Page 30 of His to Keep
“Only at times? I’ll take that as a win.”
A retort sits at the top of my tongue, but Rosalia comes to a stop at the fourth, or perhaps fifth door to the right.
“This is your room.” She opens the door to reveal a spacious room with burnt sienna on the walls and a hardwood floor.
“It’s lovely,” I say as I walk in and look around. There’s a metal-framed bed under the window and a huge oak dresser along one wall.
“There are clothes in the closet,Signorina.” Rosalia points to a door to our left.
“Please, call me Eilidh.”
“As you wish, Eilidh.” She smiles warmly. “There is also a private bathroom.”
“Thank you.” Gio’s words are a dismissal.
“I hope you’ll be very comfortable,” Rosalia says.
“I’m sure we will be.” Aside from the obvious awkwardness that only having one bed is going to cause. Gio and I may have fucked a couple of times, but I’m not sure I’m ready for the intimacy of sleeping next to him.
The Italian woman smiles and turns to leave.
“Wait,” Gio calls out as she reaches the door. “What about the dress I had shipped over?”
“It will be delivered in one hour in plenty of time for the ceremony.”
My heart drops into my stomach. As Rosalia closes the door behind her, I whirl around to face Gio.
“What the fuck is she talking about? What ceremony?”
“Our wedding, of course.” Gio reaches out and cups a hand around my cheek. “What did you think was going to happen when we got here?”
CHAPTER 11
Gio
Red-hot fury flashes in Eilidh’s pretty brown eyes and she steps back from me.
“What I thought would happen,” she says angrily, “is that you’d give me a couple of days to adjust to the changes in my life. I thought we’d talk over this marriage idea.”
“Why? There’s nothing to discuss.”
Eyes wide and jaw dropped in disbelief, Eilidh shakes her head. “There is literally everything to discuss, starting with whether there’s any need for us to marry at all.”
Scrubbing a hand over my face, I sigh. I am sick of going over the same ground with her. Every time I think she’s accepted the marriage will go ahead, she kicks up a fuss again. Did my brothers have this much trouble with their women in the lead-up to their weddings? I doubt any of them would have put up with it.
“There’s nothing to discuss, kitten,” I say calmly, trying not to escalate the tension in the room. “You need the protection my name offers and I’m going to give it to you, no matter how much you object.”
Eilidh sniffs haughtily. “If the Volante name is all that matters, why do I have to settle for the runt of the litter? Why can’t I marry one of your cousins? Lorenzo’s pretty hot.”
Oh, this little minx. She’s trying to get a rise out of me, and I refuse to react to the provocation. “I suspect Lorenzo already has his hands full, kitten.”
I congratulate myself on my even tone, especially since it seems to annoy Eilidh that I’m not losing my cool. She pouts, pushing her bottom lip out in a way that makes me want to bite it. “He said he was single.”
The rumors I’ve heard in the family would suggest otherwise. “He must be involved with some other woman, or he wouldn’t have toned down his flirting with you.”
As insufferable as Lorenzo was with Eilidh, he did hold back on the charm offensive.
“That was toned down?” At my nod, Eilidh emits an irritated sound, reminiscent of a horse’s whinny. “Should I be insulted that he didn’t give me the full force of his flirtatiousness?”
