Page 16 of The Italian's Marriage Bargain

Alarm bells weren’t just ringing now, they were clanging. Her eyes widened as she shrank back on the bed, shaking her head wildly as Luca sweetened his words with the softest of smiles. ‘Oh, no. Absolutely no.’

‘But it would solve everything,’ Luca said, his voice completely calm, as if he had suggested they pop out to the shops or perhaps call down for some cake. ‘And in the meantime we could have some fun.’

‘And exactly how long is this “fun” supposed to last?’ Before the inevitable shrug had even left his shoulders Felicity broke in. ‘It’s a reasonable question, Luca.’

‘You could do your studies by correspondence, see the world with me. We get on so well together.’

‘We’ve only been together one night, and for most of that we were asleep!’

‘At least you can read the newspaper in silence. Have you any idea what an impossible feat that is for some women?’ A poor imitation of a female voice followed. “‘Luca, wasn’t last night special? Luca, what shall we do today? Luca, what would you like for dinner?’”

A tiny laugh softened her strained features. ‘That’s called insecurity, Luca; they were probably trying to make sure there would be another night, that you were actually coming back.’

‘I probably would have, if they’d just let me read in peace.’

‘And I suppose that would be one of the rules?’ Her voice was sharp, to the point, and Luca frowned as Felicity carried on talking. ‘That I’d have to eat my breakfast in silence? That I mustn’t ask about the master’s plans for the day—’

‘You are twisting my words,’ Luca broke in. ‘You are making me out as some sort of monster. I would treat you wonderfully—better than thatbastardoMatthew. You would want for nothing.’ He gave a devilish smile that had her insides doing somersaults. ‘Particularly in bed.’

‘I’d be a glorified mistress,’ Felicity responded, distaste curling her lips, but Luca merely smiled.

‘A mistress with a ring, though. Have you any idea the power that would wield? Have you any idea the doors that would open for you?’

‘I don’t want doors to open for me, I’m happy turning the handles myself, Luca.’ She knew she had confused him, but Felicity was past caring, her mind focused instead on telling this spoilt playboy in no uncertain terms that for once in his life the answer was most definitely no! ‘I don’t mind working for a living. I don’t mind staying up all night studying if I have to. I happen to like my life.’

‘It didn’t look that way last night.’ Luca’s voice stilled her outburst. ‘In fact last night you’d have given just about anything to change it. And now you can,’ he said simply. ‘Marry me and I’ll sign the resort back over to your father. Marry me and your parents will have the peace they crave.’

He paused, and for the first time Felicity didn’t jump in to fill it. Instead she sat in stunned silence, scarcely able to fathom she was even considering this outrageous request, scarcely able to believe she was seriously contemplating it.

‘Marry me,’ he said softly.

‘Is this because we slept together?’ Felicity asked. ‘Is this some misguided sense of honour…?’

‘There is nothing misguided about honour,’ Luca said smartly. ‘I took your womanhood; it is right that I marry you.’

‘It’s archaic,’ Felicity retorted, ‘and it is also completely unnecessary.’

‘Just think about it for a moment.’ His voice was still soft, but there was a power she couldn’t identify behind it, a note of absolute determination that told Felicity that the power Luca yielded wasn’t just confined to the boardroom. For despite her initial abhorrence, despite the abundance of questions flooding her usually ordered mind, a flutter of excitement welled in the pit of her stomach. The prospect of lying next to Luca each night, seeing the world through his sophisticated eyes, holding him, adoring him, being made love to by him again and again…

‘I’m not asking for forever here—just long enough to put things right, for both of us,’ he added softly. ‘You will save not only my family, but Ricardo too from being shamed. Now, that doesn’t mean a thing to you and I understand that completely, but I would be indebted to you—I will make your father owner of the resort again; I’ll get my lawyers on to it first thing on Monday. And as for honour…’ He drew a deep, ragged breath, his eyes holding hers with a sincerity that reached for her soul. ‘Call it archaic, call it what you will, but I cannot just walk away now…’

‘But you will walk away one day, Luca,’ Felicity pointed out, ignoring the icy fingers of fear that wrapped around her heart at the prospect. ‘What does that do to your argument? Where’s the honour in being divorced?’

‘You will have slept only with one man,’ Luca responded swiftly. ‘And that man will have been your husband. I would say there’s plenty of honour in that.’

He held her at arm’s length then, his eyes searing her with their clarity. ‘You would come into this marriage with no hidden threats, no secret agenda…’ He was like a runaway train, gaining momentum with each and every forward motion. The germ of an idea that had emerged was taking shape, crystal-clear shape, and seeing her sitting on his bed, so cute, so utterly, utterly adorable, all Luca knew was that he couldn’t let her go, couldn’t let this blonde beauty walk out of the room and out of his life.

Nothing else mattered. Nothing else made any sense.

‘There will be no false declarations of love, no babies clouding the issue, no promises of for ever—just a mutual respect and understanding. Felice, I will be strong for you. Iwillmake this work.’

Suspicious eyes turned up to him then, but his strength, his quiet dignity were more of an aphrodisiac than the love he had so skilfully made.

Sensing weakness, he let a teasing smile creep over his face, and his low, sexy voice almost masked the humour behind his words. ‘And I don’t doubt for a second that I am far better in bed than Matthew would ever have been.’

Of all the pompous—The words were on the tip of her tongue, but so was Luca, his lips forcing hers apart, the hand that had been holding hers dragging her forward, into his arms and into his life—and every eloquent argument that had formed in her mind was reduced to a quivering mass of jelly as she landed on his lap.

Her gown fell open as his hands greedily claimed the rising swell of her breasts, the velvet steel of his erection parting the robe, nudging its way in uninvited but terribly, shamefully welcome. Her head flailed backwards as his lips moved down, blazing a trail over her neck, and his fingers worked their magic further down, causing her to cry out in reluctant ecstasy as he located the flickering swollen nub of her womanhood.

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