The Italian Mavericks

COLLECTION

January 2019

Italian Mavericks: In the Italian’s Bed

February 2019

Italian Mavericks: Expecting the Italian’s Baby

March 2019

Italian Mavericks: Bound by the Italian’s Bargain

April 2019

Italian Mavericks: A Deal with the Italian

May 2019

Italian Mavericks: Carrying the Italian’s Heir

June 2019

Italian Mavericks: Forbidden Nights with the Italian

December 2019

(Christmas Special Edition)

Italian Mavericks: New Year Temptation

About the Authors

MARGARET MAYO says most writers state they’ve always written and made up stories, right from a very young age. Not her! Margaret was a voracious reader but never invented stories, until the morning of June 14th 1974 when she woke up with an idea for a short story. The story grew until it turned into a full length novel, and after a few rewrites, it was accepted by Mills & Boon. Two years and eight books later, Margaret gave up full-time work for good. And her love of writing goes on!

ROBYN GRADY has sold millions of books worldwide, and features regularly on bestsellers lists and at award ceremonies, including The National Readers Choice, The Booksellers Best and Australia’s prestigious Romantic Book of the Year. When she’s not tapping out her next story, she enjoys the challenge of raising three very different daughters as well as dreaming about shooting the breeze with Stephen King during a month-long Mediterranean cruise. Contact her at www.robyngrady.com

SARAH MORGAN is a USA Today and Sunday Times bestselling author of contemporary romance and women’s fiction. She has sold more than 16 million copies of her books and her trademark humour and warmth have gained her fans across the globe. Sarah lives with her family near London, England, where the rain frequently keeps her trapped in her office. Visit her at www.sarahmorgan.com

Italian Mavericks: New Year Temptation

Her Husband’s Christmas Bargain

Margaret Mayo

Confessions of a Millionaire’s Mistress

Robyn Grady

The Italian’s New-Year Marriage Wish

Sarah Morgan

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-0-008-90095-3

ITALIAN MAVERICKS: NEW YEAR TEMPTATION

Her Husband’s Christmas Bargain © 2004 Margaret Mayo Confessions of a Millionaire’s Mistress © 2008 Robyn Grady The Italian’s New-Year Marriage Wish © 2007 Harlequin Books S.A.

Published in Great Britain 2019

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.

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www.millsandboon.co.uk

Version: 2020-03-02

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Table of Contents

Cover

About the Authors

Title Page

Copyright

Note to Readers

Her Husband’s Christmas Bargain

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

Confessions of a Millionaire’s Mistress

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

EPILOGUE

The Italian’s New-Year Marriage Wish

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

About the Publisher

Her Husband’s Christmas Bargain

Margaret Mayo

CHAPTER ONE

IT WASN’T! It was! It was Megan. Luigi Costanzo had overheard the child telling Santa that all she wanted for Christmas was a daddy. It had aroused his curiosity, even caused a faint stir somewhere deep within him, and he’d watched her as she returned to her mother. She was a pretty little girl with long blonde hair and big blue eyes, but it was the shock of seeing who was her parent that caused him to do a double take.

Megan!

His Megan!

Megan, whom he hadn’t seen for almost four years.

What the hell?

Luigi looked from mother to daughter and his eyes narrowed. Megan still had the same shoulder-length blonde hair, the same slender figure; nothing about her had changed. She didn’t even look any older. He swung on his heel, snapping his fingers at his nearest employee. ‘Please follow that woman and report back to me with her address.’

‘Yes, sir.’

If the young man was surprised he didn’t show it. He spurted into immediate action. There was no arguing with the new owner of Gerards. He’d had everyone on their toes ever since he took over a few months ago.

’Sweetheart, what did you ask for?’ Megan looked down at her beloved daughter, who was skipping happily along at her side. There hadn’t really been time to visit Santa’s grotto but Charlotte had pleaded so eloquently that Megan couldn’t find it in her heart to refuse. There was always another train, even if it meant travelling home at the height of the rush hour.

‘For a daddy.’

Megan hid her surprise, smiling indulgently instead. ‘I don’t think Santa supplies daddies. You were supposed to ask for a toy.’ Her heart felt heavy as she spoke. Charlotte was right, she did need a father, and if Luigi had been different…

Megan halted her thoughts. It was no good letting them run along those lines. She had been an idiot for marrying him, for allowing her parents to convince her that she could do no better. He was a man with big ambition; she would never want for anything, they had said.

She could understand their reasoning because money had been the bane of their lives, her father never able to hold down a job for long due to ill health, so for that reason she hadn’t told her parents that she was leaving Luigi. She had simply disappeared, telephoning them later so that they would know she was safe, but not giving them her address. They had not been happy, telling her that she was making a big mistake. But Megan didn’t think so.

Luigi’s chief aim in life was making money, and he was very good at it. His wife was someone to clean his home, and cook and wash for him, and to make love to whenever the urge drove him. But there was no love in his heart; she had found that out after the first few months of marriage. She doubted he was capable of feeling any such emotion. Whereas she had loved him with a passion that had sometimes scared her.

With an effort she pushed him out of her mind, concentrating instead on her chatterbox daughter. Santa had given her a parcel and they played a guessing game all the way home as to what was inside.

Home was a rented terraced house in Greenwich, which she shared with Jenny Wilson whom she’d met when she first arrived in London. As soon as they were indoors Charlotte ripped the wrapping paper off her gift. If Megan was disappointed her daughter wasn’t. She was delighted with her soldier doll.

‘Look, Mummy, I can pretend he’s my daddy. Wasn’t Santa kind?’

It was a clear case of the boys and girls presents getting muddled but Megan hadn’t the heart to tell Charlotte this. ‘He certainly is, sweetheart. What are you going to call him?’

‘Daddy, of course,’ said Charlotte scornfully. ‘Come on, Daddy, come and play with me.’

It broke Megan’s heart to see her daughter being so passionate about a doll. She hadn’t realised that Charlotte missed having a father. Where had the idea come from? Surely she was too young to know?

Daddy doll was a part of their lives for the next few days and on Sunday morning, when Charlotte jumped into bed beside her, the doll had to come too. Megan was sometimes tempted to conveniently lose the doll, except that she knew her daughter would be heartbroken. The trouble was, all this talk about Daddy dragged up memories she would far rather forget.

When the doorbell rang loudly and insistently she was tempted to ignore it. This was Sunday morning for heaven’s sake. No one of any consequence called at this hour. It was probably for Jenny anyway, and she was spending the weekend with her fiancé. But the ringing didn’t stop; whoever it was kept their finger on the button with no intention of going away until it was answered.

Impatiently Megan pulled on her dressing gown. ‘Stay there and keep the bed warm,’ she told her daughter. Someone was going to get a piece of her mind. But that someone robbed her of speech. She felt the colour drain from her face, and her heart skipped a couple of beats before resuming at a startling pace.

The very last person she had expected to see was her husband. After all these years she had thought she was safe. In fact she’d felt extremely secure in the knowledge that he had no idea where she was. Not that she’d expected him to come looking. He might just as well have employed a housekeeper for all the notice he’d ever taken of her.

He was still as handsome as ever, his dark Latin looks improving with age rather than fading. Black hair aggressively short, deep brown eyes intensely disturbing. There was maybe a line or two around their corners but it added rather than detracted from his appearance. His nose was strong and straight and his generous lips were at this moment compressed into a grim line.

Although there was a step up into her house he still stood a couple of inches taller. He was six three compared to her five feet six and she was glad at this moment of the extra few inches the step afforded her. He could be very intimidating when he chose.

And it looked as though this was one of those occasions.

‘I’ve come to claim my daughter.’

The bald statement left Megan gasping. This was her worst nightmare come true. She clung to the door handle for support as her legs threatened to buckle. ‘H—how did you know?’ She felt a tightness in her throat that threatened to choke her.

‘So she is mine!’ he claimed triumphantly, a gleam of light entering those dark, dark eyes.

He had tricked her! Megan felt like taking a swipe at him. Or at the very least slamming the door in his face. But what good would that do? He wouldn’t go away until he’d got what he came for. She dared not think what that might be.

‘Can I come in or shall we negotiate on the doorstep?’

Negotiate? Negotiate what? Visiting rights? Some hope of that. He was no longer a part of her life, their lives, hers and Charlotte’s. She ought to have divorced him. How had he found her? The question whirled round and round in her head.

He lived in Derbyshire; he had no connections with London. She had thought she would be safe a hundred and fifty or more miles away in a big anonymous city. So how had he discovered her whereabouts? Had he been looking for her all these years? Somehow she doubted it. He had declared he loved her before they got married but there had been very little show of affection afterwards, certainly not enough for him to take time off from his precious work to scour the country after her.

He looked as though he’d done well for himself. A short black Crombie overcoat, mohair trousers with perfectly pressed pleats, Italian leather shoes. Yes, he wasn’t short of a few pennies. Not that he ever had been. But he was far more polished, far more mature and self-confident. Even the way he stood told her that.

There was not an ounce of diffidence. He was here on a mission and expected to get his own way. No, not expected, he would demand it—as his right. She could see it in his expression. Dark eyes overpowered her, making her step back and invite him silently into her private domain.

She didn’t want to do it but she had no choice. He was hypnotising her into obeying. Or was it because she didn’t want to argue with him in full view of her neighbours? Whichever, she was going along with his wishes and she had the secret fear that she would live to regret it.

He followed her as she opened the door into her lounge-cum-dining room, standing just inside the doorway as she drew back the curtains and let the cold morning light filter in. She folded her arms and looked at him as imperiously as she was able in her purple wool dressing gown. It wasn’t exactly the outfit she would have chosen for facing the enemy.

And he was her enemy if he thought he was going to take Charlotte away from her. The very notion triggered a protective parent syndrome. Her grey eyes flared hostility and her back stiffened. ‘How did you find me?’

‘Does it matter?’ he asked coolly. ‘The issue here is that you have denied me my daughter.’

‘And you think you’d have made a good father?’ Megan’s voice was growing shriller by the second. ‘You didn’t even show me any affection; I had no intention of putting a child through that.’

He drew in a swift disbelieving breath. ‘I was working for our future, Megan, in case you’d forgotten.’

‘So I didn’t matter?’

‘Of course you mattered. But I thought you understood.’

‘Oh, I understood all right,’ she retorted. ‘You thought I’d be happy taking a back seat while you headed towards making your first million. You believed that the thought of all that money would be sufficient for me to happily keep house while you spent every waking hour making more of the bloody stuff. Well, let me tell you something, dear husband of mine, I’m not interested in money. So long as I have enough to put a roof over mine and Charlotte’s head and feed and clothe us, then—’

‘So that’s my daughter’s name—Charlotte. Mmm, I like it,’ he cut in with a smile. ‘Where is she? I’d like to—’

‘She’s asleep,’ lied Megan, ‘and I’d thank you to keep your voice down.’

‘I want to see her.’

‘And then you’ll go away?’ she rasped. ‘I don’t think so. I didn’t like it when you said you’d come to claim your daughter. What was that supposed to mean? Because I’ll tell you this right now, it will be over my dead body that you take her from me.’

Megan could hear herself shrieking and knew that it was no way to conduct herself, but she couldn’t help it. He wasn’t going to take Charlotte; he wasn’t! She would fight him tooth and nail.

‘What I want,’ he said, ‘is for you and Charlotte to come and spend Christmas with me.’

Megan stared at him in disbelief, finally shaking her head. ‘You really think we’d do that? You think I’d let my daughter spend Christmas with a stranger?’

The jibe hurt; she could see it in his eyes, but she didn’t care. How dare he think he could walk in here and take over her life?

‘I’m not a stranger I am her father,’ he rasped, ‘and as such I have rights. You must know that. And if necessary I’ll implement those rights,’ he added harshly. ‘If you know what’s good for you you’ll accept that you have no alternative.’

He moved further into the room, halting a few menacing inches from her. Megan felt every hair on her skin prickle and she wanted to step back but she knew that she must show no fear or he would take advantage. Luigi could be ruthless. If he wanted something he went all out for it. She’d seen it enough times in his business life and knew that he’d be equally determined where his daughter was concerned. She was being hounded into a corner and wasn’t sure which way to turn.

When his big hands gripped her shoulders she felt a powerful sensation rush through her—anger, fear, desperation. All three! With a strength she didn’t know she possessed, Megan pushed him away. Then out of the corner of her eye, she saw Charlotte sidling into the room—a scared-looking Charlotte.

‘Mummy,’ her daughter cried plaintively. ‘What’s that man doing to you?’

Megan immediately gathered the child into her arms. ‘Nothing, sweetheart.’

‘But I saw him touch you. Were you fighting?’

‘Of course not.’

‘So who is he? What’s he doing here?’

Megan could understand Charlotte’s questions because they never had any male visitors except Jenny’s boyfriend. There’d been no one in her life since Luigi, not because she’d been short of invitations; she simply wasn’t interested. Her daughter filled her every waking hour and Megan was completely happy—or she had been until a few minutes ago. Now she felt her happiness fading and worry begin to take its place.

It was ironic that Luigi should put in an appearance now—when Charlotte was crying out for a daddy. He had unknowingly timed his visit to perfection. And it looked as though he intended to do all in his power to take her beloved baby away from her. It was as clear in her head as water out of a tap that this was what he had in mind. He didn’t want her, he wanted Charlotte.

I’ve come to claim my daughter!

Those were his exact words and they struck chill in her heart as she recalled them. And because of that how could she explain to Charlotte that this was her father? He had no part to play in their lives. Not now, not ever! But how was she to get rid of him?

‘It looks as though Mummy isn’t going to tell you who I am,’ he said, looking down at the girl.

Megan shot him a warning glance because she knew what was going to come next, but her wishes were ignored.

‘I’m your father,’ he informed in a voice that held no love at all. It was a matter-of-fact statement and Megan could have cheerfully strangled him. He hadn’t changed one iota.

Charlotte hung on to Megan’s dressing gown, looking up at him shyly with an expression of awe and reverence on her face. ‘Did Santa send you?’ she asked in a tiny, breathless voice.

At that he smiled. ‘Indeed he did. He told me that there was a very special little girl looking for a daddy.’

Charlotte’s eyes were enormous as she turned to her mother. It was clear she thought that some miracle had happened. ‘Mummy, isn’t Santa wonderful?’

Megan forced herself to smile. ‘He always does his best, sweetheart, but it’s not Christmas yet, you know.’ What else could she say? How could she burst her daughter’s precious bubble of happiness? And how the hell had Luigi known?

‘It’s near enough,’ said Luigi. ‘How would you and your mummy like to come and spend Christmas with me? I have a great big house and you can help dress the Christmas tree and goodness knows how many presents you’ll find under it on Christmas Day.’

‘Luigi!’ Megan whispered through her teeth. This was emotional blackmail at its worst. Yes, he probably would ply Charlotte with presents, but what the little girl wanted more than anything in the world was a father who loved her, a father who showed his affection in every way possible. Buying a child’s love was inexcusable. And that was all he would do, all he would ever do.

And Charlotte was completely overwhelmed, hiding behind her mother’s skirts, very warily peeping at Luigi.

‘How dare you think you can walk in here after all these years and try to take over my life?’ said Megan coldly. ‘I have plans for Christmas; why should I change them because of a whim on your part?’

‘I can assure you it’s no whim,’ he told her brusquely. ‘I want both you and my daughter back where you belong. I’m giving you no choice.’

Luigi was angry, fiercely angry. His stomach was a tight, knotted ball and he wanted to lash out. He had felt bad enough when Megan left him, but for her to be carrying his child when she did so went beyond the pale. Had she hated him that much? Did she still hate him?

In truth, he hadn’t realised that anything had gone wrong with their marriage. Night after sleepless night he’d racked his brains for a possible reason and come up with nothing. He’d thought she was happy, she had no reason not to be. He was a good provider; she’d never been left wanting. He’d worked long hours, yes, but she understood that. It was the only way to get anywhere.

None of her friends or even her parents had known where she’d gone, and his search had proved fruitless. Not even the police could help him. He had immersed himself more deeply into his work, hoping that one day she would get in touch. Finally, though, he’d had to accept that their marriage was over. And he’d worked even harder.

When he’d seen her in his London store he’d been stunned, and when he had looked closely at the little girl he’d known at once that it was his child. He had an old photograph somewhere of his mother at the same age and there was a distinct likeness.

Megan had denied him his daughter and now she was trying to say that he had no rights to her. Lord, she really must hate him. What the hell had he done to her? Of one thing he was sure; he wasn’t going to let her get away with it. She was not going to walk out on him again.

‘I have no choice?’ she questioned now. ‘Believe me, no one, and that includes you, makes me do anything I don’t want to do.’

He admired the way she stood up for herself. Her bright eyes and prickly stance reminded him of an animal defending its young. And that was exactly what she was doing. But Charlotte was as much his as Megan’s.

‘Give me a reason why you don’t want to spend Christmas with me.’ He was sure she had none, except that she no longer loved him. But that was no excuse for depriving her daughter, his daughter. He’d never very much liked children, and he’d always worked over Christmas, but all of a sudden he found himself looking forward to taking a few days off and getting to know this beautiful little girl who kept peeping at him from behind her mother’s dressing gown.

He would shower her with presents, she would want for nothing, and it would be a Christmas filled with all the good things in life.

And after that? asked his conscience.

After that he would keep her with him, of course. It was her rightful place. Both Charlotte and Megan. He would accept nothing less.

‘The reason,’ she told him swiftly, ‘is that Charlotte doesn’t know you. And, to be quite honest, I don’t want her to get to know you. An absentee father is worse than not having one at all.’

‘What do you mean, absentee father?’ he asked sharply. ‘You were the one who walked out.’

‘Because I never saw you, dammit. What sort of a life was that? And I don’t want Charlotte suffering the same way.’

‘You belong with me,’ he growled fiercely. ‘Are you forgetting your wedding vows?’

‘Mummy, what’s the matter?’ Charlotte tugged at Megan’s dressing gown, forcing her to soften her face and look down at her worried daughter.

‘Nothing, sweetheart. I’m just not sure that I want to go and spend Christmas with your—father.’ It pained her to say the word.

‘I’d like to go,’ whispered her daughter, giving him a timid smile.

Luigi felt exultation. The battle was half won. All he needed now was Megan’s acceptance.

