Rumours: The Secret Billionaires

CHAPTER SIX

SADIE’S HEART FLUTTERED with nerves. Today she would marry the man she’d once loved.

Doubts careered around in her mind, the truth of how it was actually going to be colliding with what she’d always dreamt of. It wasn’t about the white dress and veil, or the fun of having all her friends there to witness the occasion. For her, the idea of marriage had never been about that. It had always been about love and now she was marrying a man she was in danger of falling for all over again, a man who’d coldly informed her love didn’t exist.

Sadie looked down at the skirt of the white knee-length dress she’d selected for her wedding, her fingers tracing the pattern of navy blue embroidery. It didn’t really matter how or where she got married, or even what she wore, but the wedding she’d always dreamt of would be to a man who loved her—unconditionally. A man she loved with all her heart. This was so very different.

She had loved Antonio once, before he’d shown his true colours, but it was painfully clear that not only had he not loved her, but he never would. This marriage was a deal for his child. A bargain struck after a deceitful two weeks pretending to be someone he wasn’t. Someone he never really could be, not when he had such a ruthless disregard for anyone else.

‘Are we going to see Antonio?’ Leo’s question dragged her back into the here and now as the car Antonio had arranged to take them to the town hall for the civil ceremony negotiated the busy streets of Rome.

‘Yes, Leo, we are.’ She hadn’t explained anything to him yet and certainly hadn’t told him she was about to get married to Antonio. She’d taken extra care over her appearance, but, as was to be expected, Leo hadn’t noticed. Guilt made saying anything else impossible for the moment. She was doing this for him, yet being cooped up in an apartment more in keeping with Antonio’s family roots wasn’t good for Leo.

Maybe Antonio would allow her to find a small apartment, one more suited for bringing up a child. No sooner had the thought entered her mind than she dismissed it. Antonio wanted Leo and she suspected nothing other than living with him would be sufficient. Thank goodness he hadn’t pushed the boundaries of separate rooms in the two weeks since they’d arrived in Rome and she hoped that exchanging vows today wouldn’t change that.

‘I like Antonio.’ Leo once again centred her thoughts.

‘That’s good, darling.’ She was on the verge of telling him she and Antonio were to be married and that he’d be his father when Leo cut forcefully across her words.

‘I want Antonio to be my daddy.’

Sadie blinked in shock and looked down at her son, his dark eyes, so very like Antonio’s, looking up at her, the happiness in them almost breaking her heart. If only Antonio wanted that as much as her little boy did.

‘Do you?’

‘Yes, and he said I can call him padre.’ The excitement and happiness in Leo’s voice constricted her heart. She’d denied her son his father for three years, but Antonio had no right to force her hand on how or when she explained things to her son.

A dart of fury for the man she was about to marry surged through her. Why had he said that and, more to the point, when? What else had he told Leo?

‘Would that make you happy, Leo?’ she asked tentatively, wondering if the circumstances meant that now was the time to tell him exactly who Antonio really was. That the man he wanted to be his father was just that.

‘Yes. And he has a surprise for you—to make you happy.’ Leo’s voice bounced with excitement and she could see he was bursting with it, but she guessed that, whatever this surprise was, even her son didn’t know yet.

The car stopped and Sadie looked around her. So this was it, the moment she married the man who had stolen her heart four years ago and made it impossible to love any other man. The father of her son. This was the moment she would say I do to Antonio Di Marcello.

Nerves skittered down her spine and beside her Leo became restless, itching to get out of the car. She looked down at him—was she doing the right thing? For Leo, yes, but what about her? After taking a deep breath she stepped out of the car and took Leo’s hand as he stood with her outside the tall and imposing building that was the town hall.

‘Antonio!’ Before she could focus her mind, Leo pulled free from her hand and ran to Antonio as he came out of the large wooden door which must have witnessed many such marriages. She watched as Leo ran to Antonio and without a moment of hesitation Antonio scooped him up. Antonio laughed as he settled his son into his arms and looked at her.

