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As she’d thought they would, her comments had fallen on the fertile ground of the true egoist’s latent insecurities.
She’d looked into his break with his last mistress and discovered that the gossips were convinced the much younger woman had dropped him cold for a younger man with a less impressive financial portfolio.
Giovannu had shifted his approach in what Audrey had come to realize was an attempt to eject her from Vincenzo’s life, even if she did not understand why.
She’d ignored the barbs, insinuations and blatant accusations that she was an unsophisticated nobody who had no place with a man like Vincenzo. Audrey had had twenty-one years of experience dealing with superior attitudes and verbal put-downs before her parents had cut her from their lives.
Giovannu Tomasi was merely a more spoiled example of the breed with a deeper sense of entitlement. Even if she hadn’t known her relationship with Vincenzo was based on his plan to provide a loving mother to Franca and Angilu, Audrey would not have given Giovannu Tomasi the satisfaction of letting him get to her.
Infuriated by her unconcerned reaction, he had quit the field.
Audrey had thought she might take a swim to relax before bed, but had discovered quickly that the memories the jungle paradise evoked when she did not have the distraction of the children were going to be anything but calming.
It would have been different if Toby had joined her, but he’d taken his swim earlier and was indulging in a late-evening workout in Vincenzo’s gym.
So Audrey had returned to her room, determined to read until she was settled enough to sleep. Now it had hit midnight and she’d read the same paragraph at least a dozen times before giving up on her book. So she simply sat.
Not waiting.
But definitely in no shape to sleep, either.
The sound of an approaching helicopter arrived scant seconds before its lights swept the front of the mansion as it headed to the helipad in the back.
Audrey surged to her feet. Vincenzo had arrived.
Uncaring that she wore only her favorite masculine-style black and white striped silk pajamas, she rushed for the door of her bedroom. She grabbed the matching black robe just before she exited the room.
Tugging it on and tying the sash haphazardly, she hurried down the corridor. She realized she’d left her slippers behind when her bare feet slapped against the cold marble of the staircase.
It was only as she reached the bottom of the steps that it occurred to Audrey she had no idea where to go from here.
“If I may, Miss Miller?” the majordomo spoke from Audrey’s right.
“Oh, Devon. I’m so glad you’re here. I thought I’d meet Mr. Tomasi, but…” She let her voice trail off with a shrug.
“Is he expecting you?”
“Um…no.”
“I see.”
“You do?”
The majordomo nodded. “You have no plans to meet Mr. Enzu, however, it is likely he is aware of your impulsive nature and may well be expecting you.”
Audrey didn’t even blush. Much. “Right.”
“Come this way.” Devon led her to a smaller, more warmly decorated version of the formal living room. “It is Mr. Enzu’s habit to indulge in a single-malt whiskey in here before retiring to his suite when he arrives after the dinner hour.”
“I’ll wait for him here, then.”
“That would be best,” Devon said with a significant look to her unslippered feet.
Audrey’s toes curled instinctively into the rich pile of the carpet. “Yes, well, um…”
Devon didn’t seem to expect her to finish her thought as he lit the gas fireplace and poured a finger of amber liquid into a rock glass before placing it on a table by the chair nearest the fire.
“Would you like a nightcap?” he asked her.
“No, thank you.” She’d had wine earlier and wasn’t much of a drinker.
Devon inclined his head in acknowledgement. “I will leave you, then.”
Audrey sat in the wingback chair nearest the door, her feet tucked under her. The minutes dragged and she wondered if Vincenzo would forgo his drink tonight. Perhaps Devon hadn’t thought to tell him she was waiting?
The sound of two masculine voices in tense conversation approached the opened door.
“I am very sorry to have to tell you, Enzu. But you must believe me. You are my son, after all. I care about you,” Giovannu was saying, his smarmy voice doing a remarkable job of sounding sincere. “She made a pass at me.”
“Did she?” Vincenzo asked, his tone so void of emotion Audrey had no clue what he was thinking.
Who had made a pass at that old letch? One of the maids? Audrey couldn’t believe it. Devon wouldn’t hire someone so lacking in taste.
“It was very upsetting, Enzu. There’s a wild side to that little Miss Butter-Wouldn’t-Melt-In-Her-Mouth. I’m ashamed to say I was tempted, Enzu. You know my weakness for aggressive younger women.” He sounded ashamed, and so concerned.
Audrey wanted to puke. She had no doubts that, whatever poor female Giovannu was talking about, she hadn’t been the aggressive one.
“Audrey tried to seduce you?” Enzu asked in that same dispassionate tone.
“No!” Audrey said forcefully at the same time Vincenzo’s father claimed an affirmative.
That disgusting, deceitful toad.
She jumped up from the chair and stormed to the doorway, noting the expressions on both men’s faces. Giovannu’s showed shock before he quickly masked it with that fake troubled caring.
Vincenzo’s gorgeous face showed no more emotion than his voice, his blue eyes entirely shuttered.
“You’ve got an amazing poker face,” she told him.
The facade cracked with the tiniest fissure of barely-there amusement. “Do I?”
“What are you doing here? Dressed like that?” Giovannu indicated her PJs as if Audrey had come downstairs in a see-through negligee. “Do you see what I mean, Enzu? She couldn’t have known you would be home. She was lying in wait for me.”
Audrey stomped up to the older Tomasi and glared. “You are an ass.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “And what’s more you’re an idiot if you don’t think your son knows it.”
“How dare you?” Giovannu drew himself up. “I am a Tomasi. You are nothing. A nobody.”
“In that you are very wrong, Giov
annu.” Vincenzo gently pressed Audrey back so he stood between her and his father still in the hallway. “Audrey is my guest and I warned you what would happen if you disrespected my invited guests.”
“Didn’t you hear me? She tried to—”
“Seduce you?” Vincenzo laughed, the sound cold as the Arctic. “I do not think so.”
“You are calling me a liar?” his father demanded in what sounded like genuine outrage. “You would take her word over mine?”
“In a heartbeat.” Vincenzo lifted his phone to his ear, pressing a button. “Devon, arrange to have Giovannu’s things packed. He will be leaving within the hour.”
“What? You cannot kick me out of your house, Enzu. You are my son!”
“Keep saying it. Someday I might believe it means something to you.” Vincenzo sounded tired.
“Of course it does. Your mother and I care about you. We care about our grandchildren.”
“So much that you couldn’t be bothered to even check in on Franca or Angilu once since they arrived this afternoon.”
“She told you that!” Giovannu glared daggers at Audrey.
“Mrs. Percy told me.” Vincenzo shook his head, an expression of disgust coming over his features. “Do you honestly believe I would put two innocent children in your care?”
What was he talking about? Giovannu didn’t want to take care of his grandchildren. That was patently obvious.
“If I believed I could not do an adequate job of raising them,” Vincenzo continued, “I would sooner put them in the care of our family in Sicily. You will never take control of Franca and Angilu, or the shares in the bank Pinu left them.”
“Enzu—”
“Don’t try to deny your plans. I’ve had my investigator looking into things. You and Frances have decided you want control of Pinu’s wealth and you used the breakup of your latest affair to show up on my doorstep.”
The disgust in Vincenzo’s tone was mirrored in his expression.
“Only you’re such a rotten parent model you didn’t even know how to ingratiate yourself as potential caregivers. Let me give you a hint. Being on the outs with your wife over an extramarital affair and ignoring your grandchildren completely isn’t even in the ballpark.”
