The Arranged Marriage (10 page)

“Ah! I did expect them to stay for breakfast but they left early this morning.”

Her displeasure was obvious. Guilt knifed through Alex. It was clear now that Gina had fled the castle, fearing major embarrassment. Or worse, humiliation. She had even risked offending his grandmother in her need to escape any unacceptable reaction to their intimacy. He had unwittingly put her in a highly equivocal position and it was up to him to make some amending move.

His grandmother rang the bell and gestured to the chair directly across the table from hers. “Would you like Rosita to bring you some breakfast?”

Odd that she didn’t immediately inquire what he was doing here. Needing information, Alex sat down, prepared to chat long enough to find out what he wanted to know. “No breakfast.” That would take too much time. “Though I’d welcome a cup of coffee if you’re having one.”

Rosita promptly appeared and his grandmother ordered coffee for two, not bothering to try pressing any food on him, which was also odd. For some reason she always assumed Michelle never fed him properly and she must be thinking he’d just come from his fiancée’s apartment.

“I thought the wedding went off very well last night,” his grandmother commented while they waited for the coffee.

“Yes,” he agreed. To him it seemed like a lifetime ago—a blur he didn’t even want to remember.

“Antonio made a fine speech.”

He nodded, belatedly remarking, “He enjoys entertaining an audience.”

Tony was an extrovert, always fun company. Alex sometimes wished he had his younger brother’s bright
joie de vivre,
his ability to simply let go and move with the flow.
You try to keep control of too much, Alex,
Tony often teased him, but control had gone right out the door last night.

“And my new find—Gina Terlizzi—sang beautifully,” his grandmother went on.

“I thought so, too,” he muttered, turning his gaze to the view, not wanting his grandmother to see how deeply her protégée affected him.

Her ensuing silence gave him the strong impression that she knew and was waiting for him to comment further. Of course she had seen him sweep Gina into dancing with him and probably watched their exit from the ballroom. Not exactly the action of a disinterested man. But she couldn’t know what else had transpired between them.

Certainly he had to inform his grandmother that
his
wedding was now cancelled, releasing the date for a booking by some other couple. There was no possibility of any reconnection with Michelle. Even without the attraction to Gina, no way would he reconsider marriage to a woman who could be so blithely unfaithful.

Which brought him straight back to the impression Gina must have taken away with her—of him having cheated on his fiancée. It was intolerable. Never mind that the desire which had exploded between them last night had been mutual. He’d pushed it and taken what he wanted without clearing the way first.

Rosita returned with freshly percolated coffee and the accompaniments. He turned to smile his thanks but the smile wasn’t returned. She seemed to evade looking at him, busily laying everything out on the table. It was not like the usually voluble Rosita to remain silent, and skipping out of the room the moment she was done.

Something was very wrong here. Rosita had been working at the castle since he was a boy and always had a smile for him. Alex directed a quick searching look at his grandmother. Her eyes were half veiled as she poured out the coffee, her facial expression giving nothing away. It struck Alex she appeared too calm, too composed, which was invariably her manner when faced with trouble.

“What’s the problem, Nonna?”

She finished pouring, set the coffeepot down, then met his probing gaze with a very sharp directness. “You are the problem, Alessandro,” she stated unequivocally.

He realised instantly that they knew—both Rosita and his grandmother
knew
he’d slept with Gina. Damage control leapt to the fore.

“I’m sorry you are distressed by my actions. I’ll redress any problems I’ve caused very shortly,” he promised.

“And just how do you propose to correct the situation?” came the pointed demand, her eyes biting with reproof. “I might remind you...”

“I broke my engagement to Michelle last night,” he interjected. “As soon as the wedding was over. The parting was decisive before I came home.”

Her eyes flashed some other strong feeling before she sat back with an air of relief. “It is good to know you have not acted entirely dishonourably.”

“Nonna, I assure you...”

“Let me put it quite plainly, Alessandro,” she interrupted, determination blazing at him. “Gina Terlizzi was my guest. She was entitled to the safe privacy of the suite given to her and her son. I do not believe for one moment that she invited you into it. Her hasty departure early this morning speaks volumes to me... if not to
you.
”

He frowned. “Did she say anything?”

“Do you expect a young lady of any dignity to blurt out that my grandson had seduced her?”

“There was no seduction,” he curtly protested.

“That he used her on the rebound from breaking up with another woman?”