‘It looks as though you’re getting your wish,’ she finally managed to choke out. ‘You’ve always been the same, haven’t you, Luigi? Nothing ever stands in your way. How many million have you made?’

The question surprised him. ‘Enough to buy the whole Gerards Group,’ he admitted proudly.

‘What?’ she asked, her eyes narrowing, a deep, incredulous frown dragging her fine brows together. ‘I knew you had ambition but I never imagined that you’d do this well—so quickly.’ Gerards was a department store par excellence. ‘Where are you living these days?’

‘I have an apartment right here in the City where I spend most of the week, but my house is in Sussex.’

‘Did you know I lived here?’

She looked appalled at the very thought and his lips twisted bitterly. ‘Not at all. I was checking that everything was running smoothly when I overheard this little girl asking Santa Claus for a daddy. It was such an unusual request that I watched as she ran back to her mother. You can imagine my astonishment when I saw that it was you.’

‘And so you put your spies on the job and found out where I lived, is that it?’ she demanded, her grey eyes bright now with accusation.

‘Wouldn’t you have done the same if you’d found out that you had a three-year-old daughter whom you knew nothing about?’ he countered harshly. ‘I find it hard to believe that you’ve done this to me.’

Megan shrugged, as if she couldn’t care less what he thought.

‘I think,’ he said, ‘you’d better get dressed and start packing.’

‘Not on your life,’ she retorted. He thought she meant that she wasn’t going to come at all until she added, ‘There’s still a whole week before Christmas. And I have to work for a living. I don’t finish until Thursday.’

Beginning to fear that he was losing the battle, Luigi snapped his dark eyes and shot her a condemning glance. ‘You won’t need to work when you’re back with me. Give it up.’

She looked beautifully indignant. ‘I beg your pardon?’

‘I do not want my wife working, it’s as simple as that. And may I ask where you leave Charlotte while you’re doing whatever it is you do? I hope she’s safe.’

‘Of course she’s safe,’ snapped Megan. ‘We have a crèche; I can be with her at a second’s notice. And I have to work, otherwise how would I keep myself?’

‘You won’t need to; you’re going to live with me,’ he repeated impatiently. ‘It’s your rightful place.’ Now that he’d found out he had a daughter he most definitely wasn’t going to allow her to escape again.

Megan sucked in a harsh breath. ‘You can’t tell me what to do. I’m not one of your minions, Luigi; you’d best remember that. Charlotte and I will come to you on Friday, not a day before. And as soon as Christmas is over we’re back here.’

He decided not to make an issue of it in front of Charlotte, but he wasn’t happy with the situation and he intended to tell Megan so at the very first opportunity. ‘I’ll send a car for you,’ he announced stiffly.

Megan’s chin jerked. ‘There’s no need. Give me your address and we’ll make our own way.’ She held his gaze, her grey eyes, tinged with amethyst, were as cold and belligerent as his.

‘Don’t be ridiculous,’ he snapped. ‘My car will be here at ten. Make sure you’re ready. And, Megan,’ he added warningly, ‘don’t try to run away again.’

‘Mummy, I like my new daddy. I wanted to go with him,’ Charlotte said, pouting, when Luigi had gone.

Megan was peering through the window, watching as he climbed into a sleek black Mercedes. ‘I know you did, sweetheart, but Mummy has to work, I can’t take time off or I’ll lose my job.’

‘Will he come back again?’

‘I don’t think so.’ In fact she prayed he wouldn’t. ‘But it won’t be long before we go to his house.’

‘Where does he live?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘Why don’t we live with him? Laura’s daddy lives with them, and Katie’s.’

Megan turned back into the room and gathered her daughter into her arms. ‘Sometimes, sweetheart, Mummies and Daddies stop loving each other and they live in separate houses because if they didn’t they’d always be arguing.’

‘Did you used to argue with Daddy?’

‘Not really.’

‘So why don’t you live together? I want you to. I want my daddy with me all the time.’

How could she explain to a three-year-old that her father was a workaholic and couldn’t care less about his family? It wouldn’t be the heaven Charlotte thought it would be. Fortunately Jenny phoned at that moment wanting to know if Megan was doing some washing and if so would she throw in her white jeans. By the time their conversation was finished Charlotte had thankfully forgotten her question.

But as far as Megan was concerned her whole day was spoilt. Usually Jenny and her boyfriend lounged about the house and she and Charlotte never had any time to themselves. She had been so looking forward to it. And now all she could think about was Luigi and the fact that they were going to spend Christmas with him.

She ought to have been strong; she should have said no, but how could she deny her daughter what she so obviously wanted? It would be purgatory, she was sure of that. And there was no way on this earth that he could persuade her to move in permanently.

The next four days were sheer hell. She finished her Christmas shopping, not even entertaining the idea of buying Luigi a gift. Why should she? She truly and deeply resented the fact that he was forcing them to spend the festive period with him.

It looked as though another move might be in the cards because she most definitely didn’t want to live the rest of her life with a man who hadn’t an ounce of love in the whole of his body. It wouldn’t even be fair on her daughter to be thrust into such a situation.

Jenny and her fiancé were flying to Paris for Christmas, another reason why Megan had been looking forward to Christmas alone with her daughter, and on Christmas Eve morning it was chaos as they all got ready at once. Finally Jenny and Jake left but Megan had only a short period of breathing space before the car arrived.

She was expecting a polite but indifferent driver and was annoyed to discover that Luigi himself had come to pick them up. Charlotte had been looking through the window and she gave a hoot of delight, though when Megan let him into the house she became suddenly shy again.

‘Are you ready?’ he asked. He was wearing a suit this morning, an immaculate dark grey with a crisp white shirt and a patterned mustard tie. He was the epitome of the successful businessman, gorgeously handsome to boot, and Megan couldn’t stave off a brief flash of the old feelings that had once filled her with such excitement. Had he taken time off work to fetch them? Would he be shooting straight back? It would be good if that were the case because then she and Charlotte could explore his house on their own.

She couldn’t help being curious as to where he now lived. Had he sold the house in Derbyshire or did he still own that as well? He had always said how much he loved the Peak District with its beautiful countryside and interesting little villages.

‘I’m as ready as I’ll ever be,’ she admitted.

‘So you’re still not happy about spending Christmas with me?’ he asked, his eyes hard and enquiring on hers.

‘No, I’m not.’

‘Perhaps I should take Charlotte on her own? Leave you here to—’

‘Not on your life!’

He gave a faint smile of satisfaction. Not the sort that reached his eyes and made them crinkle at the corners, not the sort that had once made her reach out to him and kiss him soundly. Nothing like that. It was a getting-his-own-way kind of smile.

‘Good, then let’s go. Are these your things?’

There wasn’t much, two small suitcases. One with their clothes and one with the presents she had bought for her daughter, already wrapped and hidden away from her prying eyes. She saw him look at them doubtfully. ‘We’ll be coming back for the rest of your stuff after Christmas, I take it?’

‘We won’t be staying,’ she answered evenly. ‘Didn’t I make myself clear?’

‘Perfectly, but I thought you might have changed your mind.’

‘I never will,’ Megan muttered, keeping her tone low for Charlotte’s sake. She didn’t want her daughter to hear her sniping at her new-found daddy. But Luigi heard the determination in her tone and his mouth compressed grimly.

He picked up the two cases and headed out to the car. They looked ridiculously small in his hands and as he tossed them into the boot Megan wanted to cry out that she had changed her mind. She had the strongest feeling that if she went with Luigi now it would change her life for ever.

CHAPTER TWO

MEGAN gasped when she saw Luigi’s house. They’d left the city behind and headed into the Sussex countryside. He had paused at a set of heavy iron security gates to press a remote control and then driven up a winding drive before coming to a halt in front of a mansion that was perched imposingly at the top of a hill. It was a huge grey stone building with massive Ionic columns forming the front portico, and generous wings flanking the main house on either side.

‘This is where you live?’ she asked incredulously. Charlotte was awestruck too, sitting on the edge of her seat and gazing at the building with wide blue eyes.

‘Impressed?’ he asked, a dark eyebrow rising expectantly.

‘It’s not what I imagined,’ Megan admitted, but if he thought she was impressed enough to want to move back in with him he was wide of the mark. ‘And a little bit grand for one man on his own, wouldn’t you say? Unless of course you don’t live here alone?’

Her thoughts immediately turned to his very beautiful PA. Was Serena still with him? Was she a permanent part of his life now? When she had first started working for Luigi he had almost constantly sung her praises. So much so that Megan had begun to get suspicious, especially when his long working hours went on late into the night. He had denied it, of course, but her fears had never gone away and it had been part of the reason she had left him.

‘I’m alone,’ he admitted, much to her relief, because if Serena had been here she would have insisted he take her straight back home. ‘For the moment,’ he added ominously, looking deeply into her troubled eyes.

Megan ignored it and as they approached the house one of the pair of carved oak doors opened and a dark-suited, white-haired man appeared.

‘William, meet my wife, Megan,’ said Luigi with a smile. ‘And Charlotte, my daughter.’

The man inclined his head. ‘Megan, Charlotte,’ he acknowledged gravely. ‘Shall I show them to their rooms, sir?’

‘I’ll do it,’ said Luigi. ‘Tell Cook we’re here and we’d like tea in the drawing room.’

Megan was dumbstruck. This was a rags to riches tale in one giant leap. She’d always known he had excellent entrepreneurial skills, but for him to be able to buy Gerards, as well as a house like this in such a short space of time was beyond her comprehension. How had he done it?

And she couldn’t help wondering what else he had in mind. A top ranking football club? A luxurious yacht? Exotic holiday homes? It seemed as though the world was his oyster these days. Perhaps he even had these things. But she wasn’t disgruntled that she’d missed out because she knew that he would have worked all the hours God gave to get where he was, and that wasn’t the sort of lifestyle she wanted.

She and Charlotte were content in their little house, there was always a sense of satisfaction when she paid her bills and cooked and cleaned and provided a happy, carefree environment for her daughter. She wouldn’t like to live here, not permanently. It wasn’t a home; it was a showpiece.

There wasn’t a speck of dust anywhere in the enormous entrance hall, or the shallow, wide staircase they were now ascending. Nothing was out of place. Urns of flowers spilled their heady perfume into the air, while marble statues stood in alcoves and paintings by old masters adorned the walls.

They followed Luigi through long corridors, finally coming to a halt at a suite of rooms, which she presumed to be in one of the wings. He pushed the door open and Megan walked into a blue carpeted room with a four-poster bed draped in matching blue and two armchairs near the window upholstered in cream damask. The curtains at the tall windows were in a cream and blue fabric. It was all very elegant but not her style and Megan felt a faint shudder run through her.

Luigi appeared to be waiting for her to say something, but when she didn’t he opened an adjoining door, revealing a further bedroom filled with every imaginable toy possible. Charlotte’s eyes widened and she ran inside. ‘Are these for me?’ she asked in wonderment.

‘It’s your room,’ he told her, ‘for as long as you want it.’

‘How dare you do this to her,’ hissed Megan accusingly as soon as Charlotte had disappeared inside. ‘It’s nothing short of blackmail. I’ve not changed my mind. When Christmas is over we’re out of here.’

Luigi’s lips curved upwards in a knowing smile. ‘We’ll see about that.’

Meaning over his dead body. Well, that was what she’d do, kill him if necessary. Actually she wouldn’t do anything so drastic, but there had to be a way to make him change his mind.

‘I’m serious, Luigi,’ she told him coldly.

‘And I’m serious about you moving back in with me. There’s nothing to stop you.’

‘Except that I don’t love you any more.’

His eyes narrowed suspiciously. ‘Is there someone else?’

‘There could be.’ Why should she tell him that there’d been no one since the day she’d walked out on him? He didn’t deserve to know anything.

‘Tell me, is there?’ he demanded angrily, and he took her by the shoulders and almost shook her. ‘Because if there is,’ he warned, ‘I’m taking Charlotte from you. I won’t allow another man to bring up my child.’

Megan was shocked by the ferocity of his tone. ‘You’re in no position to do anything, so take your hands off me. What I do with my private life is no longer any concern of yours. Charlotte is being well looked after and that’s all that need concern you.’

He let out a whoosh of angry air. ‘Charlotte needs her father, her biological father. If you’re not happy with that then get out. But Charlotte stays.’

Megan couldn’t believe he was saying this. A flash of red fury filled her eyes and she lashed out with both fists, raining them on his chest, battering him until she ran out of energy. In response he wrapped his strong arms about her and held her close.

Amazingly Megan felt a stirring of her senses. Lord, this was the last thing she wanted. It had to be anger, a turbulent rage flooding every nerve and tissue. It couldn’t be anything else. Could it?

She wrenched away and glared furiously. ‘You’re a swine, Luigi Costanzo. I can’t believe I let myself be bullied into coming here.’

‘Bullied?’ he challenged. ‘Ask your daughter if she was bullied. She’s been deprived, that’s what. Why else would she ask for a daddy for Christmas? It’s appalling what you’ve done to her, and I intend to make up for the missing years, have no fear about that.’

A cold chill stole through Megan’s veins. ‘Is that a threat?’ she demanded, standing very straight and rigid and glaring at him through stony eyes.

‘If you care to take it that way.’

‘What exactly are you saying?’

‘That even if you don’t want to stay I’m keeping Charlotte.’

This was what she had feared, and the very thought filled her with a dread so deep that the air around her thickened until she found it difficult to breathe. She dragged in huge painful gulps of air. He was serious, and he had the clout to do it. And, unfortunately, it left her with no alternative but to move in with him herself.

But she wouldn’t let him know yet that he had her over a barrel. She would fight him every inch of the way. Once Christmas was over, when he’d discovered how much of his time a young child demanded, he might change his mind. Megan felt sure that he had no real comprehension of what it was like to bring up a young, extremely active daughter.

‘Bold words, Luigi.’

‘I mean them.’

‘And have you perhaps thought about Charlotte? She might not want to stay here. It’s not exactly what I’d call a homely place.’

He frowned. ‘You don’t like it?’

Megan shrugged. ‘It’s imposing, I’ll admit that. But it’s a statement. It says, look at my lifestyle, look how wealthy I am. It doesn’t say that you’re happy or comfortable.’

‘I don’t have time to be comfortable.’

‘Precisely. And that is what your daughter would require. Time. Your time! How would you give her that when you’re busy making your millions?’

‘It could be arranged.’

‘Arranged,’ sneered Megan. ‘You make it sound like a business proposition. It wouldn’t work, Luigi, and you know it. When Charlotte said she wanted a daddy she meant a full-time one, not someone who would try to fit her in when he could.’

Dark eyes flashed hotly in her direction but he was prevented from saying anything else by Charlotte running back into the room. ‘Mummy, come and look what I’ve got.’

It was sheer madness on Luigi’s part, decided Megan, as she studied the mounds of toys stacked in Charlotte’s room. Did he think that going over the top like this would make up for the missing years? He really had no idea what a child needed. And the more she thought about his intention to claim Charlotte the angrier she became.

‘Didn’t you say something about tea?’ she asked him sharply, wanting to get out of this room and the obscene number of gifts he had loaded on his daughter.

‘Wouldn’t you like to unpack first? Or shall I ask—’

‘I’ll do it,’ she snapped, wondering whom he was going to suggest do the job for her. It sounded as though he had a whole army of servants at his beck and call. Was he really happy with this kind of lifestyle?

She backed out of the room and snapped open the locks on her case. It took less than two minutes to hang up their few clothes. The other suitcase with the presents in she left safely fastened. And when she presented herself in Charlotte’s bedroom again he was still standing where she had left him. A real father would have got down on his knees and played with his daughter, but not Luigi. He was content to watch; he didn’t know how to play. Lord, it made her so mad that he’d cocooned himself in a world where money was the prime factor.

They made their way back downstairs to the drawing room. Again it was carpeted in blue, with display cabinets filled with fine pieces of porcelain. There were two very uncomfortable looking, square-armed chairs and a matching sofa, and on a rosewood tea table in front of them was the tea he had ordered.

The china was delicate, the pot covered by a cosy, and tiny biscuits were arranged on a plate. Hardly the sort of refreshment one would offer a three-year-old, thought Megan, but there were three cups and three small plates, so it looked as though she was expected to join them.

Charlotte ate most of the biscuits but she refused the tea. ‘Can I have Coke?’ she asked politely.

Megan felt quite amused when Luigi was forced to confess that he didn’t have any and Charlotte settled for milk instead.

‘We could go shopping,’ said Charlotte innocently. ‘Me and Mummy always go when we run out of anything.’

‘I have to go back to work in a minute,’ confessed her father.

Typical, thought Megan. Nothing had changed. But actually it was a relief when he’d gone and she and Charlotte could explore the house together. Her daughter ran from room to room, visibly impressed by the size of the place, but it made Megan angry. Was this what success meant to him? Was he trying to buy happiness? If so he was failing dismally.

As far as she was concerned it was a loveless place and he must rattle round in it. It wasn’t a home and she couldn’t imagine Charlotte being happy here either. And what annoyed her even more, there wasn’t a single Christmas decoration in sight. Why the hell had he invited them for Christmas if he wasn’t going to celebrate it?

Megan didn’t expect Luigi home for several hours and was surprised when he turned up in the middle of the afternoon with a huge Christmas tree tied on top of his car. Charlotte whooped with delight and all three of them spent the next couple of hours adorning it with the garlands and baubles and strings of flashing lights that he had also brought home.

It reminded Megan of the first Christmas they’d spent together as a married couple. She’d been deliriously happy. They had a home of their own by then and Luigi had walked in on Christmas Eve with a tree, much as he had now. It had taken a long time to dress it because each time she stretched up to hang a bauble he had slid his arms around her and kissed her.

They had called it their loving tree, but as each consecutive Christmas came he worked harder and harder, often not coming home until late on Christmas Eve, and by then Megan had dressed their tree herself. And slowly the magic had gone out of it.

‘Look, Mummy, look.’ Charlotte was high on her father’s shoulders and had just placed the fairy on top of the tree. ‘Isn’t it beautiful?’

‘It’s lovely, sweetheart.’

‘When’s Santa coming?’

‘Tonight, when you’re in bed.’

‘Can I go to bed now?’ she asked excitedly.

‘No, darling, it’s too early.’

‘Will he bring my presents here?’

‘Of course he will.’

‘How will he know I’m here, though?’

‘Because he’s magic. He knows where all little girls and boys are,’ she answered.

