Royally Romanced

4

GIORGIO HATED THE ART—if he even thought of it as art. Renata wasn’t convinced from the sideways glance out of the corner of her eye. Scary how well she could read him after only meeting him this morning. He had sent his beefy driver back to their hotel.

“And this signifies …” He gestured elegantly at the smelly mess of vegetation on the floor.

She peered at the information tag. “The broken cornstalks and soybean plants tell the plight of the family farmer in the ever-growing domination of industrial agriculture.”

He blinked. “Ah.” Giorgio was a good sport, though, examining what looked like his nonna’s compost heap.

“Let’s see the next.” She slipped her hand into the crook of his elbow to tug him to another dubious installation. Lovely. A tangle of rusty barbed wire. Her heel caught on the rough concrete floor and he steadied her.

“Careful, Renata. I do not want to take you for a tetanus shot.” He smiled down at her and she forgot for a second that he was an honest-to-God prince of someplace in Italy and his suit cost more than she made in a year. No, when he smiled at her, he was just Mr. Hot Guy who made her want to shred that expensive suit off him with her teeth. Her breathing sped up, pressing her breasts into the nice bodice of her black blouse.

He noticed, his fingers tightening on hers. Not so cool on the inside, then. “And this represents the tangle of modern life?”

“No, the plight of refugees.”

Giorgio nodded. “Stefania is patroness of a charity for women and children that often works with refugee and displaced families.”

“At her age?” Stefania wasn’t much younger than Renata.

“Since she was thirteen.” His tone was full of love and admiration. “She testified in front of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees when she was nineteen. Stefania has become a better strategist since then. Perhaps I should have discouraged her from studying political science, but when a twelve-year-old reads Machiavelli’s The Prince so she can pass political tips on to her older brother, what else would I expect?”

Renata let him guide her along to the next exhibit. It was a video installation with a variety of blurry faces grimacing in turn as loud static played in the background. Giorgio regarded it with the same pleasant expression he’d pasted on his face as soon as they’d walked in. He really was a polished man.

Renata went up on tiptoe to whisper in his ear. “This is just awful. Do you mind if we leave now?”

“Aren’t you enjoying yourself.” His eyes twinkled.

“You’ll know when I’m enjoying myself,” she assured him.

“Indeed?” He turned his head slowly so their faces were almost touching. Renata swallowed hard. She thought he was going to kiss her but he clenched his jaw instead. Perhaps public displays of affection were against the Vinciguerran Royal Book of Etiquette. “I will call Paolo to pick us up.”

“No, don’t.” She didn’t want anyone intruding in what was turning out to be a very intriguing afternoon. “It’s a nice day—let’s walk.”

“Where?”

“A surprise.” She tugged him out of the gallery and onto the sidewalk, tipping her face up. “Ah, sun. Makes up for a long and gloomy winter.”

“An Italian girl like you should always get plenty of sun.”

She patted her jaw. “Bad for the complexion. The rest of my family has the typical dark hair and olive skin like you, but I only burn.”

“No wonder you have such lovely skin. You must be careful when you travel to Italy the next time. You know our sun can be very strong.”

“The next time? I’ve never been to Italy before.”

He stopped and stared down at her. “Your name is Renata Pavoni and you’ve never visited Italy? How can that be?”

She laughed and led him along the busy street. “My parents have five of us. You’ve never priced out airfare to Europe for seven, but my mother did once. We heard her scream of shock down the street.”

Giorgio looked momentarily startled—budget concerns didn’t cross his radar. He nodded thoughtfully. “What part of Italy did your family come from?”

“After the war, my grandparents on my mom’s side came from a little village on the Italian Riviera called Corniglia. My nonna says the town is perched on a huge rock surrounded by grapevines. They make this special kind of wine found nowhere else in the world.”

“Scciachetrà.”

“Yeah, that’s right. We crack open a bottle every New Year’s Eve to toast the old country.” Renata shivered in remembrance. “Boy, is that stuff strong. Made of raisins, so the sugar is very concentrated.”

“I’ve never tried it, although we have something similar in Vinciguerra, called Bocca di Leone—The Lion’s Mouth. We serve it in thimble-size glasses and no one can drink more than a few without falling over.” He sighed. “I’ll have to make sure we have enough for Stefania’s wedding. It’s the traditional toast for weddings, especially royal weddings.”

“And you are the di Leone family, after all.”

“Our ancestors invented it.” He grinned down at her. “I may need a couple stiff drinks before I walk Stefania down the aisle.”