“No!” His fist crashed down on the table as he pushed up from his chair. “Just stay out of this, Nonna! I’ll fix it!”

“See that you do, Alessandro,” she fiercely retorted. “I do not like to feel ashamed of my grandson.”

Ashamed?

It stung him more than anything else she could have said, stung him into a more sober re-appraisal of his conduct, stung him out of the anger that had surged at her accusatory assumptions. His grandmother was trying to see through Gina’s eyes, read her reasons for leaving as she had. The reasons weren’t right. But it was clear his grandmother’s sympathy was very much on Gina Terlizzi’s side.

He stood still, understanding the attack on his character, though to his mind it wasn’t warranted. “You like her,” he said quietly.

“Yes, I do. She has solid worth. It pains me that she should be hurt through any association with my family.”

He nodded.
Solid worth.
His grandmother had never really taken to Michelle. He’d excused it on the grounds that she was old, old-fashioned, not in tune with today’s world and Michelle was very much the modern woman. As it had turned out, perhaps he was old-fashioned, too. Certainly
solid worth
now had more appeal to him than superficial glamour.

“It wasn’t seduction, Nonna. Nor was it a rebound reaction on my part. It was mutual attraction. Which I intend to pursue,” he declared, wanting the murky air between them cleared.

His grandmother closed her eyes and breathed a deep sigh of relief. “You’ll find Gina Terlizzi’s telephone number and address in my office diary.”

“Thank you. If you’ll excuse me?”

She nodded. “Please take care, Alessandro.” Her lids lifted, her eyes delivering an eloquent look of warning. “No one can sing like that without a feeling heart.”

“Do you think I don’t know it?” he answered with considerable irony. “My judgement may have been astray with Michelle but I’m learning, Nonna. I’m learning.”

He left the breakfast room, intent on learning more.

Gina
stood at the kitchen sink, idly washing the breakfast dishes as she watched Marco through the window. He was wheeling his little trolley around, pausing at chosen places to set a plastic block on the lawn, creating a pattern that satisfied his eye for whatever game he had in mind.

It was a good backyard for him to play in, securely fenced, with a small vegetable garden adding the interest of watching things grow and picking them when they were ready to be picked—tomatoes, capsicum, cucumbers. Gina grew the flowers she loved in the front garden, ensuring they wouldn’t be damaged by bouncing balls.

The house itself was an old wooden Queenslander, built high to catch breezes, verandas providing shade from the hot sun. It was nothing grand or flash—certainly no castle—but it was a home, a home of their own which both Angelo’s parents and hers had helped them buy to start off their marriage. Except she no longer had a husband and Marco didn’t have a father.

Was it a wild fantasy that Alex King might fill those roles?

Last night...caring for Marco...loving her...

She heaved a sigh loaded with all the inner miseries that had been building up over his connection to Michelle Banks. Maybe Alex and his fiancée had been at odds with each other at the wedding, ending with a big argument, passions erupting. People could go off the rails at such times, but given a day or two to cool down...

The telephone rang.

Gina lifted her hands out of the soapy water and hurriedly dried them on a tea-towel as she moved to pick up the receiver. It was probably her mother calling, wanting to know how the gig had gone at the castle— such an honour to be asked to sing by Isabella King.

Gina grimaced at the need to sound bright and cheerful, pretending nothing of a disturbing nature had happened... like having taken a lover in the middle of the night and not knowing whether he’d even want to remember it in the morning.

“Hi! Gina here,” she announced, forcing a lightness into her voice she didn’t feel.

“Gina, it’s Alex King,” came the strongly spoken reply, instantly spinning her into emotional turmoil.

The shock of hearing from him so soon when she’d been thinking she might not hear from him at all, left her totally speechless. Her gaze darted to the kitchen clock. It was only a few minutes past ten. Had he just woken and found her gone? Was he calling to say it had been a
mistake?

Her heart seemed to be thundering in her ears. Her chest was so tight, she could barely breathe. Her hand gripped the receiver with knuckle-white intensity. Her mind willed him to say something good, something that would ease this awful tension and give her back the sense of peace and pleasure that had been eaten away by doubts and fears.

“I understand you felt it was the discreet thing to do...leaving early this morning,” he went on, his deep voice seeming to throb in time with her pulse. “But can we meet today?”

Meet... today...

For the life of her she couldn’t get her tongue around a reply. She was dizzy with shock and joy. It seemed he didn’t want to forget that last night had ever been. He wanted to be with her again. But...for what purpose? He might be feeling the need to explain himself, excuse himself...

