The Dare Collection May 2019

by JC Harroway

I glance at the elegant table with its crisp white linen, fine china and crystal glasses. The wine has been flowing, but no food has been served. “Yeah, only because they’re starving,” I shoot back.

  Tate laughs and it’s so exuberant, I can’t help but laugh with him.

  “What’s so funny?” Granddad asks as Tate pulls out the empty chair beside him.

  “Oh, nothing,” I say and give my grandfather a big hug before I take a seat. I glance around, take in a few familiar faces of my relatives and offer up a smile to the table. My eyes track Tate as he moves to the head of the table and drops a kiss onto his fiancée’s lips before smoothing his hand over his tie, a familiar habit.

  “Where’s your plus-one?” Granddad asks, and I suppress a sigh.

  “I came alone,” I say and smile at him.

  He lifts a gnarled, arthritic hand and shakes a finger at me. “I can’t wait forever, Brianna. I don’t have a lot of time left, you know.”

  My stomach drops. Honestly, I wish I wasn’t so jaded. I wish I could fulfill a dying man’s wish, but I’m not about to enter into marriage only to go through the pain of divorce, just to please my grandfather.

  “Granddad—”

  “I worry about you, Brianna.” His once-syrupy voice cracks and he coughs into the crook of his arm. He hacks for a few seconds, and then he turns to me and adds, “It’s not natural to be alone.”

  He would know. He had a slew of younger women over the years. But who am I to judge? After Grandma—his one and only true love—died, it was good to see him happy again, have someone help fill that void.

  He frowns at me and my heart sinks into my stomach as I take in the deep lines bracketing troubled eyes. I’ve never seen him look so old or tied, completely worn out. The trip here must have been hard on him, but he insisted that Tate have his wedding at the resort and that he was well enough to travel. Looking at him now, I’m not so sure he’ll last the week. My heart squeezes. Granddad has always been good to me. He was there for me when Dad walked out on us, and again when I lost Mom a few years ago. He taught me the value of hard work and supported me when I moved across the pond to attend Oxford. He even visited me when I was lonely. Jeez, maybe I should tell a fib, pretend I have someone just to please him and ease his worries.

  Should I?

  I mean, what could it hurt, right? Let him think I have a man, give him peace of mind during the wedding. Like he said, he doesn’t have much time left, and I don’t want to see him spend the rest of his days needlessly worrying over me.

  I place my napkin on my lap and take a big drink of wine after the server fills my glass. Here goes nothing. “Granddad, this isn’t the time or place to be talking about this, but you can put your worries to rest. I’m seeing someone, and it’s serious. In fact, we’re engaged.” What the hell? That was too far, Bri.

  His cloudy blue eyes light up, and weathered lips curl up into a smile. “Tell me all about him,” he says and leans back in his chair.

  I open my mouth, ready to spill more lies. Did I mention I hate lying as much as I hate being late? Yet here I am, batting two for two. I’m about to tell him some fabricated story about my Prince Charming when Tate stands and taps his crystal stemware with a spoon. All eyes turn to him, including Granddad’s.

  Thank God!

  “Now that we’re all here,” he begins, and heat moves into my cheeks as he winks playfully at me. “I’d like to do a round of introductions.”

  He begins with his beautiful fiancée, who is beaming up at her soon-to-be husband. An invisible band tightens around my heart, and tears prick my eyes, but then I quickly remind myself I want no part of love or marriage. Nope, it’s just hit it and quit it for me, as crude as that sounds.

  Tate goes around the table, talks about how he met those in his bridal party and adds a fun little story about each person. When he gets to me—the last bridesmaid—I nibble my lip with trepidation. The stories the man could tell about me would be humiliating at best. But instead of embarrassing me, he introduces me as his closest cousin, and goes on to let everyone know that I make a mean apple pie, which is a total lie. Then again the pie might have turned out just fine, if I hadn’t burnt the kitchen down baking it.

  Granddad laughs at the inside joke as Tate knowingly grins at me. He continues the introductions, and I crane my neck to see around Uncle Bill, who’s seated to my right. Tate reaches the last man at the table, the one sitting on his left, and I pick up my glass to take a drink.

