Cherished: Love in London Series 2 (4 page)

T
hey joined
Mia for a leisurely breakfast. The sun was shining, birds were singing in the distance, the lake was calm and peaceful; it was a perfect setting. Amber enjoyed listening to the banter between the brother and sister, loving how natural and relaxed Nico was in his own home. A text message beeped through on Mia’s phone, briefly interrupting the conversation. She gave it a quick glance, grinning at what she was seeing.

“Tutto bene, Mia?”

“Perfetto, Nico!” Her face was radiant. “My design samples will be arriving this afternoon for me to approve. I’ve worked so hard on this collection and I can’t wait to see them.”

An idea seemed to be forming in her head as she knitted her eyebrows together in thought. She grabbed Amber’s hand. “Amber, were you planning on wearing anything really specific to mother’s cocktail party later?”

“Um, no. Yes. Not really. I have a black cocktail dress that I was going to wear…?” She looked enquiringly at Mia, wondering why she was asking.

“Feel free to say no, but I’m dying to see one of the dresses I’ve designed on a model and with your figure, I think it would be perfect on you. Of course, only if you’re comfortable?” Her eyes were sparkling in excitement and Amber couldn’t help but laugh.

“Mia, I really appreciate the gesture, but, I’m hardly model material.” She took a sip of her coffee, smiling.

“Nonsense! Dio Mio, Nico, feel free to jump in and tell her how beautiful she is!”

Amber felt her skin heating up at the compliment and looked away, not wanting to place Nico on the spot. She felt his warm hand slide into hers and she risked a glance at him. His eyes penetrated into her.

“You don’t realise how beautiful you are, do you?” His voice was low and seductive, and Amber felt butterflies in her stomach as they continued to lock eyes with each other. She was unable to pull away; he was fully in control.

“Oh goodness, get a room would you?!” Mia made gagging noises at them, which broke the spell. Nico let go of her hand and pushed his chair back.

“Mia, if you don’t mind looking after Amber for the afternoon, I’ll be back later. Just need to catch up on a few things.” He raised his eyebrow at Amber, seeking her approval.

Both girls responded at the same time.

“Sure.” Amber smiled at Nico as he started to walk away. She was grateful for some girl-time with Mia, but at the same time, she wondered what he would be up to. A strange thought crossed her mind, which she instantly dismissed – what if he was going to visit one of his girlfriends? Mentally she shook her head. She had no right to question his movements as she reminded herself that this was just a business deal. Why then, was her heart pulling towards him so strongly?

Mia scraped back her chair, breaking her thoughts.

“Amber, shall we go and get pampered? I would love to take you to my favourite spa – maybe we can get mani-pedi’s and a massage?”

“Mia, that sounds like heaven. Give me a sec. Let me just go get my purse and I’ll meet you out front in a few minutes.”

Amber dashed to her room, quickly checked her appearance and grabbed her handbag. She made her way to the front of the main house and saw Mia sitting in a red, Z4, with the top down . She smiled as she approached. The car definitely suited her personality to the ground. She was fiddling with the CD player when Amber opened the door.

“Ready?” Mia shouted over the music, having selected her track, which was now blaring through the speakers.

“Yep! Let’s go.” She extracted her sunglasses from her purse and the girls sped off into the town.

A
mber thoroughly enjoyed
Mia’s company for the afternoon. She was similar to Beth in many ways and Amber made a promise to herself to keep in touch with her, regardless of what happened between her and Nico. She would love to introduce Mia to both Beth and Jess, their other best friend.

The massages were heavenly and Amber almost fell asleep from how relaxed she felt. Mia opted for bright pink fingers and toes whilst Amber went a bit more understated with a paler colour. Later that afternoon, fully relaxed from their treatments, they decided to get changed in Amber’s room as the party was due to start in a couple of hours. Mia stopped off in the main house to collect her couriered dress samples and then walked over to the guesthouse with the dresses draped over the arms. She knocked lightly and then entered. Amber was just setting up some music on the MP3 player.

“Oh gosh, I love that song!” Mia smiled and danced her way into the room, singing along with the band.