His dark grey suit hugged his body and long legs, making him look as if he’d stepped from her dreams. The expression on his face as his gaze met hers left her in no doubt that the simmering tension which had leapt to life between them last week was still very much alive, despite his contrived distance over the last week.

She walked towards him, her heels making each step feel precarious, like those of a newborn fawn. Her heart was thumping hard as she reached him and looked up into his handsome face, mesmerised by the dark depths of his eyes.

‘You look beautiful, mia bella.’

* * *

Antonio watched the hint of a blush caress Sadie’s cheeks and he wanted to reach out to her and kiss her as he had last week. The white dress with navy embroidery clung to her slender frame, highlighting her tiny waist as the skirt flared out. It was just a dress, which he never really took note of on a woman, but on Sadie it was more than that.

She looked stunning and, as she took Leo’s hand, he knew he was doing the right thing. She was the mother of his son and the one and only woman who had captivated him so instantly. On top of that there was a mutual attraction, a passion which burned between them—even if she was still denying it. The kiss on the terrace had left him in no doubt of that.

But how much longer could she push him away? How much longer could he resist her?

‘Padre.’ His son smiled shyly and stepped back a little behind Sadie as he used the Italian form of ‘father’ to him for the first time.

He crouched down to Leo’s level and smiled at him. ‘Your mummy is going to marry me today and that means I will always be your father now. That is good, no?’

He knew there was a connection between him and Leo, but the reaction he got was so unexpected it took him aback. Leo threw his arms around his neck, burying his little body deep into his embrace as he held him close. Stunned to the point of silence, he looked up at Sadie and knew then that whatever it was that had brought them together no longer mattered. The only thing that did was making his son happy.

‘I think his reaction speaks for itself, so please remember this moment and never let him down.’ Sadie’s cool voice filtered through the veil of emotions he’d never thought possible. He deserved that warning, but why did she always make him feel as if he had to prove something?

‘In that case, shall we go inside and get married?’ It wasn’t intended as a question, but he wanted to give her one last chance to say no, to turn away.

‘What about witnesses?’ The tremor of doubt in her voice intensified his emotions as he stood with Leo in his arms and looked down at her.

‘All dealt with. My good friend Sebastien and his wife, Monika, have flown in from England to be our witnesses.’

Her brows raised a little, but she didn’t say anything and after a moment she walked inside. As he followed her he couldn’t quite believe that in just a short time he would be a husband and father.

Was this what Sebastien had envisaged when he’d sent him on the challenge? He shook his head and smiled at Leo. He already knew those two weeks hadn’t been about proving he could survive on a paltry two hundred euros, but had they been about challenging him to the role of fatherhood? Had Sebastien known about Leo or had his plan been to throw him and Sadie back together, hoping they would discover the kind of love he and Monika had?

* * *

Words of Italian and English seemed to rush through Sadie’s mind as she stood with Antonio. Behind them stood the couple who were witnessing it all, and holding Antonio’s hand, as if he feared he’d never see him again, was Leo. She should have been happy. A family and father for Leo was all she’d ever wanted, but at what cost? How long would it be before Antonio moved back to his playboy lifestyle, lived so voraciously in the fast lane of life? It was that question which held her back, prevented her from giving in to the ever-growing attraction.

‘You are now husband and wife.’

She blinked at the words which united her with this man, making her and Leo his family. Then she made the mistake of looking at Antonio. The dark spark of desire in his eyes didn’t fool her. He obviously wanted his friends to think they were so madly in love that they’d rushed off to get married after finding each other again.

‘And now I will kiss the bride.’ Antonio pre-empted the next line and took one step towards her and brushed his lips over hers in a lingering kiss filled with the promise of so much more, if she was brave enough. She wanted to be brave, wanted to find what they’d shared once before.

‘Bravo.’ The friend of Antonio’s who’d witnessed the marriage clapped and she took the opportunity to move back, away from the temptation of something that could hurt her all over again.

She glanced at the tall man, a little older than Antonio, and his lovely blonde wife. Love simmered between them as they smiled at each other, as if sharing a secret only they knew. Would she and Antonio ever be like that? The question flitted through her mind like a bird through the forest, but the answer was obvious. They could never be like that. Love was an emotion Antonio had no concept of. He didn’t want to allow it into his life.