  “This guy here is my right-hand man,” Tate says. “Most of you don’t know him. He joined my law firm just a couple of months ago, and not only did we hit it off the first time I met him here in the Alps, I don’t know what I’d do without him by my side in the office. He’s smart, meticulous and works long and hard into the night to get a job done. I’m happy to introduce Luca Marino, my best man.”

  Luca Marino!

  Wine sloshes over the edge of my crystal stemware as my hand shakes. I forcefully swallow the lump climbing into my throat and set my glass down before I drop it. I must be wrong. I have to be wrong. No way could the man seated to Tate’s left be the Luca Marino, the Italian jerk who rejected me in college. What are the odds Tate would even know him?

  As my pulse beats double time against my neck, I slowly stand to see over my uncle’s head, but the bottom falls out of my world when my gaze settles on the most gorgeous man I’ve ever set eyes on—Mr. Arrogant-Stuffed-Shirt himself.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Luca

  BRIANNA CARSON IS Tate’s cousin?

  Brianna Carson is Tate’s cousin!

  I try to wrap my brain around that, but I still can’t quite believe it. I never put it together before, and why would I? I haven’t seen her since our University of Oxford days, and after I walked her home from a party one night, she went out of her way to avoid me. I’m not sure what I did or said to piss her off, and while I would’ve liked to have talked to her to find out, there was never an opportunity. She made sure of that.

  As I meet Brianna’s gaze from the other end of the table, my entire body grows tight. Raw energy arcs between us, and I suck in a fast breath as she wobbles slightly, like the sight of me has completely caught her off guard, too. I catch a flicker of recognition in her eyes, but then she offers up a polite, somewhat distant smile and turns away. Wait, maybe she doesn’t remember me. Could I have imagined that flash of familiarity? I’m not sure, but I sure as hell would never forget her. She might have lost a bit of weight and changed her hairstyle and hair color, but I’d know sexy Brianna Carson anywhere.

  Oh, how I’d wanted to take her to her bed that night, put my hands and mouth all over her curvy body. Do all the dirty things that had been racing around my brain when I first set eyes on her in my senior year. The sight of her now is stirring up all of those hot images and urging me to do something about it. Why again did I walk away, leaving her alone in her dorm room? Oh right—she’d been drinking. I might be a lot of things, but I’d never take advantage of a girl who’d had one too many.

  Tate nudges me. I’ve been so lost in thought, I missed what he was asking me. “What’s that?” I say.

  Tate laughs. “Where were you?” he asks as a handful of servers begin setting our meals in front of us.

  I look down at the roast beef dinner in front of me. “Work,” I fib. “Just thinking about some figures I’d like to go over.” Okay, not a total lie. I was thinking about Bri’s curvy figure and how I’d like to go over it—with my tongue. My dick swells and presses against my zipper.

  Cazzo!

  Get it together. This is not the time or place to be sporting a hard-on!

  “You need to take this week off and relax, my friend. Put work behind you and have some fun. That’s an order.” Tate leans closer, his words for my ears only. “What you need is to get laid, buddy.”

  I laugh. “You’re prob
ably right.” I recently moved from St. Moritz to New York to help Tate get his law business off the ground. Then I buried myself in work, enjoying life outside my duties back in Italy for a little while longer.

  I’ve been avoiding those for years now, ever since my dad and brother died in a car accident three years ago. Even before that, I hid my identity from the world for a long time. Not even Tate knows who I really am—a duke. People treat me differently once they know, and while I can probably trust my friend, past experiences have taught me every woman wants to be my duchess, not because of love but because of prominence.

  I can’t avoid duty much longer, though. The letter in my suit-coat pocket is a burning reminder of that. With my father gone, along with my older brother, Matteo, the family legacy falls to me. That includes the dukedom and the family conglomerates. Uncle Giovanni is overseeing things for now, but if I don’t meet the stipulations of my father’s will and marry his best friend’s daughter before I turn thirty this year, the controlling shares of my father’s conglomerates will go to my eldest cousin, Marco. I can’t let that happen. He’ll blow through the entire Marino fortune in no time, destroy everything my father built.

