And now the alarm bells that had been going off the night before were clanging close enough that he could no longer ignore them. “You don’t need to be afraid of me,” he said seriously. “I am very grateful that you can see how special the villa is, even with the cobwebs.”
She swallowed; her neck knotted beneath his thorough inspection. “It was stupid. I should have just stayed here.”
Her happiness was visibly ebbing. He pressed a finger beneath her chin and tilted her face so that he could stare into her enormous eyes. “Thank you,” he said simply,and because she still seemed dubious, he smiled; this time, he made sure it breathed gratitude across his entire face.
“Thank you,” he repeated.
And she nodded, mollified apparently but still reserved.
“Tea?”
He pulled a face. “Is there another option?”
She laughed softly. “There’s coffee as well.”
He breathed a sigh of exaggerated relief. “Excellent.”
Kate walked ahead of him into the kitchen. The sight of his shirt falling almost to her knees made his smile broaden. She had said she hadn’t been with anyone in a really long time. He had. He’d spent the weekend before with Alexandra, the Brazilian supermodel. And yet with all her gorgeous long legs and hours spent beautifying herself each day, she couldn’t hold a candle to Kate’s natural style and grace.
“You didn’t wear shoes,” he remarked, lifting an old pot from beneath the sink and rinsing it before filling it. There was firewood beside the stove. He loaded some into the hearth and then added paper and struck a match. His body remembered the actions from his childhood; he worked on muscle memory and Kate watched, breathless at the beauty of not just this kitchen, but also this man. He was sorightin these surrounds. He placed the pot on top of the grill and then looked at her. She was staring at him, her expression unmistakably thoughtful.
“What is it?” He prompted.
“You really suit this. More than the tux and all the money stuff.”
“The money stuff?” He pushed, leaning against the bench beside her as the water began to heat.
“Yeah.” She bumped her hip to his, her smile playful. “You know, the mansion on the river. The priceless art. The fancy car. The spending two hundred thousand euros as though it’s nothing … none of that really fits. This is you. Right here. I feel like you’re more at peace somehow.”
He pierced her soul with his stare. His eyes saw every single bit of her then. “You are different to what I expected.”
A frown tugged at her lips. “Since yesterday? In what way?”
“You looked so untouchable and cold up on that stage. I had you pegged as oneof those wealthy, boring society women. You know, daughter of some rich couple. Raised in luxury.”
“You thought I was a snob? Benedetto, I’m a secretary,” she pointed out. “For a charity. I earn practically nothing. I borrowed the dress I was wearing yesterday. I live in a tiny flat that looks out on my neighbour’s washing line from one window and a train station from the other.”
“So why do you seem like you weren't born to that kind of lifestyle?” He pushed, curious at how much she would reveal. Why was she using a different name? Why wasn’t she owning up to the truth of her family?
She stared at him for a couple of silent beats of time. “I don’t know,” she said finally. “This is who I am.”
He let it go. They had time. Eventually she’d answer his questions more truthfully; he was sure of it.
“Anyway, you still bid on me. Even though you thought I was going to be some princess type?”
“I happen to like princess types,” he said with a shrug.
“No, you don’t. They annoy you.” She lifted a finger to his lips. “I don’t know how I know that, but I do. You don’t like the trappings of wealth and yet you live a rarified life. You don’t like expensive women and yet you seek them out. Why aren’t you living your truth, Benedetto Arnaud?”
Her psycho-analysis was oddly accurate. So much so it sent shivers down his spine. He volleyed the question back to her to buy for time. “Are you living your truth?”
Her smile shone with the force of the sun beyond the window. “I am now.”
The pot began to boil. She moved towards it but he caught her wrist and brought her back to his body. “But you weren’t? At some time?”
She thought about obfuscating, but there was no sense in lying to him. She was as far from her father and his life as she could be. Worlds apart. Besides, with Benedetto she felt … safe. It didn’t make sense, but she was completely at ease. “I guess not.” She smiled to brush him off. “Coffee? Black?”
He nodded, rubbing a hand across his stubbled jaw.
