Page 18 of Playing the Sicilian's Game of Revenge

“So, you will not come to my apartment under any circumstances,” he summarized. “We will not be alone together—anywhere. I must run all plans by you before I do anything.” He fixed her with a pitying gaze. “Come, Saverina, you do not really expect me to follow these foolish attempts at control. I am in the driver’s seat. This is my plan.”

“One you need me for.”

“Very well. I will agree to let you in on all the plans you’re a part of before I enact them. I will keep my hands to myself, and under no circumstances invite you back to my apartment.” He handed her the list and smiled, slow and devastating. “Even when you beg me to do just that.”

She was so shocked—because clearly her entire body heating through and through was shock—that her mouth hung open, and no pithy retort came out.

“Come. We can argue over lunch. We will walk down to the restaurant on the corner. Sit on the patio.” He walked toward the door, glanced over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow when she did not follow. “You do want to hear the rest of my plan, do you not? Put your stamp of approval on it.”

A stamp of approval he clearly did not want or need. He was going to keep steamrolling right along.

Well. She was going to find a way to put a stop to that. Or at least keep one step ahead of him. This lunch wasn’t it, but she didn’t know how to say no. If this plan was to work, they did need to start going public.

And she would need to explain to her brother that she was dating one of his top executives in Palermo. So that when she announced her engagement, Lorenzo wouldn’t totally flip.

She followed Teo out to the hall.

“I will be on my lunch for the next hour, Mrs. Caruso,” he told his assistant. He glanced at Saverina. “If you would hold my calls, I’ll get back to anyone upon my return.” He smiled at Saverina, that devastatingly charming smile she’d once fallen for.

Now he did it in clear view of Mrs. Caruso, who frowned. But voiced no argument.

Saverina didn’t want to think about how that might have thrilled her just a week ago. How she would have taken it as a sign of his love. It made her entire stomach turn.

“If we are to be believed, Saverina,” he murmured as they stepped into the elevator, “you’re going to have to stop looking like you’ve swallowed a lemon.”

She glared at him as the doors closed. “Pretending not to hate you is going to take a level of acting that would win me an award.”

“Ah, but you do not hate me. You’re not a hateful person, Saverina. Perhaps you’d like to be, but you’re too...soft.”

“Soft?” It was so ludicrous, she scoffed. Which helped wipe the scowl from her face as they left the elevator for the lobby. “I suppose believing you listened to me was just another fiction.”

“I listen.”

The serious way he said those words made her shiver, but she fought through the feeling as they stepped into the sunshine. He was lying. Everything about him was a lie.

And now that she knew, she’d never forget.

Teo arranged for a table out on the patio, in a corner and a little bit away from the other tables so they could speak freely. He wanted to be seen, and he liked the way the afternoon light dappled Saverina’s dark hair. The patio was quite full as it was a pretty, sunny day. The sidewalks just outside were bustling with people. But they had their own corner.

Once they were seated and had ordered their lunches, Saverina looked around. “If anyone we know sees us, they will only assume it’s a working lunch.”

“Will they?” He leaned forward, did his best impression of a besotted fool—a look he’d seen her brother give his wife more times than he liked to count. “Perhaps your no-touching rule will make it more difficult to get my point across, but you’d be surprised what people will read into the right kind of look.”

She angled her chin away from him. He didn’t bother scolding her for not acting like they were on a date. He might need her to exude something less edgy and angry to convince people they were happily together, but telling her what to do wasn’t working quite the way he’d imagined it would.

He’d need a new strategy. “Tell me how your weekend was, Sav.”

She scowled at him, presumably for shortening her name—so that was not the strategy. Clearly.

“We aren’t friends, Teo. I see no reason to pretend we are.”

“Ah, but the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Particularly in this case.”

She shook her head and took a sip of water. She wore a yellow top today, buttoned up practically to her chin. Like she’d known she’d see him and wanted to keep as much of her body covered as she could.

It gave him a strange kind of thrill. He supposed because it meant she thought about how he could make her body feel. Her no touching and no alone time “rule” also pointed to the fact that while she might be frustrated with him, angry that he’d lied to her and kept things from her, she still wanted him.

He studied her now. She would be in his bed again—willingly and happily. He had no doubt. Once she got over her somewhat childish hurt, she would realize that their situation was much better than any sort of love.

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