The Italian's Passionate Return by Elizabeth Lennox Page A

interesting to wear. But it was either these or her work boots which were more beaten up than these. “I usually meet him at the end of the driveway where the bus drops him off after school,” she explained.
    Looking up, she fought the tears that threatened to spill out of her eyes, wishing this could be easier. She walked past him, hurrying out of the house. Jemma didn’t want him to see how scared she was. What if Dylan liked Damien better? What would she do if Dylan wanted to spend more time with his new father than with her? She wasn’t sure what she would do if she didn’t have his hugs and sloppy kisses, or his incorrigible curiosity and that boundless energy to keep her going. If she missed a hug at night, her body actually ached. It was almost like his hugs pulled her bones together, made her whole each time.
    Damien saw the stiff set of her shoulders and tried to figure out how to fix this. But her only solution was to push him away. Now that he knew he had a son, he wasn’t going anywhere. Not until they’d figured out how to move forward. And his idea of moving forward was to have her in his bed and Dylan under his roof. He’d never considered anyone else’s feelings before, especially not regarding business decisions. But he knew he would more heaven and earth, and his headquarters, to ensure his goal.
    Why it was so important for Jemma to marry him all of a sudden, he had no idea. But his instincts were telling him to get his ring on her finger. Fast.
    Perhaps it was because she’d gotten away from him once before and he didn’t want that to happen again. Or maybe the two of them were just riding a high from the incredible sex that afternoon.
    Either way, he was determined.
    He was startled to step out of her house and see his driver playing with the puppy he’d bought earlier today. He wasn’t even slightly embarrassed, but he caught Jemma’s stunned expression and almost laughed out loud. Apparently both of them had forgotten about the puppy. Thankfully, his driver seemed to be enjoying the little lady. He was throwing a ball to the fluff-ball and showing her how to retrieve it. Damien wasn’t sure if his driver or the puppy was getting more exercise, but at least the dog wasn’t cooped up in the car.
    He walked beside Jemma down the gravel drive, wondering what she was going to do, and how he was going to introduce himself to his son. Now that he knew Dylan was his, he could see all the similarities between them. When he’d looked at the boy’s picture earlier, he’d noticed something. Now he understood. He’d seen himself in the boy. The pictures looked extremely similar to the few pictures his parents had taken of him as a child. Fascinating, he thought with a strange feeling in his gut.
     

Chapter 3
     
    The big, yellow bus came barreling down the rural road and it suddenly occurred to Damien that he needed to get more security out here for his son and his future wife. He had a lot of enemies. He hadn’t done anything illegal while building his empire, but he’d stomped on a lot of people’s toes. He found a company’s weakness and went in for the kill, giving no mercy when he went after something. Adriana had her own security detail and she spent most of her time on one of his estates where there was additional physical security. Jemma’s home was wide open, no one around for miles. Someone could easily come in and hurt her and he wouldn’t even know about it, possibly for hours.
    But right now, his son was bouncing off of the school bus, obviously having had a great day at school. He waved to the bus driver and, with a skip and a hop, he jumped off of the bus onto the ground. “Hi mom!” he said, wrapping his arms around her legs as a hug.
    Dylan then looked up at the strange man, ignoring the bus as it continued down the road. “You’re still here?”
    “Yes. I’m still here,” Damien replied with amusement.
    “Cool!” he said and turned back to his mom. “Ms.