‘You have nothing to be sorry for,’ he said. The words spitting out of him with a surprising vehemence. ‘My concerns were not about them. Only you.’
‘Still—’
‘There’s nothing more to be said. They sent their regards and flowers, which I would have brought to you except they weren’t allowed in critical care. By the time you were on the ward, they were past their best.’
A buzzing sound rang in her ears. She put her fingers to her temples.Critical care…
It was hard to believe how close she’d come to not being here at all.
The warmth of a hand settled on her knee, the weight of it giving her some comfort even if Leo had no idea what was troubling her.
‘We’re almost home.’
Their driver manoeuvred down a back street approaching a high stone wall. An automatic door opened to the underground garage of Leo’s Milan residence and the car pulled to a stop. She took off her sunglasses and made a move to open the door.
‘Wait here,’ Leo said. He left the car and moved around to her side. He opened her door and held out his hand.
Simone shook her head. ‘I’m fine, Leo. They wouldn’t have released me if I wasn’t.’
His expression appeared pained but he gave her what she could have described as an attempt at a warm and understanding smile. ‘Humour me.’
She placed her hand in his. His touch solid. Safe. Yet nothing about Leo Zanetti was safe. The heat of that commonplace connection building through the act, simple yet powerful. She wanted to snatch her hand away but that would seem irrational, so she ignored the sensation and let him help her from the car.
‘Thank you,’ she said, expecting Leo to release her. He didn’t and she found she didn’t mind at all.
‘I’ve cleared my study on the ground floor to make a bedroom for you there.’
‘Why on earth did you do that? I don’t want to move. I like the room you gave me.’
She loved the space. It was private and relaxing. One of the things she was most looking forward to after leaving the hospital was sleeping in her magnificent four poster bed, in the room Leo had designed especially for her.
He let out a slow, almost long-suffering breath.
‘I thought you might say that.’ Then in one swift moved he simply bent, lifted her into his arms and held her secure against his strong, hard body.
She squeaked. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’
He began to move, striding through the underground garage to a flight of stairs. ‘I would have thought it self-evident. I’m carrying you inside the house.’
Simone wriggled in his arms. ‘I don’t need this. Put me down!’
Leo simply held on tighter. He made his way up the stairs as if carrying her was no effort at all. ‘You’ve been dizzy. You left the hospital in a wheelchair. There are three flights of stairs to the upper floor where your room is. My aim is to get you there safely.’
‘This is ridiculous. I was only in a wheelchair for the hospital’s legal liability. I can walk on my own. I’m sure you won’t let me stumble.’
Leo reached to top of the stairs, stopped. Stared at her intently. His eyes were so transfixing, hypnotically so. In this moment she developed an acute understanding of the idea that you could simply fall into a gaze and drown in it.
‘Yet I didn’t prevent you from stumbling and falling, and you were injured. That willneverhappen again.’ His voice was deep and raw. It carried such gravitas behind it, a rough sound that seemed sincerely meant. This was important to him, her safety. Instead of feeling claustrophobic and strange as it did only minutes before, she relaxed into his embrace.
He was strong, solid. The intoxicating scent of his aftershave achingly familiar, carrying a mystery and depth that suited Leo to perfection. It was a smell she wanted to wrap herself in. To simply take whatever Leo was prepared to give.
For so long she’d been alone, with only herself to rely on. By design, because the people she was supposed to be able to trust the most, her friends, her family and the man she’d loved, had all abandoned her. This, someone wanting to look after her, seemed completely foreign. And right now she was tired of relying on herself. Tired of everything, really. She just wanted to settle in a comfortable bed of her own and sleep for a year, then wake up feeling like someone new.
After a third flight of stairs, where he didn’t even break a sweat or get out of breath, Leo finally reached the door of her room. ‘Are you okay for me to put you down?’
She nodded. This close it was clear how truly flawless he was. His warm, tanned skin without a single blemish. No part of him anything other than perfect. Then there was his strength. The way he moved, as if she weighed nothing at all. His hardness to her soft. He gently placed her feet on the ground and supported her, she assumed till he could make sure she was steady.
At least it didn’t make her world spin, so maybe things would improve faster than she’d expected.