Amber laughed and joined in after a beat. She was having so much fun with Mia, it was like they had known each other for ever. She found out that they had a great deal in common – similar taste in art, the places they liked to frequent in London for after work drinks – it was mystery they hadn’t connected before through mutual contacts.

As the song ended, they flopped onto the bed together, catching their breath after their enthusiastic singing and dancing. Amber turned her head to look at Mia.

“Mia, are you seeing anyone at the moment?” She was sure she must have someone special in her life, but if so, she wondered why he wasn’t here.

She watched Mia’s face fall and then she frowned lightly. “No, I’m not,” she said quietly, looking away. Amber didn’t want to probe any further, but Mia took a deep breath signalling the conversation wasn’t over. Amber waited patiently.

“I’ve been in love with Gino since I was about fourteen.”

“Gino?”

“Yes, my parents are friends with his father. He and Nico went to school together, they’re the same age and are still good friends.”

“And, does Gino know how you feel?” Amber asked gently for it was clear to see how painful the subject was to Mia.

“Yes, he knows. He told me he loved me once.” Her eyes seemed to mist over. “But that we could never be together.”

“What? Why?”

Mia sniffed. “He thinks he isn’t good enough for me. That I deserve better.”

“Oh, Mia. I’m so sorry.” She sat up and hugged her new friend. “Men can be such losers sometime.” She sighed. “Wait until I tell you about my best friend, Beth and her now fiancé, Theo.”

Mia wiped away her tears and walked off the bed to the fully stocked mini-fridge. She pulled out a bottle of chilled white wine, grabbed two glasses from the cabinet to the side and poured the chilled liquid.

“Salute, Amber.” She smiled although her eyes betrayed her sadness. “I’m so happy you and Nico are together.” They clinked their glasses together and took a sip. Amber was overcome with guilt for deceiving her new friend about her non-relationship with Nico and a lump formed in her throat. She thought Mia would be very hurt if she found out the truth, but also decided that since it was Nico who put her in this position in the first place, he should also be the one to break the news.

Mia went over to the dresses and unzipped the garment bags.

“So, what do you think?” She held the dresses up individually and Amber was stunned. They were absolutely beautiful creations. The dresses were cocktail length, cut beautifully and Amber could see how much work had gone into every intricate detail. She ran her hands carefully over them, turning the dresses over.

“Wow, Mia, these are amazing! You are incredibly talented.”

“Well, I’ve worked my arse off for the last few years, I hope it’s beginning to pay off.” She laughed lightly. “So will you be my clothes horse for tonight, si?”

Amber looked at the exquisite dresses. “Are you sure? I mean, I would be absolutely honoured to, but…” She trailed off, worried if she would be able to do them justice.

“Fantastico! I’m so happy you’ve agreed.” She clapped her hands excitedly, ignoring Amber’s hesitation.

They spent the next few minutes discussing which dress to showcase and ultimately selected a scarlet coloured one. Apart from being bright, the dress was understated compared to the other two, but it fit her like a glove, giving her curves she never thought she possessed. The front was high, but behind, it dipped down quite low, with loose black chains across the back. From the front, the dress was conservative, but the back transformed it into a very classy and sexy number. Amber felt like a model in it as she spun around for Mia.

Mia looked at her and grinned. “Amber, I knew that was the one. Perfetto, you look stunning.” She folded her arms and slowly walked around her adjusting the dress as she did so. “Will you allow me to do your hair and make-up too? I’d love to pin your hair up with a few loose curls to frame your face. I could bring out the blue in your eyes by giving them a sultry and smoky effect. Is that okay?”

Amber couldn’t help laughing and agreeing. Mia was so excited and animated, speaking with her hands as she walked around her. Impulsively, she grabbed Mia into a hug.

“I’m so happy I’ve met you, Mia. Promise me that we’ll stay in touch back in London.”

“Of course, bella. I would love nothing more. And besides, who knows, maybe we could even be sisters soon.” She winked conspiratorially at her.

Swallowing, Amber felt her smile freeze on her face. Thankfully, Mia was preoccupied with selecting her shoes so she didn’t see her expression.

