Page 28 of The Roman's Woman (A Singular Obsession)

Understanding lit her eyes. “I see. So what was she saying and why does anyone care?”

Her pragmatic bluntness made him smile.

“Maria Gianna is a socialite who had small roles in a few Italian movies. The press still follows her around. She was driving while on drugs and was arrested for causing an accident. A man on his way to work was hurt. According to the gossip rags, I was the one who hooked her on drugs—when I’ve never even touched the stuff. I’ve never even smoked pot. I’m kind of boring that way.”

She didn’t smile, but her face softened. “I did. Once.” She picked at the fringe on the pillow. “So, what were you doing at the cafe?”

“I was looking for you.”

Her lips parted in surprise, and he smiled sheepishly. “I wanted to meet you ever since I saw you in that white satin dress.”

Sophia sat up straighter. “You were there? At the foundation dinner?”

“I was late—stuck in traffic—but I did eventually make it. Just not in time to meet you.”

“And then you did…and decided it was easier to lie.”

Gio shoved a hand through his hair. “No. I mean, yes. I wanted a chance to get to know you without all thismerdahanging over my head. This is going to be hard for you to believe, but my honor means a lot to me.”

She scoffed aloud, making him flinch a little.

“I know how that sounds, but it’s true. The last few months, I’ve suddenly become a bad guy in other people’s eyes. Acquaintances have been looking at me like I was some sort of monster who’d been unmasked. Women that I've worked with for years were whispering behind my back at the bank. One woman, an associate who’d been angling for a date for months, was now canceling business dinners because she didn’t want to be alone with me. And some kid threw their coffee on me. There’s this stupid hashtag going around, pushing my ex’s fans to “get” me.”

Her brows went up. “All because you supposedly pushed drugs at her?”

“Well, there was the other insinuation—that I verbally abused Maria Gianna…and pimped her out to my friends.”

She raised her brows, and he laughed humorlessly. “I know, the irony. If she’d been faithful, I might have stayed married to her, tried counseling or something. My father was crushed by the divorce. So was her father. They’re best friends.”

Sophia put the pillow aside and crossed her arms. “And you thought I would believe all of these accusations?”

“Don’t you?”

She pursed her lips. “I don’t know,” she said softly, and his heart sank.

“You lied. We slept together, and I didn’t even know your real name. How can I believe anything you say now?”

“Because you know me now.”

She made a protesting sound.

“You do. The real me without all the money and the crazy ex-wife baggage. You know I’d never do drugs, let alone push them at someone. And I sure as hell wouldn’t encourage anyone I was with to cheat as punishment, no matter what they did. Think about it…do I seem like that kind of man?”

She was quiet so long he wanted to take that pillow she was holding and rip it to shreds in frustration.

“No, I guess you’re not,” she admitted grudgingly.

He relaxed incrementally. “I wanted to tell you the truth. I tried a million times, but I didn’t know how. And when I had finally worked up the courage, you told me about your ex-boyfriend and how you shouldn’t date anyone with money.”

She narrowed her eyes. “I stand by that.”

“Not every rich man is like your ex,” he pointed out. “I’d never try to control you or tell you what to think. But it became a lot harder to confess after you said that.”

Her head titled back as she remembered something. “That was the day you told me you worked in a bank…”

“Yes. I thought I would break the news in stages.”

“And I thought you had a day job as abank teller, not that you owned the whole damn bank!” She huffed.

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