Italian Bachelors: Ruthless Propositions. Fiona Harper

father’s footsteps.’ She turned to him. ‘He would have been so proud to know you’d secured the commission for the Institute of Fine—’

      Max’s chair shot back as he stood to his feet. ‘Don’t you dare presume to speak for my father,’ he said through clenched teeth. His insides were on fire, yet his skin felt as cold as ice. ‘In fact, I’d rather you didn’t mention him at all in my presence.’

      And then he turned and strode from the room.

       CHAPTER SIX

      MAX STARED AT SOFIA, who was currently sitting on one of his mother’s sofas, staring at him expectantly. Gone was the sunshine of the previous day, replaced by a low, drizzly fog. It would probably clear up by the afternoon, but that didn’t help him now.

      There would be no walk this morning, no playing ball games in the street or a nearby square. Unsurprisingly, there weren’t many parks in Venice, so children had to make do with whatever outside space the city presented to them. He tried to rack his brains and think what he’d done as a boy on his visits here, but most of his memories were of when he was older, involving boats or other children.

      Ruby walked into the room. He hadn’t seen her since last night, and had almost got used to the bright strawberry-covered dress. Her attire was once again completely different, but somehow it seemed less of a jump this morning. Today she looked like a groupie from a rock band, with skinny jeans, a black T-shirt and a multitude of necklaces and bangles. Her dark, purple-streaked hair also seemed to be standing up a little more than usual.

      ‘Good morning,’ she said.

      Max nodded.

      Ruby must have seen the panic in his eyes, because she smiled that soft little I’m-trying-not-to-make-it-look-as-if-I’m-laughing-at-you smile. He gave up any pretence of competence.

      ‘What do I do?’ he asked, gesturing towards the windows.

      She shrugged. ‘Do something she likes to do.’

      Marvellous suggestion. Great. That was the whole point. ‘But I don’t know what she likes to do.’

      He searched around the room. His mother didn’t have many toys, just a few in the bottom section of an antique sideboard. He opened the door and started to rummage. When he was halfway through pulling things out, most of them puzzles and board games far too old for his niece, he felt a light touch on his shoulder. He twisted his head and found Sofia grinning at him. ‘Dat!’ she announced firmly, pointing to a cardboard box.

      Max reached for it and opened the lid. It contained the brightly coloured wooden blocks that Sofia had been playing with yesterday. As he stared at them, the way they were worn, how the paint had been knocked off some of the corners and edges, he realised they’d once been his. Sofia nodded, walked over to the large rug that filled the middle of the room and sat down on it, waiting.

      Well, at least he knew what to do with bricks, even if they were this small. He started arranging them into a small structure, but Sofia wasn’t happy with that. ‘Build pinsess!’ she said firmly, tugging at his shirtsleeve.

      Max looked at her. ‘Huh?’

      ‘Build pinsess,’ she repeated, looking at him as if he should have no trouble obeying her command. He looked up at Ruby helplessly.

      ‘I think she’s saying “build princess”.’

      He was still lost.

      Ruby chuckled. ‘I think she wants you to build her a fairy-tale castle.’

      Max looked down at his rather square, half-finished house. Great. Now the Institute of Fine Art weren’t the only ones who weren’t pleased with an original Martin design.

      ‘What does a fairy-princess castle look like?’

      Ruby got down on the rug beside them and started gathering bricks. ‘The basics are there,’ she said. ‘You just need to embellish a little.’

      She leaned forward to pick up another brick and Max caught the scent of her perfume. He would have expected her to wear something bold and eye-watering, like too-sweet vanilla or pungent berries, but it was a subtle mix of flowers and spices. It made him forget where he’d been about to place the next brick.

      He shook himself and found somewhere, even though he was sure he’d had a different spot in mind when he’d picked the thing up.

      They finished the main structure then added turrets and a drawbridge. Ruby even went and found a blue scarf from her luggage and they circled it round the castle like a moat. Sofia took a role as site manager, instructing the adults where she wanted the next tower built and letting them know in no uncertain terms when their efforts didn’t meet her expectations.

      ‘She’s reminding me of someone else I know,’ Ruby muttered under her breath.

      Max hid a smile. Seriously, he was not that bad.

      She reached for a red triangular brick at the same time he did and their hands bumped. She pulled back and rested her bottom on her heels. ‘No, you have it. You’re the expert.’

      He picked it up and dropped it into her hand. ‘This isn’t a job I can accomplish on my own. I think the finishing touches require some definite feminine input to come up to our patron’s high standard.’

      She grinned back at him. ‘She is a bit of a slave driver.’ And then she put the brick above the main gate, making a porch, instead of the obvious place where he would have put it on top of the central turret. When she’d finished she stood up and brushed the carpet fibres off her black jeans.

      ‘Where are you going?’ he asked, realising he was disappointed she was leaving.

      He told himself it was because he needed her there as backup, that he didn’t want to be left alone with Sofia. What if she started crying again?

      ‘It’s lunch time,’ she said, smiling. ‘I think Sofia is getting hungry.’

      Max checked his watch. So it was. He’d forgotten how much he’d loved these blocks as a boy, how many rainy days just like this one he’d spent in this room, building forts and skyscrapers and alien space stations.

      He stood up and surveyed the creation they’d made together. Despite its flouncy, OTT design, he was quite proud of himself. And Ruby and Sofia, obviously. This really was a spectacular castle. He’d enjoyed himself, remembered just how much joy could be had from building and creating when the pressure wasn’t on. And he’d enjoyed the good-natured banter and arguments about which door should go where and just how ridiculously high Sleeping Beauty’s tower should be. Instead of feeling burdened and irritated, he felt...

      It took him a while to name the sensation. Probably because it had been absent from his life for so long.

      He felt relaxed.

      ‘That’s you relieved of duty for the morning, then,’ Ruby said and held out her hand for Sofia and asked her if she’d like lunch in Italian. Sofia nodded vigorously and began to tell Ruby exactly what she’d consent to eat. The list consisted of mainly chocolate and flavours of ice cream. Ruby just smiled and led her away and Max was left staring at Sofia’s castle.

      The smile slowly slid from his face. The tiny rainbow-coloured castle might have turned out well, but he still had no idea how to add the same flair to his design for the institute. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and trudged back to the library. For some reason, he didn’t think turrets and a moat would be a hit with his clients.

      * * *

      Rather than the pearly mist of the day before, which had draped the whole city in soft, off-white tones, the next morning was bright and loud and colourful. Instead of setting the blocks up in the living room, Max led Ruby and Sofia outside to the dock.

      A minute later they were zipping through canals heading for somewhere Max said