by Day Leclaire
“Now I know why you weren’t worried.” She gave a wry grin. “I should have known.”
He inclined his head. “Yes, you should. Primo would have killed me if I’d lost that final bid. Wait here for a minute while I retrieve it.”
He left her side to go and claim the ring. No sooner had he disappeared from sight than she caught a glimpse of the Fontaines. Every other thought fled as she stood frozen in place, utterly vulnerable to the approaching storm. Before they reached her, Sev reappeared with a ring box bearing the distinctive Dantes logo.
Spotting the Fontaines, Sev dropped a hand to her shoulder. “Look at me, sweetheart,” he murmured.
“I’m all right. Really. I’m fine.” So why did she feel like a deer caught in headlights?
“You will be.” He gently turned her toward him. Lifting her hand he slid Primo’s ring onto her finger. “Trust me.”
She glanced down, stunned. “What are you doing?”
“I’m trying to fix things. To protect you.”
“I—I don’t understand.”
“I need you to go along with what’s about to happen.” He spoke low and urgently. “I owe you this much, sweetheart. Hell, I owe you far more.”
Before she could demand a further explanation, the Fontaines descended. Sev greeted them with a broad smile. “You can be the first to congratulate us.” He held up her left hand. The fire diamond caught the light and burst into flames. “Francesca just agreed to marry me.”
“You must be kidding.” Disbelief overrode Tina’s anger. “This is a joke, right?”
Kurt studied Francesca with open concern. “This is sudden.”
Did she look as dazed as she felt? Probably. She’d never handled surprises well. She’d learned long ago that surprises meant something unpleasant…like moving to a new foster home. “I—”
“She’s still in shock,” Sev said with an understanding smile. “She didn’t see it coming.”
“You think I believe this?” Tina demanded. “You think I believe you’ve actually fallen in love with her?”
Sev tucked Francesca close in a protective hold. “Why do you find it so difficult to believe?” A hard note underscored the question. “Do you consider her so unlovable?”
“Just the opposite,” Tina snapped. She started to reach for Francesca before realizing what she’d almost done and snatched her hand back. “It’s you I don’t trust, Dante. She may be too inexperienced to figure out what you’re doing, but I’m not. You’ve romanced her away from Timeless Heirlooms because she’s our best designer. You know perfectly well that without her—” Her voice broke.
It was Kurt’s turn to pull his wife into protective arms. “Don’t, love. At least now we know what happened.”
Tears flooded Francesca’s eyes. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “You have no idea how badly I feel.”
“Give it time,” Tina shot back. “You’re going to feel a lot worse before he’s done with you. The only reason he’s romancing you is to facilitate his takeover of TH. You realize that, don’t you?”
Francesca couldn’t bring herself to respond to the question. How could she when every word Tina spoke was the truth? Her fingers dug into Sev’s arm as she struggled to keep from bursting into tears. She needed to get away. Now. “Excuse me, won’t you?”
Spinning free of Sev’s embrace, she pushed her way through the crowd of people. She needed air, needed time to regroup. She adored Tina and Kurt, had wanted to spend the bulk of her career working for them. At least, that had been her dream. But Sev changed all that, turning her life upside down.
She gazed down at the engagement ring gracing her finger. And now he’d tried to restore her relationship with the Fontaines. To put himself in the line of fire, instead of her. What he didn’t realize was how difficult she found wearing this ring. To her an engagement ring symbolized a soul-deep love. A promise that she’d have someone at her side who cherished her and would be her lifelong partner. This gorgeous, incredible, breathtaking ring was nothing more than a sham. It wasn’t real.
And more than ever, it left her feeling like an outsider.
Eight
Sev stood there, annoyed to discover himself acting the part of the stereotypical hapless male as Francesca disappeared into the crowd in one direction, and an infuriated Tina stormed off in the opposite. Sev stopped Kurt before he could charge after his wife. For Francesca’s sake he had to find a way to make this right.
“Francesca didn’t have any choice,” Sev stated. “You realize that, don’t you?”
Kurt swung around with a snarl, shaking free of Sev’s hold. “I realize that you forced her to quit a promising job with us and go to work for you.”
Sev fought for patience. “It wouldn’t have worked, Kurt. It would have put her in an impossible position. Because of our relationship, she’d have been trapped between you and Tina, and the Dantes. She’d have had to watch every word she said, both at work and at home, for fear of betraying one side or the other.”
“So you made her choose between us.”
“Yes. She doesn’t deserve your anger. The only thing she’s guilty of is falling in love. Her decision hurt you. Trust me when I say that same decision hurt her every bit as much. She adores you and Tina. You’ve been her mentors. Her friends. Her family. She owes you everything, and don’t think she isn’t aware of that fact.”
Kurt’s expression softened ever so slightly, right up until he looked at Sev. “And you?” he asked harshly. “Is Tina right? Is this your clever way of getting your hands on TH?”
“I don’t need Francesca to do that. TH will be mine whether she’s working for you, or for me.”
“Not if I can help it.”
“Kurt…” Sev grimaced. “Talk to Tina. The two of you are important to Francesca.”
“Important enough to get you to back off?”
