Alessandro was where he’d said he would be.
He had his computer in front of him and was frowning as he scrolled on it.
It gave her a couple of seconds to take him in and to realise that his masculine beauty hadn’t conveniently dimmed since she had last seen him.
He was dressed casually in dark grey trousers and a white shirt cuffed to the elbows and even among the wealthy, glamorous people around him, he managed to stand out.
It wasn’t just his beauty, although he truly was spectacular with his dark hair, his rich, burnished skin and the autocratic set of his features.
Something about him was compelling, which was why she was still staring like a star-struck teenager when he suddenly looked up and their eyes collided.
She reddened and walked quickly over to where he was sitting.
With every step she felt more like a fish out of water.
‘You made it,’ was the first thing he said when she was standing in front of him.
He closed his computer, glanced past her and then returned his dark eyes to her face.
She certainly hadn’t dressed to impress, he thought, taking in every inch of what she was wearing without seeming to notice at all.
He’d transferred her a generous amount of cash so that she could invest in the usual designer gear but if she had, then she had forgone that option for travelling.
Well, that was a first.
He was so accustomed to women dressing to impress that he almost did a double take now.
‘I know what you’re going to say.’
‘Why don’t you sit? I’ve ordered coffee.’ He signalled to someone behind her.
‘You’re going to tell me that I haven’t dressed appropriately.’
‘Was I? Thank you for reading my mind.’
‘Where is Flora?’
She twisted this way and that, gripped with curiosity, and then sat back as a pot of coffee and china cups were placed on the table in front of them, along with a little plate of interesting-looking savouries.
‘You’ll meet her soon enough but, as I said to you, there are a couple of things I feel we ought to get clear from the start.’
He poured her coffee, added milk and pushed it over to her.
‘Firstly, I touched on the fact that the less close you get to my daughter, the better.’
‘Yes, although I’m going to have to talk to her now and again or else she’s going to start getting suspicious if we don’t seem to know one another. People who are supposed to be going out usually spend a tiny amount of time in each other’s company.’
‘She’s six.’
‘I teach kids. You’d be surprised how quick they are at catching on at what’s happening around them.’
‘Naturally, yes, we’ll do one or two things together, but I’ve always made a point of not allowing any of the women I date to have any participation in that side of my life. Unfortunately, I’m stuck with this situation but my ground rules remain roughly the same. I will not allow my daughter to get close to anyone who will be vanishing from the scene. In your case, vanishing from the scene in a matter of ten days.’
He suddenly coughed, apologised and scowled.
‘Message received loud and clear.’
‘Next on the agenda, I want to remind you that this situation isn’t real.’
