Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 118245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 591(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 591(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
I smiled at the uncharacteristic domestic thought. I was definitely beginning to see the charm of having a woman in my life. My cousins weren’t wrong.
Neither was my father. Speaking of whom…
I reached into my back pocket for my mobile and dialed my father’s number.
“Hello, son. Change your mind yet?”
Ever since I had agreed to Dante’s plan, my father, Benedict Cavalieri, the rather infamous black sheep of the family, had started every conversation with the same question.
This time, I finally had a different answer. “As a matter of fact, I have.”
“So you finally came to your senses. Good. I’ll start placing calls to some of our contacts to take the temperature in Sicily,” offered my father.
I winced as I flung several dresses over my shoulder and headed out of the room. “About that. I have a feeling it’s about to boil over.”
After filling him in, there was a long stretch of silence.
Finally, he chuckled. “Damn, son, when you step in the shit, you really jump in with both feet.”
“Says the man who fell in love with his brother’s almost-assassin.”
“You know damn well Liliana didn’t pull the trigger,” he gruffly, but good-naturedly, replied.
“Yes, but you didn’t when you first fell for her,” I taunted.
“Be nice to your stepmother or I’ll dock your allowance.”
My head fell back as I laughed. It was a running joke in our family that my new so-called stepmother was actually a year younger than me. Their new nicknames inside the family were the Old Billy Goat and his Little Nun, because of Lili having been raised in a convent and their age gap.
Although none of that mattered.
Not only did I genuinely enjoy Liliana’s friendship, I was especially grateful for how happy she made my father. For the first time in his life, he seemed content in that way only a truly fulfilled life could make a person.
I wanted that for myself.
Sobering, I crossed the threshold back into my bedroom. “Listen, we have to locate her sister and get her the fuck out of Sicily before Antonius finds out his daughters switched places.”
“Agreed. I’ll head down to the winery tomorrow and then to Sicily. It would be best if Dante heard all this in person. Do we know the sister’s location?”
My attention was divided as Ella came into view, standing next to the broken bathroom door wrapped in my blue robe. It was so large on her, the hem scraped along the floor and the sleeves draped well past her fingertips.
Although I was annoyed she had disobeyed me and gotten out of the tub, she looked so damn cute I couldn’t be that angry with her. “Hold on.”
I approached Ella and cupped her cheek. God, she was so beautiful. I still couldn’t wrap my mind around the fortunate turn of events. “Baby, is your sister at your father’s house?”
She broke eye contact with me as she tightened the belt on the robe. “Yes, she should be.”
CHAPTER 33
ELLA
Iheld my breath as Matteo continued to tower over me.
Would he believe me? Could he tell I was lying?
After what felt like an eternity, he turned away and continued his conversation on the phone.
Only then did I let the air out of my lungs in a dizzying rush.
Despite what had just happened between us, I couldn’t tell him the truth about Antonia’s whereabouts. Not yet. Not until I had a chance to think through everything.
Matteo turned and gestured to a small pile of clothes on the bed. For you, he mouthed before gesturing that he would be another minute.
When he left, I grabbed the clothes and snuck down the hallway when the coast was clear, back to my own room.
Rifling through the pile, I was secretly pleased to see the pink Balenciaga cashmere sweater and a pair of capris. There was even a pair of Prada Napa leather ballet flats. They looked like they’d be a size too big, but I could stuff tissues into the toes to make them fit.
I leaned over and checked the entrance to the bedroom to see Matteo pacing just out in the hallway. Holding the clothes to my chest, I scrambled back into the far corner of the bathroom, away from the broken door, to change.
By the time I emerged, Matteo was waiting for me. “Ready to go?”
The towel wrapped around my wet hair slipped onto my shoulders. “Go? Go where?”
Was it possible he was taking me to the train station so I could return to Sicily like I asked?
“Into town. I have to pick up a part. Come with me.”
“I think I’ll just stay here.”
He approached.
Once more, I had to tilt my head back to meet his gaze. He was just so tall. His shoulders alone were half my height. My cheeks burned at the thought of all that heavily muscled weight pinning me down only a half hour earlier.