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That’s all. She had nodded. ‘Oh, I see.’
‘And I’ve never brought a woman to Sicily before.’
Well, of course he hadn’t—there had never been any need to. He had had Anna—the fiancée whose name was never mentioned—the fiancée she secretly feared he was gearing up to go back to, which would account for his attitude towards her since they had arrived.
Oh, his behaviour had been impeccable—almost too impeccable. How aloof he had sometimes seemed as he had kept a courteous but definite distance.
Or maybe the miscarriage had killed all his desire for her. Why else would he have gone so far out of his way to avoid any kind of physical contact with her?
‘I bet your parents won’t like me,’ she moaned.
‘Rubbish! Of course they will.’
But to Kate his voice sounded forced.
‘And how will I speak to them? I only know about fifty words in Sicilian!’
‘That’s because I have taught you a new word every day,’ he murmured. ‘It seems we must increase your lessons, cara.’
Please don’t flirt with me, her eyes told him silently.
He acknowledged the reproach with a narrowing of his eyes. ‘And, besides, they speak perfectly good English—all my family do.’
‘OK,’ she had sighed. ‘You win!’
But there was no taste of victory in his mouth, and he still had something he needed to tell her.
He looked up as she walked into the room, her bright hair newly washed and gleaming, a soft-green dress he had never seen before making the most of her tall, slim figure and those heart-stopping legs. Her skin was glowing with a light tan and the good food had filled out her hollow cheeks a little. She looked good enough to eat and, God, how he wanted her!
He couldn’t seem to tear his eyes away from her, which wasn’t doing his heart-rate any good whatsoever. ‘You look…spectacular, cara,’ he said carefully.
Well, make the most of it, she thought, hoping that her eyes held no trace of her unhappiness. Because soon she would be gone from here and gone from Giovanni’s life for good.
‘Thank you,’ she said calmly.
‘Come and sit down.’ He patted the space beside him, then wished he hadn’t, as she perched beside him, sliding her knees decorously together. ‘Can I get you anything?’
She shook her head. ‘No, I’m fine.’ Which she supposed she was. Well, physically, at any rate. The rest and the recuperation had made her feel whole again. The warm sunshine and the good food had worked their simple magic, as had the island itself, which Giovanni had shown her with the loving pride of the true Sicilian.
It had been all too easy to suspend disbelief. To imagine that this could go on and on—her and Giovanni, a happy couple, to all intents and purposes.
Because once she had resigned herself to the fact that he didn’t want to share her bed any more it had—perversely—allowed her to relax. Sex had always dominated their time together, and it had only been here that true companionship had entered the arena.
That didn’t stop her wanting him, of course—she doubted whether anything could ever put a stop to that, but at least the absence of him in her bed was preparing her for a life without him when she returned to England.
‘What time are your family getting here?’
‘In about an
hour.’ He paused. ‘Kate, there’s something I need to tell you before they arrive.’
She looked up quickly, something in his voice warning her that he wasn’t about to start discussing what was on the lunch menu. ‘Oh?’
‘It’s about Anna.’
Her heart deafened her with a sickening thunder. ‘I rather thought it might be.’
He stared at her. Was she reading his mind now? ‘You did?’
