first. Ryan set himself. He could hold his own against one, but not the two of them. He readied himself for a blow—he refused to throw the first punch—but at the last moment Nico moved between them, his hand on his brother’s chest halting him.
Ryan let out a breath and then nodded. ‘No. This is good.’
‘Good?’ brother number two spat out, his face turning almost purple.
‘That Marianna has brothers who look out for her.’
The anger in the dark eyes that surveyed him turned from outright hostility to a simmering tension. ‘You made her cry, you...’ A rash of what Ryan guessed must be Italian insults followed. Brother number two flung out his arm, strode away, and then swung back to stab a finger at him. ‘She returned here yesterday, locked herself in her room and cried. That is your fault!’
Ryan’s shoulders slumped. He rubbed a hand across his chest. ‘Yesterday...it was...it didn’t go so well and she—’ He pushed his shoulders back. ‘I’m here to make it right.’
‘What do you mean to do?’ Nico asked. His voice had become measured but not for a second did Ryan mistake it for a softening.
‘I mean to do whatever Marianna wants me to do.’ Within reason, but he didn’t add that caveat out loud.
Brother number two thrust out his jaw. ‘But are you going to do what she needs you to do?’
He thrust his jaw out too. ‘I will not force her to do anything. I refuse to believe I know better than she does about what she needs. She’s a grown woman who knows her own mind.’
The brothers laughed—harsh, scornful laughter as if he had no idea what he was talking about.
Ryan’s every muscle tensed and he could feel his eyes narrow to slits as a dangerous and alien recklessness seized him. ‘Have the two of you been bullying her or pressuring her in any way?’
Had they been pressuring her to keep the baby due to some outdated form of conservatism? Or... Had they been pressuring her to give the baby up because of scandal and—?
‘And what if we have, Paulo?’ brother number two mocked. ‘What then?’
‘Then I will beat the crap out of you!’
It was stupid, reckless, juvenile, but he couldn’t help it. Marianna was pregnant! She needed calm and peace. She needed to take care of her health. She didn’t need to be worried into an early grave by two overprotective brothers.
The brothers stared at him. Neither smiled but their chins lowered. Nico pursed his lips. The other rolled his shoulders. Ryan stabbed a finger first at brother number one and then at brother number two. ‘Let me make one thing crystal clear. I am not abandoning my child. Marianna and I have a lot we need to sort out and we’re going to do it without interference from either one of you.’
* * *
Raised voices drifted out across the terrace as Marianna marched towards the villa. She rolled her eyes. What on earth were Angelo and Nico bickering about now? She stepped into the room...
And froze.
Ryan!
A shock of sweet delight pierced through the numbness she’d been carrying around with her all day, making her tingle all over.
No! She shook it off. She would not be delighted to see him. Of all the low-down—
His gaze speared to her and the insults lining up in her mind dissolved.
‘Hello, Marianna.’ His voice washed over her like warm, spiced mead and she couldn’t utter a single sound. She dragged her gaze away to glance at her brothers. Angelo raised a derisive eyebrow. ‘Look what the cat dragged in, Marianna.’ He folded his arms. ‘Paulo.’
Ryan ignored his mockery to stride across to her. He took her hand in his and lifted it to his lips. Her heart fluttered like a wild crazy thing. ‘Are you okay?’ He uttered the words gently, his eyes as warm as the morning sun on a Thai beach.
While it wasn’t a hug and an ‘it’ll all be okay’ there was no mistaking the sincerity of his effort. She hadn’t expected to see him again. Ever. She’d thought he’d have run for the hills.
‘Marianna?’
She loved the way he said her name. It made things inside her tight and warm and loose and aching all at once. His grip on her hand tightened and she shook herself. ‘Yes, thank you.’ But the sudden sexual need that gripped had her reefing her hand from his. They were no longer Ryan and Mari, free and easy holidaymakers. They were Ryan and Marianna, prospective parents. That put a very different spin on matters and the sooner she got her head around that, the better.
This wasn’t about him and her. It was about him and the baby. Did he want to be involved with the baby? If he did, and if he was sincere, then they would have to sort something out...come to some kind of arrangement.
Shadows gathered in Ryan’s eyes. She swallowed, recalling the way she’d thrown the vase at him. ‘And you? Are you okay?’
She watched him as he let out a slow breath. ‘As you haven’t thrown anything at me yet, then yes—so far, so good.’
Behind him, Nico groaned. ‘You threw something at him?’ he said in Italian.
‘He made me angry,’ she returned in her native tongue, trying not to wince at how rash and impetuous it must make her sound.
With a sigh she glanced back at Ryan. ‘Have you been formally introduced to my brothers?’
‘I’ve not had that pleasure, no.’
His tone told her they’d been giving him a hard time, but he didn’t seem too fazed by it. A man who could hold his own against her two overprotective brothers? Maybe there were hidden depths to Ryan she had yet to plumb. Let’s hope so, mia topolino. She wanted her baby to have a father who would love it.
She couldn’t get her hopes up on that head, though. She recalled all the things he’d said yesterday and her stomach started to churn. He might just be here to offer her some kind of financial arrangement—to buy her off.
Keep your cool until you know for sure.
She tossed her head. She meant to keep her cool regardless.
She pulled herself back to the here and now and gestured. ‘This is my oldest brother, Angelo, and this is Nico. He manages our vineyard.’ She couldn’t keep a thread of pride from her voice. She adored both of her brothers. ‘And this—’ she went to touch Ryan’s arm and then thought the better of it ‘—is Ryan White.’
The men didn’t shake hands.
Angelo gave a mock salute. ‘Paulo.’
Ryan glanced down at her with a frown in his eyes. She waved a dismissive hand through the air. ‘It is a stupid joke of theirs. Don’t pay them any mind.’
‘Marianna’s boyfriends don’t last too long,’ Nico said. A deliberate
