tonight,â he finally said, somehow managing to keep his tone smooth. A herculean feat seeing that his head was in a whirl, his world precariously tilted on its axis. And this woman, whom heâd tried to forget at all costs, suddenly was at the center of it. âYou look like youâll faint any minute.â
âI donât want to cause troubleââ
âLittle late for that, yes?â He slid the pictures back into the cover. âSomeone from the staff will show you to a bedroom. Buenonotte , Alexis.â
* * *
Leandro paced inside his bedroom, the scent of a woman lingering inside the walls after so many years as disconcerting as the one who had left it behind. A million thoughts crowded him.
He remembered his secretary telling him that Ms. Sharpe had called. Again and again. He remembered the self-disgust at the mere thought of that night, the poisonous thoughts that Alexis was making a nuisance of herself.
Because he had had enough with his fatherâs mistresses and one-night stands making a spectacle of them.
And the intervening years, if he focused too much on that, he would take it out on her.
Despite everything, she had finally come to tell him of his daughterâs existence. The what if she hadnât scenario didnât bear thinking about...not if he wanted to remain sane.
With control he had learned in his teens, because someone had had to be strong for his mother and Luca, he bottled away the anger.
The Rossis would be waiting for an explanation, as would Antonio. His engagement to Sophia had been the biggest event of the summer among society and Salvatore wouldnât react to this new development lightly.
Leandro would have to make sure Salvatore didnât poison anyone on the Conti board against him because of any decision he took now.
Heâd have to make sure Antonio didnât interfere with Leandroâs intentions.
Heâd have to tread carefully so that his sheer arrogance in dismissing Alexis seven years ago didnât ripple over anyone now. Like Valentina and Sophia. And now Isabella.
She was his to protect, to cherish, to love. A shock or not, he could never neglect his duty as a father. A child needed both parents, he knew that better than anyone.
He vowed in that minute that the next generation of Contis would be different, beginning with Isabella. Much as heâd tried, heâd failed Luca.
He wouldnât fail Isabella. He wouldnât let his daughter spend a day without knowing that she was loved and wanted.
If Alexis had other ideas, he would convince her otherwise.
The weight of the world seemed to lie on his shoulders and yet, Leandro felt energized for the first time in years.
CHAPTER THREE
J UNE SUN SHONE bright when Alex stepped out of her room and reached the curving balcony. A vague sense of premonition hovered in her gut, intensified by her sleepless night.
Something she had spied in Leandroâs eyes, she realized.
âAlex, come have breakfast,â came Valentinaâs voice from below.
Bracing herself, Alex looked down. It was only Valentina.
She went down the steps and walked across the courtyard to the perfectly landscaped gardens. Lushly scented air filled her nostrils, the sheer beauty of the surroundings relaxing her tautly stretched nerves.
Dressed in chic jeans and a ruffled top in pink, her hair fashionably messy, Valentina was the epitome of a fashionista. Alex was suddenly glad she wasnât wearing yesterdayâs clothes.
Plain cotton T-shirts, of the soft and screamingly expensive kind, and capri-style pants in various sizes and colors, even brand-new underwear had been left on the bed by the time she had returned from the shower.
Knowing who she had to thank for it, she ran a self-conscious hand over her midriff and settled down.
A bite of the rich, jam-filled cornetto the staff brought her righted her world, even if for a moment. The frothy cappuccino made her sigh.
Feeling
âI donât want to cause troubleââ
âLittle late for that, yes?â He slid the pictures back into the cover. âSomeone from the staff will show you to a bedroom. Buenonotte , Alexis.â
* * *
Leandro paced inside his bedroom, the scent of a woman lingering inside the walls after so many years as disconcerting as the one who had left it behind. A million thoughts crowded him.
He remembered his secretary telling him that Ms. Sharpe had called. Again and again. He remembered the self-disgust at the mere thought of that night, the poisonous thoughts that Alexis was making a nuisance of herself.
Because he had had enough with his fatherâs mistresses and one-night stands making a spectacle of them.
And the intervening years, if he focused too much on that, he would take it out on her.
Despite everything, she had finally come to tell him of his daughterâs existence. The what if she hadnât scenario didnât bear thinking about...not if he wanted to remain sane.
With control he had learned in his teens, because someone had had to be strong for his mother and Luca, he bottled away the anger.
The Rossis would be waiting for an explanation, as would Antonio. His engagement to Sophia had been the biggest event of the summer among society and Salvatore wouldnât react to this new development lightly.
Leandro would have to make sure Salvatore didnât poison anyone on the Conti board against him because of any decision he took now.
Heâd have to make sure Antonio didnât interfere with Leandroâs intentions.
Heâd have to tread carefully so that his sheer arrogance in dismissing Alexis seven years ago didnât ripple over anyone now. Like Valentina and Sophia. And now Isabella.
She was his to protect, to cherish, to love. A shock or not, he could never neglect his duty as a father. A child needed both parents, he knew that better than anyone.
He vowed in that minute that the next generation of Contis would be different, beginning with Isabella. Much as heâd tried, heâd failed Luca.
He wouldnât fail Isabella. He wouldnât let his daughter spend a day without knowing that she was loved and wanted.
If Alexis had other ideas, he would convince her otherwise.
The weight of the world seemed to lie on his shoulders and yet, Leandro felt energized for the first time in years.
CHAPTER THREE
J UNE SUN SHONE bright when Alex stepped out of her room and reached the curving balcony. A vague sense of premonition hovered in her gut, intensified by her sleepless night.
Something she had spied in Leandroâs eyes, she realized.
âAlex, come have breakfast,â came Valentinaâs voice from below.
Bracing herself, Alex looked down. It was only Valentina.
She went down the steps and walked across the courtyard to the perfectly landscaped gardens. Lushly scented air filled her nostrils, the sheer beauty of the surroundings relaxing her tautly stretched nerves.
Dressed in chic jeans and a ruffled top in pink, her hair fashionably messy, Valentina was the epitome of a fashionista. Alex was suddenly glad she wasnât wearing yesterdayâs clothes.
Plain cotton T-shirts, of the soft and screamingly expensive kind, and capri-style pants in various sizes and colors, even brand-new underwear had been left on the bed by the time she had returned from the shower.
Knowing who she had to thank for it, she ran a self-conscious hand over her midriff and settled down.
A bite of the rich, jam-filled cornetto the staff brought her righted her world, even if for a moment. The frothy cappuccino made her sigh.
Feeling
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