I took a deep breath, running a hand down my gown as I exhaled.
Even though the event in Venice was ritzy, this one…felt different.
It felt like I was going out on a date with the most eligible bachelor in the world, but his heart was already attached to mine.
He walked into the room and stopped.
I slowly turned toward him.
Our eyes met from across the suite like it was the first time.
If my heart was a bird with wings, it would have levitated outside of my body.
He was dressed in a black three-piece suit including tails.
He was so fucking stunning. A character straight out of a romance book. A man who came into my life holding a single white lily, the tips stained with blood.
He spoke in Italian before he translated the words for me. “You are a feast for my eyes.” He held his arm out for me, and I took it. “Later, after you tease a hunger like none other out of me, I will devour you.”
I smiled some and he kissed my hand.
We stopped on the way out to grab my cloak. He set it around my neck, and I looked at him in surprise.
“My cloak from Venice! Where did you find it?”
“I took it,” he said, buttoning his long coat. “I planned on returning it when I found you.”
“You were going to look for me?”
“Sì.I had to know who you were.”
“Wait!” I removed the bandage tied around my elbow.
Earlier, while the team got to work, a private doctor had stopped by and took bloodwork from me. Nazzareno wanted to know if I was anemic or not, and if not, what was going on. The doctor had asked me if there was a possibility I could be pregnant. I told her not likely, I was on birth control, but maybe she caught the pause before I answered. She had me take a pregnancy test. It was negative. I couldn’t tell if Nazzareno was relieved or disappointed.
After I threw the bloodstained bandage away, I picked up our conversation. “You could have just asked me,” I said as we made it to the elevator. The feel of the dress against my legs was cool, and the fabric was as giving as a cloud at the bottom. I couldn’t fit a finger inside the top.
“Could have,” he said in a musing tone as the elevator closed. “Fate had other plans.”
The entire lobby seemed to stop and stare at us as we exited.
I sighed, not used to this kind of attention. I was sure every female eye was on the gorgeous Italian specimen of a man next to me. “I guess they’re not used to seeing people dressed this way anymore.”
Outside, a man in fine livery opened the door to a royal-looking car for me.
Nazzareno gave me his hand and I took it, about to slide in. He stopped me. “They are not used to seeing an angel float through a hotel every day.”
Laughter barreled out of my mouth as I got into the car. It wasn’t all that ladylike, but the things he said sometimes…they made me feel nervous and high at the same time. He could be so fucking romantic, and I knew it was going to take time to get used to it.
He held my hand as the car drove us through the streets, and when we came to the opera house, I fogged the glass with my breath.
Royals were in attendance.
Nazzareno kissed my hand. “Relax,” he whispered. “You are the only burning candle here.”
“What does that even mean?” I smiled.
My breath caught when he smiled back. “You are soft candlelight on the inside, and it is apparent on the outside. You have a warm glow about you that cannot be bottled. Women will be envious, and men will fall in love. Tonight will be a challenge for me.”
