He might even find another rich girl. How will you prevent that?’ He gave her a thin smile. ‘Or have you some scheme to blackmail him into co-operation too?’
‘You speak as if he has never cared for Beatrice.’ His aunt spoke calmly. ‘This is not true. And, once his disillusion with his English fancy is complete, I know he will realise where his best interests lie, and turn to her again. And they will be happy together. I am sure of it.’
Alessio sent her a look of pure exasperation. ‘How simple you make it sound. You pull the strings, and the puppets dance. But there are still things you have not taken into account. For one thing, how will I meet this girl?’
‘I have thought of that. I shall tell Paolo that I have workmen at my house in Tuscany putting in a new heating system, so cannot receive guests. Instead, I have accepted a kind invitation from you for us all to stay at the Villa Diana.’
He snorted. ‘And he will believe you?’
She shrugged. ‘He has no choice. And I shall make sure you have the opportunity to be alone with the girl. The rest is up to you.’ She paused. ‘You may not even be called on to make the ultimate sacrifice, caro. It might be enough for Paolo to discover you kissing her.’
He said patiently, ‘Zia Lucrezia, has it occurred to you that this—Laura—may be truly in love with Paolo, and nothing will persuade her to even a marginal betrayal?’
He paused, his mouth twisting. ‘Besides, and more importantly, you have overlooked the fact that she may not find me attractive.’
‘Caro Alessio,’ the Signora purred. ‘Let us have no false modesty. It has been often said that if you had smiled at Juliet, she would have left Romeo. Like your other deluded victims, Laura will find you irresistible.’
‘Davvero?’ Alessio asked ironically. ‘I hope she slaps my face.’ He looked down at his hand, studying the crest on the signet ring he wore. ‘And afterwards—if I succeed in this contemptible ploy? I would not blame Paolo if he refused to speak to me again.’
‘At first, perhaps, he may be resentful. But in time, he will thank you.’ She rose. ‘They will be arriving next week. I hope this will not be a problem for you?’
He got to his feet too, his mouth curling. He walked over to her, took her hand and bowed over it. ‘I shall count the hours.’
‘Sarcasm, mio caro, does not become you.’ She studied him for a moment. ‘Like your father, Alessio, you are formidable when you are angry.’ She patted his cheek. ‘I hope you’re in a better mood when you finally encounter this English girl, or I shall almost feel sorry for her.’
He gave her a hard, unsmiling look. ‘Don’t concern yourself for her, Zia Lucrezia. I will do my best to send her home with a beautiful memory.’
‘Ah,’ she said. ‘Now I really do feel sorry for her.’ And was gone.
Alone, Alessio went to a side table, and poured himself a whisky. He rarely drank in the daytime, but this was like no other day since the beginning of the world.
What the devil was Paolo thinking of—bringing his little ragazza within a hundred miles of his mother? If he gave a damn about her, he would keep them well apart.
And if I had an atom of decency, Alessio thought grimly, I would call him, and say so.
But he couldn’t risk it. Zia Lucrezia had more than her full share of the Ramontella ruthlessness, as he should have remembered, and would not hesitate to carry out her veiled threat about his ill-advised interlude with Vittoria. And the fall-out would, as she’d predicted, be both unpleasant and spectacular.
Laura, he repeated to himself meditatively. Well, at least she had a charming name. If she had a body to match, then his task might not seem so impossible.
He raised his glass. ‘Salute, Laura,’ he said with cynical emphasis. ‘E buona fortuna.’ He added softly, ‘I think you will need it.’
CHAPTER TWO
‘WELL, it all sounds iffy to me,’ said Gaynor. ‘Think about it. You’ve cancelled your South of France holiday with Steve because you didn’t like the sleeping arrangements, yet now you’re off to Italy with someone you hardly know. It doesn’t make any sense.’
Laura sighed. ‘Not when you put it like that, certainly. But it truly isn’t what you think. I’m getting a free trip to Tuscany for two weeks, plus a cash bonus, and all I have to do is look as if I’m madly in love.’
‘It can’t be that simple,’ Gaynor said darkly. ‘Nothing ever is. I mean, have you ever been madly in love? You certainly weren’t with Steve or you wouldn’t have quibbled about sharing a room with him,’ she added candidly.
Laura flushed. ‘I suppose I thought I was—or that I might be, given time. After all, we’ve only been seeing each other for two months. Hardly a basis for that kind of commitment.’
‘Well, not everyone would agree with you there,’ Gaynor said drily.
‘I know.’ Laura paused in her packing to sigh again. ‘I’m a freak—a throwback. I admit it. But if and when I have sex with a man, I want it to be based on love and respect, and a shared future. Not because double rooms are cheaper than singles.’
‘And what kind of room is this Paolo Vicente offering?’
‘All very respectable,’ Laura assured her, tucking her only swimsuit into a corner of her case. ‘We’ll be staying with his mother at her country house, and she’s a total dragon, it seems. Paolo says she’ll probably lock me in at night.’
‘And she has no idea that you’re practically strangers?’
‘No, that’s the whole point. She’s pushing him hard to get engaged to a girl he’s known all his life, and he won’t. He says she’s more like his younger sister than a future wife, and that I’m going to be his declaration of independence. A way of telling his mother that he’s his own man, and quite capable of picking a bride for himself.’
‘Isn’t that like showing a red rag to a bull? Do you want to be caught in the middle of two warring factions?’
‘I won’t be. Paolo says, at worst, she’ll treat me with icy politeness. And he’s promised I won’t see that much of her—that he’ll take me out and about as much as possible.’ Laura paused. ‘It could even be fun,’ she added doubtfully.
‘Ever the optimist,’ muttered Gaynor. ‘How the hell did you ever become part of this gruesome twosome?’
Laura sighed again. ‘He works for the Arleschi Bank. We pitched for their PR work a few weeks ago, and Carl took me along to the presentation. Paolo was there. Then, a fortnight ago, he came into the wine bar, and we recognised each other.’ She wrinkled her nose. ‘I’d just split with Steve, so I was feeling down, and Paolo was clearly fed up too. He stayed on after closing time, and we had a drink together, and started talking.
‘He wanted to know why I was moonlighting in a wine bar when I was working for Harman Grace, so I told him about Mum being a widow, and Toby winning that scholarship to public school, but always needing extra stuff for school, plus this field trip in October.
‘Then