  “This looks amazing,” Summer says, and with that we all dig into our meals. Small talk is made as the courses are served one after the other. Over an hour later, after the dessert dishes are cleared, we all head to the bar area for a drink. I search the crowd for Brianna and find her talking to Tate, but every now and then she casts a fast glance my way. Only problem is, whenever she finds me staring she tears her gaze away. At least that gives me the opportunity to blatantly look her over, revel in the way her formfitting skirt clings to her hips, the way she fiddles with the button on her blouse. A nervous little habit I remember from years ago. I’m not even sure she knows she’s doing it, but it does beg the question, what is sexy Brianna Carson so damn worked up about?

  “Can I get a whiskey neat,” I say to the bartender as I shrug out of my suit jacket and place it over the back of the stool before I settle myself onto the plush seat.

  Summer comes up to me and puts her hand on my shoulder. I turn to her and she offers up a smile. “Hey, Summer,” I say and drop a kiss onto her cheek. “You look beautiful tonight.” She angles her head and narrows her big eyes, her curious gaze moving over my face. “What?” I ask and shift a little on the chair.

  She taps her nails on the bar top. “Do you and Brianna know each other?”

  I shake my head and grin. Leave it to Summer to notice the tension between us. As a doctor, she’s pretty good at picking up on subtleties, and there isn’t much anyone can get by her. I’m about to open my mouth to answer, when Tate slides his arm around his fiancée’s waist.

  “I was wondering the same thing,” he says, and that’s when I notice Brianna coming up behind him, avoiding my gaze as she signals the bartender for a drink.

  “Brianna,” I say, and she settles a polite gaze on me.

  “Luca, isn’t it?” She turns to Tate. “Sorry, I was so jet-lagged when you did the introductions, I wasn’t sure if I caught the right name.”

  “Ah, so you two don’t know each other, then,” Summer says, but from the way her gaze is going back and forth between the two of us, I’m not so sure she’s convinced of that.

  There was a time I would’ve liked to have known Brianna. A girl like her, well, she could make me forget my responsibilities to my family in Italy. If life were different, I would’ve gone for her, made her mine. But I didn’t date while I was at Oxford, not when I’d have to subject a woman to the rigidity of my title and obligations.

  “Why would we know each other?” Brianna asks and smooths her hand over her thick chestnut hair. For a second I envision my hands in that tangled mess, tugging on those long strands until her mouth opens for me. What I’d do to finally taste her, finish what we never got the chance to start all those years ago. But I’m not about to start something I still can’t finish. Brianna deserves better than that. She deserves her own Prince Charming, not a duke who’s already spoken for. For the last few years, Valentina has been waiting in the wings, eager to walk me down the aisle and become my duchess. I haven’t seen the woman in years. Who the fuck does arranged marriages anymore, anyway? I never thought in a million years that my father would put such a stipulation in his will.

  “You both went to Oxford Law,” Tate says. He gives a shrug of one shoulder and adds, “Then again it’s a big campus, and Luca was probably a year or two ahead of you.” The overhead lights dim, and the music picks up. Tate turns to Summer. “Dance with me.” She smiles up at her fiancé, and I grin. Those two were made for each other. I knew it the first time she came into the bar here in St. Moritz, where Tate and I were working six months ago. He was undercover as a bartender, trying to prove Summer was a fraud who was out to steal billions from his granddad. At the time, I was hanging out in the Swiss Alps, enjoying the commoner’s life. For years now I’ve been travelling around, doing odd jobs, trying to live a full life before duty catches up to me and I have to settle into my rightful position as Luca Marino, Duke of Massara.

  Brianna opens her mouth, no doubt to excuse herself, when her granddad’s cane hits the floor as he saunters up to the bar. “I’ll have a brandy,” he says.

  “Granddad, I don’t think you should be drinking,” Brianna says.