Luigi lifted his daughter down and as he did so his eyes met Megan’s, and whether it was the magic of the occasion or because she’d been thinking about their first Christmas together, Megan wasn’t sure, but she felt a volt of electricity arc through her. She turned swiftly away. It was a warning to be careful. She didn’t want to get involved with Luigi again, not at any price. Not unless he changed his lifestyle, and she couldn’t see that happening in a hundred years.

It made her increasingly aware how dangerous it had been to come here. She ought to have stood her ground even if it had meant disappointing her daughter. Not that Luigi would have let her. He’d been fully determined to have his daughter for Christmas, with or without her mother.

In fact it might have been safer to let Charlotte come on her own. No! She immediately negated that thought. She would have lost her. Luigi was adamant that he wanted his daughter—permanently. And she was equally as resolute that he would not.

Luigi had felt a warm surge of pleasure as he held his daughter aloft. It was unlike any feeling he’d ever experienced. This was his child, his flesh and blood, something he had created. She was nothing short of a miracle. And he knew that he never wanted to let her go—unlike his handsome Italian father and fun-loving English mother who had never really wanted him, who preferred to go out partying instead of looking after their son.

When he was eight he’d been taken from them and fostered out. Even then he’d been tossed from one family to another because he’d proved to be too much of a handful. He was full of anger and resentment over the treatment he’d received and several times he’d run away, never settling, never knowing what it was like to be truly loved.

It had made him into the tough person he was today. It had made him decide that he was going to make something of his life. He was quick to learn and very intelligent and at sixteen he had left school and started his first job with an IT firm. In fact he’d had a few little money-earners going long before then.

He’d helped school-friends with their homework and charged them. He had good computer skills and published a teenage magazine that was purchased by dozens of his friends both in school and out. He’d bought and sold all sorts of stuff, anything that would make him a profit. By the time he’d left school he’d amassed almost a thousand pounds. But he’d got his eyes set on a million before he was thirty, and he’d succeeded beyond his wildest dreams. He didn’t even know what he was worth these days.

Money gave him security, something he’d never had, and he was hurt that Megan didn’t like his house. To him it was the pinnacle of all that he’d worked for.

Charlotte was speaking now. ‘Do you think, Mummy, that ‘cos I asked Santa for a daddy and he’s given me one, he won’t leave me anything else?’

‘Of course he will, sweetheart,’ answered Megan, gathering the child into her arms and giving her a great big hug.

Luigi felt an unbelievable sadness. He’d never experienced a mother’s arms around him like that. All he’d ever been to his mother was a nuisance, someone to be fed and clothed and told to keep out of the way, often left in the house for long periods alone.

‘I expect he’ll leave you lots,’ he said to his daughter now, and was hurt when Megan gave him a damning look. What did she expect, that he wouldn’t give his daughter anything? That he’d given her enough with the few things he’d put into her room? They were nothing, just a few toys to make her feel at home. Wait until tomorrow, she would be the happiest girl alive.

And Megan too; he had no intention of leaving her out, even though she was making it very clear that she wasn’t pleased to see him. All that would change, he felt certain, when she realised how much better it would be for Charlotte to have a father as well as a mother.

He couldn’t even begin to understand why Megan had kept their daughter a secret. If he hadn’t spotted her in Gerards he might never have known. Charlotte would have grown up and had children, his grandchildren, and he would have been none the wiser.

The very thought sent a spurt of anger through him and he knew he had to get to the bottom of it. Was Megan being truthful when she said that she’d left him because of the long hours he worked? Or had there been another man involved? Was there still someone else? The one he had seen coming and going from her house, for instance?

Luigi’s lips compressed at the thought that there might be some other man in her life. And in his daughter’s life! This man could be the reason why Megan had been so adamant about wanting to spend as little time with him as possible. He needed to speak to her about it, about him, and soon.

The opportunity presented itself as soon as Charlotte had been bathed and put to bed. He’d stood and watched, marvelling at the bond between mother and daughter. It was something he wanted, something he’d missed out on, and he vowed that whatever it took, however much he had to bribe or force, Megan and Charlotte would become a part of his life—for ever!

At least they were still married, that should make things easier. He wondered why Megan had never got around to divorcing him. On his part it was because he’d never met anyone else he wanted to marry—though there’d been plenty of girls who wanted to marry him. But Megan, what was her story? Did she love the man she shared the house with? What sort of a guy was he that he was content to live with a woman who could never be his in the eyes of the law?

‘Asleep at last,’ said Megan as she left Charlotte’s bedroom and discovered Luigi still lurking. ‘She’s so excited. Sleeping in a strange house and wondering what Santa’s going to bring her is a lot for a little girl.’

‘And will it be a lot for her mother, sleeping in a strange house? A house she doesn’t particularly like?’ he asked, unable to keep the bitterness out of his voice. It had disappointed him that she hadn’t been as enthralled as he was. He had expected her to be impressed by how well he’d done. In fact he had hoped that it might prove a deciding factor in bringing them back together.

‘I don’t expect I’ll sleep very much,’ she admitted.

‘Are you excited about Christmas too?’

‘Not on your life,’ she retorted. ‘I wish I was anywhere but here.’

Luigi felt as though she’d kicked him in the stomach, although, he supposed reluctantly, it had been a big step for Megan to take. She had been honest about why she’d run away and he’d virtually forced her here. Not that he regretted it.

They would both grow to love it, he felt sure. All they needed was time. At least Megan did. Charlotte seemed happy enough, though he wasn’t sure whether she’d be so content if her mother didn’t stay. In fact he knew she wouldn’t. Which made it even more imperative that he persuade Megan to move in with him permanently.

He would need to treat her with kid gloves, which might be difficult because he wasn’t used to holding back. And he’d need to show her what she and Charlotte would be missing if she went back to their cramped little house. She’d made it very homely but, given the choice between there and here, he couldn’t see there was a choice. This house would win hands down. And he would win too; he would make sure of that.

Couldn’t Megan see that Charlotte would be far better off? Not only because of the space in the house, but the grounds as well. There was a copse, a tennis court, a swimming pool, a lake. It was a child’s dream. There were even stables, though he had no horses yet. But if Charlotte wanted a pony then it would be hers for the asking.

‘It’s too early for you to judge whether you’re going to be happy here,’ he said to Megan now. ‘When—’

‘It’s not altogether the house,’ she retorted sharply, ‘even though I think it’s too pretentious. It’s you! You’re obsessed with money. You’ve always been the same. You think you can buy happiness. Well, let me tell you, Mr Rich Guy, you can be happy living in the tiniest hovel, so long as you’re with the right person.’

‘And you’ve found the right person?’ He couldn’t avoid the hard edge to his voice. He wanted to kill the guy, whoever he was. This was his wife.

‘I was talking generally.’

She flashed her grey eyes at him and he thought how beautiful she was, still flushed from bathing Charlotte, her hair in slight disarray. His groin stirred and he wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her—thoroughly. He wanted to prove to her that their love had never gone away; it had simply got lost. ‘But there is someone else? I know because you didn’t refute it earlier. In fact I’ve seen him.’

Megan’s head jerked, her eyes widened. ‘You have?’

‘Come and sit down,’ he said. ‘We need to talk.’ He led her downstairs into a cosy little room with panelled walls and a log fire. Red velvet curtains were drawn against the cold winter day and table lamps cast a warm glow. He saw Megan looking around appreciatively. There were a few pieces of antique furniture that he had chosen himself and actually the room was overcrowded, but he quite liked it that way.

‘This is my den,’ he told her. ‘It’s—’

‘The smallest room in the house,’ she finished for him. ‘Proving that you don’t need a mansion. Big rooms are too impersonal; you can’t relax. It’s like living in a National Trust property that’s open to the public.’ She perched herself on the edge of an easy chair.

‘So you’re saying small is cosy?’ He had hoped she would flop down and relax. It looked as though he still had a long way to go. He dropped into the chair opposite so that he could study her to his heart’s content, and stretched out his long legs.

‘Absolutely.’

‘That’s why you’re happy in your own home?’

‘Yes.’

‘It’s not because you can’t afford anything bigger?’ Lord, she was more beautiful than ever. What a fool he’d been not to continue his search. He would have promised her the earth if she’d come back to him. Instead he had given up and got on with what really interested him. And it was only now that he realised his mistake.

Megan sucked in a disapproving breath. ‘There you go again, bringing money into it. I tell you, money doesn’t interest me.’

‘You’re one on your own, Megan, do you know that?

‘Because every other woman you’ve met has been more interested in your bank balance than you?’ she asked sharply.

Her words struck home. It was quite true. He’d never appreciated before he had acquired his wealth how mercenary some girls could be. In one way it pleased him that Megan was different; on the other hand he felt irritated because he wanted her to be excited by what he had achieved.

‘It would make life a lot easier for you if you moved in here,’ he said, trying his hardest to sound gentle. In reality he wanted to shake her. He had no idea that she could be so stubborn. This was a side of her that had never surfaced in the early years of their marriage.

‘No, it wouldn’t,’ she retorted.

He could see by the glint in her eyes that she meant living with him would be abhorrent, and it hurt. ‘You’d never need to work again. That must be every woman’s dream?’

‘I admit it would be nice not to have to leave Charlotte. On the other hand, she enjoys playing with other children. And soon she’ll be at school.’

‘Will that make any difference?’ he asked tersely. ‘What if she becomes ill? Can you take time off work? Would your boss understand? Admit it, Megan, you’d be far better off giving up your job and moving in here. Unless, of course, it’s the boyfriend! Is he the one holding you back?’

‘So you have been spying on me?’ Megan spat the words loudly and, without giving him time to answer, added, ‘How low is that?’

He hadn’t considered it low. He’d wanted to find out where she lived, what sort of a lifestyle she had. He wanted to make sure she didn’t move again. Was that wrong? ‘I must confess that when I discovered your address I did sometimes keep watch. Not that it was my intention to spy, Megan. I was hoping to catch sight of you so that we could talk. I would have preferred it that way rather than knocking on your door and giving you the surprise of your life.’

‘Fright of my life, more like,’ she riposted.

‘So, tell me about your boyfriend. He’s clearly not asked you to marry him, otherwise you’d have sought a divorce. What does he mean to you? How long have you known him? Does he have a good job?’

‘I think,’ said Megan tightly, ‘that it’s none of your business.’

‘You’re my wife. It’s every bit my business,’ he challenged.

‘In name only,’ she retorted. ‘Our marriage was over a long time ago.’

‘Then why haven’t you applied for a divorce?’ he asked. This surely had to be in his favour.

Megan shrugged. ‘I never got round to it.’

‘Because you were secretly hoping that one day we’d get back together?’ he suggested.

‘You know that’s not true,’ Megan thrust. ‘And, while we’re on the subject, let me make it quite clear that I shall never come back to you. Never! So we might as well start divorce proceedings as soon as Christmas is over.’

Stunned by Megan’s statement, Luigi sat forward in his chair and looked at her in consternation. ‘Divorce? Now! When we’ve found each other again? When we have Charlotte to consider?’ Despite the warmth from the blazing logs a chill radiated out from his heart until his whole body felt as though it were packed in ice. This was the last thing he’d expected—or wanted! She couldn’t have given him a crueller Christmas gift.

‘I’m perfectly serious,’ she retorted. ‘We’re not compatible, you and I. We each want different things in life.’

‘I want Charlotte.’ He was adamant on that point. Whether Megan came with her was her problem, but he wasn’t letting the child go. She meant more to him than any amount of money. The thought surprised him because previously the state of his bank balance was the most important thing in his life.

‘Charlotte doesn’t come without me,’ she announced. ‘And as I have no—’

‘You’re not being given a choice,’ he warned her testily. ‘I’ve got you here now and you’re staying whether you like it or not.’

CHAPTER THREE

‘IS THAT a warning?’ asked Megan, the air constricting in her throat as it closed tightly over Luigi’s words. He sounded deadly serious.

‘It’s not a warning, it’s a fact,’ he announced. ‘And if you dare to defy me I’ll have every court in the country on your back. You’ve denied me my daughter all these years; you can no longer be allowed to get away with it.’

Panic struck in Megan’s heart. Could he do it? Had he the right? Surely the courts would find in her favour? Could she afford to take the risk? Was she stuck in this situation? She felt the colour drain from her face and sank back into the chair. ‘I can’t believe you’d do this to me.’

‘You can’t? After what you’ve done to me?’ he countered harshly. ‘I think you’ve got away with too much for too long.’

‘What if Charlotte doesn’t want to stay here? What if Charlotte doesn’t like you after she’s seen what a bad father you’ll be to her? Don’t forget I know how much time you spend away from home. She won’t like it, she won’t be very forgiving.’

‘Then I’ll have to spend more time here, won’t I?’ Dark brown eyes seared steadily into hers. He had beautiful eyes; she had always thought that. The whites were very clear and if you looked closely there was a black line around the brown iris. It gave them extra definition, and as he looked at her now she felt that he was seeing right into her mind.

And he was seeing the doubt, the unhappiness, the fear. And he was waiting for her to speak. ‘You know you won’t,’ she flared. ‘Maybe for a while, but you’d soon fall back into your old ways. It’s a way of life. You wouldn’t know what it was like to spend every evening and weekend with your wife and child. You’d be itching to get back to work, to check that things were running smoothly in your absence. You don’t know how to delegate. As a matter of fact you don’t even know how to play with Charlotte.’

Her rebuke hit home. A dark red flush swept across his face and the air suddenly went chill. ‘If I’d been given a chance then maybe I would,’ he shot back. ‘You’re the one who’s being unfair here, not me.’

‘I like that,’ she tossed fiercely. ‘You’ve more or less said that you’re going to hold us prisoner—yet I’m the one who’s being unfair? I don’t think so.’

Luigi jumped to his feet. ‘I’m sure that by the time Christmas is over you’ll have had the chance to see for yourself that it makes sense. It’s time for us to eat. Come, we mustn’t keep Cook waiting.’

‘I’m not hungry,’ protested Megan.

‘You will be when you see what culinary delights Edwina has managed to conjure up. She’s a marvel in the kitchen.’

Megan reluctantly allowed herself to follow him into the smallest of the two dining rooms where a walnut table had been set for the two of them. It looked very festive with a holly table decoration and red napkins tucked into gold rings, but Megan guessed that there would have been none of these seasonal trimmings if he were eating alone. He probably wouldn’t even have been home yet. He would dine out, or make do with a sandwich at around midnight. That used to be his normal practice.

William, the butler, served their meal and Megan found with surprise that she was hungry, very much so.

They started with mango and lobster on a green salad, a combination Megan had never had before, and she found it truly delicious and complementary. ‘Is your cook always this inventive?’ she asked between mouthfuls.

‘Always,’ he agreed. ‘She keeps urging me to have dinner parties so that she can show off her prowess.’

‘And do you?’ Megan dabbed a drop of French dressing from her lip with her napkin, an action Luigi watched closely. His eyes on her mouth reminded her of the time on their honeymoon when they’d shared a bowl of strawberries. He had dipped each one in cream and then held it between his teeth for her to take half. And any cream that was left on her lips he had licked off. It had been a truly sexually exciting experience and she dashed the memory away quickly. It was dangerous allowing such thoughts. Besides, such sensual activities had stopped once they were home and work consumed his every waking hour.

The whole meal was a gastronomic experience, making Megan wonder what Christmas Day itself would be like. Her own cooking skills were limited to plain cooking. She ensured Charlotte had a well-balanced diet, they had no takeaway meals or fast food and they ate plenty of fruit, but she wasn’t into this type of cookery.

‘You’re enjoying your meal?’ Luigi had hardly taken his eyes off Megan all the time they were eating.

‘Very much so,’ she said. ‘You’ve found a treasure in Edwina.’

‘You could eat her food all the time if you—’

‘And I’d end up piling on weight. No, thank you. I prefer my own simple cooking.’

‘Maybe I should give Edwina her marching orders?’

‘Maybe you ought to get the message that we’re not staying,’ Megan retorted coolly.

Luigi’s lips compressed and he said no more, but even when their meal was finished he wasn’t ready to let her go. ‘Where do you normally put Charlotte’s presents?’

‘I fill a stocking from Santa which I put by the fireplace, and a couple under the tree from me.’

‘Then we’d better start,’ he said.

Megan frowned. ‘It won’t take a minute; it’s too soon. What if she wakes and comes down?’

‘If she wakes we’ll hear the monitor. I thought it a wise precaution in a house of this size. We don’t want her getting lost and upset.’

We, thought Megan, as though he was already of the opinion that they were back together as husband and wife. But maybe it was a good idea to put the presents out because then she could go to bed early and escape him for a few hours. She really wasn’t looking forward to Christmas Day, which was a shame because it was normally the highlight of their year.

It wasn’t that easy to get away from him, though. After they’d placed their presents—and she was pleased to note that there was only one from Luigi for his daughter—he invited her to join him for a nightcap. Megan wasn’t really in the mood but Luigi was insistent, and she knew he wouldn’t let her go until she’d agreed.

She couldn’t help wondering how things would have been if she hadn’t run out on him. Would he be where he was today or would he have become a doting father and spent a lot more time at home? She would never know and, surprisingly, she felt a faint pang of regret that she’d never stopped to find out.

‘Would you have ever told me?’ he asked, his eyes steady on hers now as he sipped his Scotch.

‘About Charlotte?’ How had he known what she was thinking?

‘Of course.’

‘I don’t know,’ she answered honestly. ‘Maybe one day, if Charlotte began asking about you. Not simply, Why haven’t I got a daddy?’

‘Then I can thank my lucky stars that I was in the right place at the right time. I could have waited a long, long time to meet my daughter.’ And with a swift change of subject, ‘You’re more beautiful than ever, do you know that? Motherhood suits you.’

‘Flattery will get you nowhere,’ Megan assured him tartly.

His lips curved upwards into a gentle smile. ‘It’s not flattery for the sake of it, it’s the truth.’

They were back in his den, sitting in companion armchairs, the lights turned low, the fire flickering in the grate. The whole house was centrally heated, and she’d never thought Luigi the type to like old-fashioned comforts, but even so it was very welcome. Maybe the fire was in honour of Christmas. There was one already laid in the drawing room fireplace where the tree had been set up. Tomorrow she could imagine it roaring up the chimney, adding to the magic of Christmas for Charlotte.

