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Luca’s handwriting was large and bold.
Annah,
An urgent work matter has arisen that requires my attention. I apologise, but I cannot spend the day with you and Ethan as planned.
I will endeavour to return by early evening before he goes to bed. In the meantime, perhaps you can enjoy exploring the estate.
The staff are at your disposal.
Luca
She crumpled the note in her hand. Luca had promised their son a day at the beach and now she had to tell Ethan it wasn’t happening. Her stomach balled into a hard knot of disappointment. Luca had a lot to learn about parenting—like not making promises he couldn’t keep.
Her stomach growled and she picked up a pastry and sank her teeth into its delicious flakiness. Last night she’d fallen asleep surprisingly quickly, but then she’d awoken at some time after midnight, her empty stomach churning with a nameless anxiety.
At home, she would have risen, made herself a cup of hot milk and settled her mind by jotting down a to-do list for the next day.
Here, she didn’t even know where to find the kitchen. And what was the point of a to-do list when Celeste and the rest of the staff were unlikely to let her lift a finger?
She finished off her pastry, went to shower and dress and then broke the bad news to Ethan, assuring herself the pang of disappointment she felt was on her son’s behalf and not her own. If anything, the less time she had to spend with Luca, the better. Pretending she wasn’t attracted to him was exhausting. It made her want to surrender and that was crazy, dangerous thinking. Sleeping with her son’s father would only make their situation impossibly messy.
Eth
an was downcast for a few minutes after she told him, but he perked up when she suggested they go exploring. As they ventured out, his infectious enthusiasm lifted her mood. The grounds were vast, with dozens of winding paths leading in different directions. The landscaped gardens with their emerald-green lawns, ornamental hedges and neat rose bushes were beautiful, but Annah was even more enchanted by the less manicured areas, where the flowers and shrubs grew wild and you couldn’t quite tell where the path would lead you next. They spent some time at a pond counting giant goldfish, and later, as they made their way back to the villa, came across a massive swimming pool surrounded by towering palms and an inviting sundeck.
The only thing that marred the experience was the uncomfortable prickling sensation at the back of Annah’s neck that came and went throughout the morning. The guards and dogs may not have been visible, but she knew they were there, watching.
Not surprisingly, Celeste pounced the instant they got back to their rooms, as if she, like the guards, was lurking in the shadows, observing Annah and Ethan’s every move.
Had Luca instructed his staff to keep an eye on them?
She pushed the unsettling thought aside and responded to Celeste’s offer of lunch. ‘Just sandwiches, please,’ she told the girl, thinking of the ridiculous mountain of food at breakfast.
An hour later, watered and fed, she and Ethan sat on the balcony off the sitting room, reading a book together. The spring day had grown warm and she’d pushed the French doors open after finally getting rid of Celeste. She could have taken Ethan back to the gardens or the swimming pool, but up here she could relax, knowing they weren’t being watched.
When a knock sounded on the door, she stifled a groan.
Celeste was going to drive her nuts!
She read out loud the last few words of the story, slipped Ethan off her lap, and told him to go choose another book from his bedroom. She strode to the door. ‘Honestly, Celeste,’ she said, reaching for the knob, ‘we really don’t need any—’ Her voice halted the instant she opened the door and saw a woman who was not the maid. ‘Oh, I—I’m sorry,’ she stuttered. ‘I thought you were Celeste.’
The woman blinked at her and Annah wanted to curl up and die of embarrassment because she knew at once who this was. The olive skin, dark hair, and liquid brown eyes were instant giveaways. She was an older, female version of Luca—and Ethan.
‘Annah?’
‘Yes.’ She hesitated. ‘Mrs Cavallari?’
The woman smiled. ‘Yes. But call me Eva, please. I hope I’m not intruding?’
‘Of course not,’ Annah said quickly. ‘I’m, um, sorry to have mistaken you for Celeste.’
‘You’re not having any problems with her, I hope?’
‘Oh, no. She’s been wonderful. She’s just a little...’
‘Eager to please?’ Eva supplied.
Annah’s shoulders relaxed. She gave a little laugh. ‘Yes. Very.’
