From Venice With Love by Alison Roberts Page A

centrepiece for each of the small tables set for four. Sheets of fairy lights in icicle form hung from the high ceiling and, on one roughened stone wall, a slide show of Christmassy scenes was softly fading in and out as the scenes changed.
    It was a beautiful setting for a dinner but the flickering light levels made it impossible to see things as clearly as Charlotte would have liked. She was convinced her grandmother had suddenly gone pale.
    ‘Stop fussing, Charlotte, for goodness’ sake.’ Lady Geraldine gave her a surprisingly sharp poke with her finger. ‘If you weren’t half-blind, you would have noticed what I just noticed.’ Her smile was almost gleeful as she lowered her voice. ‘Eye candy…’
    ‘Gran. Wherever did you learn an expression like that?’
    ‘I blame television,’ Lady Geraldine sighed. But she was still smiling. Still watching a point well beyond Charlotte’s shoulder. The entranceway, most likely, because Charlotte had deliberately chosen a table as far away from the door as possible. A nice, dark corner. With a bit of luck, Nico Moretti would be late and either he wouldn’t be able to spot her or the two unoccupied settings at their table would have been taken by another conference attendee and his or her partner.
    But no. With a sinking heart Charlotte realised that to have grabbed her grandmother’s keen interest, this ‘eye candy’ would have to be spectacularly good looking. And judging by the way her elderly relative was practically fanning herself with her hand now, he was coming in their direction. Slowly, she turned her head.
    Oh, my…was
an understatement. Dr Moretti was wearing a beautifully fitting dinner suit, which always made men look good, but so were most of the other male guests here. Maybe the soft lighting had something to do with the way he stood out. Or more likely, it was the man’s sheer presence as he wound his way through the tables, pausing to smile at people he knew or share a few words in greeting.
    He seemed to have a spotlight on him, in any case, and Charlotte knew her gaze was as transfixed as her grandmother’s. As focused as every other woman in this room.
    If Nico was scanning the room, looking for her as he kept moving, he certainly gave no indication of it. Anyone watching would assume he knew exactly whattable he was expected at. Charlotte could feel her grandmother’s interest sharpen into astonishment as he finally made a beeline for their corner, his face lighting up in a smile of sheer joy.
    ‘Carlotta.
Cara…’
With his gaze locked on hers, Nico reached out and cupped one side of her face with his hand. It was an exquisitely tender touch. Over-whelmingly so. Charlotte had no hope of collecting her thoughts, let alone expressing them. His gaze suggested that if she didn’t want him to play this game she only had to say the word, but how could she when she couldn’t even draw a breath?
    And she saw the moment the question in his gaze turned to delight.
    Game on.
    With a smoothness that suggested Nico was far too good at acting, he turned his charm onto the unsuspecting Lady Geraldine. He gently picked up the hand with its diamond rings flashing in the candlelight. He pressed his lips to it.
    ‘And you have to be Carlotta’s
nonna
. I’ve heard so much about you. This is…such a pleasure.’
    And then Nico took hold of one of the two spare chairs and moved it so that it was as close to Charlotte’s as possible. He sat down and adjusted the silverware and then nodded at a nearby waiter, who instantly came to fill his champagne glass.
    Lady Geraldine was watching this little show with rapt attention and she seemed as lost for words as Charlotte. Until Nico raised his glass, tilted his head in a silent toast to the women, took a long sip and then…smiled.
    ‘Um…Charlotte?’
    ‘Yes, Gran?’
    ‘Is there something you haven’t told me?’
    This was her chance to pull the plug on this crazy plan that Nico seemed perfectly happy to