Making Mina 3: Compromising Positions (7 page)

What did she have to lose?

“I’ll listen.”  The decision made, her bravery returned, faint but real, and she opened the car door.  “Let’s go somewhere we can talk.”

As she slid into the leather seat she glanced back up at Giovanni’s apartment.  Ivy was standing in the second story window watching, and Gio’s head was just visible behind her.  Ivy smiled and nodded, giving Mina a thumbs-up as she slammed the door, and Mina could only hope her friend was right.  Otherwise, she’d just gone from the frying pan back into the fire.

Chapter Five

Marco drove in silence, and Mina watched the scenery as it passed.  Giovanni’s apartment was in Genoa--a bigger city than Miami--but Portofino was tiny. She’d explored the area in between as she’d wandered her way through the local museums, and pretty soon she realized they were headed back to the villa. Back to the beginning.

Or the end.

She couldn’t stand the silence.  They’d spent hours on these roads, all of them more comfortable than this one.
At least they could talk about work. “The last of the
collezione
shipped out this morning.” 

“You went to the office?” He sounded surprised, and she felt a little redness warm her cheeks.

“I sent Gio.” She didn’t know why the admission embarrassed her.  She’d already explained that she hadn’t wanted to see him--this was no different.

“I thought you’d be there,” she shifted in her seat, “and I wasn’t ready to see you.”

Marco shot her a confused look. “How could I be there? We didn’t arrive at the airport until two” he looked at his watch, “and a half hours ago.”

She shook her head, “Think about it. I didn’t even know you were
gone
.  How could I know you hadn’t gotten
back
?”

The conversation stalled and Mina zoned out watching fence-posts as they zipped past.

“You didn’t know I’d flown to Miami?”  There was an odd note in Marco’s voice and she turned in her seat to look at him.

“No idea,” she shrugged her shoulder a little. “It didn’t even occur to me that was possible.  I mean, no matter what else was happening, the
collezione
had to be dealt with.  When I left the villa I asked Giovanni to find me a hotel.  It wasn’t until later that he offered to let me stay at his place since it was convenient to the main offices in Genoa and I didn’t have a car.” A stormy look crossed his face and she rolled her eyes. “Don’t look like that. He was a perfect…”

Marco gave her another look and the words died in her throat.

“We will talk about Giovanni later,” he said, and she shivered at the edge in the words, “but right now I have another question. Did you leave a message for me Saturday morning?”

The impending conversation was forgotten and she shook her head.

“Message?” Mina gave a little snort. “No. I had a lot I wanted to say, but I didn’t leave any messages. I thought you’d call, or come by, or something, and I could say it to your face. ” She realized how pathetic that sounded and wished she could take it back, but it was true.  She’d been hurt and angry but underneath it all she’d been certain that he would track her down and they’d have another knockdown, drag-out fight that would probably end up with them in bed. Shows what she knew.

You expected him to prove himself.  Again
. Mina squirmed but the voice in her head refused to back down.  Apparently it was in league with Ivy.

“When you didn’t contact me I thought…” She let the statement fade off without finishing it. It was too embarrassing to admit that she believed he was bored with her and didn’t call because he was glad she was gone.

“I can imagine what you thought.” The words came out in a snarl, surprising her. “Three days.  Wasted.” His hands tightened on the steering wheel, anger in every line of his body.

She didn’t know what his problem was but she refused to be blamed for this. “I’ll have you know I haven’t wasted
any
time. I kept my part of the bargain,”
even if you didn’t
, she thought. “Every artifact, every contractor…  I took care of all the…”  Her indignant response was cut short as a heavy hand reached over and rested on her knee.

“No, Mina darling, not you.  Me.”  He looked at her and she could see emotions warring on his face.

“
I
have wasted three days--three very frustrating days--on what was apparently a wild goose chase.”  The anger was still there, banked beneath the surface, but he wasn’t directing it at her. His hand tightened on her leg. “You see, I was
told
that you left for Miami, Mina.  Told that you quit your work with the
collezione
, and that you never wanted to see me again.”

The words hung in the air between them and Mina tried to make sense of what he was saying. “Never wanted to see…?” she stopped mid-sentence and stared at him. “I never said that.  You had to know I would never say that.”

Did he?
The Ivy-voice asked. 
You ran away before.  Why wouldn’t he believe you’d done it again?

She refused to dignify that with an answer.

Marco’s hand felt hot through her jeans and she couldn’t help remembering how it felt against her bare skin, how it caressed her, and held her… and how it looked against Serafina’s shoulder.

The memory stung her pride and she sat straighter in the leather seat.

“I am a professional. I wouldn’t abandon my responsibilities to the Oppen no matter how much my feelings were hurt.”

There
, she thought,
see what he makes of that
.

His fingers patted her leg gently. “I should have realized your honor would never let you do that.  But I,” he let out a rough laugh, “Well, I wasn’t thinking particularly clearly.”

There was some cold comfort to be had from that, she supposed. She’d hate to think she was the only one royally screwed up over this.

“Well, whoever told you I left was either messing with you or full of wishful thinking.” As soon as the words left her mouth she realized their importance.  She met Marco’s eyes across the car and was taken aback at the blazing anger she saw there. She was thankful it wasn’t aimed at her, but it made her wonder who
was
the target.

“Who told you that anyway?”

