Page 39 of Italian Baby Shock

‘Don’t look at me like that,’ he said abruptly. ‘I don’t need your pity. It was years ago. I am done with it now and I am done with them.’

‘It’s not pity.’ Her voice was quiet. ‘I’m sad and horrified for you, Cesare, and I’m sorry you had that happen to you. No child should be treated that way. To be fought over like a...a possession. And then to make you feel as if you were to blame—’

‘I don’t feel that way,’ he interrupted harshly. ‘Not any more.’

She didn’t even blink. ‘Don’t you? You’re certainly still angry with them.’

‘Perhaps,’ he forced out, not wanting to admit it, yet not being able to deny it either. ‘But having you and Maya here will be a new beginning. A way to leave this particular piece of the past behind.’

Lark nodded slowly, studying him for a long moment, making discomfort twist inside him. He didn’t like the way she looked at him, as if she could see right through him, through every lie he’d told himself since his parents’ death, even the lie that he was done with both it and them.

Then she said, ‘You have every right to be angry with them, Cesare. They were terrible parents and they should have done better.’

It was such a simple statement and trite in its way. Yet he felt something twist inside him, though he wasn’t sure what it was. He didn’t want to examine it, though. Neither did he want a conversation about his own motivations and thoughts with Lark.

‘Yes,’ he agreed, keeping his voice very neutral. ‘They should. But now you know my history and Maya’s.’ He took a steptowards her, taking his hands from his pockets. ‘Come upstairs with me. I want you naked.’

She didn’t move, her gaze level. Today she wore a plain blue linen dress that caught the blue hints in her green eyes and her golden hair was loose and curling over her shoulders. It wasn’t a white wedding dress, but she didn’t need a white dress to look feminine and delicate, like a princess. A princess he wanted to ravish completely.

His wife now.

If you’d really wanted to create a different legacy you should have had a different beginning. You should have married her properly. Given her a beautiful dress and a wonderful ceremony, then taken her on a honeymoon that she’d remember for ever.

Perhaps he should, but it was too late now. It was done. He’d been impatient to get his ring on her finger and now she was his wife.

The primal, possessive part of him, the part that he never let out from its cage, growled like a beast. He wanted her in his bed and now, and what he wanted he got.

He’d told her he was selfish and what he wanted was all that mattered.

He stalked towards her, closing the distance, loving the way she gave a little gasp as he reached out and gripped her by the hips, pulling her hard up against him. She was all soft and warm against the hard length of his sex, and he was starting to think that maybe he’d just have her here, on the sofa. Or perhaps he’d bend her over it. Either way would suit him nicely.

Lark lifted her hands and put them on his chest, not pushing him, but certainly holding him at bay.

‘Wait,’ she said breathlessly. ‘I need us to discuss a few things first.’

‘Things?’ He slid his hands over her rear, fitting the soft heat between her thighs over his aching groin, impatience gripping him. ‘What things?’

Lark’s hands remained firm on his chest. Her face was delightfully flushed, but the expression in her eyes was all determination. ‘I told you, Cesare. Our marriage.’

‘You wanted my history so I gave it.’ He flexed his hips against her, watching with satisfaction as her gaze darkened, arousal glowing hot beneath her determination. ‘What else do you need?’

She took a sharp breath. ‘It’s not just that, and it’s not just being in your bed and living together. It’s about how we treat each other. That will have an effect on Maya—you can’t deny that. We’re both living examples of it after all.’

She’s right. She has thought about this. Have you?

No, if he was honest with himself, he hadn’t. All he’d thought about was making her and Maya his and then having Lark in his bed. That was the extent of it. And he was finding it difficult to think about it now, because her warmth and vanilla scent was driving him crazy.

Still, she had a point, they did need to talk about it. ‘We can discuss later, surely?’ he asked, his voice now slightly roughed with desire.

‘I don’t want us to start this marriage off in a way that might end badly for all of us.’ There was doubt in her eyes beneath the determination and the arousal, and that doubt caught at him. He didn’t like it. He didn’t want her doubting this new life. He wanted her feeling safe and secure and happy.

So he forced his desire aside for a moment and met her gaze. ‘I don’t either,’ he said, letting her see the conviction in his eyes. ‘So know that I will always treat you with the utmost respect. Any issues or disagreements we have, we discuss privately and do everything we can to find a compromise if we can’t agree.Aside from that, you and I will share a bed every night, but during the day we can go our own ways. We will come together as a family when it’s required for Maya, and we will never, ever argue about her in front of her.’

Lark stared up at him silently for a long moment, searching his face. Then the doubt in her eyes began to fade. ‘We both want what’s best for her, don’t we?’

‘Yes,’ he agreed and meant it. ‘She comes first. Always.’

Lark’s hands relaxed, desire glowing bright in her eyes. Then her fingers curled in the material of his shirt and she tugged him close. ‘Good,’ she murmured. ‘I like the sound of that.’

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