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Well, this was what she wanted.Wasn’t it?
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WHEREAS TIME USED TOpass ever so slowly, the following days seemed to disappear in a flash. Before she could draw another breath, the weekend had arrived, and it was time for DKE and Ravelli Holdings to co-launch their first joint acquisition,Galleria dei Sogni.
As Anneke took her place behind her eldest brother, she became conscious of a sudden murmuring from the crowd and knew right away it washim.Her hands started to perspire, and it took everything not to get her first glimpse of Marcus Ravelli over her shoulder.
For almost the entire week, she had agonized over whether to bring a date or not, but in the end, she had decided not to. It would be too telling, not to mention desperate. Everyone knew how much she hated mixing business with pleasure, and tongues were sure to wag if she suddenly had a male companion escorting her to a DKE launch.
From the corner of her eye, she finally caught sight of the Italian billionaire, gorgeous and impeccably dressed. He was the rare kind of man who could be both intenselymachoand exquisitely sophisticated—-
Crap, oh, crap.
She should be completely indifferent to how he looked, shouldn’t she?
Just as Anneke was struggling to keep her distress off her face, a shadow fell over her—-
Oh, double crap.
Marcus stepped into view, and her heart stopped beating.
Dark eyes met hers. “Hello, Anneke.”
She summoned her brightest smile. “Hello, Marcus.” The steadiness of her voice was a relief, and the fact that her knees hadn’t started quaking at the sound of her name on his lips even more so.
She braced herself for the rest of their conversation, but Marcus only gave her a brief nod.
And then he was turning away and taking his place next to Willem de Konigh for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
As Serenity slid into position next to Anneke, she asked in quiet concern, “Are you alright, Anneke?”
“I...”Should be...but I was not.
Throughout the launch, Marcus was aware of Anneke’s fleeting gaze passing him every so often, and it was testament to his ironclad control that he managed not to succumb to the urge to walk up to her.
If only he could assure her that she had nothing to worry about, that he was far from indifferent to her.
If only he could simply tell her,I’m yours.
If only.
But he wasn’t the type to make the same mistake twice, and so he forced himself to maintain the much-needed pretense of giving her a wide berth. He had pushed her too hard, too fast, too early, and look where that had gotten him.
This time, he knew better. This time, he had to wait. This time, he had to give her a reason to approach himfirst.
Near the end of the launch, he quietly slipped away, leaving the main hall of the art gallery to escape into the balcony. Anyone who would have seen the Italian billionaire at that moment would never have guessed that underneath the expressionless façade was a man on his last lifeline.
Tonight, he had done one of the biggest gambles in his life, pretending that he no longer had any feelings for his wife.
And now, he’d find out if the gamble would pay off or if it would only succeed in pushing her further away.
