‘Did you check your messages?’
He nodded. ‘Just the usual. My uncle wants to talk about an investment opportunity, which is almost certainly code for some debt he’s amassed. And Gianni has a couple of things he wants to discuss but they aren’t urgent. Oh, and Carlo called.’
‘Who’s Carlo?’
‘My lawyer. He sent me a note offering his congratulations, but I’m guessing he wants to update my affairs to reflect the marriage.’
‘You mean a post-nup.’
‘Yes, but a post-nup isn’t just for me. Of course it will protect the estate. But it’s for you, too. To make sure you’re protected. And I want to protect you, Dulcie. You and Oscar.’
She bit her lip. ‘I don’t want to make any kind of claim on the estate. I know you probably think I do because I took your money.’
‘You borrowed the money. And you’ve already paid back the first instalment. How did you do that, by the way?’ he asked as the car stopped smoothly.
As they walked into the hotel, her mouth twisted into a shape that made the air in his lungs bunch in his throat. ‘I had some money I put aside for emergencies. You know, for when things get out of hand. But hopefully, there won’t be as many of those after Oscar gets out of rehab.’
‘You don’t need to rely on hope any more,’ he said gently. He hated the idea of Dulcie living in a state of high alert and, reaching out, he took her hands in his. ‘And if, if there’s an emergency, you have four hands now instead of two.’
She nodded slowly, and some of the tension left her face. ‘Thank you. And I am going to pay you back in full. I just need to get a job. I don’t want to be like your uncle or your cousins.’
‘You’re not like them.’
‘I’m going to prove that to you.’
‘You already have… What?’ His forehead creased as the lift door opened. ‘Why are you smiling?’ He let her into their suite.
‘It’s just us talking about the hard stuff like it’s easy.’
He stroked her face. ‘You make it easy.’ Their eyes met, and he felt the blue of her irises deep inside like a fork of lightning and a shiver of heat scampered over his skin.
Cazzo.
He swore silently, shoulders tightening as his phone juddered across the coffee table, and he had to force himself to glance down at the screen. No, he thought, not now.
‘Aren’t you going to answer it?’
‘It can wait. It’s just Carlo.’
‘It’s fine.’ She smiled, a sweet smile that he wanted to capture in a jar. ‘I thought we could order room service for dinner. I’ll go get the menu while you talk to him. Do you know what you want?’
‘You choose for me.’
He leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips and then his face altered fractionally, his voice too as he answered the phone, his gaze following Dulcie as she walked back into the living room.
‘Ciao,Carlo.Come stai? Sì, sto bene.’He laid the phone down on the sofa, tapping the speaker icon so that the conversation would be audible to Dulcie when she joined him. He would introduce her to Carlo when she returned and, in preparation, he switched to English. Carlo worked with a lot of international clients, so he was fluent in several languages.
‘Thank you for your note. It was very kind of you and Carolina.’
‘My pleasure. I know you said you were taking a few days in Paris and as a friend I want you to enjoy your mini-moon, I believe it’s called. But as your lawyer, and given that you’ve been married for two years, it’s my professional duty to ensure all aspects of your financial and legal well-being are secure. As you know, marriage legally creates a binding contract with rights and responsibilities. Financially, it can affect taxes, inheritance, and it can lead to shared assets and liabilities.’
‘I know, and I apologise for the subterfuge of my actions. Dulcie and I met and married very quickly and when we separated we were both in shock. But neither of us wanted to end things permanently. We just had to find a way back to one another.’
Glancing up, he saw that Dulcie had returned and was leaning against the door frame, the menu in her hand, her eyes soft on his face.
Carlo laughed. ‘Well, love works in mysterious ways. But again, as your lawyer I have to say that your marriage is excellent news. Now that you’ve fulfilled the Corti-Marchesi clause in the will, I can see no further impediment to your inheritance of the estate and the title.’
Ettore felt his body stiffen. Even without looking in her direction, he could feel the impact of the lawyer’s words on his wife.
