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‘Or a marriage with benefits,’ he countered, ‘depending on how you look at it.’ One side of his mouth kicked up in a smile that drove a barb of heat straight into her feminine core.
She swallowed. Oh, how easy it was to imagine spending a lifetime in Luca’s bed! But great sex was hardly a strong foundation for marriage. What about when they hit a rough patch? Or grew tired of each other? Would Luca look elsewhere for pleasure?
The thought made her chest tighten painfully.
And what of love?
Luca had a clear opinion on the subject, but Annah’s thoughts were muddled. Her mother’s endless, desperate quest for romantic love had only ever left Rachel miserable and unfulfilled, so wasn’t it better not to look for love in the first place?
Or did she want Luca to love her?
Annah pushed the thought away and rubbed her forehead. ‘I wouldn’t just be leaving England,’ she said, focusing on practicalities. ‘I’d be leaving Chloe and our business. My work. What would I do here, Luca? Swan around being pampered and waited on?’ She shook her head. ‘It’s not my style.’
Luca’s expression was undaunted. ‘When we expand the winery, I’ll need an events manager,’ he said. ‘I think you’d be amazing at something like that.’
She glanced at him. ‘Really?’
‘Yes.’
Her heart gave a little kick. She wasn’t naive—she understood he was sweetening the pot—but she got the feeling his faith in her ability was genuine.
But if she said yes, it wasn’t the only role she’d fulfil. She would become Luca’s wife.
His wife.
The idea made her feel as giddy and breathless as she had in the helicopter the other day when they’d flown over the gaping craters of Mount Etna.
She snatched a breath. ‘This is...a lot to take in. I need time to think.’
‘Of course,’ he said smoothly. ‘Why don’t you extend your stay for another week, or a few days at least? Use the time to think. Talk with me about your concerns.’
She hesitated, her pulse leaping at the prospect of more time with Luca. ‘I’d have to call Chloe,’ she said carefully. ‘See if she can do without me for a bit longer.’
With any luck, her friend would talk some sense into her.
* * *
Luca took Annah’s hand and helped her from the back of the SUV.
When she stood next to him on the cobbled sidewalk, he murmured in her ear, ‘You look stunning tonight, dolcezza.’
A pretty pink blush stained her cheeks. ‘Thank you.’ She glanced down at her dress. ‘Your mother spotted this and encouraged me to try it on when we were shopping yesterday.’
Luca’s eyebrows rose. His mother had helped Annah choose this sexy, shimmery midnight-blue dress? He ran his gaze over the fitted bodice and short, flared skirt that swished tantalisingly around her long legs.
Points to Eva, he conceded—on top of points for looking after Ethan this evening.
He pressed his hand to Annah’s back and guided her through the entrance to the small, elegant restaurant tucked down a quiet side street in the heart of the old city.
Almost a week had passed since he’d put his proposal to her by the pool. He’d resisted pressing for an answer. Her request for time to consider his proposal wasn’t unreasonable. Yet with each day, each hour that went by without her announcing her decision, his patience dwindled.
He wanted Annah.
That realisation had crystallised in his mind this last week.
Not just because she was his child’s mother and legally binding her to him guaranteed Luca a permanent role in their son’s life.
He wanted her. As his lover. His partner.