Sev couldn’t prevent a smile. If circumstances had been different he might have formed a friendship with Kurt. He’d prefer that over their current contentious relationship. “Good try, Fontaine, but it isn’t going to happen. Why don’t you and Tina make it easy on yourselves and sell out? I’ll give you an excellent price.”
“Not interested.”
Sev shrugged. “I didn’t think so, but it was worth a try.” He hesitated. “Will you talk to Tina?”
Kurt released his breath in a rough sigh. “Yeah, I’ll talk to her. I don’t expect it’ll change anything. But I will encourage her not to take her anger out on Francesca.”
“I’m the one at fault. Tell her to keep me in the crosshairs where I belong, and we’ll all do just fine.”
With an abrupt nod, Kurt turned and walked away. Sev had no idea whether his plan stood a chance in hell of success. For Francesca’s sake, he had to try. She deserved an opportunity to get to know her father, but because he’d been so focused on Dantes and his plans for the business, he’d stolen that opportunity from her. No. Not just stolen. He’d effectively annihilated any chance of it ever happening. If he could restore that much, maybe—just maybe—he could live with the guilt he felt over the rest.
Sev went after Francesca, not in the least surprised to find she’d retreated to the balcony off the ballroom. It was where they’d first met and he struggled not to read anything into her choice. She stood by the railing, her back to him. He could tell she sensed him the instant he appeared in the doorway, her awareness betrayed by the mantle of stillness that settled over her.
He approached. “I’m sorry to spring that engagement ring on you, sweetheart.”
“Have you lost your mind?” She threw the question over her shoulder without turning. “What in the world were you thinking?”
“That I was Nic, I guess.”
That did prompt her to swing around. “This was Nicolò’s idea?”
“Hell, no.” Sev scrubbed his hand across his jaw. “I get all the credit—or should I say blame?—for this one. I just meant it’s the sort of crazy scheme he’d have come up w
ith.”
“I don’t understand. Why would you do such a thing?”
He shrugged. “I had to try and fix the problem somehow.”
“Because that’s your job. To fix things.” It wasn’t a question.
“It always has been,” he answered simply. “Since the day my father died, I’m all that stood between Dantes succeeding or going under.”
“Well, I’m not some business you have to rebuild. You don’t have to fix things for me,” she insisted. “I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time now. I don’t need you to step in and assume the job at this late date.”
Strongly stated. Maybe a bit too strongly. “Just out of curiosity…” He cocked his head to one side. “Have you ever needed anyone since you turned eighteen?”
He caught the faintest of quivers before she stiffened her chin. “No.”
He lowered his voice to a caress. “Or should I ask, have you ever wanted anyone?”
“Don’t do this,” she whispered. “It’s not fair. I want permanence, not temporary.”
“Not a string of foster homes.”
She conceded the accuracy of his observation with a small nod. “Growing up I always felt I had to change who I was so I’d fit in, that being myself wasn’t good enough. I refuse to do that any longer. I won’t pretend to be something or someone I’m not, not any longer.” She tugged at the ring he’d given her. “This doesn’t belong on my finger. Not until it’s the real thing.”
He stopped her before she could remove it, closing his hand over hers. “Leave it there for the time being. I forced you to work for me. Caused dissension for you both at Timeless and at Dantes. The ring will help protect you. It may even right a few wrongs.”
She hesitated. “What’s the point? It has to come off sometime.”
“But not yet.” Not until he’d had time to come up with a resolution to their problems. “Listen to me, honey. There’s a very good possibility that our engagement will give you the opportunity to reestablish a relationship with the Fontaines. They’re less likely to blame you for leaving them if they believe I forced the issue. They could be part of your life again. You might not see your father as often as you would if you still worked for TH. But at least they won’t be angry with you any longer.”
“Do you really think so?”
Stark longing filled her expression, ripping him apart. “Give it a chance and see,” he suggested roughly.
She teetered on the edge of temptation. “How long do you expect me to keep up this charade?”
“For as long as it takes.”
“But it’s a lie,” Francesca protested.
“Is it?”
A single tug had their bodies colliding in the sweetest of impacts. Sev wrapped his arms around her. The mere touch of her body fomented a reaction unlike anything he’d ever felt with another woman. He’d assumed the acuteness of their passion would ease after a few weeks, that eventually they’d both become sated and the sexual intensity would diminish. It hadn’t, and from his perspective, neither of them was close to sated.
A tremor swept through her, one so slight he’d have missed it if they hadn’t been fused together from hip to shoulder. He recognized that shiver, felt it each time he pulled her into his arms, and it never failed to excite him. It betrayed a sensual helplessness, one reserved only for him. It whispered her secret to him, teased him with the knowledge that with one touch, her defenses would fall before his advance.
“Let me in, sweetheart.”
She gripped his shoulders, pushing even as she yielded. “We’re through. Whatever existed between us is over. It ended the minute you forced me into this devil’s bargain with you. Putting a ring on my finger to protect me doesn’t change that. You put business ahead of our relationship and that’s the end of anything personal.”
“You know that isn’t true.”
