“Meaning—you sleep around.”
“That’s part of it.”
She ignored the pang in her gut. His words, though, were like hammers, reminding her of his parting shot the day before, letting her know that he would not be faithful to their vows. And so? She was a fake wife, what did she expect?
“Look, he’ll probably bring this up with you, as part of his test. I was in The Middle East for two tours. While I was there, I lost someone important to me.”
It was the very last thing she expected him to say, and now she kicked herself for not having had the presence of mind to google him.
“I didn’t know.”
“My activities were not publicised. I used my grandmother’s maiden name while in the service, to avoid becoming a target for kidnapping.”
“You? Get kidnapped?” she repeated, smiling in spite of herself. Luca had to be six and a half feet tall, and he was pure muscle. It was hard to imagine anyone successfully bundling him into a car.
He lifted his shoulders. “It’s a risk.”
“Okay, but, isn’t it a risk here, too?”
“Sure.”
She frowned.
“I have security arrangements in place.”
“Like…bodyguards?” she asked, looking around.
“Not on my private jet,” he said with a wry smile.
“Okay, but I haven’t seen anyone else.”
“My drivers are all qualified security experts.”
“Oh.” She leaned forward, placing her elbows on the table. The crew member returned and placed a platter between them, filled with charcuterie, fruit, chocolate and cheese. A moment later, two sparkling mineral waters were added.
“Thank you,” Ally said, glancing up at her and forcing a smile.
The woman’s lips curved into a bright red acknowledgement before she left.
“After I came back, I had some adjustment issues.”
“What does that mean?” Ally asked, as she popped a grape into her mouth.
His expression was tense, his eyes showing something like trauma, so she wanted to lean over and put her hand over his, to tell him it would be okay. But then, the thought of touching him made her whole body turn into a chaotic scramble of fireworks and lightning; she didn’t want to do anything to exacerbate that.
“I was angry. I didn’t see much merit in the company, the family, in any of the things I cared about before.”
“I can imagine,” she said, slowly. She was no expert, but she would think most people who came back from a warzone carried with them a lifelong trauma. It was not a natural state for humans, and the things that were witnessed by necessity—and acts committed in the name of service—would be impossible to forget.
“My grandfather used the company to tempt me back into this world. He gave me temporary control, more responsibilities, to get me to reconnect. And it worked.”
She tilted her head to the side, thinking about that. “That doesn’t sound like such a mean thing to do.”
His laugh was grim. “Doesn’t it?”
She shook her head. “It sounds like someone who cares for you very much.”
“He cares about our family name; our reputation.”
