Page 43 of Secrets of the Brother
She couldn’t have wounded me more deeply than if she had actually plunged that letter opener straight into my aching heart the other day.
* * *
I openedthe cottage door to the soft knock.
Aunt Gabriella stood there with a Louis Vuitton weekender bag resting on her forearm. “With all the clothes I lend you, your brother,andyour father’s lovers, I’m lucky I have any wardrobe left.”
Her smile faded the moment she saw my expression. She frowned. “What’s happened?”
I gave her a kiss on the cheek. “She’s in the tub. Just… take care of her for me. See that she gets home safely. You brought the two guards I asked for in the separate car?”
“Yes. They are waiting at the end of the street, like you asked.”
I nodded. “Good. They’ll follow you at a distance. After you drop her off, the second guard will ride back with you to the villa while the first remains behind, out of sight. I don’t want her to know she’s being watched.”
I left the cottage and walked toward my motorcycle.
“Of course, darling. And what about the plans we talked about earlier? Have they changed?” she called out.
I didn’t turn around. “Just take her home.”
CHAPTER11
BIANCA
Isank lower into the water at the sound of the knock. “I don’t want to talk, Enzo.”
“It’s not Enzo, dear.”
I frowned at the unexpected feminine voice. Sitting up in the tub, I stretched my arm over the edge to try and reach for a towel. Before my fingertips could touch it, the door swung open.
Soapy water sloshed over the edge as I slunk down, covering my nakedness. “I’m not decent.”
The woman giggled. “Well then, you are in good company, darling,” she teased with a wink.
My mouth opened.
It was Gabriella De Luca, Barone Cavalieri’s sister-in-law.
Although I had never met her in person, everyone knew her by reputation.
It was hard not to be cowed.
In the quaint, shabby chic, cottage bathroom she was like fireworks going off in a closet. All bright, sparkling light.
Dressed in head-to-toe Gucci, she practically shimmered from all the gold, cobalt blue and ruby red. Her glossy black hair, expertly swept up into a loose chignon, didn't show a single gray strand, and her cat-eye makeup was perfect. She practically vibrated with glamorous energy.
Gabriella effortlessly achieved what my mother could only hope to cheaply copy, no matter how much money she spent.
Next to her, I felt like a common little dormouse drowning in a bucket of water.
I tried to reach for the towel again. “I should get out of the tub.”
She waved her hand. “Don’t be silly. You just got in there, and you look like you could use a nice, relaxing soak… with some wine of course.”
I awkwardly sat back in the tub, making sure the suds covered my naked breasts.
Wineglasses clinked as she set them on the sink countertop. She held up a bottle of red wine. “This is all I could find in the cupboard. It’s not Cavalieri. Seems to be a simple table red wine but needs must and all that, right sweetie?”