He swept a hand from the base of her spine to the nape of her neck. Her shiver became a shudder. The give to her body ripened into a heated abandonment, one that silently incited him to deepen their embrace. She wanted him. She might resist it, but nothing could stop the combustible reaction whenever they touched. Not personal preference. Not logic or intellect. Not even her hurt and anger at the hideous position in which he’d put her.
The dragon’s breath of The Inferno incinerated both reason and intellect, and left behind a single urge. To mate. To step into the fire of that joining and allow the flames to consume them.
He lowered his head, his mouth hovering above hers so their breath became one. “I wish this weren’t happening when it’s clear you don’t want it. I wish I could do what you ask and let you go. But I can’t.”
“You don’t have any choice,” she asserted. “Do you really think that after all you’ve done I could ever trust you again?”
“I’m not asking for your trust.”
“Just me in your bed.”
He didn’t bother denying the truth. “Yes, I want you there. Or here. Or anywhere I can have you. Any way you’ll allow it.”
He closed the final gap between them and sank into her mouth. He heard her sigh of pleasure. Felt it. Drank it inward. Their lips molded, shaping themselves one to the other, before parting. Her breathing grew ragged. Or maybe it was his. More. The insistent demand sounded in his head, so clear and sharp he almost thought he’d said it aloud. And maybe he did, because she reared back, breaking the kiss almost as soon as it began.
She turned her head a fraction to avoid any risk of their lips colliding again. “Making love to you is too intimate. It leaves me too vulnerable,” she told him with devastating frankness. “I can’t open myself to you if I don’t trust you.”
“We’ll find a way to make this work.”
He’d said the wrong thing. Instantly, she ripped free of his embrace. “There’s only one way that’s possible. I can work for you or I can sleep with you. But I refuse to do both. It’s your choice, Sev.”
She gazed at him and he could see the burgeoning hope in the inky darkness, a hope he had no option but to crush. “I believe we’ve already had this conversation. You work for Dantes.”
He forced himself not to flinch at the acrid disillusionment that shattered the last of her hope. Her chin shot up and she embraced her fury. “You’re the consummate businessman to the bitter end, aren’t you, Sev? No matter who gets in your way or how many get hurt.”
He opened the door a crack so she could see inside. “There’s never been any other choice for me. My family has always depended on me to be the ruthless one.”
“I’m not in your way, Sev.”
He inclined his head. “Not anymore. You need to understand, sweetheart, that my family still depends on me to make the hard decisions. If I don’t make them, if I’m too weak to make them, I could put Dantes at risk again.”
“Fine. Now you’ve made one more hard decision. You’ve chosen Dantes over our relationship.” She stepped back. “Just don’t expect me to reward you for that decision.”
He dared to touch her a final time. He scraped his knuckles along the curve of her cheek and pretended not to see her flinch. “I’m sure that’s your intention now. But you will be back in my bed. There won’t be any other choice.” He smiled, a painful pull of his mouth. “For either of us.”
Francesca twisted the engagement ring she’d worn for the past ten days, still surprised to discover it decorating her finger whenever the fire diamond caught her eye. “So who all will be at your grandparents’ house for dinner?” she asked.
Sev shot her a quick glance of reassurance, which dashed any hopes that he hadn’t picked up on her nervousness. “Just Nonna, Primo and my brothers this time around. I’ll save the rest of the family for another occasion.”
“Oh.” She started to twist her hands together again, but the fire diamond stopped her, flashing an additional message of reassurance. To her amusement, it worked and she found herself relaxing despite herself. “So. Does your family get together often?”
> “Once a month without fail.”
“Do they know our engagement isn’t real?”
“It is real. For now. As far as my family’s concerned, you and I are engaged,” he warned. “I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t disabuse them of that notion.”
Her brows pulled together. “And how did you explain the suddenness of it? Or the fact that I used to work at TH and now work for you?”
“Easy. I told them we had no choice. It was The Inferno.” He shrugged. “I didn’t need any other explanation after that.”
She caught her bottom lip between her teeth. So much for relaxing. Whenever she’d been sent to a new foster home, that first meeting always proved the most difficult for her. Most of the time she walked into situations where the other foster children, or her foster parents’ natural children, had already formed tight family units. Sure, they always welcomed her…at first. But she dreaded those early days of adjustment, hovering on the outside of their too jovial camaraderie as she tried to figure out how to best fit in.
This time around they all believed her madly in love with Sev. How could she possibly convince them of that? “I don’t think I can pull this off.”
“Don’t worry about it,” he told her softly. “We won’t stay long if you’re not enjoying yourself.”
“I’ll be fine.” And she would. She could handle the situation. After all, she wasn’t a lost child any longer. And if she’d learned nothing else during those formative years, she’d learned how to fake it.
To her delight, she discovered she didn’t have to fake anything. From the moment she and Sev walked in the door, the Dantes welcomed her with open arms. Primo and Nonna both gave her exuberant hugs, exclaiming in pleasure over her choice of engagement ring.
“It’s a stunning design,” Francesca complimented Primo with utter sincerity. “I told Sev how envious I am that it isn’t my own creation.”
“I am honored,” he said, clearly moved. “And I am even more honored that you have chosen this particular ring to wear for as many years as God blesses your marriage.”