“Buck up, Giorgio.” She patted his arm. “Everyone gets a bit misty-eyed when they give the bride away. Which sword and medals will you be wearing?”

Giorgio gave her a sidelong look. “Sometimes I cannot tell if you are joking with me or not.”

“That’s because you are much too serious.” She gestured. “Look at the beautiful day! Here we are in the most fabulous city in the world, we have lovely Central Park over there, the sun is shining, your sister has her wedding dress and you didn’t have a nervous breakdown trying to shop for one. Do you know how rare it is to keep good mental health shopping for a bridal gown?”

“Um, no.”

“When I worked at a regular bridal salon, fits of hysteria, therapeutic slapping and tranquilizers of dubious legality were an everyday occurrence.”

“It seems I’ve dodged the bullet.”

“You sure have. Hey, let’s cut through the park.”

HE TOOK A DEEP BREATH of the spring-scented air, the pale green leaves on the trees unfolding from their winter’s rest. The tension started to leave his muscles, although they were still mighty buff.

“See? All you needed was a nice little nature walk. I bet it’s been a long time since you got outdoors for some fresh air. A guy like you isn’t meant to be cooped up indoors pushing paperwork all day. Maybe you should get yourself a yacht—I mean if you don’t already have one—”

“We have my father’s yacht. We loan it out to people for field trips and marine science expeditions.”

“Weddings, proms and bar mitzvahs.”

He grinned. “Probably, if anybody requested it.”

“Don’t you or your sister ever use it?”

“Stefania does for her charity fundraisers.” They passed near a tree and he held a branch back that might have scratched her face.

“Not for that, but for your personal use.”

He shook his head. “Not since she started at the university and I took over more duties from my grandmother.”

“All work and no play makes Giorgio a dull boy,” she quoted the old saying. Imagine owning a yacht and being too busy to use it. Running even a small country must take an enormous amount of time.

“Then I should stop being so dull.”

He pulled her to the side of the path underneath a big oak tree. “Is that red lipstick smudge-proof?”

“Yeah, pretty much. It actually has a sealant clear gloss that—”

“Good,” he cut her off. Wow, for a prince he needed some work on conversational manners.

He kissed her.

And he did not need some work on his kissing. Renata’s mouth fell open in shock and he took advantage, slipping his tongue between her hopefully smudge-proof lips. She clutched his broad shoulders as he caressed her mouth with his, gently nibbling and sucking at her lips.

Renata had never been kissed like this, with passion and lust but tenderness, too. Her previous boyfriends had been younger than Giorgio, in their early or mid-twenties, and had either been tentative in their kisses or overly aggressive, mashing her lips as if to prove their desire. Now Giorgio was planting kisses across her jaw and holy crap—he licked her neck’s equivalent of a G-spot and she nearly screamed with pleasure.

His hot breath quickened against her skin and she knew he was as on fire as she was. “Mmm, Renata.” He lifted his head.

Renata’s eyes fluttered open when she realized he wasn’t kissing her anymore. “Wow.”

He wore a dazed look on his face, as well. At least she wasn’t the only one. She probably would have socked him if he’d been gloating. “I am sorry, Renata.”

“Sorry for kissing me?” She shoved him away and plopped her hands on her hips.

“Never. Sorry for pushing you against a tree and kissing you in public.” His lips were plump from kisses but her lipstick had lived up to its promise.

She wanted to taste his mouth again—hell, taste him all over. “You’d rather kiss me in private?” She traced her finger up his golden silk tie.

Giorgio caught her hand in his and pressed a kiss to the palm. “I would like nothing more.”

A handful of female runners clattered along the path next to them, all of them ogling Giorgio. He turned away, not wanting to be recognized.

He rubbed his face. “Much as I’d like to invite you to my suite at the Plaza—”

“You have a suite at the Plaza?” she interrupted. “Is it as fancy as in the movies? I’ve only been in the lobby once.”

“I don’t know about the movies, my rooms are very nice. But …”

“Too fast, isn’t it?” she asked ruefully. Despite her brassy attitude, Renata didn’t want to hop into bed with a guy an hour after she met him. Well, she did, but she wouldn’t.

He nodded solemnly. “Paolo hasn’t had time to do a background check on you.”

She squawked in indignation and socked him in the arm.

“Ow!” He clutched his arm and laughed. “Renata, I’m just kidding. It’s too fast because I want to get to know you better.”