‘Would you have gone to all this trouble if we hadn’t been here?’ asked Megan, preferring to steer the conversation back to safer grounds. ‘I mean the Christmas tree and the log fires.’

‘Truthfully?’

‘Truthfully.’

‘No,’ he answered. ‘What would have been the point? This is going to be the best Christmas ever for me—and for you too, I hope.’

‘I’m merely here to make Charlotte happy.’

‘You’re making me happy.’

His voice went down an octave, seeming to vibrate through her bones, and Megan turned her head away, concentrating on her drink, taking large sips of the vodka and orange he had mixed for her. A big mistake; it went straight to her head. Much more of this and she wouldn’t be in charge of her senses. ‘I’ve never seen you as the slippers in front of the fire sort of guy.’

‘So how do you see me?’ he asked with a roguish growl, his eyes reflecting the glow of the embers.

Megan felt them warming her—or was it the fire? Or even the drink? Whichever, she was growing hotter by the second. ‘As the tough businessman who’s feet never hit the ground. What made you buy Gerards? I thought you were in the IT industry.’

‘I still am, but I have my finger in lots of pies. I’ll tell you about them some day,’ he added dismissively, ‘but for the moment I want to talk about you. Why didn’t you tell me you were unhappy? Why did you walk out without saying a word?’

‘Because I knew you’d stop me,’ she retorted, her eyes condemning as she looked at him over the rim of her glass. Her almost empty glass, she realised. ‘You’d probably have sworn that you’d change, but I knew differently. And I was right, wasn’t I?’

‘No one will ever know,’ he answered sadly. ‘It’s hard to accept that I’ve missed the first three years of my daughter’s life—it’s something I shall never forgive you for,’ he finished harshly as he tossed the last of his drink down his throat. ‘Ever!’

Megan finished her drink also and put her glass firmly down on the table. ‘I don’t want to talk about this. It’s late, I’m going to bed.’

As she stood, he too got up, and before she could stop him his arms came around her. ‘But you’re still my wife, the mother of my daughter, and I’d like a goodnight kiss.’

Megan struggled furiously but he refused to let her go. Instead his mouth came down on hers, one hand behind her head effectively cutting off her escape, the other against the small of her back. It was a long, punishing kiss and it sent resentment reeling through every inch of her body.

There was no escape. The kiss deepened, his arms tightened, and all too soon she felt herself beginning to respond. It was like a replay of when she had met him. She could remember the day very clearly. This handsome, dark-haired, Latin-looking young man had stopped to pick up a bag she’d dropped. Ironically, it had been a few weeks before Christmas and her arms had been full of purchases. When she’d looked into his eyes to thank him she’d been so taken with his good looks that she’d dropped another of her parcels.

‘I think,’ he said, with a smile that turned her legs to jelly, ‘that I’d better help you to your car, or the bus, or wherever you’re going. Home, in fact. You’ve got an extraordinary amount of packages.’

‘Christmas presents,’ she admitted shyly. ‘And I’m catching the bus.’

‘I think not,’ he said with a laugh, ‘not unless you want to lose the lot as you’re jumping on or off. I’ll run you home; my car’s just around the corner.’

‘But I don’t know you. I—’

‘I assure you you’ll be perfectly safe. My name’s Luigi Costanzo, I live in Mickleover, near Derby.’ He flashed his business card in front of her and then tucked it into one of her bags. And Megan knew instinctively that she could trust him. He had an open, honest face, and he had almost to pass her house to get to his own. It would be silly to refuse.

But still she hesitated.

‘I know how you must feel,’ he said. ‘A complete stranger and all that. The offer’s there if you want it, but I’ll still walk you to the bus stop if that’s what you’d prefer.’

Megan was eighteen and he was much older than the boys she usually hung around with. Mid twenties, she imagined, maybe even older than that. She was enchanted by him. And she found herself agreeing to let him give her a lift.

His car was smart, black and sleek. Whatever his business he was clearly doing well for himself. And he drove her straight to her door, even helping her with her parcels. Her parents’ eyes goggled when they saw her with a strange, handsome man, but they were clearly impressed.

Before he left, Luigi asked whether he could see her again. Megan couldn’t refuse. By this time she was completely bowled over. Her insides felt as though they had turned to mush—as they were doing at this moment!

His kiss was awakening all she’d ever felt, and Megan resented it, struggling even more furiously to free herself, until in the end he let her go. There was a twisted smile on his lips. ‘Something tells me that old emotions were stirred there. You’re not as immune to me as you’d have me believe.’

‘Wishful thinking,’ she retorted, her lovely grey eyes glaring icily.

‘Mmm, we’ll see.’

Megan felt a tightening in her stomach. She didn’t like the way he said that. He was going to try again, she knew, and it was the last thing she wanted. Damn! How could she respond to him after all this time? She didn’t want to be involved with him again, not ever. He wasn’t good for Charlotte. A workaholic father was good for no child. She needed two full-time parents.

‘Goodnight!’ she tossed stormily and marched out.

She felt Luigi’s eyes on her but he didn’t call her back, and she ran up the stairs as quickly as she could. It seemed to take an age to reach her room, but finally she found it, and closing the door quietly behind her, she stood a moment reflecting on her reaction to his kiss.

It had shocked her beyond measure. She’d thought herself over him. For her feelings to rise so quickly after all these years was scary to say the least.

Perhaps, she tried to convince herself, it wasn’t desire—she refused to use the word love, that had flown out of the window a long time ago—it was pure animal passion. After all, she hadn’t been with any other man since Luigi; it was natural she would feel something if he—or any man for that matter—kissed her. She was a young, passionate woman with all the feelings that went with it.

Slowly now she walked across the room to check on Charlotte. Her daughter was fast asleep, a faint smile on her lips as though she was dreaming of something nice. Christmas, probably. Or her father. Megan grimaced. Hopefully not! She didn’t want Charlotte getting too attached to him because she had no intention of staying, despite Luigi’s threats.

Threats! Was that what he was doing, threatening her? It didn’t sound nice, and basically Luigi was a nice guy. She’d found that out on the day they met. He had been polite and considerate to her parents and they had immediately taken to him, and in the ensuing days a romance had begun that ended in them getting married six months later. In fact her parents had pushed her into it, declaring she would never find anyone else as good.

She had been the envy of all her friends. Nothing had prepared her for the fact that he put work before everything else. At first she’d been proud of how well he was doing. Before he met her he had written a software program that had taken the computer world by storm, and he had become increasingly busy working on further projects. Sometimes she felt that he thought more of his work than he did her. But then he would come home and their lovemaking reached heights unimaginable. He was every woman’s dream in bed, making up a hundredfold for all the time they spent apart.

At least that was what she’d thought in the beginning, but as the months and years had rolled by and he’d never showed her any real affection, she had begun to suspect that their acts of love were merely to satisfy his own basic needs, either that or to ease his conscience because he was bedding Serena. The only time he’d ever declared that he loved her was when he asked her to marry him; even then he hadn’t sounded comfortable saying it.

She had become increasingly dissatisfied but if she complained about the way he was never at home he would say that he was doing it all for her, making her feel that she was being selfish. It wasn’t until she had found herself pregnant that Megan had known she couldn’t bring up her child in a household where there was no love or trust.

Bending over her daughter, she smoothed her soft blonde hair back from her face and kissed her. Charlotte stirred but didn’t wake. ‘Goodnight, my sweet child,’ she whispered. ‘Happy dreams always.’ And that would only happen if they kept well away from Luigi. Megan wanted Charlotte to grow up in an openly loving family. She was always telling her daughter how much she loved her; Luigi would never do that.

Admittedly, Charlotte was excited now, but it wouldn’t last. She would soon find out that her father wasn’t the sort of parent she expected and wanted. Not in a million years could Megan imagine Luigi picking up his daughter and swinging her around and telling her how much he loved her. It simply wasn’t in him.

It could be that she was doing him an injustice, because after all he’d never been shown any love as a child. But she’d shown him love, so why hadn’t he returned it? It wasn’t hard to let your feelings flood to the surface. At least she didn’t find it so. Luigi obviously did. He kept them all tied up in a knot that he didn’t know how to undo. He didn’t even try. And she had a sneaky feeling that he might try to buy himself into Charlotte’s affections.

Her fears proved true when they went downstairs on Christmas morning and she saw a huge pile of presents almost dwarfing the tree. There was every size and shape imaginable and she was furious with Luigi. He stood there waiting for them, looking extremely pleased with himself.

Naturally Charlotte didn’t even look at the stocking Megan had so carefully filled, she ran straight across to the tree. ‘Are these all for me, Daddy? Has Santa brought me all these?’ Her blue eyes were wide with wonder and excitement.

‘Your ones from Santa are over here, sweetheart,’ said Megan, taking her hand and drawing her across the room. ‘He couldn’t carry all those in his sleigh, could he?’

‘So where did they come from?’

‘From me,’ said Luigi, a broad smile on his face. ‘Some for you and some for your mother.’

Megan frowned her displeasure. What the hell was he trying to prove?

‘But I think your mother wants you to open Santa’s presents first.’

He had no idea, thought Megan. Every child in the country this morning was opening their gifts from Santa Claus. Didn’t he know that? Not because their mothers wanted it; because it was tradition.

Megan dropped down to her knees and watched as Charlotte tore at the wrappings, her tiny hands trembling. ‘Oh, look, Mummy, look,’ she kept exclaiming.

‘What have you got?’ asked Luigi, moving to stand beside her, but not getting down to his daughter’s level as Megan had done.

‘A new dolly, Daddy, and some clothes for her, and—’

But Megan gained the impression that he wasn’t really interested. He wanted Charlotte to open the gifts from him; he wanted to see her pleasure and receive her thanks. He wanted to feel good.

And it wasn’t long before Charlotte ran across to the tree. And this time Luigi squatted beside her, enjoying the pleasure on her face as she opened her presents. ‘Thank you, Daddy,’ she said time and time again, hugging him spontaneously, her shyness forgotten for the moment.

He looked uncomfortable at receiving so much affection, thought Megan, and then wondered whether she was being mean. This was Christmas, after all. A time for giving. She oughtn’t to criticise.

She was annoyed, though, at the number of presents he’d bought Charlotte. She was a well-adjusted child, aware that there were some things she wanted but couldn’t have, so how dare he undermine her values like this?

Then it was her turn. A whole heap of parcels were for her, and when she begrudgingly opened them, trying her hardest to show pleasure when in truth she felt like throwing them back in his face, she couldn’t believe how much he’d spent on her. It looked as though he’d bought up the whole ladies’ department at Gerards. Jewellery, underwear, handbags, evening dresses, day dresses, nightdresses, and amazingly all in her size. And the whole of the toy department for Charlotte!

‘I haven’t bought you anything,’ she announced, rather more tartly than she should have done.

‘That’s all right,’ he said pleasantly. ‘The fact that you’re here is good enough for me.’ He gave her a meaningful look over Charlotte’s head.

Megan was less than impressed and as soon as she could have a private word with him she went in with all guns blazing. ‘You had no right buying Charlotte all those things,’ she flared. ‘Nor me, as a matter of fact. Have you any idea what you’re doing to a young, impressionable child? Are you trying to buy her love, for heaven’s sake? You do know she’ll come to expect this all the time?’

‘So?’ he enquired, both hands spread wide, palms facing upwards, a big grin on his face.

‘It’s not good for her.’

‘I have a lot to make up.’

‘Nonsense. One gift would have done; she’d have been happy.’

‘But I can afford it.’

‘I don’t care. It’s wrong, Luigi. Very wrong! And, let me tell you this, when we leave here she’s not taking everything. You’ve gone over the top and I’m angrier than you can possibly imagine.’

‘And beautiful with it. Do you know I never saw you really angry when we were living together. I never saw your eyes flash so dramatically, or your skin colour so beautifully.’ His voice lowered conspiratorially. ‘It makes me want to take you to bed.’

‘Something that is never likely to happen,’ she spat.

‘Wouldn’t you like a little sister or brother for Charlotte?’ he asked gruffly.

‘Not by you,’ she charged.

His face flushed a dull, ugly red. ‘And not by that swine you’re living with either. Tell him to keep his hands off. You belong to me.’

‘Since you never came looking for me I don’t see how you can make that claim,’ she retorted. ‘It proves you weren’t interested. I’m even more sure now that it’s time to start divorce proceedings.’

CHAPTER FOUR

‘NOT on your life,’ rasped Luigi. She hadn’t a cat in hell’s chance of him giving her a divorce.

Megan flashed her magnificent eyes. ‘You’re nothing more than a materialistic, selfish, uncaring brute. You haven’t a loving bone in your body and I want rid of you.’

‘Well, think again, sweet wife of mine,’ he answered grimly. ‘Neither of us is going anywhere. Your place is with me.’

‘And wasn’t your place with me for the three years I spent with you?’ she tossed back scornfully.

For goodness’ sake! Why couldn’t Megan understand that he had done it solely for her benefit? And he wanted her back—now. He wanted Charlotte because she was his daughter, but he wanted his wife because he needed her in bed beside him each night.

How he had missed making love to her. No one else had managed to arouse him as deeply as Megan. Right from the day he’d met her he had desired her, in fact they had constantly devoured each other with their passion. He’d been destroyed when she walked out.

Never for one moment had he thought that it was because of the hours he spent working. He’d provided for her every need, she’d wanted for nothing, and they’d made love with amazing frequency no matter how tired he felt, so had that really been the reason? Or was she making excuses?

Had she fallen for someone else? That guy she was now living with, for instance. Only one thing pleased him about that relationship; Charlotte didn’t call him Daddy. Otherwise she wouldn’t have wished for a daddy for Christmas.

And what did her boyfriend think about Megan coming here for the holiday period? Was he angry or understanding? He had to be the reason Megan wanted to keep her visit as short as possible. Maybe he ought to talk to him. Tell him he was wasting his time, that Megan belonged to him and he was taking her back.

‘Things are different,’ he told her now, trying to keep his voice low. ‘I don’t need to work so hard. I have people who do it for me. Believe me, Megan, you can come up with all the excuses in the world but none of them hold any water.’

‘How do I know you’re not saying this simply to get me to change my mind?’ she demanded fiercely.

Lord, how beautiful she looked on this Christmas morning in her button-through red dress, which fitted her narrow waist and flared elegantly over her hips and thighs. She had gorgeous legs, long and slender, and he couldn’t help remembering the times she had wrapped them around him as they made love. He could even imagine the feel of her against him now and he made a half move towards her, his heart hammering against his ribcage.

But the glare in her lovely eyes stopped him. ‘We shouldn’t be having this conversation,’ he said. ‘I want this day to be as perfect for you and Charlotte as possible.’

‘Some hope of that,’ she hissed beneath her breath but he ignored it and turned to his daughter instead, who was skipping from one present to another, unsure of which to play with first. It filled his heart with joy and pride to watch her, and he knew in that moment that he was never going to let her go. He would fight Megan tooth and nail if necessary.

All of a sudden Megan glanced through the window. ‘Charlotte, look,’ she said urgently, ‘it’s snowing.’

They all three went to watch as big white flakes settled on the lawn and then melted again just as quickly.

‘Can we go outside?’ asked Charlotte excitedly.

‘Of course, sweetheart,’ answered Megan, thankful for the distraction. But Luigi came too and he and Charlotte tried to catch the falling flakes. He was a little awkward at first, playing with her, but after a while he began to relax and ran around the garden while she chased him.

But all too soon the snow stopped, there was not even enough to cover the ground, and they all trooped back indoors. By this time they were thoroughly late for breakfast and Cook tutted as she served their meal. ‘I bet it’s ruined,’ she complained.

‘It’s not your fault, Edwina,’ said Luigi, trying to placate her. ‘We didn’t want to miss the snow, did we, Charlotte?’

Charlotte, suddenly shy again, shook her head, staring with wide blue eyes at the plump motherly woman who was standing arms akimbo watching to see whether their bacon and eggs were edible.

Megan took a mouthful and smiled. ‘It’s perfect. Thank you very much, and I’m sorry we held you up.’

The woman suddenly beamed. ‘That’s all right, lass, it is Christmas after all.’

The whole day passed in a whirl of talking and eating and playing and Megan began to feel that it might not be so bad after all living with Luigi. He was undoubtedly making an effort. The question was, would it last?

It was not until Charlotte was in bed that Megan and Luigi were finally alone.

‘Have you enjoyed your day?’ she asked as she curled up on a chair in Luigi’s den. ‘Has Charlotte worn you out? Did you find it easy coping?’

‘If you’re asking whether I’ve changed my mind the answer’s no,’ he retorted sharply, his eyes narrowed on her face. ‘I’m even more determined now. This is the ideal place for a child. She’s had the time of her life, surely even you can see that?’

‘She enjoys herself every day,’ flashed Megan, not having expected such a sharp rejoinder. ‘A palace or a cottage, it makes no difference. What wouldn’t be good for Charlotte is you spoiling her. You’ve bought her far too many toys, and as for the computer, how old do you think she is, for goodness’ sake?’

Luigi shrugged. ‘I simply instructed my toy department to pack up whatever they thought suitable for a nearly four-year-old.’

‘You did what?’ exclaimed Megan disgustedly. ‘You didn’t even choose one thing yourself? How appalling is that? Did you issue the same instructions for my presents? Damn you, Luigi! You can take the whole lot back after the holiday. I don’t need them and I don’t want them.’

A muscle jerked in his jaw, telling her that she had hit a raw nerve, but she didn’t care; it was true. What sort of a cop out was that?

‘Don’t be ridiculous,’ he snorted. ‘You’re overreacting. How the hell am I supposed to know what a young child likes?’

‘You could have made it your business to find out. Or would that have been too much trouble?’ she demanded coldly. ‘It seems to me that you’ve grown too big for your boots. It’s easier to pay someone else to do your chores. I don’t think I want to hear any more of this. I’m going to my room. I should have known that Christmas would turn out to be a disaster.’

But she hadn’t even reached the door before Luigi was on his feet barring her exit. And when she tried to push her way past him he enclosed her in his strong arms. ‘I refuse to spend the evening alone,’ he told her tersely. ‘You’re not walking out on me.’ And before she could even begin to struggle, before she could even guess his intentions, his mouth possessed hers.

It was Megan’s undoing. It sent a whole storm of sensations spiralling through her and although she knew that she ought to push him away she did nothing, she actually revelled in the feelings he created. He always had been a fantastic lover and it took her no more than a few seconds to realise what she’d been missing. Lord, if this kept up she would be begging him to make love to her. What sort of a Christmas present would that be?

