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‘We want children?’ That shocked her almost as much as learning she was married to him had.
He shrugged then flashed his gorgeous smile. ‘At some point. When we’re ready. Until then we’ve been enjoying practising making them.’
Something poked in her memories, squeezing her heart and making her stomach clench so hard his unsubtle innuendo barely registered. Desperately she tried to capture the feeling but whatever it was fluttered out of reach before she could put her finger on it.
‘What is it?’ he asked, staring at her with drawn brows.
‘I don’t know.’ She shrugged and shook her head. ‘Not a memory. A feeling.’
‘Good or bad?’
‘Painful.’ That was the only word she could think of to describe it. She’d always wanted children but it had been something shoved to the back of her mind, a ‘one day’ want. She’d imagined she would one day reach the stage where her biological clock started ticking furiously and then be forced to make her decision. And that would have been hard as she’d always avoided relationships. If her own mother hadn’t loved her enough to stay, how could she trust any man to?
When had she looked at Stefano and decided she could trust him?
She’d been attracted to him from the first moment she’d met him but which woman wouldn’t be? The outrageously handsome, infamous boss of Moretti’s had strolled into her office as if he already owned the building and had arrogantly placed his coat in her arms without a single word of greeting, never mind thanks. When she’d sarcastically responded with, ‘You’re welcome,’ to his retreating back, she hadn’t cared about offending him. Being a woman in a heavily male-dominated environment had caused her to grow skin as thick as leather and she’d adopted an unwillingness to tolerate sexism in any form. She’d known her worth to Levon Brothers as well as they had. She’d merely been given the title of secretary because her two bosses there had been too unimaginative to think of a more appropriate title. They’d only been a few years older than her, a couple of eggheads with more brains than an elephant and less common sense than a dormouse.
Stefano had paused and turned to face her and in that moment she had experienced a flicker of nerves at crossing some invisible line with a man with such a ferocious reputation; a billionaire who’d come from nothing and served time in jail, but then their eyes had clashed and something else had flickered inside her. Attraction.
So attractive had she found him that she’d thought long and hard before accepting his job offer. He’d assumed she was playing hardball for more money and increased his offer, but money had been the least of her concerns. Stefano had a magnetism about him, a power that clung to his tailored suits and the dashing looks of a matinee idol. All this and the element of danger that oozed from him had proven a potent mixture and one she’d been wary of committing her working life to.
In the end, the pluses of taking the job had outweighed the minuses. She had never regretted her decision. She enjoyed working with him. Even on those days when they’d be working towards some deadline that would see them in the office late in the evening, bad-tempered and shouting at each other, she had never regretted it. That she’d spent most days fighting her own responses to touch him or act in any way inappropriately was something she had learned to live with. That Stefano seemed to know exactly how badly she desired him was something she had sworn to never give him the satisfaction of confirming.
So how had he worn her defences down enough to persuade her to marry him and consider having children together?
A ring vibrated through the apartment, startling her.
‘That will be our breakfast,’ he said.
‘That was quick.’
‘That’s why I pay such a high price for the service.’ He reached the bedroom door. ‘You need to build your strength up, bellissima. I need you fit to fly in a few days.’
‘Why? Where are we going?’
‘California.’ The smile he gave was unlike any she’d seen on his lips before. ‘It’s the industry awards next week. And our first wedding anniversary. Where better to celebrate it than where it all started?’
* * *
Stefano waited until he heard the shower running, then dialled the contact on his phone.
Anna had spent her second day in the apartment sleeping on and off. After her small evening meal she’d declared she needed a shower. Her health was improving by the minute.
His call was answered within two rings.
‘Miranda, it’s Stefano,’ he said. ‘How would you like the celebrity scoop of the year?’
CHAPTER FOUR
FOR THE SECOND night in a row Anna woke to darkness and the regular deep breaths coming from her right. The covers she’d burrowed under had been pulled down and the chill of the winter night covered her skin.
Holding her breath, she turned her head to look at him. Stefano slept with his back to her, the covers twisted around his waist. As with the night before, he slept deeply. She couldn’t keep her eyes off him. Her heart seemed to make a clenching motion and the urge to rest her hand against his warm skin grew almost overwhelming.
Cautiously, she tugged at the sheets, trying to dislodge them without waking him. She managed to free a couple of inches, and tried again.
She didn’t want to wake him. There was something about the darkness of night that heightened the intimacy being alone in his apartment evoked in her senses.
She would never have believed he could be so attentive. Nothing was too much trouble for him, not the endless cups of tea, the regular small meals...he’d even had a pair of pyjamas couriered to her from Selfridges. She was certain that if she were to wake him up and ask him for something he would do it without complaint. It made her realise that she must mean something to him as a wife, that he had true feelings for her. If only she could remember what her own feelings towards him were.
