Page 31 of Cipriani's Innocent Captive
‘It doesn’t look like a jeweller’s...’
‘We wealthy folk like to think that we don’t frequent the sort of obvious places every other normal person does,’ Lucas said, back in his comfort zone, back in control.
‘Interesting story here,’ he expanded as the car drew to a smooth halt and the driver stepped out to open the door for her. ‘The woman who owns the place, Vanessa Bart, inherited it from her father and employed a young girl to work here—Abigail Christie. Long story but, to summarise, it turned out that she had a child from my friend Leandro, unbeknown to him, and like star-crossed lovers they ended up meeting again quite by chance, falling in love and getting married a while back.’
‘The fairy tale,’ Katy said wistfully as they were allowed into a shop that was as wonderful as Aladdin’s cave. ‘It’s nice that it happens now and again.’ She smiled and whispered, ‘There’s hope for me yet.’
‘Wrong sentiment for a woman on the verge of wearing an engagement ring from the man of her dreams.’ Lucas’s voice was less amused than he would have liked. He laughed shortly and then they were being ushered into the wonderful den of exquisite gems and jewels, tray after tray of diamond rings being brought out for her to inspect, none of them bearing anything so trashy as a price tag.
Lucas watched her down-bent head as she looked at the offerings. He was a man on the verge of an engagement and, whether it was phoney or not, he suddenly had that dangerous, destabilising feeling again...the sensation of getting close to a raging inferno, an inferno he couldn’t see and therefore could not protect himself against. He shifted uneasily and was relieved when she finally chose the smallest, yet as it turned out one of the dearest, of the rings.
‘Rest assured,’ Katy said quietly as they were once again passengers in the back seat of the car, ‘That I won’t be taking the ring with me when this is all over.’
‘Let’s just live a day at a time.’ Lucas was still unsettled and frankly eager now to get to his office where he wouldn’t be inconvenienced by feelings he couldn’t explain. ‘Before we start deciding who gets what when we’re dividing the spoils.’
‘Where do we go for the dress?’
‘Selfridges. I’ve already got my PA to arrange a personal shopper for you.’
‘A personal shopper...’
‘I have to get to my office, so will be unable to accompany you.’
As their eyes tangled, Katy felt the thrill of being here next to him, even if that thrill was underlain with the presence of danger and the prospect of unhappiness ahead. ‘I wouldn’t expect you to come with me. I don’t need you to hold my hand. If you let me have the name of the person I’m supposed to meet, then I can take it from there. And, after I’ve done all the other stuff I’m supposed to do, then I think I’m going to head back to my place and get changed there.’
Begin stepping away,she thought sadly.Begin a process of detachment.Protect yourself.
Lucas was already putting the romance of Italy behind him. There would be a ring on her finger, but he wasn’t going to be hankering for all that undiluted time in each other’s company they had had at his villa. He was slipping back to his reality and that involved distancing himself from her; Katy couldsensethat.
‘Why?’ Lucas realised that he didn’t want her not to be around when he returned to his apartment. He wanted her to be there for him and he was irritated with himself for the ridiculous gap in his self-control.
‘Because I want to check on my place, make sure everything’s in order. So I’ll meet you at the venue. You can text me the details.’ She sounded a lot brisker than she felt inside. Inside, she wanted so much more, wanted to take without consequence, just as she wanted to give without thought. She wanted him to love her back and she wanted to shove that feeling into a box and lock it away to protect her fragile heart.
‘You’ll be nervous.’ Lucas raked his fingers through his hair, for once on the back foot with his legendary self-control. ‘There’ll be reporters there. You won’t know what to do. You’ll need me to be there with you, by your side.’
Where had that come from?
‘But...’ His voice as smooth as silk, he regained his footing. ‘I see that you might want to check your place and check your mail.’ He was back on familiar ground and he relaxed. ‘We’ve got our lives to be getting on with.’ He smiled wryly. ‘Why kid ourselves otherwise? Don’t worry. In a few weeks’ time, this will be little more than something you will one day laugh about with your kids.’
‘Quite,’ Katy responded faintly, sick with heartache, for which she knew that she had only herself to blame. ‘I’ll see you later.’ She forced herself to smile and marvelled that he could be so beautiful, so cool, so composed when she was breaking up inside. But then, he hadn’t crossed the lines that she had.
* * *
Katy had no idea where to start when it came to looking for something to wear to a black-tie event because she had never been to one in her life before, and certainly, in her wildest imagination, had never dreamt that she would be cast in the starring role at one. She had phoned her mother but, as predicted, it had been impossible at short notice, what with her father’s community duties. She had promised that she would send lots of pictures. Now, suddenly, she felt quite alone as she waited for her personal shopper to arrive.
It took over two hours for a dress to be chosen and, no matter how much she told herself that this was all an act, she couldn’t help wondering what it would feel like to be trying these clothes on for real, to parade for a man who returned her love, at an event that would celebrate a union that wasn’t a charade.
The dress she chose was slim-fitting to the waist, with a back scooped so low that wearing a bra was out of the question, but with an alluringly modest top half that fell in graceful layers to the floor. When she moved, it swirled around her like a cloud, and, staring at the vision looking back in the mirror, she felt the way Cinderella might have felt when the wand had been waved and the rags had been replaced with the ball gown that would later knock Prince Charming off his feet.
Prince Charming, however, had left her thoroughly to her own devices. He was back in the real world and already distancing himself from her without even realising it.
The Fairy Godmother would have to come up with more from her little bag of tricks than ever to turn Lucas into anything more than a guy who had fancied her and had talked her into having sex with him. He would happily sleep with her until the designated time was over, and then he would shove her back into the nearest pumpkin and head straight back to the women he was accustomed to dating, the women who slotted into his lifestyle without causing too many ripples.
She had expected the car from earlier to collect her but when the driver called for her at home, punctual to the last second, and when she went outside, it was to find that a stretch limo was waiting for her.
She felt like a princess. It didn’t matter what was real or what was fake, she was floating on a cloud. But that sensation lasted just until they arrived at the hotel and she spotted the hordes of reporters, the beautiful people stopping to smile and pose for photos and the crowds milling around and gaping, as though they were being treated to a live cabaret. The limo pulled to a slow stop and nerves kicked in like a rush of adrenaline injected straight into her blood system. She feared that she wouldn’t be able to push her way through the throng of people.
Then, like magic, the crowd parted and she was looking at Lucas as she had never seen him before. Her eyes weren’t the only ones on him. As one, everyone turned. He had emerged from the hotel and was impeccably dressed in his white dress shirt and black trousers, everything fitting like a dream. He was so breathtakingly beautiful that Katy could scarcely bring herself to move.