And, excitingly, it did keep up. She hadn’t the willpower to stop him. Every vein and artery went on to red alert, responding and leaping out of control. She kept telling herself to fight him, to put an end to this joy, but how could she? Her body was starved. She hadn’t realised it until this moment but it was now telling her that it wasn’t natural to go so long without the attention of a man.

That the man should prove to be Luigi was ironic to say the least, but better the devil you know came the immediate thought, and Megan returned his kiss, parting her lips to allow him entry, moving her body against his, feeling the source of his own passion. He groaned deep within his throat and took advantage of the fact that she wasn’t rejecting him.

Just this one kiss, decided Megan, then she would carry on up to her room. Easier said than done. That one kiss lasted for an infinite period of time. That one kiss turned into a full-scale sex alert.

‘You’re still the sexiest woman in the universe,’ Luigi said in a hoarse passion-filled voice. ‘I must have been crazy to let you go.’

Not half as crazy as she felt at this moment, decided Megan, her hands on the back of Luigi’s head, her fingertips digging in, unconsciously revealing the fact that she didn’t want this moment to stop.

Luigi’s hands slid down to her bottom and pulled her firmly against him, his deep groans revealing the desire that raged in his tautly honed body. When she didn’t object he swung her up into his arms and carried her over to the soft leather sofa.

Megan lay there and looked at him, her breathing unsteady, her grey eyes luminous and filled with a sexual hunger that she hadn’t felt in years. Ought she to put a stop to it, or let nature and their animal hunger take its course? Would she live to regret it, or would she view this occasion as a fitting end to their tragic marriage? Maybe she could even use it as a form of revenge? Let Luigi see exactly what he was missing. Allow him this one last chance to make love to her and then leave him high and dry. She smiled at the thought.

‘What’s funny?’ he asked as he sat on the edge of the sofa and stroked a gentle finger over her lips.

‘Private thoughts; nothing you’d understand.’ Or appreciate, she added silently, nibbling the end of his finger.

He drew in a swift breath. ‘How I’ve missed you,’ he murmured, his eyes darkening, his hand sliding possessively over her breast.

It hardened beneath his touch, her nipple leaping into ecstatic response, and Megan closed her eyes, her mind suddenly confused. This was a dangerous game. She ought to get out now while she still had the strength. But already it was too late. Luigi had popped the buttons on her dress and with a speed perhaps born of desperation he sucked first one and then the other nipple into his mouth right through the thin fabric of her bra.

Megan was lost. She had always loved him doing this to her. It created the most exquisite feelings, making her arch towards him, giving freely, wanting everything that he had to offer.

The sane part of her mind told her that she was making a mistake when he moved her from the sofa to the softly carpeted floor, when he stripped off his clothes with indecent haste and then began to undress her somewhat more leisurely. At least that was his intention but Megan couldn’t wait. She tore off her dress, swiftly followed by her undies, and they fell on each other with a hunger created by the years they’d spent apart.

Luigi had always been a brilliant lover, she couldn’t deny that, and nothing had changed. Although he was desperate he was still solicitous of her needs, making sure that she had no last minute regrets.

How could she when her body raged with desire so deep that it almost hurt? Their bodies moved together in a rhythm as ancient as time and he allowed her to reach her climax first, to revel in wave after wave of exquisite sensation, before he too gave up the fight and wrestled with his own delirious torture.

As the convulsive movements of his body slowed and finally came to a stop he turned to her with a smile. ‘Just like old times, eh?’

Megan nodded. How could she deny it? Nevertheless it wasn’t going to happen again. She had succumbed to her bodily needs without consulting her head. A major mistake. Not that she regretted it; how could she regret such feverish passion? She had missed this part of their relationship without even realising it. Her body had become almost barren and now it was alive again.

‘Do you still want to go up to your room?’

‘No,’ she whispered, her throat aching with the pleasure she’d just experienced.

And as they lay there in each other’s arms Luigi reached for her again. This time there was no urgency; they were able to take their time rekindling all the delicious excitement that had once been theirs.

When Megan finally lay in her bed she felt as if she were floating on air. Her body had been taken over by forces beyond her control. There was no thought in her mind about escaping back to her own home; her place was here with Luigi.

Luigi, who was in bed beside her!

He’d wanted her to join him in his own bed but Megan had refused. ‘What if Charlotte wakes and can’t find me? She’ll panic.’

‘Then,’ he’d announced in a deep, sexy growl, ‘I’ll share yours.’ And there had been no hope of saying no to him.

He lay on one elbow now looking at her, a gentle finger exploring the contours of her breasts, his eyes, so dark with pleasure, stirring fresh emotions. Where they all came from Megan had no idea. She couldn’t quench her thirst for him. Nor could he, for that matter.

‘We have a lot of time to make up,’ he murmured, honing in on her thoughts.

Megan smiled, her eyes softening and warming. ‘And you propose doing it all at once?’

‘I intend to try.’

‘How do you suggest we cope with a spirited child tomorrow if we have no sleep?’

‘Uh oh!’ He slapped a hand to his head. ‘I’d forgotten. I’d imagined spending the whole of Boxing Day in bed. Edwina bringing us up our meals while we did our best to catch up on the missing years.’

‘Think you could manage?’ she taunted, her eyes alight with wicked pleasure. She had never in her wildest dreams imagined that this was how the holiday would turn out. And the most amazing thing was that she didn’t mind. She was actually enjoying it. She had shut out of her mind the fact that all too soon Luigi would be back at work and this honeymoon period, if she could call it that, would be over. She was taking every minute as it came and making the most of it. It was the wrong time of the month for her to conceive, so she wasn’t even worrying about that.

Luigi couldn’t believe his good fortune. He hadn’t even had to work on Megan; she had fallen into his arms as naturally as if they had never parted. Elation filled his very soul and there was no doubt in his mind that she would now move in with him and they would become a proper family.

It would change his life. He was a father! He wanted to shout it from the rooftops. And what a gorgeous little girl she was. Megan had done a brilliant job bringing her up so far, and now he would be here to help. Long hours would be a thing of the past. Charlotte needed him. And he needed Megan!

Hungrily he reached for her again but she had fallen asleep. He smiled and with his arm across her body he too drifted into the world of the unconscious.

They were woken by Charlotte’s highly excited voice. ‘Mummy, wake up! It’s snowing again. Daddy, it’s snowing. Come and look.’

As they were both naked under the bedcovers they waited until Charlotte had turned to the window before Megan dived for her dressing gown and Luigi whipped a sheet off the bed and tucked it around his loins in double-quick time.

They were laughing as they joined Charlotte and it pleased him that his daughter had made no comment about finding them in bed together. It meant that she’d accepted him unreservedly as her father, and as Megan had welcomed him with open arms too the future looked good.

The snow fell more heavily than the day before and began to stick to the ground. It was so rare to have a white Christmas, thought Megan, that it had to be a good omen. In fact she was glad that she’d let Luigi persuade her to join him.

Later in the day they snowballed each other and made a snowman and Luigi let his hair down more than Megan had ever seen before—except in bed, of course. There were no inhibitions there. He was, if anything, a better lover.

There was the faint niggling doubt in her mind that he had gained extra experience with other girls, but she swept it away—it was her fault if he had—and if he had enhanced his sexual prowess then she ought to be grateful. The many different ways he’d pleasured her had been utterly fantastic. She only had to think about it to experience a resurgence of the feelings that had danced excitedly inside her.

Her eyes sparkled whenever she looked at him and Luigi gave her slow, intimate smiles that told her he knew exactly what she was thinking. ‘Later,’ he mouthed and Megan hugged the precious thought to her. She couldn’t wait. It was like a replay of when they first met and couldn’t get enough of each other.

Before he had become a tycoon and work was more important!

She dismissed the thought as immediately as it entered her head. Luigi was a father now, he had a different set of responsibilities. He wouldn’t let Charlotte down.

Neither of them could wait for their daughter’s bedtime. Luigi followed Megan to the bathroom and watched her bathing Charlotte. What an amazing mother she was, so gentle, with a glow about her that touched his heart. But his fingers curled into his palms when he recalled how she had cheated him out of seeing his daughter born, of sharing the first few precious years of her life, even preparing for the birth. Not that he was going to let that spoil his pleasure this evening.

He’d been looking forward all day to making love to Megan. She had matched him step for step last night and judging by the way she kept looking at him, her beautiful eyes full of passion and desire, she was quite willing to allow him into her bed again.

And he was not disappointed. From the very moment he slid his arms around her the years they had spent apart dissolved into the mists of time. She was his again, completely, urging herself against him, her hunger as deep as his own.

She kissed him with the sensuality that only a woman deeply in love could give. And it amused him to let her take the lead—for now! She touched and kissed and stroked, enjoying the fact that she could arouse him by a simple kiss, or the lightest touch of her fingertips, her actions becoming more and more urgent until in the end he could contain himself no longer.

‘No more,’ he growled, laying her on her back and positioning himself over her. Then he took her, instantly and fiercely, and her cries of pleasure matched his as the intense joy of making love filled their hearts and minds. It was a long time before their sweat-slicked bodies stopped writhing in the aftermath of exquisite pleasure, before their breathing returned to normal.

‘That was quite something,’ he muttered hoarsely. ‘Lord, am I glad I found you again.’

Megan didn’t answer. She had her eyes closed and a blissful expression on her face. In fact he had never seen her look more beautiful. Every feature was softened, and her skin had a lustrous glow. She looked like a woman who was extremely satisfied. He was sure now that she wouldn’t walk away from him again.

They made love twice more before falling asleep in each other’s arms. And for the first time in his life Luigi didn’t feel the urge to be up at dawn and at his desk. He had a woman at his side whom he had almost lost; he wasn’t going to risk it again. He would go, eventually, and he would work sensible hours, but for the moment Megan was more important.

Except that it didn’t work out like that.

Halfway through the morning he and Charlotte were snowballing each other once again, when Megan, who had gone indoors for a handkerchief for her daughter, marched out of the house with her face as black as a thundercloud and slammed the phone into his hand. ‘A call for you.’

He frowned. ‘Who is it?’

‘Find out for yourself,’ she snapped, and taking Charlotte’s hand she dragged her protestingly into the house. He faintly heard her say, ‘Come on, let’s get packed, we’re leaving.’

One half of him wanted to chase after her, find out what was going on, the other needed to know who was on the other end of the phone. Whoever it was had clearly upset his wife.

‘Can I speak to Luigi, please?’ The woman’s husky voice still echoed in Megan’s ears.

‘May I ask who’s calling?’

‘Tell him it’s Serena,’ came the sultry answer. ‘And hurry please; I haven’t got all day.’

Serena! So she was still on the scene! The thought sent her sick to the pit of her stomach. ‘How dare you speak to me like that?’ retorted Megan. ‘I’m not one of his servants.’

‘I don’t care who you are,’ riposted the woman. ‘I want Luigi.’

‘You want him, do you?’ snapped Megan, unable to keep the anger out of her voice. ‘Then it’s bad luck you’re having because he’s not available.’

‘I think Luigi will be available if you tell him who I am.’

‘You think you’d take preference over his wife?’ It crucified Megan to think that Luigi had jumped into bed with her while still carrying on an affair with his PA. But she wasn’t going to let Serena know that.

‘He and his wife are long since parted,’ sneered the other woman. ‘He’s a fool not to have divorced her. How she could walk out on him, I have no idea. He’s—’

‘Actually she’s walked back into his life,’ rasped Megan. ‘You’re speaking to her right now.’

There was a long silence.

‘But I’ll still get him for you, if that’s what you want,’ she added, her voice sickly sweet. ‘Just one moment.’ And she didn’t stop to listen to what else the girl had to say. She was sick to the bottom of her heart as she walked out of the house and tossed the phone to him.

His eyes said it all. He was torn two ways. And it told her what she needed to know. If he truly cared about her, if he truly wanted them to get back together, he would have ignored Serena’s call and followed her. Instead she heard him speak softly into the phone, turning away so that she wouldn’t hear.

CHAPTER FIVE

‘IS SERENA still working for you?’ Megan didn’t really want to know and yet she couldn’t stop herself. She wished she could take the question back because it made her sound jealous, and why should she be? As Luigi was no longer a part of her life she couldn’t care less how many women he was involved with.

Liar!

It wouldn’t have mattered before she slept with him, but it did now. He had treated her as though she were the only one. No, that wasn’t strictly true. He had made her feel as though she were the only one. A big difference! It could be that he was an artist at it. How did she know what he was like these days? His main aim at the moment was getting custody of his daughter. And if the mother came as part of the package then he was home and dry. A ready built babysitter while he was free to work his long hours and continue his affair.

Megan was furious by the time she’d worked all this out and had already packed before confronting Luigi. She had seen him out of her bedroom window talking into the phone. She had observed the way he stood, the way he moved his head as he listened, the way he moved his hands—as though he was touching Serena in his mind’s eye. It all suggested that he was speaking to a woman who meant a great deal to him. It even looked as though he blew her a kiss when he finished.

‘As a matter of fact, yes, she is,’ he answered easily. ‘But you don’t need to worry your pretty head about her.’

‘I don’t?’ Megan retorted, her tone so sharp that it was a wonder it didn’t slice into him. ‘She made it sound pretty clear to me that she was number one priority in your life.’

‘In my business life,’ he pointed out. ‘Serena’s my PA. You know that.’

‘Really?’ Megan allowed her finely shaped brows to ride smoothly upwards, her grey eyes totally disbelieving. ‘Is that all she is? It wasn’t the impression I got. And if you believe I’m going to move back into your life when she is clearly a part of it then think again. All I can say is thank goodness Serena rang because now I know exactly where I stand.’

‘Don’t be ridiculous, Megan,’ barked Luigi. ‘Serena means nothing to me. You and Charlotte mean everything.’

‘I wonder if you’d be saying that if I hadn’t walked out on you?’ she accused. ‘I wonder whether fatherhood would have made you change your lifestyle? Somehow I don’t think so. You feel cheated, yes, and because Charlotte’s lawfully your daughter you want her, but that’s as far as it goes.’

‘Are you suggesting that the last two nights meant nothing to you?’ he demanded, his brow thunderously dark, his whole body taut with suppressed emotions.

‘All they’ve done,’ she riposted smartly, ‘is remind me of what an expert lover you are. But good sex is all it was. It didn’t mean anything.’ She’d been love-starved, that was what, and she had enjoyed it, but it went no further than that.

His dark eyes flashed. ‘I don’t believe you.’

‘Believe what you like,’ she tossed back, ‘but I’m out of your life for good. Serena’s welcome to you.’

‘You’d ruin your daughter’s happiness?’ he accused. ‘Her life as well, by depriving her of the father she’s just found? Whom she needs, I might add, as much as she needs her mother.’ His eyes were glacial, as hard as the ice that had formed in the cracks in the paving outside.

Megan hadn’t looked at it from this angle. Would it be bad for Charlotte? Or would it be better to make a clean break now before her daughter really got to know Luigi? She knew the answer even before she began debating it. Charlotte needed her father. It was that simple. She’d been so happy when she discovered she did have a daddy after all. It would be cruel to deprive her of him now. Except that she didn’t want a part-time father for Charlotte. Nor indeed a father who bedded other women!

‘I’ll stay on two conditions,’ she told him stonily, reluctantly.

‘And they are?’ he demanded.

Who would have thought, Megan asked herself, that a few short hours ago they’d been making love? Where had all the pleasure gone? They were facing each other like two sworn enemies out for the kill. She lifted her chin. ‘Number one, that you cut your working hours. And number two, there are no other women in your life.’

‘Done,’ he said easily and far too quickly for her peace of mind.

‘I’m serious,’ she countered.

‘And so am I. You and Charlotte mean everything to me.’

‘And Serena?’

He gave a tiny shake of his head, as if to say, Why do you keep questioning me about Serena? ‘She’s my right hand,’ he told her calmly. ‘I can’t cut her out of my life, she virtually runs it—on a business level, of course,’ he added when he saw the accusing glint in Megan’s eyes.

‘And was business the reason she rang now?’ charged Megan. Because it hadn’t seemed like that to her. The woman had sounded sickly possessive.

‘Of course! Which reminds me—’ he shot back his cuff and looked at his watch ‘—I’m needed. I have to go. And when I return we’ll go to your house and collect the rest of your stuff. You will be here?’ he added when he saw the doubt in her eyes.

Megan realised with a pang that she had little choice. Charlotte’s future security and happiness depended on it.

As Luigi drove to his office he felt faintly uneasy. He wasn’t completely sure that Megan would still be there when he got back. On the other hand, the fact that she’d sounded jealous of Serena had to be a good thing. If she was jealous then it could mean that she still had feelings for him. It could be to his advantage, except that he would have to tread a fine line. He couldn’t afford to let Serena upset Megan.

Serena was excellent at her job, he didn’t know what he’d do without her, and he sometimes rewarded her by taking her to dinner or the theatre. That Serena fancied herself in love with him he was fully aware, but the feelings weren’t mutual. Even though he had lost all hope of Megan returning he’d never wanted anyone to take her place. He kept his lady friends at a distance and usually they got the message—except for Serena. He wondered exactly what she had said to Megan. Perhaps he should ask her?

But the opportunity didn’t present itself. He ran his whole empire from a top floor suite of prestigious offices in London’s regenerated dockland area, where the views on a clear day were far reaching. Today he didn’t have time to look out of the windows. A problem had occurred at one of his IT companies where a disgruntled employee had fed a virus into a software programme that had been released for Christmas. It had already begun to reveal itself and he needed to recall all copies before any real damage was done.

It was after eight by the time he arrived home. He had phoned Megan from his car on the way, half-expecting her to be gone, relieved when she wasn’t, and not surprised that she sounded angry.

He found her curled up in a chair in the sitting room, so deeply engrossed in a book that she didn’t hear him enter. Except that the book was upside down! He smiled faintly and spoke her name and she looked up with a very creditable start.

‘So you’ve finally torn yourself away from Serena,’ she accused, her magnificent eyes flashing daggers at him. Their usual grey had become a soft amethyst, reflecting the colour of the purple sweater she wore. He had noticed this before—whichever colour she wore, her eyes seemed to change with it. It fascinated him.