Leo tugged at her dress, trying to find some adult attention, and as she gathered him up in her arms she recalled how Antonio had held him outside when they’d arrived. Whatever it was he’d felt had shocked him. Could that tiny step be the start? Was he opening his heart to his son?

‘I will take my bride to our new home,’ Antonio said, directing his attention to his friends. ‘Sebastien and Monika, we’d love you to join us.’

‘Monika and I would like that very much,’ Sebastien replied, and then he smiled at her. ‘If, of course, your bride doesn’t mind the intrusion?’

‘Intrusion, no,’ she said. She couldn’t thank him enough. The last thing she wanted was to be alone with Antonio now, especially after that kiss had unleashed the sizzle of desire she’d only ever experienced with him. Leo would soon tire and need to go to bed, leaving her alone with Antonio. Company would be perfect. ‘We’d be honoured to have you as our guests.’

She had no idea how Sebastien and Antonio knew one another, but the bond between the two men was more than apparent.

Feeling more as if she were in a dream, Sadie carried Leo back out into the early summer sunshine, unable to completely comprehend that she was now married to the man who’d stolen her heart four years ago, giving her the most precious gift of a son. Marriage had been all she’d wanted initially, but now something was holding her back, stopping her from feeling happy and secure, even though Antonio was the only man she’d ever really wanted.

Such distracting thoughts raced through her mind as Leo sat next to Antonio in his special seat and the car took them through Rome’s traffic. It was a while before she realised they were leaving the city behind. As the question of where they were going almost left her lips the car turned off and up a long driveway towards a grand villa.

She felt Antonio’s gaze on her as she watched the villa come nearer. It wasn’t a hotel, which had been her first thought, and a stab of disappointment lurched through her. She’d hoped Leo could have a bit of freedom to run around on the extensive lawns. He hadn’t had such freedom since coming to Rome, but it would be impossible to allow him to roam in a private home.

‘Where are we?’ she asked and looked at Antonio.

Infuriatingly, he just raised his brows in a sexy and suggestive manner and got out of the car when it stopped in front of the villa. She unclipped Leo, but he lunged forward, not wanting her any more, wanting only to be with Antonio, his new hero. A little deflated, she stepped out into the sunshine, warm with the promise of a long hot summer, and looked at the villa. What must have been the original building had been added to in a tasteful and stunning way. A covered veranda ran its length and her first thought was that the shade would be welcome in the height of summer.

‘Welcome to your new home.’ She turned quickly to look at Antonio as Sebastien’s car turned in at the bottom of the long driveway.

‘My home?’

‘Sì. A home for my bride and my son.’ That sexy darkness was back in his eyes and a shiver of something tingled down her spine, rousing memories of being in his arms, being kissed until her head spun.

Before she could say anything, he bent down to Leo. ‘Would you like to live here?’

Wide-eyed, Leo looked up at him and her heart wrenched at the adoration he already had for his father. ‘All the time?’

‘Sì. All the time.’ Antonio laughed and ruffled Leo’s hair in a way which gave her the impression he was used to little children, something she hadn’t considered possible in a man such as him.

‘With you?’

The laughter deepened, but she held her breath, waiting for the answer that would break her son’s heart. She almost couldn’t bear to hear that he would be returning to his apartment in Rome.

‘But of course.’ Antonio looked up at her. ‘With you and your mother.’

Any further discussion was halted as Sebastien and Monika joined them. ‘I think it’s time we celebrated.’

She followed them inside, making polite conversation with Monika but in total awe of her surroundings. The villa was gorgeous and furnished beautifully. How and when had he done this?

The pop of a champagne cork startled her and Leo laughed—a sound which filled her heart with warmth—and she pushed away her doubts. For Leo’s sake she would enjoy this moment.

‘To marriage,’ said Sebastien as he raised his glass. ‘To the bride and groom—and Leo.’