“Gina...?”

She tried to work some moisture into her mouth. Her heart was screaming
yes
to the meeting, no matter what, but her sense of Tightness cried out for more from him. If he was still tied to that woman, why go so far as to ask for a meeting? Did he mean to test his feelings? Or... her stomach cramped... was he hoping to have a fling on the side?

“Gina, I’m no longer committed to the relationship I had with Michelle,” he stated in a rush. “I broke my engagement to her after the wedding, when I took her home. There’s no barrier to...” He paused, obviously hunting for inoffensive words. “I mean there’s no reason for you to be concerned about my playing anyone false. Please believe that.”

He was finished with Michelle Banks! This news was like a star burst going off in Gina’s head.

“I should have told you so last night,” he said regretfully. “And I apologise very sincerely for any grief it’s given you this morning.”

Her relief whooshed out in a heartfelt sigh. “Thank you, Alex. It did worry me.”
Understatement of the year,
but it didn’t matter now. The weight of misery had lifted and her blood was zinging with a bubbling fountain of hope.

“I would like very much to spend some time with you today,” he pressed. “Could I bring a picnic lunch and take you and Marco out somewhere?”

Such an invitation, including her son, surely meant he anticipated enjoying their company. “I’d like that,” she answered, trying not to sound over-the-moon eager. “Crystal Cascades is a lovely place for a picnic, and it’s not far from here. I live at Redlynch, on the outskirts of Cairns.”

“I know. My grandmother gave me your address.”

Another shock, mixed with a surge of pleasure at this proof there was nothing hidden about his intentions. “You spoke to her about me?” The words spilled out, artlessly revealing her need for any relationship between them to be openly acknowledged.

“A little while ago. If I pick you up at twelve o’clock, will that suit?”

“Yes,” she answered dazedly, unbelievably happy at this train of events. “We’ll be ready.”

“Good! I’ll see you then.”

A picnic with Alex King! Gina hugged the telephone receiver to her heart. It was really happening. Not a completely wild dream. Alex wanted to be with her and Marco!

* * *

A picnic! Alex set the receiver down, a triumphant sense of achievement sliding into bemusement over the meeting he’d arranged. When was the last time he’d been on a picnic? He couldn’t remember. Yet the idea had popped straight into his mind... Gina, Marco, family picnic. It formed a seductive picture. Which gave him pause for thought.

Was he reacting against Michelle?

Reacting against the pattern of Sunday brunch at some fashionable waterside restaurant...idle chitchat with fashionable acquaintances?

He certainly felt a strong desire to remove himself from that entire scene, to move towards something else. Right now, Gina Terlizzi and her son formed the focus of a new direction, but maybe he should move forward with more caution, more consideration, instead of plunging headlong into another serious involvement.

He’d made a bad mistake with Michelle.

Could he trust his instincts with Gina?

His grandmother’s warning came sharply to mind—
Please take care, Alessandro.

He should.

He would.

Control was the key.

Yet with Gina...did he want to control the feelings she stirred? Was he even able to? All he knew was the need to see her, be with her, know more of her, was compelling, and no way was he about to deny himself this course of action.

* * *

Gina was still floating on a cloud of happiness when her mother telephoned a half hour after the call from Alex. There was no need for any pretence to be cheerful. A natural joy lilted through her voice as she answered the flurry of questions about the wedding.

“So the duets were well received,” her mother concluded with satisfaction.

“Absolutely,” Gina enthused. “Mrs. King was delighted with the double act, and Peter Owen said he’d contact me about doing more with him.”

“Well, that is a compliment, coming from a real professional. Not that your voice isn’t lovely,” she added with a warm ring of pride.

Gina laughed. “I know what you mean, but I don’t know how serious he was. Peter Owen is the kind of guy who pours out flattery.”

“You must come over for lunch and tell me all about it.”

“Mum, I really have no more to tell,” Gina quickly protested, though she hadn’t mentioned the most important development from last night. A deep residue of fear and doubt seeded a reluctance to speak of Alex King to her mother. Not yet, she argued cautiously. Not until she was sure of what Alex actually wanted from their meeting today. “Actually, I’ve promised Marco a picnic so I can’t come anyway,” she excused. “Though thanks for the invite.”

“Oh! Well, I’ll catch up with you during the week. Give Marco my love. No, put him on the ‘phone. I’ll have a chat to him myself.”