He turned the steering wheel and guided the car down the long drive to the Genovese compound, his face blank. “It came straight from my dear
Mamma
, of course.”

The wheels in Mina’s head were turning faster than the ones on the car.  His mother told him she’d run back to Miami?  That made no sense. She wanted her out of the picture, and she got that when she ran out after seeing what was going on in the office in the first place.  Why send Marco chasing her halfway across the world?

She probably believed he’d be too angry to chase her.  That made more sense.  It would never occur to Bianca Genovese that Marco might actually care enough to pursue someone so beneath him.

Bitch.

“Amazingly helpful woman, your mother. She’s the one who made sure I saw you and your
friend
,” she said sarcastically. “It’s impressive. Between slapping me in the face with your infidelity and sending you on a wild goose chase, I can’t imagine how she can manage her busy social schedule.”

Marco gave a short laugh and pulled the car into the cavernous garage.

“You don’t know the half of it. She’s also the person who invited Serafina the other night,
and
the person who informed her that I would be interested in rekindling our relationship.”

Marco was focused on parking, each move controlled and efficient, but Mina could hear the bitterness in his voice.

“I didn’t recognize what she was up to right away.” He got out of the car and came around to her side to open her door.  She didn’t want to be that close to him, but there was no way to avoid it without looking like she was afraid of him. 

It wasn’t him she was afraid of, though, was it?

 She took a deep breath and let him help her out of the car. He gripped her elbow, guiding her gently towards the door to the courtyard. “It isn’t normal to see a conspiracy around every corner, but after the past few days I cannot come to any other conclusion.”

They crossed the paved walk and entered the shadowed cool of the entry hall and she turned on him.

“You expect me to believe that this whole thing--Serafina, the kissing, the messages--is a set up?  By your
mother
?” Disbelief was thick in her voice. “I know she doesn’t like me, but that’s hard to believe.”

Marco’s grip on her elbow tightened.

“Harder to believe than me being involved with another woman?  Harder to believe that after all my support and promises that I would betray you, in public, in front of my family, my partners, and my political contacts?”  He forced her to face him. “You said I should know that your honor wouldn’t let you abandon your work.  I hoped that you’d know my honor wouldn’t let me abandon you.”

She wanted to believe him so badly, but she had so many doubts.

“It would be easier to believe if I didn’t have to ignore what I saw with my own eyes.” Tears thickened her voice. As she was looking at him, she was seeing something else--the comfortable closeness between Marco and his ex, her beautiful face, the rightness of the two of them together--and emptiness filled her heart.  He deserved so much more than she could give… someone who understood his world, and fit with his family.

Not her.

“I don’t care what your eyes saw.” Marco grabbed her with both hands, forcing her back to the present. Mina felt her breath hitch in her throat . “I want to know what your heart thinks.”  He leaned closer, his face barely an inch from hers. “What your heart
knows
.” He kissed her and she felt the familiar lightning flash between them, her heart slamming in her chest as she gave herself to the feelings he unleashed in her.  His lips demanded a response and she gave it to him. 

“
Amore
.” His voice was low, the single word cutting through her resistance like it was made of gossamer. 
Love
… he’d never called her
Love
before. She froze, the promise in that word more than she could contemplate. More than she’d ever dreamed.

Sex with him was incredible--books could be written about how good--but his love? That would be cataclysmic. 

Desperately she tried to remind herself of all the reasons why this wasn’t a good idea, why she should be running away from him, not towards him, but her body refused to move.

“
Mina mia
.” Her bones were melting under her skin. If she didn’t get away she’d liquefy in his hands.

He caressed her skin, holding on but not restraining her. She could pull away if she really wanted to, but what she really wanted was
more
. She felt her heart against her breastbone, her pulse racing as she shivered in his hands.

She couldn’t meet his eyes or he’d know how close to the edge she was.  He’d made it clear that the next move was hers, and while he’d never force her to accept his touch, he wouldn’t hesitate to force her to make a decision. One push and she’d fall, and there’d be no going back. Ever.

“I need something.” The voice didn’t sound like her own, it was thick and rough, but she knew it was hers.

Marco paused, his hands stilling on her back, and his eyes glittered down at her. “Anything.”

Mina imagined a cliff and she knew she was speeding toward it.  She slowly, intentionally looked at the face above her and threw herself over the edge.

“You told me that what I saw in that room,” she paused. The words were awkward extensions of her thoughts, but she had to make him understand. “You said it wasn’t real.”

Marco shook his head with such force that it was a full-body denial. “It wasn’t.  None of it was real.” He slid roughly up her arms and cupped her face, lifting her chin in his hands. “I swear to you.  I want no one but you.”

She wet her lips and watched Marco’s eyes follow the path left by her tongue.  “Prove it.”

Black eyes snapped to hers, his body suddenly still. “Prove what? That I want you?” He pulled her closer and she felt the heavy hardness of his erection as it pressed against her.  “Isn’t it obvious?”

Mina’s feminine ego basked in the attention, thrilled at how open he was about her effect on him, but that wasn’t what she was aiming for.  She rolled her hips against him, feeling another flash of satisfaction as he closed his eyes, and she watched control himself by sheer force of will.

“That’s part of it,” she admitted, “but not nearly enough.” She took his hand and led him further into the house.  Silent steps carried them along the same path that she remembered from the last time she was here… through the foyer, through the hall, towards the stairs, and finally…  into his office.