They spent the next couple hours getting dressed together, sipping wine and sharing stories. They were having a great time and Mia, with her dark sense of humour, had Amber doubled up with laughter, wiping her eyes and almost begging for mercy.

Mia took her time getting ready too by selecting one of her other newly designed dresses from her collection. Although she was slightly shorter than Amber, what she lost in height, she made up for in curves. She looked stunning and Amber thought it was such a loss for this Gino guy. She decided to approach the subject while Mia was loosely pinning up her hair.

“So, do you think Gino will be coming tonight?”

Mia stilled for moment. “I’m not sure. Obviously his father is coming, but I know he was working on some big project in London. I don’t know if he can get away.”

“So you haven’t spoken lately?”

Mia shook her head. “It just hurts too much. Last we spoke, a couple of months ago, I heard through friends he was dating one of his colleagues.” She looked sad, but also tilted her chin defiantly. “He’s moved on, Amber. I’m trying to do the same.”

Amber reached up and squeezed her hand. With no words to comfort her, she decided to change the subject.

“Tell me more about Nico. What was he like growing up?”

Mia flashed a smile. “Nico was always the charmer.” She stopped pinning her hair and looked away. “But he has always been so driven, which is why I don’t think he has ever let anyone in. He is all about work, work, work.” She shook her head as she resumed pinning Amber’s hair. “That’s why we were so happy to hear that he has met you.”

“Oh? Am I allowed to ask what he said about me?” Amber kept her voice light, but inside her heart rate started to pick up.

“Okay. Promise you won’t repeat this to him?”

“I promise.”

“It sounds like he has it bad for you!” Mia giggled. “He told Mamma that he has found his boom.”

“His
boom
?”

“Si, you know, like the one person who makes your heart stop. Like Boom! Wham! God damn!”

Amber glanced at the fingers on her lap. Her throat closed up as suddenly, her eyes welled up and before she could stop, a few tears landed on her lap. Noticing her tears, Mia immediately dropped the pins and sank to her knees, gripping Amber’s hands, concern etched all over her features.

“Amber, what’s wrong? I’m sorry, have I freaked you out?”

Shaking her head, Amber brushed away her tears. “It’s not that, Mia.” In the short twenty-four hours that they had known each other, Amber truly felt that they had become very good friends. Mia had shown her nothing but kindness and she felt overwhelmed with guilt for lying to her friend.

“What’s the matter then?”

“Nico doesn’t really care about me, Mia.” She cried harder, burying her face into her hands. “This weekend? It means nothing. It’s all just an act.”

M
ia froze
, her eyebrows knitted in confusion. “I don’t understand, Amber. What are you saying?”

Amber grabbed some tissue and wiped her eyes. She took a deep breath and met her friend’s eye. “Mia, I’m so sorry. I never meant for this to happen.” Her eyes filled with tears again as she continued. “I met Nico through work….and a couple of weeks ago, we, er…” She couldn’t go on.

When she glanced at Mia, the other girl nodded in understanding. “It was just the once, and I felt terrible for breaching my client relationship so I stopped working on his project.” Mia made small understanding noises to encourage her to keep going.

“I didn’t think we’d see each other again, but last week he turned up at my flat as asked me to accompany him here for the weekend. He said he was coming under a lot of pressure from your mum to settle down and I don’t know why, but he asked me to be his pretend girlfriend.” She twisted her hands in her lap. “I’m so sorry, Mia, for lying to you and your parents. You have been nothing but kind to me and I feel so terrible.” She glanced at Mia for her reaction and was surprised at what she saw. “Mia? I don’t understand? I thought you’d be hating me right now – why are you grinning like that?”

“Oh, Amber. Don’t you see? You haven’t been lying to us – I really do think Nico is in love with you. I know my brother.” She looked away, the corner of her mouth curved up in a knowing grin. “No wonder he has been so short-tempered the past couple of weeks. It all makes sense now.”

“But, I don’t understand. Why would Nico be in love with me, Mia? His reputation as a playboy precedes him, I’m afraid…he has so many women willing to fall at his feet.”

