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Rocco smiled now—a smile like Gracie had never seen before—and she caught a glimpse of the youth he must have once been. Her heart turned over again.
He nodded. ‘Oh, yes, cara. That’s exactly what I wanted to hear. Because, you see, I love you too—only I held back from saying it that day because I was afraid of scaring you away. I knew you had to hate me for hurting you, and I wanted to woo you slowly and methodically—until you fell so deeply in love with me that you would never leave me. But when I got home you’d gone, and all I found was your note.’
He said a long stream of words in Italian then, and Gracie touched his jaw wonderingly, finally recognising the signs of strain on his face. For her.
‘You’re talking Italian.’
Rocco grimaced. ‘Since you left I haven’t been able to eat, sleep or speak anything else. I had hideous curtains installed in my office and banished everyone to another floor so they couldn’t witness my pain.’ His face was serious. ‘You brought me back to life, Gracie, and the thought of a life without you in it now terrifies me more than anything else I’ve ever known.’
Gracie just looked at Rocco. Her whole life flashed before her eyes. She too had always felt somehow alone … until she’d met Rocco. She’d subconsciously handed control over to him from the start, because on some level she’d already trusted him.
To her utter chagrin tears pricked her eyes again, and she cursed colourfully. ‘I never used to cry until I met you.’
‘That’s because you finally realised you didn’t have to be the strong one, the protector all the time.’
Gracie nodded as tears slipped down her cheeks and he gently caught them. ‘Yes, damn you, yes.’
In the next second she’d thrown her arms around Rocco’s neck and was in his strong embrace. Her legs were wrapped around his waist and she was sobbing into his neck. And he was crooning to her in Italian, stroking her back.
She pulled away and looked down at him. ‘God, I love you, Rocco.’
He looked at her and his eyes darkened. ‘I love you too, Gracie.’
He was reaching up to kiss her when she pulled back sharply and said, ‘Are you sure you’re not just saying this because you still fancy me and I’m normal? What if I come back and you get tired of me and realise you really do want a society ice princess?’
Rocco looked around at the open-mouthed crowd. He felt triumph surge through him to be holding the woman he loved in his arms and to know she loved him too. This was the pinnacle of everything he’d ever wanted, and he’d never have known it if he hadn’t met her.
He looked back to Gracie and said, ‘What do you think?’ He saw her take in the crowd too, and realise just what he’d done. In public. For her. Among the precious peers he’d cared about for so long.
She blushed and looked at him. ‘Okay, I believe you.’
‘I think it’s time to go home.’
Gracie’s arms were tight around his neck. ‘Yes, please.’
Much later, when their bodies were finally sated and Gracie didn’t know where she began and Rocco ended, she took in a deep, voluptuous sigh.
Rocco raised himself up on one arm and looked at her seriously. He brushed some hair from her cheek. ‘The only reason I didn’t tell you I loved you the day you left was because I didn’t want to scare you with the intensity I felt. I wanted to start fresh and woo you as you deserved to be wooed.’
Gracie smiled wryly. ‘I think it’s safe to say you’ve wooed me, Rocco. I’m a sure thing.’
He reached behind him to the cabinet and got something. It was hidden in his hand as he said, ‘Well, seeing as how we’ve fast-forwarded past the wooing stage, I’m happy to jump to the next bit.’
‘The next bit?’ Gracie came up on her elbow too.
Rocco was opening a small velvet box, and Gra
cie looked down to see a stunning emerald ring surrounded by diamonds. She looked from it to Rocco.
He said with a glint in his eye, ‘You can’t take this one back to the shop. It’s on loan for a lifetime.’
Gracie sat up and pulled the sheet around her. She felt shaky. Rocco took her hand and placed the ring at the top of her finger and looked into her eyes. Gracie felt tears prickle and blinked them back.
‘Gracie O’Brien. I love you more than life itself. Would you come to Rio de Janeiro with me next week and become my wife, with George and Steven as our witnesses?’
Gracie nodded jerkily, tears stinging in earnest now. With a choked voice she answered, ‘Yes. I’d love to come to Rio de Janeiro with you and become your wife.’
Rocco pushed the ring onto her finger and pulled her into him with a growl of triumph. Their mouths met and clung.
