The Rinuccis: Carlo, Ruggiero & Francesco. Lucy Gordon

‘You’re talking nonsense.’

      ‘All right.’ She made a placating gesture. ‘Let it go.’

      His eyes flashed anger. ‘Don’t humour me.’

      ‘I just don’t want to waste time arguing.’

      ‘And I don’t want you brooding over it to yourself.’

      ‘But it’s not just going to vanish—not unless I suddenly lose seven years.’

      ‘Will you stop talking like that?’ he begged. ‘Thirty-seven is nothing these days. It doesn’t have to bother us unless we let it.’

      ‘Are you going to wish it away?’ she asked fondly.

      He shook his head. ‘I’ll never wish you other than you are.’

      ‘But one day—you might.’

      His response to that was to pull her close and kiss her. There were faint cheers from other customers in the little café, for lovers were always popular.

      As they drew apart she smiled and sighed, letting it go at that. Now time must pass while he took in the full enormity of what he’d discovered. Already she guessed that he was beginning to understand, which was why he’d moved to silence her. Then he would realise that a permanent love was impossible, but together they would enjoy their time together while they worked on the series. It all made perfect sense, and one day perhaps it would no longer hurt so much.

      The spent that evening, as they had spent others recently: dining in her room before going to bed. Over the food and wine he told her more about his family, preparing her for the next evening.

      ‘Justin and Evie won’t be there, because they live in England and Evie’s heavily pregnant with twins. But Primo and Olympia will be there, and so will Luke and Minnie, down from Rome for a couple of days.’

      He tactfully forbore to mention that he’d had a call from Luke, his adopted brother, now living with Minnie ‘in a state of fatuous bliss’, according to his brother Primo. But since Primo himself had lowered his prickly defences for the sake of the divine Olympia, he was, as Ruggiero had tartly remarked, hardly in a position to talk.

      ‘The women are in cahoots,’ Luke had warned Carlo darkly. ‘So don’t say you haven’t been warned.’

      Carlo had laughed. There was something about a family conspiracy to unite him with Della that filled him with pleasure. If only they knew how little need there was for them to nudge him into matrimony.

      The thought of having Sol as a stepson made him pause, but only briefly. He would just have to put up with the young man whom he’d mentally stigmatised as ‘that selfish oaf’.

      He found, though, that Della was stubbornly resistant to any suggestion that her darling might not be perfect.

      ‘What’s he going to do about getting a job?’ he asked mildly.

      ‘He’ll get one,’ she said, a little too quickly. ‘But I’m not going to hound him when he’s only just left college.’

      ‘Well, having a degree will help.’

      ‘Actually, he doesn’t have a degree,’ she admitted reluctantly. ‘He failed his finals.’

      Carlo bit back a tart remark about that not coming as any surprise, and merely said mildly, ‘But he can sit them again.’

      ‘He doesn’t think it’s worth it. He says it’ll be more use to look around and see a bit of the world, find out what really suits him.’

      Carlo had heard this argument from lazy dead-beats too often to argue with it now. He merely observed, ‘I had a job even when I was in college. There was a dig just outside town and during the vacations I slaved for hours every day, grubbing away in the earth.’

      ‘But that’s different,’ she objected. ‘You were doing a job you loved, making a step in your career, making contacts—’

      ‘At the time it just felt like breaking my back so that the whole financial burden didn’t fall on my parents.’

      ‘Well, maybe that’s why he won’t go back to college—to save me another year’s fees.’

      Her face had a mulish look he hadn’t seen before, and a sudden sense of danger made him pull back. Sol could lead them into discord, and he wouldn’t let that happen.

      There was a new intensity in his lovemaking that night, as though he were reminding her of how good it could be between them. He had always been a patient lover, giving her all the time she needed to reach her moment. Now his consideration for her was endless, and the gentleness of his kisses as he lay with her, teasing her to fulfilment, almost made her weep.

      ‘My love…’ he murmured. ‘My love for ever…’

      How could she refuse a man who could make her feel like this? How could she break his heart and her own?

      ‘Look at me,’ he urged.

      He had said it before. He always wanted to meet her eyes when the pleasure overtook them. But tonight it was almost a command, as if he knew the dangerous path her thoughts were taking and wanted to summon her back to him.

      ‘Look at me,’ he said again.

      She did so, and found her gaze held by his as the joy mounted unbearably until they were swept away together.

      One of the many reasons she loved him was that when it was over he stayed with her in both body and spirit, not turning away, but resting his head against her until he slept. It was a habit that made her feel valued as nothing else had ever done.

      Tonight was no different—except that first he propped himself up on one elbow, looking down on her with worshipful eyes, as though in this way he could hold her to him. In the dim light she could just see that he was smiling.

      ‘I guess this would be a good time to talk about getting married,’ he said softly.

      CHAPTER SIX

      MARRIED.

      The word shocked her. In her wildest moments she’d never thought of marriage. A short affair, perhaps a long affair, but not for one moment had she thought of him committing to her publicly for life.

      ‘What did you say?’ she whispered.

      ‘I want to marry you. Why do you look like that? It can’t come as a surprise.’

      ‘It does—a little.’

      ‘When people feel about each other as we do it has to be marriage. You’re the one. I’ve known that from the first. Are you saying that I’m not the one for you?’

      ‘You know better than that,’ she said, touching his face gently. ‘You’re my love, my only love—now and for ever—’

      ‘Good. That’s settled then. We’ll tell everyone tomorrow.’

      ‘No,’ she said quickly. ‘That’s too soon.’

      ‘But it’s a party, a big family gathering. What could be better than telling them there’s going to be an addition to the family?’

      ‘Well, this may seem a trifle to you, but actually I haven’t said yes.’

      ‘Then say it and stop wasting time,’ he said lightly.

      It would have been so easy to speak the word he longed to hear and her heart longed to give—especially now. He’d chosen his moment perfectly, for what woman could turn away from a man who had just loved her with such fire and tenderness? Della knew that she couldn’t make herself do that—not now, anyway.

      ‘Let’s not delay,’ he urged. ‘We know all we need to—’ ‘Darling, we know hardly anything about each other.’ ‘We know we love each other. What else is there?’ ‘In a perfect world, nothing. But, my dearest