Mia sighed in acknowledgement. “I know that’s what the world sees, Amber. And I’m not defending his behaviour, but it all means nothing to him. He has been so driven all his life and so far, he has never wanted to settle down. Or maybe it’s because he hadn’t met the right woman. Now you’ve come along and knocked the wind out of his sails.” She smiled at Amber and began rubbing mascara from her face.

Amber couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Could it really be true? Could Nico Moretti really be in love with her?

“Besides,” Mia continued. “I’ve heard him speaking to Mamma about you – he really is besotted.” She stood up. “Now come on, dry your eyes and let’s get you dressed. We have a party to go to.”

Amber squeezed Mia’s hand. “Thank you, Mia. Please don’t say anything to Nico, I’m sure he’d be angry if he knew I exposed our secret.”

Mia made a zipping motion across her lips. “My lips are sealed.”

She finished pinning Mia’s hair and then set to work on her make-up. Their conversation resumed its light and easy-going nature and thankfully, there wasn’t any awkward feelings between them. After her make-up was applied, with Mia’s help, Amber stepped into her red dress and slipped on her heels.

Mia clapped her hands and let out a loud whistle. “Mio Dio, Amber, if interior designing doesn’t work out, I’m sure you would get snapped up by a modelling agency. You look incredible.”

Amber stepped in front of the full-length mirror and immediately her hands flew to her mouth. For the first time in her life, she felt and looked incredibly glamorous. And beautiful. The dress hung perfectly on her body, almost as if it was exclusively made for her. Spinning around, she looked over her shoulder at the back. Yes, it was a bit daring, but the black chains across her tanned back were very flattering. Her black high heels made her long legs look endless.

Then she looked at her face again and gasped. Mia had indeed turned her into a goddess. Her piercing blue eyes were sparkling and stood out against her smoky eye make-up. She liked the light sweeping of blush across her cheeks and her lips, which were finished off with a cherry red gloss. Normally, she would never have worn such bold make-up or a red lip, but she had to agree, it really suited her. Mia was an expert with make-up and Amber made a mental note to ask her over to her flat to give her and Beth some lessons.

“Wow, Mia.” She shook her head lightly, the few tendrils framing her face bouncing with the movement. “I’ve never in my life felt like this.” Her voice started to break, but Mia quickly shot her a mock-horror look, which made Amber laugh. “Don’t worry. I promise I won’t cry again and ruin my beautiful make-up.”

Mia disappeared into the bathroom and after a short while, she re-emerged. This time, it was Amber’s turn to whistle out loud.

“Wow, look at you, Mia. You look stunning. I love the soft waves in your hair.”

The girls spritzed their favourite perfume and after final adjustments, they linked arms and set off to join the party, which had already started. Nico had earlier sent a text message to Amber, informing her that he was held up in town and that he would meet her at the party. He knew she was in good hands with Mia. She had told him to take his time as they were having lots of fun together.

Now, walking up the path to the main house, Amber felt a tingle of anticipation building in her stomach. Would he be here yet? Would he like what she was wearing? Could there really be a chance that Nico was attracted to her? That maybe there was some truth in what Mia told her? Her heart began beating at the prospect of her and Nico together. Then she pictured him with all the other women he had been with and she clamped down her feelings. She sternly told herself not to be foolish because men like Nico never settled. They loved their women too much to commit to just one. She was determined to protect her heart.

W
alking through the main house
, they smiled at the flurry of activity coming from the kitchen. The smartly dressed staff were making their way out with trays of drinks whilst the others were loading up theirs with canapés. Amber gushed in delight as they walked out onto the patio. The entire garden was lit up with twinkling lights, which were discretely hidden in the trees and foliage. It was a sight to behold.

“Wow, this is so beautiful, Mia.” Amber took in her surroundings. The party was already in full swing as guests mingled in groups, laughing with each other and clinking champagne flutes. There was a canopy set up with a makeshift-dancing floor and at the corner, a live band was playing some familiar tunes.

“Come on, let’s go find my parents.” Mia pulled Amber along by the hand as they made their way through the crowd. It took a while to find Annalisa as Mia was stopped over a dozen times to greet and welcome some of their guests. Finally, they spotted her holding court, with Gianmarco looking lovingly at his wife as she finished telling her story. Amber marvelled at her beauty and elegance; Mia had earlier explained that she had designed her dress exclusively.

