AllFreeNovel
Share Us
And, as was often the case, the partner who recruited her would tell her they’d already scouted out an apartment she’d surely like.
By happy coincidence, it would be in the same building as Draco’s condo.
Draco had given that lots of thought. He really wanted her living with him, but maybe he wasn’t ready for that. Besides, he knew his Anna.
She liked feeling independent.
Having her own place, even if she spent most of her time in his, would make her happy. He’d let her pay the rent—she would believe the owner was renting it out—and Draco wouldn’t be fool enough to suggest letting him pay it. But she didn’t have to know that he was the owner, and that she was paying only half the actual monthly cost.
Even with her new income, she’d never be able to afford the flat otherwise, and no way was he going to give her any excuse not to be with him.
A tiny kernel of doubt crept in.
What if it turned out she hated California? What if she didn’t want to leave her family?
What if she didn’t want to spend her life with him?
Well, not forever, of course. Nothing lasted forever. Still …
Still, maybe some things did. Maybe what he really wanted of her was more than a move to the West Coast. Maybe this wasn’t simply about wanting her, but was about needing her. About—about—
Dio, his head was spinning.
Draco ran his hands through his hair until it stood up in unruly little peaks.
Had he acted too impulsively? He couldn’t think.
He needed coffee. Or brandy. Grappa. Yes. Excellent. Some good, strong grappa so he could think through this whole thing again.
He walked quickly through the silent house, grabbed the bottle of grappa from the bar in the living room. The phone rang as he was pouring the fiery liquid, but he didn’t bother answering it. What for? He knew what it was. A fax from his lawyer, confirming everything they’d arranged: Anna’s new job, her new flat, the reduced monthly costs she’d never know about.
He drank off half the grappa.
He’d done the right thing. Surely he had …
Hell.
He had done a stupid thing!
How could he have woven such a lie? You didn’t lie to the woman you loved, and he loved Anna. He didn’t want her to be his mistress, to be at his beck and call. He wanted to be with her always, for the rest of his life. He wanted—
Something hit him, hard, in the center of his back.
Draco swung around, the grappa flying from his hand … and saw the beautiful, furious face of the woman he loved. She’d slugged him with her fist. A fist that held what were, quite obviously, the pages of a fax.
“Anna. Anna, I know what you must be thinking—”
“You—you son of a bitch!”
“Per favore, bellissima …”
“Do not,” she snarled, “do not bellissima me, you bastard!”
“Anna. Listen to me.”
“Was this the plan all along? To tell me lies and lure me to California after I passed the—the tryout for the part of your new mistress?”
“Look, I know how this must seem. But—”