‘I did explain on the phone,’ he told her patiently. At least he hoped he sounded patient. She didn’t make it easy for him. What he would like to do was give her a good shake—except that it would get him nowhere. But patience never had been one of his virtues.

‘And was it only this morning that you promised to work less hours?’ she continued. ‘Such a short memory you have. Why am I surprised?’

‘There were extenuating circumstances,’ he reminded her sharply. ‘Weren’t you listening when I—?’

‘Oh, yes, I heard everything you said,’ Megan cut in with exaggerated calm.

‘But you don’t believe me? Well, you’d better because it will be spread all over the newspapers tomorrow. We’ve already had several reporters sniffing around. This could ruin the company.’

‘And do you know who did it?’

‘Actually, yes. Before leaving he bragged to one of his colleagues that he would bring the company to its knees. It’s a pity he wasn’t taken seriously. It’s going to be one big headache for the next few days, weeks, months maybe.’

‘Meaning you’ll be working all the hours God gave again?’

‘I’ll try not to.’ But he could see by her expression that she didn’t believe him, and he couldn’t answer in all honesty that he wouldn’t. He was a hands-on type of guy who never believed in passing the buck. ‘Let’s go and collect your stuff. I’ll instruct Amy to keep her eye on Charlotte.’

‘At this hour?’ she demurred, slowly uncurling her legs and sitting up straight. Amy was the maid, a giggly brunette girl who was always willing to please.

Luigi wondered if Megan had any idea how gorgeous she looked. Her face was bare of make-up and she could have passed for eighteen. His male hormones stirred and he wanted to take her to bed, but he forced sanity to prevail. ‘Why not?’

‘Of course, you’ll be working late again tomorrow,’ she scorned. ‘It’s now or never, isn’t it? Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to—’

‘You’re not changing your mind,’ he cut in swiftly and fiercely. No matter what it took, he was determined not to lose Megan again. ‘Get your coat; we’re leaving now.’

To his relief she did as he asked, running down the stairs a couple of minutes later in a camel-coloured winter coat with a red scarf tossed casually around her neck. It would be warm in his car but it was jolly cold outside, and he guessed her house would be cold too.

‘I presume you’re going to put your house on the market,’ he said, after they’d been driving for a few minutes in silence.

‘It’s rented,’ she corrected him.

‘So what’s the procedure? Will the landlord accept a lump sum in lieu of notice?’

‘I share,’ she told him flatly.

Luigi felt his guts tighten. He’d almost forgotten the boyfriend. Oddly, Megan hadn’t seemed too concerned about leaving him. It wasn’t a nice feeling to realise that he didn’t know the way his own wife’s mind worked. In fact, had he ever really got to know her? Hadn’t he been too immersed in his own business dealings? Physically, they’d both been fulfilled, but mentally and spiritually? A brief sadness filled him. ‘What do you think he’ll have to say about you moving in with me?’

‘He? Oh, Jake. There’s not much he can say, is there? I’m still legally married to you.’

She sounded remarkably calm and for some reason it angered him. ‘If you think you’re still going to see him, then you can forget it,’ he barked.

‘Have I said I will?’

Could it be that he was blowing the whole thing up out of all proportion? Perhaps this Jake fellow meant nothing to her. Maybe it was a cost-effective arrangement. But he couldn’t be sure and the thought of Megan sharing a bed with another man, the thought of her thrashing about with the same uninhibited responses, made his blood run cold.

‘No, you haven’t and you’d damn well better not,’ he warned tersely. ‘In fact, if he’s there tonight I’ll tell him myself. In fact I’ll—’

‘You don’t have to worry,’ she cut in. ‘He’s in Paris—with his fiancée.’

Luigi pulled the car into the side of the road and tugged on the handbrake. ‘What did you say?’

‘Jake’s with Jenny in Paris for Christmas. Jenny’s my housemate.’

‘So why the hell didn’t you tell me that in the beginning?’ he roared, hating the idea that she’d made a fool of him.

‘I found it amusing that you jumped to the wrong conclusion.’

‘Well I don’t find it amusing,’ he retorted. ‘I’ve suffered all sorts of horrors imaging you in bed with him.’

‘There’s nothing you could have done about it,’ she pointed out. ‘But do you really think I’d have agreed to move in with you if I was involved with someone else?’

He had thought he’d given her no choice; now he began to realise that Megan had had the upper hand all the time. ‘I like to think that you would, for Charlotte’s sake,’ he told her grimly. He restarted the engine and drove fast and furious and silent until they reached their destination.

The house was freezing and he hadn’t been as sensible as Megan and pulled on an overcoat. ‘I hope your pipes haven’t frozen,’ he said testily, rubbing his hands together. ‘You really shouldn’t leave it unheated like this, you could have a burst.’

‘And who’d pay the fuel bills?’ she retorted smartly.

‘So how’s your friend going to manage?’

Megan shrugged. ‘Maybe Jake will move in. What I do know is that she won’t be very happy when she discovers that I’ve left without giving her notice.’

‘Don’t worry about that,’ said Luigi offhandedly. ‘I’ll see that she’s not out of pocket.’

‘Here we go again,’ she derided as she flung clothes into the suitcases she had brought back with her. ‘Money solves all problems, that’s your maxim, isn’t it? Well, it’s not mine, and I don’t want you insulting Jenny by offering her money.’

Luigi was quite sure that her friend wouldn’t be insulted. In fact he’d like to stake a bet that she’d be hugely grateful for any handout. What person wouldn’t? But he didn’t say this to Megan because he knew what sort of a response he would get. Instead he said, ‘You know her best.’ He fully intended, though, to see that the other girl didn’t lose out because he had spirited her housemate away.

‘When are your friends coming back?’

‘I’m not sure. Tomorrow, I think,’ she told him bluntly, reaching down a holdall from the top of her wardrobe and throwing in toiletries and other bits and pieces that he presumed she couldn’t live without. Personally, he would rather she left them behind and he bought her a whole load of new stuff. But with the fuss she’d made about the Christmas presents he knew he dared not suggest it. Megan had become a highly independent lady.

Finally she wrote a note for Jenny and placed it on the kitchen table. ‘OK, I’m ready,’ she said. ‘Let’s go.’

He would have liked it better if she looked happy about it. Instead a scowl marred her lovely face. It wasn’t going to be the happy union he’d hoped for. But given time…And a lot of persuasion on his part! And no working long hours! Though how he was going to achieve that he didn’t know. There were always problems of one sort or another to be dealt with. Yes, he had managers, very good ones, but he liked to be kept informed at all levels. It was why he was so successful. Surely Megan could understand that?

‘I wish you could be happy about this,’ he said as they began their journey home.

Megan sighed and said nothing.

‘If I’d known how unhappy you were before I would have done something about it. Why didn’t you say?’

‘Because it wouldn’t have mattered, you’d have still gone your own way,’ she retorted sharply. ‘I couldn’t stand living in an empty world any longer. And I pray I’m not making the same mistake again. I’m not sure that I’m doing the right thing even now, but I’ll give it a try for Charlotte’s sake.’

That night Megan wouldn’t allow Luigi into her bed. Lord, she wanted to, she even ached for him, but the Serena issue prevented her. She didn’t tell him it was because of his PA, but he guessed anyway.

‘You’re making a huge mistake,’ he told her grimly, as they stood outside her bedroom door. Charlotte had been bathed earlier and they’d sat in his den with their now ritual night-time drink. ‘Serena is not and never has been my bed partner.’

‘But she’d like to be? And you’ve taken her out? There’s more to it than a professional relationship?’

Luigi drew in a deeply pained breath. ‘She’d like there to be,’ he admitted.

‘And you’re strong enough to withstand the allure of a beautiful woman?’

‘Serena, yes.’

Megan’s eyes narrowed. ‘So there have been others?’ Her tone was deeply accusing.

‘You can’t blame me,’ he rasped, his eyes dark and resentful. ‘I’m a red-blooded male, full of sex hormones that need feeding now and then.’

‘So that’s what I was doing, feeding your hormones?’ Megan’s head began to spin. It was one way of putting it, she supposed. He’d always been highly sexed with a hot-blooded Latin male possessiveness that had at one time thrilled her, but now sent a sickening chill into the very heart of her soul. She fed his need; it was as simple as that. And she had compromised herself by agreeing to move in with him!

He had a lot to prove before she’d allow him into her bed again—and if he dared to let any other woman assuage his sexual urges then she’d be out of here quicker than he could say I’m sorry.

‘You’re different, Megan, you should know that. You’re my wife, you’re mine, and we need each other. Haven’t we proved it?’

He stood close and she could smell the very maleness of him. It excited her beyond measure but she knew that she had to be strong. ‘I need you like I’d need a boil on the end of my nose,’ she spat. ‘I’ve managed very well, thank you, for the last four years. The only reason I’ve agreed to stay is for Charlotte’s benefit. But if you give me hell, like you’re doing at this moment, then I’ll run away again.’

‘You’d be that selfish?’ he blazed. ‘You’d deprive my daughter of her father’s guidance just because you—’ he stabbed the word incisively ‘—can’t handle the idea that while we’ve been parted I’ve had other girlfriends. God dammit, woman, I didn’t think I was ever going to see you again.’

‘So now I am here have you told Serena it’s hands off time? Have you told her we’re back together?’

‘We had other more pressing issues to discuss.’

‘So you haven’t told her,’ accused Megan, her eyes glinting. ‘Damn you, Luigi, you’d better do it quickly, because if I take any more calls from her I’ll fill her so full of home truths that she won’t even want to work with you, never mind insinuating herself into your bed.’

Megan knew that she was getting too wound up for her own good but she couldn’t help it. She was afraid that everything was going to go pear-shaped, and she’d end up being even more hurt than before. And this time Charlotte would be hurt too. This was her main concern.

‘I can assure you, Megan,’ he said in a low growl, ‘that you are my number one priority. Serena never has nor ever will enter the equation.’

He looked as though he wanted to kiss her, actually bowing his head and inching closer. Pulses began to race and Megan knew that if she hesitated it would be too late. With speed born of panic she flung open the door. ‘I wish I could believe you. Goodnight, Luigi.’ And she slammed it behind her.

Her heart raced as though she’d run a hundred-yard sprint. It would be so easy to fall back into their old ways, to become Luigi’s wife again in every sense of the word. But it was too soon. He had to prove himself first. She must take control of her feelings, not give the slightest hint that she wanted him like she never had before. It was going to be hard but she had to do it, for the sake of their future.

Sleep didn’t come easily. What was easy was remembering Luigi in bed beside her. The space felt empty. She felt empty. If they had nothing else in common she couldn’t deny that they made a spectacular couple in bed.

Frequently she wandered into Charlotte’s room to check that she was OK. She looked so beautiful and so innocent with not a care in the world, happy to be in this house with her father, and for her sake Megan was glad that she’d agreed to stay on.

When she went down to breakfast the next morning Megan was surprised to see Luigi seated at the table, the morning paper spread out in front of him, a steaming cup of coffee in his hand. Luigi was very much a coffee man. He’d once told her that he’d had so much tea poured into him as a child that it had put him off it for life.

‘Good morning.’ He looked up with a warm smile. ‘Did you sleep well?’

Should she lie and say yes, or tell the truth? Megan lied. ‘Brilliantly well, thank you. And yourself?’

‘Yes, I had a good night too.’

But she knew they were both politely lying. She was willing to bet that he’d tossed and turned the whole night as well, wishing they were together, reliving the magical moments they’d shared. Feeling stirred by them, feeling a hunger that was hard to dismiss.

Even as she’d walked into the room and their eyes met, Megan’s senses had skidded out of control and she’d had to turn away quickly, making a big thing of helping Charlotte into her chair.

Charlotte chatted away to her father and Megan was able to take a firm hold of her dithering emotions. This was ridiculous. How could she live with Luigi and follow her own self-imposed rules feeling as she did? Why not share his bed? Because, came the severe answer, you’ll be doubly hurt if it doesn’t work. And that had to be the truth.

Not until Edwina had brought in their breakfast did Megan question Luigi. ‘I thought you’d be at work. It’s a quarter past eight. If I remember rightly you’re normally at your desk by seven-thirty.’

‘So you didn’t believe me when I said I was going to change?’ he asked with a mocking lift to an eyebrow.

His hair was neatly combed, his jaw clean-shaven and he smelt heavenly. For the life of her she couldn’t remember the name of his cologne, but he had always used the same one for as long as she’d known him. To her it was an aphrodisiac and as she inhaled it she closed her eyes and dreamt of him making love to her.

‘Is something wrong?’ asked Luigi sharply.

‘What? I’m sorry. No! Nothing! And, no, I didn’t believe you. But I’m glad to see that you’ve kept your word.’ He was wearing a white silk shirt, open at the throat, and she had an insane urge to touch his chest with her fingertips, to feel the strength of that muscular body, to—

‘Megan?’

Again he brought her back to the present.

‘Are you sure you’ve had enough sleep? You look as though you’re in a trance. Shall I take the day off and look after Charlotte while—?’

‘No!’ she exclaimed strongly. ‘There’s nothing wrong with me. I was thinking about something, that’s all. Mmm, this bacon smells good.’

As they ate she was aware of him watching her, and when Charlotte had finished and run away into the kitchen to ‘help ‘Wina’ he said, ‘Something’s wrong, isn’t it? I hope you’re not having second thoughts, or should I say third? Because, make no bones about it, this is now your home.’

‘I know,’ Megan said quietly. ‘You don’t have to rub it in. I have no intention of leaving, not yet anyway.’

‘By the way,’ he said, as he poured himself yet another cup of coffee, Megan shaking her head when he offered her one, ‘I’ve employed a nanny for Charlotte.’

‘You’ve done what?’ That really did wake her up and Megan bounced her hands off the table, her eyes flashing furiously. ‘What have you done that for? I’m perfectly capable of looking after my own daughter.’

‘Of course you are,’ he said evenly. ‘You’ve proved that, but wouldn’t it be nice to have more time to yourself?’

‘No, it wouldn’t,’ she slammed. ‘You’d better ring her right now and tell her she’s not wanted. You have no idea what a child needs. It’s certainly not a stranger looking after her; her parents’ time and love is far more important.’ She was beside herself with rage. How could he do this without consulting her? Quite easily, came the answer. He was used to giving orders, used to organising. But she was not one of his employees and he wasn’t going to tell her what to do.

‘I happen to think that it’s important for us to spend more time together,’ he said, visibly containing his patience. ‘We have a lot of catching up to do, Megan.’

‘And how can we do that when you work all the hours God gave?’ she snapped.

‘Because I shall make time,’ he retorted harshly, pushing himself to his feet and glaring down at her.

‘Ha! That will be a first,’ she thrust back. ‘How long will it last, I wonder? One day? Two? A whole week at the most?’ And she too sprang up from her chair.

‘Things are different now I have a daughter,’ he rasped, dark eyes glittering. ‘I’m a family man now and I intend to take care of my family.’

‘And hiring a nanny is part of that care?’ she yelled. ‘What if Charlotte doesn’t like her? What if—?’

‘We’ll give it a try,’ he interjected tersely, his fingers clenching as he fought for control. ‘And that’s the end of it.’

Megan flounced out of the room. Arguing with Luigi when he was in this mood got her nowhere, but she was fiercely determined not to give in. When the nanny arrived she would tell her in no uncertain terms that she wasn’t needed. Luigi could say what he liked; Charlotte did not need a nanny. Not when she was at home all day to look after her. If Luigi wanted to spend more time at home he would have to put up with Charlotte as well, he wasn’t getting rid of her that easily.

Was that it, she wondered, for all his fine words he found an excitable, energetic daughter too daunting? He didn’t like his routine upset. A nanny would solve the problem. Another case of using the power of his money to get what he wanted. Megan spat fire as she sought her daughter in the kitchen. How dared he dictate? How dared he try to take over her life?

It was evening before she saw him again and her anger hadn’t subsided. As soon as Charlotte was in bed she began her attack. ‘I hope you’ve cancelled the nanny?’

‘Why would I do that?’ A harsh frown dragged his thick brows together.

‘You mean you didn’t listen to a word I said?’ Megan’s eyes flashed her fury. In fact her whole body grew stiff with rage and she battered her fists against his chest. ‘Just because you can’t handle Charlotte it doesn’t mean I need help.’

In response he pulled her hard against him, his arms binding her so that she could no longer fight. ‘I am doing this for us, not Charlotte.’ His dark eyes pierced her own, sending a frisson of awareness through her despite the anger that she felt—or perhaps because of it! ‘We are the ones who need time,’ he asserted strongly. ‘We have a whole four years to catch up.’

‘And you think that handing over our daughter to a complete stranger will help?’ she questioned hotly. ‘As far as I’m concerned there’s nothing to talk about. I’m still convinced that I did the right thing.’

Luigi snorted his annoyance. ‘If it were just you and me then I could perhaps understand. But I’ll never be able to forgive you for depriving me of my daughter’s first years.’

‘I doubt you’d have seen much of her,’ she scorned, struggling in vain to free herself. ‘In case you’ve forgotten, your continual absence was the reason I walked out.’

‘Dammit, Megan, why do you keep throwing that at me?’ he charged, tightening his hold. ‘What I want to know is why you never made me aware of it?’

‘Oh, I did, believe me, many times,’ she yelled into his face, her eyes flashing dramatically. ‘You wouldn’t listen, that was the problem. You were so wrapped up in your entrepreneurial world that nothing I said sank in. You assumed that making money was high on my list of priorities too. Well, let me tell you—’ Her words were cut off by Luigi’s mouth closing over hers. And in that moment Megan knew that she had lost.

CHAPTER SIX

LUIGI found it hard to accept that Megan was against him employing someone to look after Charlotte. It was the perfect solution. They needed to spend more time together, they needed to iron out the problems that had sent her fleeing; how could they do that with a three-year-old constantly demanding their attention?

He’d thought hard about their situation and had made up his mind that he would delegate more in order to give Megan his undivided attention. Admittedly he would like to be involved with the problems with the new software, and he’d like to keep his eye on the running of Gerards. But in truth he had staff who were more than capable of dealing with any situation.

He didn’t pay good wages for nothing. He expected hard work and loyalty, and that was what he usually got. It was only his own desire to be involved in all aspects of his varied business interests that kept him going long hours. But now he was needed in another, more important, direction. Probably the most important one of his life. His whole future depended on it.

