* * *
On the way to dinner at her parents’, where Aimee had spent the day, Mattia swung by the liquor outlet for bottles of champagne. ‘We have some celebrating to do.’
Elene smiled, as she did all the time now. ‘Bring it on.’
‘I hope there are plenty of spare beds in your house, Mattia, because we’ll always be visiting,’ her dad told him when they’d made their announcement to the family. ‘We are very happy for you both, but don’t think we won’t be coming over often to annoy you.’
‘You’re welcome. My family can’t wait to meet you all, too.’
‘About a wedding, Elene?’ Georgie, her sister, asked. ‘Where? Here or Sorrento?’
‘Here,’ she and Mattia answered together. They hadn’t discussed it but she wasn’t surprised at Mattia’s response. He really did want everything to be perfect for her. ‘You’re both bridesmaids, by the way.’
‘Like you had a choice.’ Georgie grinned.
‘Pa-pa-pa-pa!’ Aimee had her say.
Mattia’s chest exploded with love and he nearly smothered his girl with a hug. ‘Oh, man,’ he sniffed.
Jeff tapped a spoon against his glass. ‘Raise your glasses, everyone. Let’s drink a toast to the happy couple.’
‘Cheers, Elene and Mattia. And Aimee.’
Mattia held his arm out and wound it round Elene’s, their glasses held ready. ‘To my beautiful fiancée.’
‘To my man.’ Bubbles burst across Elene’s tongue as she sipped her champagne. This had to be the happiest moment of her life.
And then Mattia unwound his arm and took her free hand with his. ‘There’s one more toast I wish to propose.’
Elene stilled, instantly knowing. Her fingers tightened around Mattia’s.
He raised his glass. ‘To Danielle, without whom Elene and I would never have met up again. Without you, Danielle, we wouldn’t have our wonderful Aimee. Thank you,’ he croaked.
Tears spurted unbidden down Elene’s face. ‘Thank you, my dearest, bestest, most special friend. Thank you for trusting me.’
And for the first time since she’d held Danielle’s hand at the end she felt the pain leaving her. It wouldn’t go completely, but now she could live with it a little more comfortably.
Turning to Mattia, she said, ‘I love you.’
He leaned in to kiss her, ignoring the wisecracks in the room. ‘Ti amo.’
* * *
If you enjoyed this story, check out these other great reads from Sue MacKay
ER Doc’s Forever Gift
Surprise Twins for the Surgeon
Baby Miracle in the ER
Her New Year Baby Surprise
All available now!
Keep reading for an excerpt from One Night to Change Their Lives by Tina Beckett.
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One Night to Change Their Lives
by Tina Beckett
CHAPTER ONE
PEARLS WERE NOT her thing. Not anymore.
Adelina Santini dropped the necklace into its velvet lined jeweler’s box, snapped the lid shut and put it in the growing stack of things to donate to the hospital’s charity auction. Five years of marriage and the necklace and her wounded pride were the only things she had to show for it.
The bed had been stripped of sheets, pillows and the comforter—she’d jammed everything into the trash along with her wedding pictures. But even with brand-new bedclothes, she couldn’t face sleeping in that room. So she’d spent the last six weeks sleeping on the couch, and that was where she’d stay until she could decide what to do about the bed, about the house...about everything. Divorce papers were filed and her soon-to-be ex had moved in with the woman she’d caught him cheating with—the same day she’d walked in on them. Getting rid of those pearls—his wedding gift to her—was the first step toward leaving an ugly part of her past behind. At least she hoped so.
All she wanted was to was
h her hands of him and never see him again. But he was an EMT who regularly brought patients to her hospital. Unless she moved to another city, she would see him. Daily at times. So far, those encounters had been far from fun. There was no way she was going to let her distaste at seeing him drive her out of her job, though.
Abandoning her task for the hundredth time that week, she went to shower and get dressed for work. Right now, her job was her only salvation. The fact that she arrived before her shift started and left long after it was over was no one’s business but her own. With that thought, she stepped under the stinging flow of hot water and waited for it to wash away all her troubles.
A half hour later, juggling five boxes of items for the auction, she walked through the doors of the emergency room of Miami’s Grace Hospital and headed for the staff lounge to drop off what she’d brought. Five feet from the door, a familiar voice stopped her in her tracks.
“Dr. Santini, could I see you in my office for a minute?”
Peering over the stack, her eyes widened as she saw she was right. Garret Stapleton, the hospital administrator, stood with one shoulder propped against a nearby wall, arms crossed over his chest. A hint of biceps made a rare flush of warmth go through her.
Lord, Addy, what is wrong with you?
Then he moved toward her, and she took a quick step back, the parcels teetering for a second. The heat in her face turned red hot.
“Let me help you with those.”
“It’s okay. I’ve got them. Just a few things for the auction.”
Why did he want to talk to her? Had she done something wrong? She’d been at this hospital for several years—longer than he had, in fact. And ever since her husband had walked out, her view of the world had shifted, opened up. That view now encompassed the sexy administrator in a way that made her cringe.
In her growing panic, the boxes tilted sideways, the jeweler’s container sliding off and falling to the floor. The lid popped off and the pearl necklace spilled onto the tile.