“Good answer.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. And although she wanted Giorgio pretty badly, he came with miles and miles of strings attached—business, money and the fact that he had his own country. Maybe it would be best to leave it at a quick kiss. A hot, wet, tongue-tangling kiss on a romantic spring afternoon in the most romantic park in New York City.

Renata mentally slapped herself before she dragged Giorgio back behind that tree and did something to the man that started with public and ended with indecency. “What’s next?” It was a bigger question than it seemed.

He took her hand again. “What would a beautiful New Yorker like to do on an unexpected afternoon away from work?”

Renata spotted a white gleam from beyond the leafy green trees. “How about the real art museum?”

“Whatever you’d like.”

That wasn’t an option. She dabbed at her mouth with a handkerchief. “How’s my lipstick?”

“Lovely.” He smiled down at her. “But I could make it smudge if I had enough time.”

“I bet you could,” she breathed. Darn it, he wasn’t making this easy for her. “Come on, let’s go.”

RENATA LED GIORGIO UP the marble steps to the main entrance of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He gazed up at the impressive multi-story facade along Fifth Avenue. “Stefania and I came here at least once a month while she was growing up. I haven’t been since the cleaning and restoration several years ago. It’s quite a dramatic change.”

“The gray stone actually turned out to be white after all.” The tall marble columns with elaborately carved tops and arched high windows looked like a Greek temple—a temple of art. “Are you sure you don’t mind coming along for the historical costume exhibit? Most men aren’t terribly interested in women’s clothing—just how to undo them.” She felt a flush rise in her cheeks.

He laughed at her bluntness and held out his elbow for her to take. She accepted and they started to climb the steep stairs. “But I am terribly interested in women’s clothing. Didn’t I prove that by flying all the way to New York to look at wedding dresses?”

“It was very sweet of you to come.” She impulsively squeezed his upper arm. No give at all. His expensive Italian suit was covering an equally nice body.

“I try to do what Stefania tells me.” Giorgio smiled at her. “The children’s book where the brother and sister run away to live in this museum was her favorite as a girl. I was quite terrified she might try the same thing, so I brought her here whenever she asked me. If I couldn’t, then my friends Jack and Frank did.”

He held the door for Renata and they went to the ticket counter. “Two tickets for the museum and the costume exhibit,” she told the museum employee, reaching into her purse for the money.

Giorgio put his hand over hers. “My treat, I insist.” He reached for his slim wallet tucked into his jacket pocket.

“No, no, you’re my guest.” She went for her purse again.

“No.” He gave a credit card to the employee who hastily swiped it through the reader before they could cause any more delay in her line.

Renata clamped her lips together and accepted her ticket. They went into the museum foyer and she pulled him aside. “Look, just because you are a prince and all doesn’t mean I can’t afford to pay for museum tickets.”

He gave her a considering look. “You think I paid because I have much more money than you?”

“Yes.”

“No.” He took her hand. “I would pay for your ticket with the last money I owned because I’m a man and you’re a beautiful woman who makes me laugh and enjoy myself. Unfortunately, that is a rare occurence for me.”

“Oh, please.” She made a dismissive gesture with her free hand.

“No, thank you.” He caught her other hand. “I know I’ve had many advantages in my life, but free time isn’t one of them.”

“Same here.” She squeezed his hands. He had said she was beautiful, so she’d cut him some slack. Well, a lot of slack.

“Let’s not waste any of our precious time. Shall we go to the costume exhibit?”

“Absolutely. Then we can see whatever you’d like,” she offered.

He offered her his arm again, and they followed the signs to the gallery. “I’ve already seen most of the regular collection, so your special exhibit sounds just fine.”

“How about the arms and armor collection? Men always like that.”

He sniffed disdainfully. “We have a much better collection at home.”

“What? Better than the museum?”

“I’m just kidding.” He nudged her playfully and she snorted.

“But you do have some arms and armor at your house.”

“At the local museum,” he clarified. “But the armor used to be at my house.”

“You got tired of peasants wandering through looking at it?”

“If all peasants were as lovely as you, I would have no problem with that.” She raised her eyebrows. “I’m only joking, Renata. I’m priviledged to serve my people, not the other way around.”

“All right, then.” She let him off the hook. For a prince, he wasn’t very arrogant. Not that she knew very many. Or any.

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pointed to the gallery entrance. “Here we are.”

Renata gave a gasp as she and Giorgio entered the darkened, dramatically lit hall. “Now this is what I call a real art exhibit.” Strategically placed spotlights illuminated mannequins in elegant 1890’s ballgowns.

“Very elegant,” Giorgio agreed. “And little danger of tetanus.”