His arms became more possessive. Megan was his! She belonged to him for all time. He’d made mistakes but their future was transparently clear. The three of them were a family and nothing or no one was going to split them up. Employing a nanny was a necessity as far as he was concerned. He and Megan desperately needed time; they needed to renew their vows, to renew the love that had once bound them so firmly together.

On the day they met he’d fallen instantly in love and even if she hadn’t let him drive her home with her dangerously overflowing bags of Christmas goodies he would have found some other way to get to know her. Maybe meeting her again at Christmas time was a good omen. The thought pleased him and he deepened his kiss, even more thrilled when Megan didn’t resist.

She felt so good in his arms, her slender body moulding perfectly to his, and he silently prayed that she would let him back into her bed. He had tasted paradise and then been denied it. More than once in the endless dark hours he’d padded to her door, prepared to storm in and not take no for an answer. How he had turned around and returned to his room he didn’t know. It had been sheer hell.

But thankfully she was weakening. The way she was kissing him now with complete abandonment, the way she moved her body suggestively against his, was all the encouragement he needed. He lifted her into his arms with the initial thought of carrying her up to bed, but then thought better of it and they ended up on the sofa instead.

‘My beautiful Megan,’ he whispered huskily into her ear. ‘You’ve no idea how hard it’s been having you in my house and not being allowed to touch you.’

‘Don’t talk,’ she breathed, pulling his mouth down to hers and kissing him so passionately that he felt as though all his dreams were coming true. But suddenly Charlotte’s scream cut through their pleasure.

They were both on their feet in an instant, Megan hurtling up the stairs in panic. He followed close behind. What had happened to his daughter? Had she fallen? Was she hurt? His heart thudded as he realised how deeply he had come to love this child in the few short days he’d known her.

Charlotte was sitting straight up in bed, her eyes wide and staring. ‘She’s asleep,’ said Megan, slowing her hectic race. ‘She’s dreaming.’

‘Does she often do this, dream with her eyes open?’ asked Luigi in concern. It looked weird to him.

‘Only when something’s upset her. It’s some kind of nightmare, I think. It’s always the same.’

As they watched Charlotte’s body relaxed, her eyes closed and she gave a half smile as she curled up beneath the bedcovers again.

Megan leaned over her and gave her a gentle kiss. ‘I try not to wake her because then she doesn’t remember.’

Luigi frowned. ‘What could have upset her?’

Megan shrugged and straightened the quilt. ‘Maybe she heard us arguing. She’s a sensitive little soul and we didn’t keep our voices very low, did we?’

Luigi shook his head. ‘We were too far away.’ But a shadow of guilt made him uneasy. He had a lot to learn about children. ‘Will she be all right if we leave her?’

‘I’m going to stay in my room just in case,’ declared Megan. ‘Alone!’ she added warningly.

Luigi compressed his lips. ‘We have unfinished business.’

‘That was a mistake,’ retorted Megan on a loud whisper.

‘Like marrying me was a mistake?’ He couldn’t help himself. He’d been so confident that tonight was the night they’d both realise that they couldn’t sleep apart, and to have it all snatched away from him because Charlotte had had a bad dream drove him crazy.

‘Since you put it like that, yes.’ Her eyes were cool on his, her earlier passion gone, melting as quickly as the snowflakes outside.

‘I think you’re lying,’ he snarled. ‘You’re afraid to admit it but you still care for me.’

‘In your dreams, Mister,’ she hissed.

‘Then why, when I kiss you, do you melt in my arms? Why do you return my kiss with so much passion that it makes a lie of everything you’re saying? Tell me that, dear wife of mine. Look me in the eye and tell me you have no feelings for me.’

Megan woke with a start. She’d been dreaming about Luigi and had the strangest feeling that he was standing beside her. But the room was empty. Even Charlotte hadn’t yet stirred. She switched on the bedside lamp and looked at the clock. Almost half past seven! It was unusual for her daughter to still be asleep. Usually she crept into her bed at around six and they both dozed for another hour.

She rolled out of bed and padded across to the window. It was dark, and all was still and cold and eerily white outside from a further fall of snow. Then she crossed to the adjoining door and opened it wider. What she hadn’t expected to see was Luigi sitting in a chair beside Charlotte’s bed holding her hand. They were both asleep.

For at least two minutes Megan stood there watching and wondering. Had her instinct been right when she’d thought he was beside her bed? She didn’t like the thought that he’d crept into her room in the middle of the night. He could have slipped in beside her and she wouldn’t have known! Had that been his intention and then he’d had second thoughts and decided to sit with his daughter instead?

Last night she’d declared that she had no feelings for him, that he managed to arouse her sexually but that was all. She’d even looked him straight in the eye as she’d said it. Because it was the truth. She didn’t love him any more. She didn’t!

Suddenly she realised that Luigi had opened his eyes and was watching her. ‘What are you doing?’ she asked in a fierce whisper.

Gently he let his daughter’s hand go and moved stiffly across the room towards her. Megan shut the adjoining door and glared at him as she waited for his answer.

‘Charlotte cried out again,’ he informed her.

Megan was horrified that she hadn’t heard. In fact she found it hard to believe. ‘Are you sure?’

‘I wouldn’t have been sitting there if I wasn’t,’ he informed her, stretching his arms above his head and yawning widely. His silk dressing gown fell open, revealing a pair of black boxer shorts and a tanned bare chest.

Megan’s heartbeats quickened.

‘She didn’t wake but I thought she ought to have company and, as you looked so beautiful and comfortable in your sleep,’ he growled, ‘I didn’t want to disturb you.’

‘You should have woken me,’ she tossed stormily. ‘It’s my place to be with her.’

‘Not any longer,’ he said with a warning light in his eyes. ‘We share responsibility now.’

The days of sharing with Luigi had long since gone. Luigi was his own man, doing only what he wanted to do. And at this moment he thought that sitting holding Charlotte’s hand made him look good. Would he be as quick to be at her side if she were throwing up? Somehow Megan doubted it.

‘We share?’ she echoed, ‘and yet you’ve gone to the trouble of employing a nanny. How hypocritical is that?’

‘It’s different; it’s a necessity.’

‘So you keep saying. I don’t happen to think so. I like looking after my daughter; perhaps you’re not aware of that. I don’t want a stranger doing it for me.’

‘I’ve said all I’m saying on that matter,’ he retorted sharply and headed for the door.

By the time he’d gone Charlotte had woken and when they went down to breakfast Luigi had left. ‘He said he won’t be more than a couple of hours,’ informed William, who had been entrusted with the message. ‘Something urgent cropped up.’

As it always did, thought Megan bitterly.

Amazingly, though, within the two hours he was back. Accompanying him was a smart young woman with long blonde hair. She was tall and slim and very good-looking. Serena, thought Megan, her hackles instantly rising. How dared he bring her here?

She and Charlotte were outside building yet another snowman and Luigi was all smiles as he approached them. ‘Megan, let me introduce Kate Swift, Charlotte’s nanny. Kate, my wife, Megan, and this is my daughter,’ he added proudly.

Megan knew she must look stupid with her mouth falling open and it was with a great deal of reluctance that she took Kate’s outstretched hand. ‘I hadn’t realised you were starting today,’ she said, trying to smile, but unable to keep a terse note out of her voice.

‘I thought it a good idea,’ explained Luigi.

And Megan knew why. He didn’t want Charlotte spoiling their lovemaking again. With a nanny on call twenty-four hours a day it would clear the way for him. The selfish swine! But if he thought she was going to leave her precious daughter totally in the care of someone else he was gravely mistaken.

‘And this is Charlotte?’ Kate stooped down to the child’s level. ‘Hello, Charlotte. What a grand snowman! Have you built it?’

But Charlotte had her thumb stuck in her mouth and clung to Megan’s hand, looking curiously at the smiling woman.

‘She’s always shy with strangers,’ explained Megan, a cool note still in her voice.

‘I think we should go indoors and let Kate settle in,’ said Luigi cheerfully.

‘Charlotte and I need to finish our snowman,’ said Megan. She was furious with Luigi. He had no right bringing that woman here without telling her first. She had thought, or at least hoped, that she’d convinced him that she didn’t want anyone else looking after Charlotte. It was a crazy idea. What the hell was she supposed to do all day while Kate took over?

‘Who’s that lady?’ asked Charlotte as soon as they had disappeared into the house.

Megan drew in a deep breath and paused a moment before answering, ‘She’s come to help Mummy look after you, sweetheart.’

‘I don’t want her, I want you,’ Charlotte said almost on a shout. ‘And Daddy,’ she added after a moment’s thought.

‘You’ll still have us, don’t worry, sweetheart. But sometimes, if Daddy and I have to go out, then Kate will look after you.’ It was the best explanation she could think of.

‘Will she play with me?’

‘Of course.’

‘Will she build a snowman, and play snowballs?’

‘I’m sure she will.’

‘Will she read me bedtime stories?’

Megan’s heart began to break. ‘Sometimes, perhaps, but that’s my job. That’s the best, don’t you think, when you’re tucked up in bed and I read to you. That’s our special time of day.’

Charlotte nodded her satisfaction and then began to play in the snow.

By the end of the day Charlotte had accepted Kate and Megan had to grudgingly admit that Kate was very good with her daughter. It didn’t alter the fact, though, that she resented her presence, and she fully intended telling Luigi exactly what she thought.

Once Charlotte was in bed Kate retired. She’d made a fuss about Megan wanting to bathe Charlotte and put her to bed, declaring that it was part of her job, but Megan had been adamant.

Luigi had provided the new nanny with her own sitting room and bedroom, opposite Charlotte’s room, so that she was on hand should she be needed quickly. This was something else Megan didn’t approve of. Why should Kate need to be so near?

Megan was silent over dinner, her anger simmering away inside her, trying to decide how best to tackle him.

‘Why don’t you spit it out?’ asked Luigi harshly. There was fire in his eyes too.

‘You know I didn’t want Charlotte to have a nanny. Was that why you presented me with a fait accompli?’

He shrugged laconically. ‘Don’t you like Kate?’

‘That’s nothing to do with it,’ she shot back. ‘You went behind my back. You knew how I felt and yet you didn’t even have the decency to talk it over with me.’

‘We’d already discussed it.’

‘You mean you told me what you’d decided. My feelings didn’t count. You’re a rat, Luigi. I don’t know what I ever saw in you. And I honestly don’t know what I’m doing here. Second to marrying you it’s the biggest mistake of my life.’ She pushed her plate away and jumped up from the table. ‘I can’t even face eating with you.’

She heard Luigi’s swift intake of disbelief before he was on his feet too, his hands on her shoulders, fingers merciless. ‘You don’t mean that.’

‘Don’t I?’ she rasped, looking angrily into the hard darkness of his eyes.

‘You know deep in your heart that it’s for the best,’ he thrust fiercely. ‘We need this time together. In fact, once Charlotte’s got used to Kate, it will do us good to go away for a few days.’

‘And leave my daughter?’ she screeched.

‘Our daughter,’ he corrected harshly. ‘And don’t think I’d dream of leaving her if I wasn’t sure that she’d be in good hands. But we need time together, the two of us, alone, completely. We need to sort out our lives.’

‘And you’ll arrange that, without consulting me yet again?’ she blazed. ‘I think not. I think you’re under a great big delusion. You think that now you’ve got me in your house you can do what the hell you like. It’s not true. I’m tougher than you think. I’ve had to be. If you don’t believe me just wait and see. If you carry on in this vein you might find one day that I’ve disappeared again.’

The grip on her shoulders tightened so much that a sharp pain seared through her bones. ‘Do that at your peril,’ he threatened menacingly. ‘What I’m doing is for your good, for our good. How the hell are we supposed to get back on an even keel with a child at our heels all the time?’

‘A child?’ Megan screamed. ‘Is that how you see Charlotte? A mere child, a nuisance! How dare you? You make her sound like a stranger. She’s your flesh and blood, Luigi. You should be delirious with pleasure. You should be glad to have her around. You should be getting to know her better.’

‘And I think,’ he grated harshly, ‘that we should work on our own relationship before Charlotte’s. Of course I love my daughter; she’s brought life to the house. She’s a beautiful, intelligent little girl and I’m proud of her. But we need to get our own lives in order.’

‘That’s rich, coming from you,’ she riposted. ‘You were the one who let our marriage down. And, to be perfectly honest, I can’t see you changing. Your answer to everything is to pay someone to do your dirty work. Including looking after your daughter. How sad is that?’ And finally, with strength born of desperation, she managed to tear free. But she didn’t leave the room. Instead she stood a few feet away, glaring at Luigi like an enraged tigress.

His eyes narrowed, becoming two glittering slits that reflected the light from the lamps. And his whole body was tense with a rage he was doing his level best to control. Not that Megan cared whether he controlled it or not. She was past caring what Luigi felt. All she was concerned about was her darling daughter’s welfare.

‘I think,’ he said fiercely, ‘that you’re blowing this thing up out of all proportion. It will do you good to have more time to yourself.’

‘And there’ll be lots of that,’ she retorted hostilely, ‘because you’ll still be working all the hours God gave. You’re all talk, Luigi. How could you possibly take time off? Everything would collapse if you weren’t at the helm.’

Her sarcasm wasn’t lost on him. She saw the muscles clench in his jaw, the way his mouth went even straighter and grimmer, and it was a second or two before he answered. And when he did his voice was deadly calm. ‘I’ve said I’ll take you away, Megan, and that’s exactly what I intend to do.’

‘And if I don’t want to come? Charlotte’s never been parted from me. I wouldn’t leave her if I thought she’d be upset.’

He brushed her doubts away. ‘We’ll give her time to get used to Kate. She comes with the highest recommendation; I don’t think we have a problem.’

‘And no doubt you’re paying her the highest wage,’ she retorted. ‘I truly never expected that you’d turn out like this. Money, money, money, all the time. I must have been insane to marry you.’

‘Is it a crime to want to better oneself?’ he asked icily.

‘Of course not, but there’s a limit. You’re taking things a step too far.’

‘In your eyes, not mine.’

‘So you’re happy here in this mausoleum of a home? You enjoy having other people run around after you, pandering to your every whim? Is that the pleasure money brings? It doesn’t seem like pleasure to me.’

‘So tell me, Megan.’ He cocked his head on one side and looked at her consideringly. ‘What does pleasure you?’

Her cheeks flushed beneath that knowing stare, and her heart faltered as she realised that she had left herself wide open.

He moved purposefully towards her. ‘Don’t tell me,’ he said on a low growl. ‘Let me show you.’

Before she could even draw breath she was in his arms, her mouth opening of its own volition beneath the persuasive power of his. Megan knew that she ought to protest—loudly, volubly; she ought to push him away, show him that actions like this got him nowhere. But, fool that she was, she let her senses take over.

She enjoyed the thrill of his hard, sexy body against hers. She revelled in the feelings he aroused deep within her. She wanted more. She wanted all of him! The thought set off alarm bells in her head but she chose to ignore them. Luigi had talked about catching up on the years they’d spent apart, but it was their times in bed that she’d missed. Missed without really knowing it. Was it any wonder that she’d kept herself a man-free zone? No other man was good enough. No other man could possibly arouse her to this extent. They were soulmates as far as good sex was concerned.

Megan oughtn’t to have taunted him. Kissing her at this moment in time was the worst thing he could possibly do—except that she was so damned gorgeous how could he resist? Which begged the question, why hadn’t he made more of an effort to find her? Luigi knew that he could never come up with an answer. He’d been a fool. It was as simple as that. A blind fool, who thought that immersing himself in his work was the answer to everything.

And now he had a lot of making up to do. He was fully aware that it was going to be a long, hard slog and that he mustn’t go too quickly—even if at times like this she actually seemed to welcome his advances. It was pure sex, she’d said, and although he didn’t want to believe her he sometimes felt that she was right. And this was one of those occasions.

With reluctance he drew away. He stepped back a pace and felt virtuous that she looked surprised and a teeny bit disappointed. No, hugely disappointed. She was totally aroused, he could tell by her flushed cheeks and shining eyes, and if he had pushed his luck he could have taken her to bed. Which he wanted to! Very much so! His testosterone levels had risen to danger point. But it was good that he had stopped. It would show her that sex wasn’t the only thing he wanted from their relationship.

‘I think we ought to finish our dinner,’ he said gruffly.

‘I’m not hungry.’

Nor was he—except for this woman, his wife. He clamped his lips and nodded, only the slightest movement of his head. Megan didn’t even notice. But that was what she was, his wife. She belonged to him. She could run but he would never divorce her. One day they would be a happy and contented couple again. With perhaps another child to keep Charlotte company. It was only a matter of time.

Megan went to bed with a heavy heart. Luigi was doing his best and she appreciated that, but in her eyes it wasn’t good enough. And letting him make love to her was no answer either; it distorted her judgement, it reminded her of all that had been good in their marriage. It made her forget the long hours of neglect. So, although she had felt bereft when he backed away, she was now glad of it, and determined not to let herself be swayed into such a position again. Easy to say but difficult to do! Even the thought of kissing Luigi had her aching inside and she wasn’t sure that she could be strong enough to deny him.

But she would give it a good try. Luigi needed to reform; he needed to put his wife and daughter before his business interests. And when he did that—then perhaps their marriage would stand a chance.

His idea of taking her away for a few days was a sound one in principle. In fact it would be heaven—if it weren’t for Charlotte, and the fact that Megan knew unequivocally that once they were back he would revert to his old ways. Who was it who said that a leopard never changed its spots? Luigi would never change. Working was his way of life; his wife and now his child came second. They always would.

She was almost asleep when her door slowly opened. At first she thought she was dreaming when she saw Luigi’s shadowy shape in the doorway, but as he began to make his way softly over to her bed she sat bolt upright. Her heart stampeded as her need for him rose like a phoenix from the ashes.

But fear overrode her desire. ‘What the hell are you doing here?’ Her voice was low but shrill and there was panic inside her. He was a danger to her system—and he probably knew it. He knew that relaxed in bed she would be at her lowest ebb, and it would be easy to take advantage.

‘There’s something I need to ask you.’ He came to a halt at her side and looked fiercely down. And Megan didn’t see desire, she didn’t see a deep-seated need of her body, instead she saw something that sent a chill through her entire system.

CHAPTER SEVEN

‘I’VE just discovered that you haven’t been entirely truthful with me,’ Luigi spat.

