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‘Shouldn’t you get back to the ball?’ she asked. She was snuggled up tightly against Luca, whose protective arms wrapped securely around her.
‘If you’re ready, we’ll go back,’ he murmured as he planted a kiss on the top of her head.
‘Bathe in the lake first?’ she suggested.
They swam, then dried off together, and Callie dressed quickly, thanking her lucky stars she had short hair that didn’t take long to dry in the warm night air. Slipping her simple dress on, she took hold of Luca’s hand and they walked back to the boat; back to reality, she thought, but if he could carry this off—their absence would have been noted—then so could she.
* * *
‘My lords, ladies and gentlemen, I have an announcement to make...’
Silence fell the instant Luca’s deep and distinctive voice was heard through the hidden speakers in the ballroom. ‘I realise the clock is about to strike midnight, so I won’t keep you long.’
A ripple of laughter greeted this remark.
‘I’m taking this opportunity to introduce you to the woman I intend to marry.’
Not the woman he loved, Callie thought, cursing herself for being such a doubter. Luca had to wait a moment until the exclamations of surprise had died down.
‘Signorina Callista Smith is an exceptional woman, whom I am lucky to have found.’
As he beckoned Callie forward and she joined him in the centre of the ballroom, the surprise of the sophisticated onlookers gradually turned to muted applause. They were shocked to the heels of their highly polished footwear, she thought as Luca lifted his hands for a silence that had already fallen deep and long.
‘It goes without saying,’ he added, ‘that all of you will receive an invitation to our wedding.’ He gave a fierce, encouraging smile into Callie’s eyes, before turning back to address his riveted audience. ‘I invite you all to enjoy the rest of your evening, while I continue to celebrate with my beautiful fiancée.’
As if by magic the orchestra struck up a romantic Viennese waltz, which allowed Luca to prove that not only could he sweep Callie off her feet, but he could provide the prompt necessary to shake everyone out of their stupefied trance, and soon the dance floor was ablaze with colour and the flash of precious jewels.
Callie told herself that everything would work out. Yes, there would be problems, but they’d get through them. Luca was right. This was the best solution. It was only when the clock struck midnight, and he was briefly distracted by one of the many ambassadors present, that everything changed.
She’d seen pictures of Max in various magazines back home. In the flesh, he was even more striking. As tall as Luca, he looked quite different, which was only to be expected when they weren’t related by blood. Where Luca’s features were rugged and sexy, Max’s face was thin and hard, and, quite unlike Luca, Max’s manner was unpleasantly autocratic.
Dressed entirely in black, his blood-red sash of office the only bright thing about him, Max was the haughtiest man in the room by far. And he was heading her way surrounded by cronies, all of whom were viewing Callie with what she could only describe as amused contempt. There was a beautiful woman on Max’s arm, who was also dressed in black, with the addition of half a hundredweight of diamonds. Her tiara alone could have settled most countries’ debts, Callie guessed. Knowing she was the target of the advancing party, she stood her ground and lifted her chin, then shrank inwardly when Max stopped directly in front of her.
‘Well, my dear,’ he said, keeping his stare fixed on Callie as he turned to address his obviously heavily pregnant companion, ‘this is the little snip my brother intends to put on our throne.’
‘Surely not?’ his elegantly dressed companion protested as she stared disapprovingly at Callie. ‘Who is she, anyway? And where did she get that dress?’
Callie ground her jaw, refusing to demean herself by responding. Max’s friends could laugh all they liked. They wouldn’t drive her away.
‘Goodness knows, my dear,’ Max replied, still staring at Callie through mocking eyes. ‘Perhaps she got it from the same thrift store that sold her the dye for that ridiculous hair colour.’
As everyone laughed Callie reached up instinctively to touch her hair, and regretted the lapse immediately. She hated letting them see they’d upset her. ‘Well, at least I don’t have a cruel tongue,’ she said mildly.
‘Oh, she speaks,’ Max exclaimed, turning to look at his friends. ‘I imagine she learned that skill in the pub back home.’ He made each vowel sound grotesque and ugly.
As Max and his friends roared with laughter, Callie made sure to remain impassive.
‘He only keeps her around because she’s pregnant,’ Max drawled, quirking a brow in an attempt, Callie thought, to elicit some sort of response from her. ‘He’s desperate for an heir, and when you’re as desperate as Luca I suppose it’s a case of any port in a storm. Seeing you pregnant,’ he added to the woman at his side, ‘must really have disturbed him. That’s the only reason he’s chosen this girl. He’s trying to compete with me—imagine that?’
‘He’s quite obviously failed,’ one of Max’s cronies derided.
‘That’s all this is,’ Max assured Callie, bringing his cruel face close. ‘Don’t think for one moment that you’ve bagged yourself a prince, let alone that this is a fairy tale. This is a cold-blooded transaction, my dear. Luca doesn’t want you. He doesn’t want anyone. The only thing Luca wants is an heir. That’s the only way he can hope to keep the throne of Fabrizio. It’s written into our constitution. Two years, one baby at least, or I take over.’ Coming even closer, he sneered. ‘You’re nothing more than a convenien
t womb. Shall we?’ he added to his gloating companions with an airy gesture. ‘I’ve had enough of this ball. The quality of guests at the palace has really gone down. The casino beckons. A few spins of the wheel holds far more appeal than these provincials can ever hope to provide me.’
* * *
‘She’s gone? What do you mean, she’s gone?’ Luca stared down at Michel in surprise. The elderly retainer seemed more than usually confused. ‘Take your time, Michel. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to shout at you.’
