Page 187 of Modern Romance Collection May 2024 Books 1-4

But to be given something and then have it ripped away...that was crueller than never knowing it in the first place, and that was exactly what Rae had done.

Never again would he put himself at the mercy of another human being. Never again would he trust. The only silver lining to Rae’s betrayal was that it had awoken him to his own weaknesses and in many ways that had been worth all the pain...

The pain of returning home, aching to see her face and feel her soft hands smooth over his tight shoulders, only to learn she was gone, that she had left him...stopped loving him...rejected him.

It was only as Domenico came to a sudden stop to pause the wayward trajectory of his thoughts and the leaden kicks of his heart that he took in his surroundings and realised that, whilst lost in his memories, he had paced up to Elena’s suite of rooms on the second highest floor of the palazzo. In spite of his many pleas to her to relocate to a lower floor to make her movements less arduous, she had consistently refused, unwilling to give up her views of the city or the rooms that had been hers since she’d moved into the palazzo as a young bride. The memory made him ache deep in his chest and Domenico was on the verge of turning away, as it was still way too soon for him to be able to go near her personal space, when he noticed the door was ajar and a slice of light was spilling through the crack.

Eyes narrowed in query, he reached for the door, but suddenly it was pulled open from the other side and Rae emerged, her movements stilling and eyes flying wide when she saw him standing there.

Domenico suppressed a growl. Was there no escape from her? Was she determined to haunt him in his own house as well as his mind?

‘I’m sorry,’ she said, frozen in the doorway like a rabbit in the headlights. She was dressed in a short silk pyjama set, her hair contained in the same low ponytail she’d worn earlier. He had always preferred her hair down, loose and spilling over her shoulders for his fingers to run through, and from the early days of their relationship he’d liked her to come to bed in something he’d enjoy ripping off, and whilst this was definitely not that, he found himself growing hard as his eyes devoured every inch of her. ‘I didn’t mean to intrude. I just... I couldn’t sleep and I was thinking about Elena and I wanted to feel close to her and say some kind of goodbye so I came up here...’ She swallowed as she took in his unchanging expression. ‘But that was clearly the wrong thing to do. I’m sorry. I’m leaving.’

Domenico’s instinct was to send her scurrying away even faster with the rebuke that had she not left she wouldn’t need to say a goodbye, but then he noticed the emotion sparkling in her eyes and the reproach melted on his tongue. He knew Rae had loved and respected Elena enormously and that in many ways his aunt had filled the void left by the loss of her parents. One of Rae’s favourite things had been exploring Elena’s cavernous closet, studying her one-of-a-kind gowns, and Elena had delighted in regaling her with the story of each one. Her sudden death had to be stirring up difficult memories for Rae.

‘It’s fine. You’re entitled to say goodbye to her. I know how much you cared for her and Elena was incredibly fond of you too. Don’t rush away on my account,’ he said with a sigh that was wrenched from him, because the sudden tenderness of feeling was so unwanted.

‘Thank you.’ Her mouth opened, only for her to hesitate before deciding to press on. ‘Did Elena... I’m not aware of how she passed away...and I was just wondering if she suffered.’

‘The pathologist said it was most likely an aneurism. That it would have been fast, almost instantaneous. Painless. She probably wouldn’t have known.’

‘Good. I’m glad. I’d hate to think that she’d been in any pain.’

Her gaze shimmered again and something erupted in Domenico’s chest, a feeling of such power it felt as if his lungs were being squeezed by giant hands. He’d always hated to see Rae upset, the sight slicing right to the heart of him, and acting on the instinct firing up from a place deep within him, he reached out, curling his hand to her cheek and tenderly wiping away the tears with his thumb.

A shudder ran across his chest as the feel of the warm silk of her skin had an even bolder surge of desire pumping through his veins, forcing him to remember just how long it had been since he had satisfied his carnal cravings, since he had lost himself in the tight heat of a woman’s body. If there was ever a time he could do with drowning himself in someone else, this was it. And he had never generated a more compelling heat than the one he did with Rae...

Instinct flared again, more primal than before, and Domenico lowered his thumb, tracing it across her pillow-soft lower lip, and the pure blue of her eyes exploded with a hunger that set them aflame.

With such potent desire hammering within him and forcing everything else from his mind, including all his reasons for loathing her, all Domenico could feel was his impatient poundingwant. Raising his other hand, he captured her face between his palms and with one, two, three easy steps he had her backed against the nearest wall. Her dazed eyes held his as he stared hungrily down at her, his heart and pulse pounding in perfect synchronisation as his gaze traced the shape of her face—her flushed cheeks, her delicate jaw, her parted lips.

‘Domenico...’

Was that a warning or a plea? He didn’t know, or care, because his name on her tongue, in her whispered breath, nearly undid him. All he needed to do was press in a centimetre closer, lower his mouth, and he could ease the agitated ache beating in his blood and taste her on his lips again—a taste he had been craving ever since she’d left.

He froze, that final thought echoing around his brain. She had left him.

So what the hell was he doing?

With a quiet growl of frustration, he pulled himself back, putting distance between their bodies and trying to smother his heavy breaths. ‘It’s late. You should go back to your room, get some sleep. You’ve had a long day,’ he instructed, sounding far more in control than he felt.

Rae blinked slowly, the daze slowly draining from her gaze. ‘Yes, you’re right. I should do that.’ Slowly, almost unsteadily, she peeled herself off the wall, colour still flaming in her cheeks. She moved gingerly towards the staircase. ‘Goodnight.’

‘Buona notte,’he rasped, raking a hand through his hair and willing the beating of his blood to subside.

When it didn’t, he marched back to his suite and straight into the shower, setting the temperature as cold as it would go, cold enough to kill entirely the traitorous desire that continued to burn in his blood.

The reading of Elena’s will would take place in one of the large salons on the ground floor of the palazzo. It was not customary to have such a formal reading where Rae hailed from—they’d read her father’s will around the kitchen table—but there was nothing regular about the Ricci family. Wealth and status like theirs, she’d long ago learned, demanded grander formalities. So, at five minutes to ten, Rae unsteadily descended the staircase, armed with her plan to slip in unnoticed, take a seat near the door and leave as soon as the proceedings were over. Her small case was already packed and waiting by the main door, so she didn’t have to spend any longer in the palazzo than was necessary.

Her hopes were dashed almost immediately. The moment Rae entered the grand room, Alessandra excused herself from the conversation she was in and made straight for her, greeting her with a friendly smile and a kiss to each cheek.

‘I have a seat for you,’ she announced.

‘Oh, I was just going to find somewhere here at the back...’ Rae began, motioning to the very last row of seats, but Alessandra was shaking her head.

‘Absolutely not. You’re family, Rae. And family sits at the front.’

‘I’m not sure Domenico will like that,’ she replied tightly.

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