Megan frowned. ‘What do you mean?’ She had no idea what he was talking about. And she’d never seen him look at her so coldly or accusingly. It set her teeth on edge and made goose-bumps rise all over her body.

‘The fact that you indulged in an affair with another man and lied to me about it,’ he shot at her harshly.

‘What?’ she shrieked, jumping up from the bed. ‘You’re not making sense. Who, for pity’s sake, am I supposed to have slept with?’ She dragged her dressing gown on over her nightie and hugged it closely around her. ‘Where did you conjure up that piece of fiction?’

‘Straight from the horse’s mouth, if you must know,’ he thundered.

Megan shook her head. ‘This is nonsense.’

‘I knew you’d say that,’ he scorned. ‘I was expecting it.’

‘So why don’t you tell me who’s made these accusations?’ she asked him coldly, an icy shiver beginning to take over. It was all she could do to keep herself still.

‘Your dear friend, Jake.’

‘Jake?’ Megan echoed dazedly. ‘You have to be joking. In any case, when did you speak to him? Jenny hasn’t rung to say they’re back.’

‘They are, I assure you. I phoned them myself.’

‘Why?’ she questioned loudly.

‘I needed to make sure she wasn’t out of pocket with you moving out so suddenly.’

‘And you spoke to Jake, and he told you that he and I had had an affair, is that what you’re saying?’ Megan couldn’t comprehend. Why would Jake make such a statement when it wasn’t true?

‘He hinted that you’d been friends before Jenny came on the scene, and the emphasis he put on the word “friends” made me realise what he was trying to tell me.’

‘So he didn’t put it in as many words?’

‘He didn’t need to. I got the message.’

It was true; she had known Jake before Jenny did. She had worked with him when she first came to London, and he’d sort of taken her under his wing. But she hadn’t had any kind of relationship with him, even though he would have liked to. She hadn’t felt ready to commit to any man. One day he’d gone back to the flat with her to borrow a book and she’d been delighted when he and Jenny struck up a close friendship.

‘Why should it bother you that I might have seen other men during our separation?’ she asked him coolly, at the same time thinking that this could work in her favour. Luigi had had other girls, she knew, but he seemed incensed when it came to her doing the same. This could be a way to keep him at a distance.

‘Because you’re my woman,’ he snarled, practically bouncing on his feet. His dark eyes glittered in the light from the bedside lamp, and his face was angular and savage—and gorgeously handsome.

Megan shook the thought away. Luigi was her number one enemy. She must remember that. She must never see him as an expert lover, as a man who could melt her bones by a mere glance or a touch. He had never treated her fairly, not once in all the years of their marriage. He was self-centred and egotistical. She dismissed the fact that he was an excellent provider and an expert businessman. It was the unadulterated love of a good man that she desired. And love wasn’t high on Luigi’s list of priorities. In fact she doubted it even existed.

‘I am not your woman,’ she told him tersely. ‘You gave up all rights to me when you chose work over your marriage.’

‘I did it for us!’ he exclaimed loudly.

‘So you keep saying. But it wasn’t what I wanted.’

‘And did Jake Whatever-his-name-is give you what you wanted?’ he demanded fiercely.

‘That’s my business.’ She saw the angry glitter harden in his eyes and his body swayed dangerously towards her. But she stood her ground, her eyes fierce in their determination, even though there was a part of her that couldn’t dismiss the sensations playing on her nerve-ends—excitement and hatred bundled into one.

‘And I think it’s my business now to remind you, in a very personal way, that I don’t want any other man to touch you ever again.’ They were so close that Megan could feel his breath on her face, feel the warmth of his body, and she could even smell the male sexiness that had at one time driven her insane. ‘You are my woman,’ he continued grimly. ‘You can deny it all you like, but you belong to me for the rest of your life.’

If that wasn’t a warning she didn’t know what was. For the rest of her life! In her present frame of mind it sounded like a death sentence and she wanted to lash out, to pound her fists on his hard, muscular chest, to kick his shins, to let him know in no uncertain terms that he was mistaken.

But she was afraid to make too much noise in case she woke Charlotte. So she maintained a reasonable decorum. ‘Carry on like that and I really will divorce you,’ she said quietly. ‘Marriages aren’t built on threats, nor on absentee husbands. And if you can’t live with the fact that you believe I’ve had an affair with Jake then I’ll willingly move out.’

‘No!’

The boom of his voice sent her eyes fluttering towards Charlotte’s door, fortunately closed. Sometimes she left it open, but tonight she’d been reading and was afraid the light might waken her daughter. She thanked her lucky stars now for her foresight.

‘I’ve told you, I will never let you go.’

‘Unless you change your ways you won’t be able to hold me,’ she declared vehemently. ‘Threats won’t work.’

‘I’ll threaten you all I like,’ he snarled, ‘since you don’t seem to be prepared to even meet me halfway.’

‘Meet you, when you are the one laying down the rules?’ she questioned heatedly. ‘You are the one who insisted I stay here. You are the one who insisted on employing a nanny for Charlotte. You are the one who’s insisting we go away for a few days. My opinion has never counted.’

‘Because I know what’s good for you.’

Megan’s anger boiled over. ‘There you go again. When are you going to get it through your thick skull that a happy marriage means give and take? All you do is take, and I’m heartily fed up with it. Change that attitude and we might get somewhere.’

She watched as his mouth folded into a grim line and his eyes narrowed until she could see nothing through the slits of his lids. A quiver of unease tracked its way through her limbs. It looked as though she’d gone too far. Yet he deserved it. Why shouldn’t she toss him a few home truths?

‘I’d appreciate it if you’d meet me halfway, Megan.’

It was not the response she’d expected and although it was delivered in hard, terse tones she couldn’t help feeling a twinge of guilt. She dismissed it immediately. Guilt had no place to play in this scenario. Not on her part anyway. Luigi was the one at fault—every inch of the way.

She had thought that meeting his daughter would soften him up, but that hadn’t happened. He was no nearer to being a caring husband or father than he had been all those years ago. He was in charge and he expected everyone to jump at his command. Well, not this girl!

‘Why should I?’ she asked with a toss of her head. ‘Why should I subject my daughter to a tyrant of a father?’

‘Tyrant?’ he exploded. ‘Is that how you see me?’

‘All the time.’

He closed his eyes and his fingers curled into tight fists, and Megan had the feeling that it was taking all his self-control not to lash out at her. She was tired of this confrontation. She wanted him to go. He had come here ready for a fight and because she hadn’t caved in and eaten humble pie he was still spoiling for one.

She wouldn’t give him that pleasure.

‘Fortunately Charlotte doesn’t see it that way,’ she added. ‘Perhaps because she hasn’t been here long enough and you’re on your best behaviour in front of her.’

Luigi snorted derisively. ‘You have no idea what you’re talking about. You’re blinded by hatred. In fact you’re the one with the problem. If you’d jump down off your high horse occasionally you’d see how much I’ve changed.’

Megan gave a tight, brittle laugh. ‘Then I must be blind. Have we finished this conversation? I really would like to get some sleep.’ Not that she expected to drop off now. She was far too uptight.

‘Maybe it is finished, but not satisfactorily,’ he barked, swinging on his heel and heading for the door.

‘You mean that it hurt when I didn’t deny having a fling with Jake?’ she taunted. ‘I wouldn’t worry about it if I were you. I’m not worrying about the girls you bedded while I was busy bringing up your daughter. We were free agents at the time. Why drag up the past?’

Again his mouth thinned but to give him his due he didn’t retaliate; he simply wrenched open the door and stepped smartly outside. She half-expected him to slam it, was thankful when he didn’t. She didn’t want Charlotte or even Kate wondering why he was storming out of her room.

The thought occurred to her that Kate might not know they slept in separate rooms. Had Luigi told her anything about their circumstances, or did she think they were a normal happily married couple? It could be embarrassing if she ever came in to see to Charlotte and saw that Megan slept alone.

Luigi had been spitting fire when he sought Megan out. He had phoned her friend on the spur of the moment, not really knowing whether she was back from France. Jake had answered. And when Luigi stated his business he had gone into a long tribute to Megan. So much so that Luigi had begun to gain the impression that more had gone on between them than Megan had ever admitted. He’d felt an indescribable jealousy. The very thought of another man touching his wife was sickeningly abhorrent and he’d been prepared to shake the truth out of Megan.

And now when he thought back on their conversation he realised that he hadn’t won at all. Megan was tougher than he’d realised and she had fought back with admirable qualities. He still didn’t know whether she’d actually slept with Jake and the thought drove him crazy.

So much so that he couldn’t sleep. In the end he dragged on a tartan dressing gown over his boxer shorts, went downstairs to his den and sat at his computer. There was work that needed to be done but, dammit, he couldn’t do that either. He kept seeing images of a fired-up Megan as she stood before him.

How he had fought the urge to pull her hard against him he didn’t know. He’d wanted to forget everything Jake had told him and make love to her. With her hair tousled and her face flushed, and nothing on beneath her cotton nightdress, his virulent male hormones had sprung into life. He loved Megan so much that it tore him apart when she rejected him. Was he really as bad as she painted?

It was true that no one ever saw themselves as other people did, but a tyrant? Always taking, never giving? He wasn’t like that. The presents he’d bought both her and Charlotte should have proved it. And she had this huge house to live in, no more worries about rent. He was prepared to give her anything she wanted. He’d even cut down on his working hours; hadn’t she noticed that?

The more he thought about it the more confused he became. He picked up the whisky bottle and poured himself a generous measure, tossing it down his throat in one swallow before refilling it. This time he set it on the desk in front of him, fingering the cut-glass, twisting it absently round and round. But the more he thought about the situation the more he failed to understand it and fury rose once more inside him. He gulped down the rest of the whisky and in a fit of rage threw the glass at the fireplace, shattering it into a thousand tiny pieces.

The next moment his door was pushed open and there stood Megan, pale-faced and questioning, still in her nightdress and dressing gown. With nothing on underneath! This was the first thought that registered. The second was, what was she doing here? Why wasn’t she in bed? And his third, perhaps she’d had a change of heart, realised that she’d been too hard on him, and had come to make amends.

His entire body throbbed in anticipation.

Megan looked from him to the fragments of glass in the hearth and then back again, a faint frown dragging her brows together. ‘So you’re still angry about Jake?’

Damn! She wasn’t supposed to have said that. He felt his sudden hope draining away. ‘What are you doing here?’ he enquired gruffly.

‘I was on my way to the kitchen to heat some milk.’

‘Your conscience troubling you?’ he sneered. He couldn’t help himself. His optimism had been so miserably dashed.

‘Not as much as yours, obviously,’ she riposted, backing away from the doorway, ready to carry on her journey.

‘Wait!’ he said, though he didn’t know why. He wanted her company and yet he knew it would be volatile. But better that than nothing.

She looked boldly and questioningly in his direction. ‘For what? More of what you’ve just put me through? No, thank you.’ And this time she walked away.

But Luigi wasn’t prepared to let her go. He couldn’t get through this night without her. ‘Megan, please.’

She faltered and stopped.

‘Come and talk to me.’

‘Why should I?’

‘It’s silly us both being wide awake. We may as well keep each other company.’

‘Not if you’re going to pick another fight.’ She half turned towards him but still looked prepared to flee.

He held up his hands. ‘Truce.’

‘How can I believe you? You already have me hung, drawn and quartered. Why should I escape more misery?’

‘Because I don’t feel like my own company at this moment.’ He was exposing his feelings in a way he never had before. He always liked to give the image that he was in complete control—which he usually was. It was only Megan who managed to instil doubt into him—doubt and despair.

‘You mean you might throw a few more glasses? Is it an image of me that you’re throwing them at or disgust with yourself?’

He winced, but refused to give her the pleasure of seeing how accurate her second guess was. ‘Perhaps it’s a bad idea. I wasn’t intending it to be a re-run of what happened upstairs. I simply thought we might both enjoy some company. But if it’s too much for you…’ He saw her hesitate, the doubt in her eyes, then the reluctant decision that he might be right.

‘Very well,’ she answered quietly, ‘but I’d still like some hot milk. How about you?’

On top of whisky! But if it helped keep her at his side…‘I’d like that, shall I—?’

‘Come and help? No thanks! I’ll be back in a few minutes.’

He watched her walk along the corridor, her behind swaying seductively with each step that she took. She walked like a model, every inch of her alerting his senses to such a degree that he began to question the perverseness that had made him invite her into his sanctum. He wouldn’t be able to touch her, he knew that, there was a mile-wide gap between them that would be difficult, if not impossible, to bridge. Not in a few minutes, or even hours. Days, weeks maybe, but he wasn’t that patient.

To him it was simple. They resumed marital relations and the rest would follow. It was Megan who was making progress difficult, finding problems when there were none. He would never understand her.

In the five minutes it took her to heat milk and make their drinks he’d decided that they needed to have a real heart to heart. It was the only way they would be able to solve their problems. And probably now, in the middle of the night, was the very best time. No Charlotte to interrupt, no phone calls, nothing except the two of them—together.

Hunger for her crept through every one of his strong male veins. How he was going to sit there, knowing that she was as naked as the day she was born beneath her enchanting white nightie, laced from waist to throat with a Christmas-red ribbon, and do nothing about it he didn’t know. It would be the worst form of torture.

She returned with their drinks on a tray, together with a plate of home-made biscuits which he knew would choke him if he attempted to eat one. What he wanted to do was suck one of Megan’s nipples into his mouth. She always tasted so beautiful and reacted so wantonly. He wanted to suck and bite and tease until she was putty in his hands. He wanted to feel her softly scented body close to him, he wanted to mould her with his palms, feel every curve and contour; he wanted to touch her most intimate places, feel her moistness, make her as ready for him as he was for her.

But he knew he couldn’t.

She was out of bounds.

For the moment!

But soon…

Megan nibbled on a biscuit, sitting in the armchair opposite him where he couldn’t possibly touch her, but he could look…It was warm in the room. He had stoked up the fire and it burned brightly in the grate. Her purple dressing gown was undone, the ribbon on her nightdress beckoning his fingers to untie the bow and unlace it. Lord, he wanted to look at her—she was his wife, after all. Instead she was covered up as primly as a nun.

He picked up his mug of malted milk and cradled it in his palms. It was absolutely no compensation for her temptingly full breasts. He felt compelled to close his eyes so that he needn’t look at her.

‘Are you tired now? Shall I go?’

Her question had his lids jerking open. ‘Not at all. I was simply thinking.’

‘About what? Us?’

He shrugged. ‘Does it matter when you’re determined that—?’

‘I’m not determined about anything,’ she forestalled him.

‘I don’t see any sign of you wishing to kiss and make up.’

‘That’s because a lot of water’s gone under the bridge. Before we kiss we talk. We have to resolve our differences. It’s the only way.’

‘I’m trying.’

Megan raised her beautifully shaped brows. ‘You could have fooled me.’

Something red shot in front of his eyes and he was ready to blast. It was only with an extreme effort that he managed to exercise caution and say calmly, ‘Perhaps you’re not really looking. You have it so firmly fixed in your mind that I’m the baddie in all of this that you’re missing the improvements.’

‘Spell them out to me.’

He didn’t want to do that. It wasn’t the answer. ‘If you can’t see them then perhaps I’m wasting my time.’

‘I have noticed,’ she said with slow consideration, ‘that you don’t spend quite so much time at work. But I assumed it was because of the Christmas holidays. It doesn’t really prove anything.’

His breath whistled thinly through his teeth. ‘Did I ever take time off at Christmas?’ He couldn’t help the sharpness of his tone.

‘The first year we were married you did. We had a wonderful Christmas together.’ Her eyes lit up as she spoke and he saw a glimpse of the girl he had first met. The girl who had ensnared him in an invisible net that could never be broken. ‘But after that,’ she went on, ‘you only took Christmas Day off. Even then you were a grouch.’

That was because his mind was always connected to whatever money-spinning idea he was working on. Looking back, he could see that perhaps he had been a little unfair on Megan—but not as much as she was making out. ‘So surely you can see,’ he pointed out, his tone strong and firm, ‘that I’m doing my level best to spend more time with you.’

‘And how long will it last?’ she asked caustically.

‘With your co-operation, if you don’t constantly raise your hackles whenever I’m around, for ever.’ He saw the way her brows rose ever so slightly, the disbelief in her perfectly shaped grey eyes. ‘I’m serious. I want this to work, Megan. You are my whole life. Without you it has no meaning.’

Disbelief gave way to surprise, her eyes widening as they remained steadily on his. ‘You’ve never said anything like that before.’

‘I didn’t feel I had to. I thought you knew.’

‘I know nothing unless you tell me,’ she insisted.

Not that he loved her? How could that be? He didn’t find it easy to say the words, but surely she knew? Why else would he want her back? He took a long, slow drink from his mug, watching her over the rim as he did so. He could prove to her in bed exactly how much he loved her—if she would only let him. Dared he suggest it?

He didn’t think so.

She was just as likely to slap him across the face. But even that contact would be better than the distance that separated them. It felt like a mile instead of a couple of feet.

Megan sipped her milk too, avoiding his eyes, staring absently into the flickering flames of the fire. She looked so beautiful sitting there, the glow from the coals warming her face, softening the shadows. He could imagine her in just such a position breast-feeding her baby. He had missed that! He had missed everything to do with Charlotte’s birth and her first important years. He hadn’t seen her learn to walk or talk, her first teeth coming through, her first word—which might have been ‘Daddy’ if he’d been there! Instead she’d never known what it was like to have a father.

Bitterness crept in and he began to wonder whether it had been such a good idea to invite Megan to sit with him. He didn’t want a confrontation, but that was exactly how he felt. So much he had missed! And it was all her fault! He clattered his mug down on the table.

Megan followed suit. ‘I’m feeling sleepy now,’ she said, although he knew she was lying.

‘I think I might go to bed too,’ he declared. This wasn’t how he had wanted it to end but it looked as though he had no choice.

‘I’ll leave you to make sure the fire’s safe. Goodnight, Luigi.’

‘Goodnight, Megan.’

So formal! No kiss, no touch, no sign that they meant anything to each other, and yet he would stake everything he owned that her body craved his just as much as his did hers.

Perhaps he should kiss her, a gentle peck on the forehead, nothing more, just enough to let her know that he cared. But already it was too late; she had left the room and he could hear her running lightly up the stairs.

When he followed later his footsteps were much slower and heavier.

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