night.’
Allegra’s smile faded as she admitted, ‘But I don’t have anything to wear...’ Her maternity clothes consisted of a couple of pairs of loose cotton tops and shorts, and soon her burgeoning belly was going to require more.
‘Problem solved. I’ve arranged for one of the top maternity designers to come here with a selection of evening gowns. You can take your pick.’
‘Oh. Wow.’ Not for the first time, Allegra was both touched and unsettled by Rafael’s thoughtfulness and generosity. At times he seemed a million miles from the cold, hard stranger who had booted her out of his bed. But then at other times...
‘Thank you,’ she said now. ‘For all of it. You’re very kind.’
Rafael shrugged. ‘I thought it might be nice to have a distraction. And when I saw it was a concert for the cello...’
‘You’re very thoughtful. And a distraction would be wonderful,’ she said, smiling shyly. Rafael nodded and gave her the tiniest of smiles back.
* * *
The next morning a glamorous woman dressed all in black arrived with a couple of assistants carrying several plastic-swathed hangers each. While Allegra relaxed with herbal tea and croissants, the assistants laid out all the different evenings gowns—silks and satins, above-the-knee and full-length, in every colour of the rainbow. Allegra had never felt so spoilt for choice, or simply spoiled. She felt positively indulged as she stroked the dresses’ soft fabrics and fingered exquisite lace.
‘I don’t know which to pick,’ she admitted, and Amanda, the fashion designer, swooped in.
‘With your colouring I’d advise the ice-blue. It will make your eyes pop and do wonderful things for your complexion.’
‘Will it?’ Allegra asked, bemused that a simple dress could do so much. Of course, the gown in question was far from simple, with its diamanté-encrusted halter-neck top and daring backless design. ‘I don’t know.’ She nibbled her lip. ‘It looks a bit...sexy.’
‘Why can’t a pregnant woman be sexy?’ Amanda countered with a little smile. ‘You’re blooming and gorgeous. Let people know it.’
Allegra laughed. ‘I haven’t felt either all pregnancy. I’ve felt as worn and wrung-out as an old dishrag.’
‘You don’t look it now,’ Amanda said firmly. ‘And you won’t look it in that dress.’
Persuaded, Allegra tried on the ice-blue gown and was amazed at how different she looked. The dress clung to her fuller breasts and slight swell of her bump before flaring out from her thighs to swirl about her feet. The backless design left the entire creamy expanse of her back bare, right to the swell of her bottom. She blushed to imagine Rafael seeing her in something like this. What if he thought she was trying to impress him? Was she? Suddenly her feelings were in a ferment.
‘I don’t know...’ Already she was reaching for the diamanté ties, doubtful as to whether she could carry off something like this. Amanda stayed her hand.
‘Trust me, no man could resist you in this dress, and certainly not the father of your child.’ Her small, knowing smile made Allegra blush.
Did she want to be irresistible to Rafael? Sex was out of the question, and even kisses would complicate their already ambiguous relationship. The last thing she wanted was to be hurt...again. And yet...she’d felt worn out and ugly for months. The thought of looking good, really good, and having Rafael’s eyes widen with surprise and then flare with desire...
She was tempted. She was seriously tempted.
That evening, as Allegra got ready for their night out, she started to doubt the wisdom of picking such a blatantly sexy dress. What if Rafael was put off by it? What if he thought she was throwing herself at him? What if she was?
And, really, the whole ensemble, from the diamond chandelier earrings Amanda had insisted she wear to match her father’s sapphire necklace to the four-inch silver stiletto heels encasing her feet, felt a little much. Some people wore jeans to the Philharmonic. She didn’t need to be quite so OTT.
And yet it was nice to feel beautiful. The silky material slithered over her skin and the diamonds winked at her ears. The heart-shaped sapphire nestled in the hollow of her throat, winking and glinting. Amanda had arranged for a make-up artist and hairstylist to finish her look, her hair held up by diamond-tipped pins, with a few curls cascading down to rest on her shoulders. She’d never, Allegra knew, looked so good.
Even so, she was still battling doubt as she left the safety of the bedroom. Outside the Manhattan skyline glittered, the entire city spread out before them. Rafael turned, his eyes narrowing as he took in the sight of her.
Allegra tried to smile but she felt so nervous and exposed that she wasn’t sure she managed it. Rafael looked almost unbearably sexy in a midnight-black tuxedo, the snowy white shirt offsetting his olive skin, his hair brushed back from his forehead, his eyes glittering like polished bronze, everything about him radiating that restless energy that had drawn her to him nearly five months ago.
‘Is it too much?’ she asked with an uncertain laugh. ‘The dress, I mean?’ Her hands fluttered at her sides and she lifted her chin, trying for pride. She’d chosen this dress. She’d wear it no matter what Rafael thought...and yet she wished he’d smile or say something. He was practically scowling.
‘You look...’ Rafael stopped, his voice hoarse. Allegra waited, her heart fluttering like a trapped bird in her chest. ‘Magnificent.’
A smile unfurled like a flower across her face, and then she was beaming. She couldn’t help it. A distant voice in her head was telling her not to be so obvious, not to let Rafael affect her. Why should she care what he thought? Why should she want to please or impress him? She shouldn’t. She most certainly shouldn’t.
And yet as Rafael grinned back that voice was silenced. Tonight she was a beautiful woman, and he was a handsome man, and they were going to hear the most wonderful music together. Allegra wanted to let herself enjoy it without trying to stay safe or sensible. She wanted to forget that she didn’t trust him, wasn’t even sure she liked him, and that the future was entirely uncertain. Tonight she wanted to leave all that behind and enter into the magic. And so she would.
* * *
Rafael had never seen Allegra look so beautiful. She was more than merely beautiful—she was incandescent, breathtaking. The ice-blue of her gown flowed like cool water over her perfect curves, the faint bump of her belly making a deep, protective urge rise within Rafael like a primal howl of possession. She was his. No matter what the results of the amniocentesis were, no matter what the future held. His to protect, to provide for, to possess. His.
Then he saw the sapphire pendant at her throat and it slammed into him yet again who her father was, who his was, and all the hard history that lay between them...dark, difficult history Allegra didn’t know about, but which marked every moment of Rafael’s life. History that reminded him that letting someone into your life, even just a little, was a terrifying responsibility as well as a formidable risk.
A faint frown marred Allegra’s brow and Rafael banished the memory, the realisation, the fear. Those were not for tonight, when all he wanted to do was enjoy the evening...and Allegra. He stretched out his hand and she took it, slender fingers sliding between his. She
