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Literal red blazed before her eyes from the sheer lies he’d uttered. She trembled and tried to speak rationally. “He didn’t give you the whole story, Alexa.”
“Then why don’t you?” Hurt shimmered in her face. “You’re my best friend.”
Maggie grabbed her hands and held tight. The tears threatened, then held. “I’m so sorry. I had a plan, but the whole thing misfired and now it’s a mess. I made Michael a bargain—I’d pretend to be his wife if he promised to stay away from you. I know he has deep feelings, and I was worried about you and Nick. He agreed, but when we got to Italy, things got complicated.”
“I cannot believe you are still stuck on this idea. There’s never been anything between us but friendship.”
“I know that now.”
“What happened? You started to fall for him?”
Maggie nodded. “At first I thought it was just sex. But then his family sucked me in, and the stupid cat, and then we had more sex and I began to get crazy ideas about a relationship between us. He told me he loved me.”
Alexa squeezed Maggie’s fingers. “And what did you say?”
“Nothing. I couldn’t say anything, because I didn’t really believe him. I was going to talk about it, but then I heard him on the phone with his friend Max.” She took a breath. “He didn’t believe I was good enough for Michael. Thought we were a terrible match, and he’s right.”
Alexa gasped. “When have you ever listened to anyone’s opinion?”
Maggie shook her head stubbornly. “I heard the conversation. I’m not right for him—I’m not the type of woman he needs. He wants a big family with pets and constant trips to Italy. He wants a nice, solid wife with a respectable career and a sweet manner. We fight. And I hate all those things.”
“Oh, Maggie.” Alexa gripped Maggie’s hands as tears filled her eyes. “My dear friend, don’t you know you are all those things? When are you finally going to believe it? Just your loyalty toward Nick and me and your willingness to protect us tells me you were meant to have a family of your own. Michael is a complicated man—something not many other women see or even know is there. But you do. You challenge him, and push him, and make him feel things more intensely. When he came to tell me everything, his heart was broken. He believes you don’t love him, can never love him, and he’s destroyed.”
Maggie fought tears. God, the idea of Michael hurt tore her to shreds. She loved him so fiercely, yet she knew Alexa couldn’t see the truth.
She needed so much more. Funny how she never believed she was worth the demand before. But Michael had changed her. In allowing herself to fall in love with him, she knew she’d always need to be with a man who felt the same way. Anything else may break her.
“I’m sorry, Al. I want to move on with my life and I never want to talk about Michael Conte again. If you’re truly my friend, you’ll do this for me.” Her voice broke. “Please.”
Alexa let out an annoyed breath. “But—”
“Please.”
She pressed her lips together. Then nodded. “Okay. I just want you to be happy, Maggie.”
The bleakness of her future descended on her like a cloud, and she forced a smile to her lips. “I’ll be okay. Now, let’s talk about something else.”
The rest of the hours passed and for a little while, Maggie pretended everything was back to normal.
• • •
Michael sat behind his desk and stared at his notes on the opening ceremony. In two days, his dream for his family and La Dolce Famiglia would finally come true. The first chain of bakeries would be revealed Friday night in a lavish presentation and party to rival all others.
The weather should hold, promising a beautiful crisp spring day with lots of sun. The bakery was prepared to fling open its doors with a variety of desserts, special coffees, and fresh breads. The downtown waterfront was a dream for a few investors who saw a vision like no other.
This should be the happiest week of his life.
Instead, grief wracked his body and tortured his heart. He decided to tell Alexa the truth in an effort to see if there was a way to reach Maggie. How her words had shred him, and her speedy departure only confirmed her harsh confession. She didn’t want him. Didn’t love him. And didn’t want the life he could offer her.
The night had been a mess. He’d spun a crazy tale of a sick uncle and had to play the proper part to convince his mother and sisters everything was okay. He left the next day and had his driver deliver the luggage she left behind. Michael pressed his fingers against his aching temple. Dios, what a mess. He’d finally fallen in love, and the woman didn’t even want him. How would he ever get over her?
Her image taunted him nonstop. The way she surrendered in his arms and shattered with climax. The way she bullied him, and laughed with him, and challenged him at every step. The tenderness she showed his family, and the way she catered to Dante, though she swore she disliked him. Contradictory and loving to a fault, she was meant to be his. He never confessed his past to other women. No woman had ever dug deep enough to even bother to ask about his dreams. But Maggie understood, acknowledged, and supported him.
A deep grief beat within his heart, and needing to drown it, he quickly reached for the bottle of cognac and poured himself a glass. The burning liquid slid down his throat with ease and exploded in his belly. Maybe if he got rip-roaring drunk, he could finally sleep without images of her naked and open beneath him.
His cell rang. He muttered a curse and looked at the ID. Paused a moment. Then hit the button. “Alexa? Is everything okay?”
He listened for a long time as she spoke. Suddenly, the jagged pieces slid together and fit. His heart sped up, and he stood from his chair as his friend detailed the conversation. A plan formed, and he knew what he needed to do.
It would be his last stand, but she was worth fighting for.
He only hoped it would be enough.
• • •
Maggie stood in the crowd near Alexa and watched the ceremony take place. Her luggage had arrived on her doorstep yesterday. A simple note came attached to the handle in his elegant scrawl.
I will adhere to our bargain and file the necessary papers to dissolve the marriage.
She ignored the disappointment and concentrated on the satisfaction that her family would be left alone. The emptiness in her gut drove her to reach for the phone and set up some jobs overseas. She needed to get out of New York and keep busy. She’d arrive in London by the end of the week. Maybe she needed lots of distance to heal.