Renata went as close to the mannequins as she could without getting tossed out of the museum and peered at the fine details of the gowns. They were satin, velvet and silk. The silhouette was a tight bodice flowing out to a small bustle and then fabric draping down to the floor in a small train. The embroidery was elaborately done with crystals, pearls and jet accents. Butterflies and flowers, swirls and loops. “Maybe I haven’t been taking enough advantage of Aunt Barbara’s skills. She could do this in her sleep.”

“The lady who is going to embroider Stefania and Dieter’s initials on her, um, underskirt?”

Renata laughed. Typical brother. “That’s her. She’ll be disappointed she missed you.” The overwhelming understatement of the century. A real live prince and princess came to out-of-the-way Peacock Designs and Aunt Barbara was sitting in the gastroenterologist’s waiting room. She’d at least get to meet Stefania when she came for her fittings.

The next rooms had sports clothing, a revolutionary idea in the late nineteenth century. Although playing tennis in a floor-length dress or riding a bicycle in a wool skirt and suitjacket didn’t appeal to Renata, she saw the historical importance of the broadening of women’s activities.

Ah, more ball gowns, but this time they were a flowing, turn-of-the-century style with Asian-influenced fasteners and draping tunic silhouettes. Another set of new ideas for her.

“Art Nouveau, one of my favourite eras.” Giorgio gazed at the Tiffany stained-glass windows and classic Italian opera posters.

“Oh, my God, me, too! I just love Gustav Klimt’s painting with the man and woman embracing surrounded by all that gold and jewel tones.”

“The Kiss.” His gaze dropped to her lips.

She licked her mouth, suddenly dry. “Yes, it’s called The Kiss.”

“Have you been to Vienna to see it?” he asked.

She laughed and the spell was broken—at least temporarily. “No, I haven’t made it to Vienna yet.” Or anywhere east of the Atlantic Ocean.

“You should go.”

With what money? She caught his hand and pulled him along. He was a sweet guy, but there was a world of difference—and money—between them. “Maybe someday. Oh, look at the suffragettes’ uniforms. Very masculine.”

Giorgio stood patiently next to her, not fidgeting a bit or checking his phone as she examined the clothing in the remaining rooms. She wished she could take photos, but the light was too low to get any of the details. They exited into a gift shop with several reproduction jewelry items and books on art and fashion of the time period covered.

Giorgio picked up the hardcover, full-color photo book that accompanied the exhibit. “Would you allow me to buy you a small gift, a souvenir of our afternoon together?”

“That book’s not exactly small.” But she was dying to get her hands on it, especially to look at the beading and embroidery in close detail.

“I’ll carry it for you if it’s too heavy.” His green eyes twinkled.

She paused for a second and then decided her self-reliance could take a backseat to graciousness for once. “That would be lovely. Thank you.”

Giorgio seemed surprised, as if he’d expected her to tussle with him over it. “You’re welcome.” He hastened to the cash register to pay for it before she changed her mind, probably.

Renata busied herself by examining the jewelry. It was a bit elaborate for her tastes, with filigree and crystals and jet beads galore. Aunt Barbara would love it.

“Do you see anything you like here?” he asked.

She shook her head. “I was just thinking my aunt would like some of this. She likes more … elaborate things than I do.”

He eyed her up and down. “A woman who looks like a forties’ movie star doesn’t think that counts as elaborate?”

“I suppose silk stockings with seams up the back can’t be considered plain.”

“Not at all.” His voice sounded husky for a second. “But authentic, right?”

“Absolutely.” Renata had to clear her own throat. “Maybe I’ll bring Aunt Barbara to see the exhibit. I’ve encouraged her to branch out a bit with some designs of her own.”

“With you as her mentor, I’m sure it would be a success.”

“That’s kind of you.”

Giorgio shrugged. “Only the truth. You’re a self-made woman, whereas I’m the royal caretaker, making sure everything stays intact for the next generation.” He sounded a bit dejected.

“But that’s important, too. You have thousands of families depending on you to make sure everything runs smoothly, that parents can give their children the opportunities to succeed that they might not have had themselves.”

He grinned. “You’ve very smart, you know that?”

“Of course. And now, if you’ll call for that slick car of yours we can tour around for a bit before you meet your sister for dinner.”

He immediately texted his driver who showed up in an impossibly short period of time. Giorgio helped her into the limo. “Drive downtown, Paolo.”

Paolo nodded and they slid away from the curb. Renata settled back into the luxurious seats. She didn’t know where the royal ride was going, but she was sure it would be memorable.