“Mamma! You look beautiful.” Mia stopped in front of her mother as they embraced and kissed.

“Ah, here come the girls. Look at the two of you.” Annalisa glowed with pride as she looked back and forth at them. “You both look stunning. Bellissima!” Annalisa hugged Amber warmly.

“Thank you, Annalisa. Your daughter is extremely talented. You look beautiful.”

“Thank you, bella.” She gave her daughter a loving glance. “Yes, we do agree she is very talented.”

Mia grinned in pleasure at the compliments. She threw her arms around her dad’s neck and he hugged her back just as hard. Momentarily, Amber felt as if she was intruding on a family moment, but Gianmarco looked at her and scooped her up into a bear hug too. Surprised, Amber giggled at his open affection.

“My two beautiful girls. Enjoy the evening.”

Amber blushed at his compliment. Both Mia and Gianmarco fell into conversation and as Annalisa was busy with another friend, Amber excused herself and went off in the direction of the waiters to get herself and Mia a drink. It was suddenly getting busy and somehow the waiter decided to go in the opposite direction so Amber also turned around to go the other way.

F
eeling her shoe strap loosening
, Amber bent down to re-buckle it and then stood back up. She walked another few feet, looking at her shoe just to make sure it was okay, when she bumped into something hard. She threw her hands out to regain her balance as her cheeks coloured. Before she could stumble, a pair of large, muscled arms encircled her, bringing her close to him. Without looking up, she knew it was Nico. As if in slow motion, she looked up into his smouldering green eyes. Amber felt her heart pounding in her ears. Time seemed to stop as they locked eyes with each other and the people surrounding them seemed to fade into the background. His gaze was riveted on her face, and then slowly raked over her body in appreciation. For a long moment, Amber felt as if she was floating; he was so handsome in his custom-tailored suit, a trim cut, which showed off all the right muscles. And set off by his handmade Italian loafers. She couldn’t tear her gaze away from him as her pulse pounded away. Heat flooded her body and Amber was at a loss, cast in his spell.

Finally he spoke in a low, husky whisper. “Amber. Wow. You look absolutely beautiful this evening.”

She breathed in, shallow and quick gasps as her insides jangled with excitement. The very air around them seemed electrified.

“Thank you, Nico.” Her voice was barely a whisper as she tried to regain some control. “You don’t look so bad, yourself.” She lowered her lashed. Her skin was on fire as he was still holding her. She felt his fingers lightly brush against her back and she sucked in a breath.

Reluctantly, she moved to step out of his arms. He was still watching her intently and Amber felt shivers of desire shooting through her. No one had ever had such a profound effect on her.

“Shall we get some drinks?” He enquired, holding out his elbow.

“Yes, sure. I was just on my way actually, for both me and Mia…” She trailed off, aware that she was rambling and coloured fiercely. She held onto his arm, smiling and noting how well they fit together whilst drawing admiring glances from the people nearby. Nico merely smiled and walked them over to the waiter he had signalled. Taking a few drinks from the tray, they made their way back to Mia.

The remainder of the evening was truly magical. Both Mia and Nico introduced her to various members of their extended family and friends; they made sure to keep her included in all conversations. Amber was really happy to be there and to have the pleasure of sharing a weekend with the utterly charming Moretti family.

She was laughing with Mia and bantering with Nico and his friends and by the end of the evening, she had even picked up a few Italian phrases much to Nico’s delight. Annalisa had cut a huge three-tier cake to a rapturous applause and at midnight they had put on a very impressive display of fireworks. It was the best party she had ever attended.

Shortly after midnight, the guests slowly began to depart and Amber sat with the family for a while as they enthused over the success of the evening. Soon after, both girls decided to retire to bed. After thanking everyone for their hospitality and a wonderful evening she glanced at Nico with a genuine smile on her face. She had witnessed a completely different side to him this evening and her emotions were battling all over the place. She could no longer deny that she was truly falling for him, but still, she tried to fight her heart for self-preservation.

“Amber, let me walk you back to your room.” He held out his hand.

She simply nodded, joined their hands together and followed him out of the house.