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“Oh, I’m not completely altruistic,” he said with a sexy smile in a low voice. “My help will come at a price, of course.”
Her eyes flickered to his, an answering smile spreading on her face. “Naturally. Can we work out a payment plan?”
“Instalments were exactly what I had in mind,” he agreed. “Starting with tonight?”
Her heart was beating far too fast, and her eyes felt suspiciously moist. She blinked quickly. “Tonight sounds perfect. I can let the school know you agree?”
“Yes,cara.You can. I will even promise not to break my arm between now and then.”
“You’d better not,” she said with a satisfied nod. “Though the idea of nursing you better does hold some appeal…”
“To you and me both.”
Chapter10
WATCHING HIM REHEARSE WITH the kids did strange things to Charlotte. Things she couldn’t explain and hadn’t felt before. Her stomach was in loops and her heart was stretching. He was handsome and gruff and unapproachable and at the same time, he was charming and relaxed and evidently a far better player than Mrs Roobottom because the kids were in awe of him. He played a gentle tempo, meaning the little voices could easily keep pace, and he patiently worked through each of the songs, doing as many repeats as was necessary, never mind that he undoubtedly had work of his own to be carrying on with.
At the end of the rehearsal, after the children had been ushered out of the classroom and the choir captain had gushed all over Alessio’s shoes, Charlotte and Alessio walked back to his car together.
“It’s really very kind of you to give up your time like this.”
His face bore a mask, briefly, of irritation, so she was very still, wondering if she’d said something wrong, if she’d offended him in some way. “In fact, rehearsal this morning spared me from a family breakfast, so it’s I who should be thanking you for volunteering me.”
“Oh no, Alessio, you should have said! I’m sure the school could have rescheduled…”
“You misunderstand me. I was glad to miss breakfast.”
Something shifted inside Charlotte’s chest. She looked at him across the bonnet of the car. “Family breakfast, as in, with your mother and brother?”
“Half-brother,” he was quick to correct, then nod once.
“But you’ve come here to spend time with them,” Charlotte pointed out. “Isn’t that the purpose of your trip?”
“The purpose of my trip is to fulfil a promise I made to my father as he lay dying. My mother has little to do with it.”
Charlotte couldn’t help her sharp intake of breath. “You really hate them, don’t you?”
“She is my mother. I can’t say I hate her. But nor can I say I love her.”
“Oh, Alessio.” She opened her car door slowly, lost in thought. “What happened between the two of you?”
A muscle twitched in his jaw as he looked away. “It’s ancient history.”
“Is it?” She compressed her lips. “It doesn’t really seem that way to me.”
“History informs the present,” he said with a shrug that might have had all the appearance of nonchalance if it weren’t for the fact his body was as rigid as stone. “My mother’s choices preclude us having a close relationship. But I’m here, as my father requested. It’s more than I thought I’d ever give her.”
“You understand that I’m very fond of Winona and Caleb?” Charlotte asked softly.
His eyes speared hers. “You don’t have the same history as I do. You’re entitled to feel however you wish about them.”
That was even more bothersome. “I just mean to say…”
“You cannot fix this,” he said quietly, but with a strength that reminded her he was a successful, respected CEO when he wasn’t playing Christmas carols for a bunch of children. “It’s not your place. Besides which, I don’t want it to be fixed. I just want to get through the next few days then get the hell out of here.”
She flinched, the sentiments so completely cold and jarring, so at odds with the wishes that had begun to swirl through Charlotte, that she took a small involuntary step back and dropped her gaze.
“That did not sound how I intended it to. I did not mean—what we are doing—is a part of my trip I am enjoying, Charlotte. But as for my family, I would prefer to spend as little time with them as possible.”