Antonio raised his flute of champagne to her, his dark eyes intent and watchful, shining with unguarded emotion. ‘To my beautiful bride.’

She smiled shyly. She had been overreacting all along, getting carried away with pre-wedding nerves. Everything would be fine now they were married.

‘And let’s not forget the challenge you accepted and clearly excelled at.’ Sebastien’s voice slashed through that hope which shivered like a delicate spider’s web on a dewy morning.

‘Challenge?’ The word had left Sadie’s lips before she could stop it. What was Sebastien talking about?

Monika placed her hand on her arm and Sadie looked at her. Did she know what this was all about? ‘They’re teasing. They always challenge one another—over everything.’

‘I told you I worked in the garage to prove I could.’ Antonio’s voice jolted her attention and she looked at him, aware that Monika and Sebastien were exchanging glances with one another. They knew something she didn’t.

‘I challenged him to live for two weeks without his family name and wealth and he did.’

Sadie looked at Sebastien, her long slender fingers over her lips as she took in the full implications of what she’d learnt. ‘I had no idea.’

* * *

Antonio had seen the doubt and confusion rush over Sadie’s face and inwardly he’d berated Sebastien’s honesty. He’d watched, helpless to say anything, as Monika had tried to smooth things over with Sadie, but as usual Sebastien had calmed the situation down, telling just enough but nowhere near all the details.

Thankfully, Leo had chosen that moment to rush in from the gardens, full of excitement for his new surroundings, but now, with Leo asleep in his new room and their guests gone, it was just him and Sadie.

It was their wedding night, but the moment Sebastien and Monika had left the tension had intensified between him and Sadie, tension which was born out of the ever-present simmering sexual attraction between them. Already he was being drawn in, being forced to engage in emotions he’d long since thought withered within him—and that was just with his son. Sadie was even more of a threat to the equilibrium of his emotions.

‘I trust that our arrangement of separate rooms will continue.’ Sadie’s voice was sharp and unyielding as she sat with him on the terrace, the twinkling lights of Rome in the distance and the sounds of the night surrounding them.

Had she read his thoughts? Could she sense the turmoil within him that just having her around unleashed? He studied her as she looked out into the night, as if she couldn’t, or didn’t want to, look at him. This angry version of Sadie was not what he’d envisaged for his wedding night, but, with one disastrous marriage behind him, it seemed fate was after all casting doom over this one when it was only hours old.

‘If that is what you want.’ The granite hardness of his voice more than matched hers and she glanced at him as she stood up, obviously preparing to leave.

‘It is. Our marriage was only ever about Leo.’ Her words sliced through him, slashing the memories of the day he’d confided in Sebastien that Sadie was the only woman who’d made him want to open his heart to softer emotions, the kind which weakened even the hardest man. But he wasn’t weak and he would not be weakened. Whatever they’d once had was obviously long gone. All that remained was the spark of sexual attraction, which could easily be doused. Experience had taught him that.

‘Our marriage was about uniting for Leo’s sake, about enabling me to be there for my son.’ He couldn’t allow his thoughts to focus on what had once been. He had to remain firm. She’d accepted his terms of marriage—terms he’d made for the little boy for whom he’d do anything.

‘And how long will you be there for him?’ Finally she turned to face him, the censure clear in her voice and sparking in her eyes, even in the dim light of the evening. ‘A few days? A week or two?’

‘I intend to be there for ever for my son, so you had better get used to having me in your life.’ He bit down on the anger her words provoked but kept his gaze firmly fixed on her beautiful face.

‘I don’t believe you are up to that particular challenge.’ She glared angrily at him and he wondered if she had any idea just how he worked, how he could never envisage anything but success—in everything he did.

‘So it’s a challenge, is it?’ He couldn’t stem the amusement which rushed over him watching her expression change to one of shock when she realised what she’d done, that she’d issued a challenge to him.

‘You seem to thrive on them.’ The haughty and distinctly flirty reply fizzed in the air as the sexual tension notched up another level.

‘I do indeed.’ He couldn’t help teasing her. The only problem was that it increased his desire to kiss her, to make her his once more.