She couldn’t risk Marco blurting out about the man who’d slept with Mama. “He’s outside playing. Leave it ‘til next time. Okay?” Hopefully he’d forget that highly sensitive information in the excitement of more recent events before he did speak to her mother.

“Of course. I’m so glad you’ve had this opportunity, Gina. I’ll go and tell your father you were a big success.”

“Thanks, Mum. Bye for now.”

Gina put the receiver down more thoughtfully this time, having reached the sobering realisation that while she certainly
matched
Alex King in bed, he might not see her as his match in other areas of his life. She remembered all the questions he had asked about her family and background after they’d danced, before he’d kissed her and then declared he wasn’t being fair.

Not fair to kiss her while he was committed to marry Michelle Banks, or not fair, given her life would never meld with his? Sexual attraction had nothing to do with either. She’d had proof enough of that reality. In the darkness of the night, hadn’t their desire for each other overridden every other sensibility? It was true of her, and most probably true of him, too.

Detaching himself from Michelle Banks might not mean anything in the long run, except he’d decided he didn’t want to be married to the glamorous designer. It didn’t mean he’d prefer Gina as his wife. She had to be very careful not to assume too much from Alex’s wish to spend time with her today. The intimacy they had shared last night was fresh in his mind. He could be feeling guilty about it, simply wanting to clear himself with her.

On the other hand, he could have done that with his phone call, so it seemed more likely he did want to pursue the attraction. Besides, there really was no point in stewing over where it would or could lead. Gina knew in her heart, however reckless and wanton it might be, she was not about to deny herself the chance of any kind of relationship with Alex King. As far as she was concerned, it was a once-in-a-lifetime chance.

The plain truth was she didn’t want to talk it over with her mother or anyone else, didn’t want to hear doubts and fears and cautions. She could think up enough of them herself. Whatever the consequences, she was going to listen to her heart, first and foremost. Surely instincts were more important than opinions shaped by other factors.

Twelve o’clock. Gina had decided not to change the clothes she’d dressed herself and Marco in this morning. A picnic was a picnic, and she liked the outfit she’d planned to wear for breakfast at the castle, though ironically enough, there were more butterflies in her stomach right now than there were on the top that went with her denim skirt.

They turned into a wildly fluttering flock when Marco charged down the hall, yelling, “He’s here, Mama! He’s got a big cruiser like Uncle Danny’s.”

A four-wheel-drive vehicle, not a flash car. The thought instantly zipped into her mind that he’d undoubtedly driven something else on his dates with Michelle Banks.
Stop it!
she fiercely berated herself. This was a picnic, not a fancy outing. Besides, she couldn’t imagine he’d have a child-safety seat for Marco, so they would have to go in her car anyway.

She picked up the all-purpose bag she had prepared to cover all contingencies for her son—Alex could hardly be expected to know a little child’s needs or the accidents that could occur—and took a deep breath as she headed for the front door, pulled along by a highly excited Marco who was determinedly leading her out to “the nice man.”

They stepped onto the veranda just as Alex started up the steps to it. He paused, looking at them both, as though taking a moment to assess what he was doing here. He was dressed in blue jeans and a royal-blue sports shirt, making the blue of his eyes so vivid, Gina couldn’t tear her own gaze away from them. All her insides were helplessly aquiver, waiting for his judgement. Then he smiled and the nervous flutters melted in a wave of warm pleasure.

“Hi! It’s good to see you again,” he declared, including her son in the greeting. “Remember me, Marco? My name is Alex.”

“Yes, I ‘member. You weren’t scared of the cane toad and you showed me the pretty fish,” Marco smugly informed him.

Alex laughed, delighted by the recognition given. “Well, maybe we’ll find something exciting to do this afternoon. I’ll just carry your mother’s bag for her and off we’ll go.” He acted on his words, remarking ironically, “You didn’t need to bring anything, Gina.”

“It’s just stuff for Marco. I wasn’t sure...”

“I figured all little boys like barbecued chicken, bananas and ice blocks.” His eyes twinkled teasingly. “Right or wrong?”

She had to smile at his forethought. “Right enough.” They were down the steps and following the path to the front gate before she remembered the transport problem. “You won’t have a car seat for him. I thought...”

“Yes, I have. Got one installed at a hire-car place.”

She stopped, amazed at the trouble he’d gone to.

“I did ask you both out with me,” he gently reminded her.