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He frowned. ‘Che cosa?’
‘I’m talking about Allegra. With her hands all over you. And you lapping it up.’
His eyes widened a fraction, then his smile returned. Wider. Deeper. ‘Are you jealous, amante mia?’
Yes, she was. Wildly. Disturbingly.
‘No. I’d just rather not be forced to endure the spectacle.’
‘Rest easy. I have no interest in Allegra. I have no interest in any other woman except the one I married.’
She turned sceptical eyes at him. Then scepticism turned into shock as she read the veracity of the statement in his eyes. ‘I...’
He made a very Latin gesture with his hand. ‘You have locked us into this, Mia. I’ll give you some time to get us out of it. But I won’t wait for ever.’
‘Wh-what does that mean?’
‘It means I won’t tolerate indifference, pretended or otherwise.’ His tone was harsh, ringing with a deeper meaning that made her heart trip over. ‘Deny this... impazzata between us all you like. But don’t expect me to follow suit. I told you last night, I will win in the end.’
The warning was still ringing in her ears when they pulled up to the private hangar in Boccadifalco Airport. She’d been on the Vitelli corporate jet before and had always been overawed by the experience.
This time, however, preoccupied both by the little incident with Allegra and by Rocco’s comments, and the fact that he seemed intent to delve straight into business, Mia had very little time to gawp at her opulent surroundings before they were taking off.
Soon after that, he turned to her.
‘I have the blueprints of the project with me. I’d like your take on it. Shall we?’
She nodded, a thrill bursting to life in her chest as she followed him to the middle part of the plane, where a large conference table and equipment had been set up for business. When she’d first met Rocco, and they’d travelled on his plane, she’d been concerned about the impact private jet travel was having on the environment. When she’d voiced her concern, he’d enlightened her as to the rigorous steps he took to offset his carbon footprint. And she soon discovered that every Vitelli Construction project was undertaken with materials that minimised its impact on the environment. It was one of the many reasons she’d loved working for him.
Within seconds of Rocco spreading out the blueprints of the proposed new performance arts building she saw that this was equally eco-friendly. In fact it was the most advanced ecological building she’d ever seen. Both in design and in implementation it was simply breathtaking.
After several minutes of absorbing the beauty and symmetry of his creation, she looked up from the blueprint to find Rocco’s intent gaze on her, eyebrows raised. ‘Initial thoughts?’
‘It’s...breathtaking.’
His eyes stayed on her for another moment before he gave a brisk nod. ‘Grazie.’ The word was terse.
She sighed.
‘I mean it, Rocco. This is magnificent.’ The structure was designed to resemble a delicate brush stroke, poised towards an easel. The ‘easel’ was to be the main facility with the brush stroke containing everything from galleries to auditoriums, restaurants and a techno park for interactive play.
‘It may be bold and innovative, but I need a structural engineer to show me how I can pull it off without it falling to the ground,’ he mused.
She nodded, her eyes moving over the blueprint. ‘I can give you an initial assessment once I see a feasibility report on the land and specifications of the actual materials we’re using.’
Rocco handed her his tablet. ‘The full report is on there.’
Their fingers brushed as she took the tablet from him. They both froze.
Rocco moved away first, firing questions at her as they examined the blueprints closer. He was halfway through another question when his phone rang.
‘I need to take this.’
He moved away, and, eager to get started, she pulled up the two-hundred-page report. She was so absorbed she didn’t notice he’d finished his phone call and was sitting across from her, intently watching her until she looked up.
Mia caught a naked expression of hunger on his face before he schooled his features, and other bout of heat flamed through her belly.
I won’t tolerate indifference, pretended or otherwise.