  He waves a dismissive hand her way. “Foolishness, child. I’ve got more brandy in these veins than blood. Now, what’s this I hear about you two knowing each other?”

  I shake my head, having no idea how he could have heard us from the other side of the room. He settles himself onto the stool next to me, and the bartender slides him a drink. He drains the amber liquid in one easy swallow, slams his glass on the mahogany top and then gestures for another.

  “We don’t know each other,” Brianna says quickly, her gaze darting to mine, like she’s worried I might claim otherwise.

  “Well then, get out there on the dance floor and start getting to know each other, already.”

  Brianna briefly closes her eyes, and I catch something in Granddad’s smile, something that looks an awful lot like mischief. What is the old man up to? Tate told me his grandfather was behind him and Summer meeting and falling for each other. I look him over, take in the statuesque way he carries himself. Something tells me he’s not as frail and sick as he lets on. Maybe the others can’t see it because they’re too close. But I sense there is something more going on with James Carson.

  “I’m tired, Granddad. It was a long flight and an even longer day. I just want to go back to my room and call it a night.”

  “I’m headed out, too,” I say, picking up on the tension between Brianna and her grandfather. Wanting to help her out, I add, “I’ll walk you to your room.”

  “That’s okay,” she says quickly, her smile forced. “I forgot a few things and have to hit up the gift shop.” She drops a kiss onto her granddad’s cheek and hurries from the room, once again avoiding my gaze and pretending she doesn’t know me. Although I’m pretty goddamn sure she does. What the hell is going on with her?

  “I guess I should call it a night, too,” I say to James as he downs another ounce of brandy. “I have some forms I need to go over.”

  “I just bet you do,” James says to me, an almost sinister smile quirking his lips, like he’s been inside my head all night and knows all the dirty things pinging around in my brain. I can’t imagine he’d be too happy with my thoughts, considering Brianna is his granddaughter.

  Tate and Summer come back to check on their granddad and I use that opportunity to excuse myself. I leave the room and head outside. I’ve opted to stay in one of the family’s chalets instead of the grand hotel. I have always preferred the solitude.

  I nod to a group of women as they wave to me, and keep my head down as I make my way to my cottage. The warmth of the night falls over me, and my clothes stick to my skin. Sin
ce I know the resort like the back of my hand, I turn left instead of right. Forgoing rest, I take one of the lesser-known paths that leads up the mountain. There are plenty of suitable swimming lakes scattered throughout the town, but this high up on the hill, most are untouched. The frigid temperatures a bit too much for visitors. The wind picks up as I climb, and I dodge a few puddles, compliments of the afternoon downpour. I start to unbutton my shirt, tug it away from my body, anxious to jump into the water to cool myself down. But that’s when I realize I left my suit jacket back at the hotel. Good thing I brought a couple of extras.

  The path narrows, and up ahead a bunny scurries into the underbrush. The temperature has dropped significantly, but I don’t mind. As I approach my favorite private spot, I’m about to unzip my pants, but humming reaches my ears. What the hell? Only Tate and I know about this place, and he’s back at the hotel. I slow my steps, not wanting to frighten whoever happened to stumble upon my spot, but when I see a pile of clothes on the ground, my heart jumps into my throat. That skirt. That blouse. A certain woman from my past was wearing those tonight.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Brianna

  I CAN’T FOR one minute believe that Luca and Tate know each other, let alone work together. I dunk myself under the cold water, letting it cool my heated body—which just might have more to do with the man I hate than the humidity of the night. Luca Marino is a complete and utter asshole, but my body can’t deny he’s as gorgeous today as he was all those years ago. Okay, maybe that’s not entirely true. Back in the day he was a boy who looked good in his blue Oxford hoodie. Today he’d fill that sweater out like a man. Damned if I wouldn’t like to see that.

  Heat trickles through my blood despite the frigid water, and I swim from one side to the other, my mind going back to that mortifying night he walked me to my room and left me there. Alone. Every girl in my dorm wanted Luca Marino, myself included. I’d seen the women he gravitated toward and as a chubby girl, I never thought I had a chance with him. Until that one party.