VITTORIO'S LOVER (Vittorio Series)

                                                  ONE

She wasn’t much to look at.
Certainly not
his
type, Raffaele thought.  Although she must have held
some
appeal for his brother, even if it wasn’t immediately apparent what that attraction was. He would have overlooked the woman altogether if it hadn’t been for her light complexion and the riot of golden curls cascading to her waist. She wasn’t overweight by any means. Curvaceous was perhaps a better word; full, rounded breasts, an equally well-rounded bottom, hips gently flaring out from a waistline that was in perfect proportion with the rest of her bodacious body. Was that the allure Luca had fallen prey to? Had he been captivated by her feminine softness? 

Raffaele gave a mental shrug, thankful that he felt no such desire for women of her build or stature. She
paled in comparison to the willowy, sculptured beauties he usually favored who graced the catwalks with their slender frames and shapely legs that went on for miles. In truth, she would have been invisible to his constantly roving eye, but in a room filled with full-blooded Italians, she stood out like a beacon in a sea of dark heads. 

Now all I have to do is figure out how to get her out of here without drawing attention or
causing a scene
, Raffaele deliberated as he weaved a path through the growing crowd. And while the male part of him duly noted how the plunging neckline of her clingy dress exposed the enticingly silken flesh of her cleavage, his head remained focused on the unpleasant task of removing her before she could cause any trouble.

 
He reminded himself that Jenesa Harding was nothing more than a conniving gold-digger who had caught Luca in a weak moment and wheedled her way into his bed. Was money her sole motivation or had she hoped to entice his brother into calling off his engagement so she could usurp the position of his fiancé? Apparently, her performance had been lacking, or Luca had come to his senses, because the affair ended as abruptly as it had begun. Nothing like the sting of a one night stand to rile a woman’s temper. Was that when she’d become enraged and decided to seek revenge rather than waste energy on a fruitless attempt to lure his brother back?

 
Did she honestly believe Luca was willing to destroy his future with Caroline over one minor indiscretion? Raffaele didn’t know Jenesa, but he’d dealt with her kind more times than he cared to admit. With few exceptions, the women he’d dated in the past were cut from the same cloth. The difference was, they made no pretense about why they were with him. Power and wealth were potent aphrodisiacs, and he was fine with that; it saved him the trouble of having to seduce a woman he desired.

Not only was this woman Luca had gotten himself involved with a gold-digger, she was also a cold-hearted, vindictive, bitch
. The greedy Miss Harding was under the misguided notion that the monetary rewards would be higher if she threatened to expose Luca at his engagement party. Raffaele wouldn’t put it past her to claim she was carrying Luca’s child. Granted, his brother had been foolish to bed her, but there was no way Luca would have slept with a woman he barely knew without using protection. No, Jenesa Harding was a devious witch out to milk the Vittorio’s for as much money as she could get her grubby hands on.

Like all the Vittorio’s, Raffaele was fiercely protective of his family and their proud name. He wasn’t about to let some two-bit con-artist trap his brother into marriage or allow a scandal like this to mar the Vittorio’s reputation in the business world.
True, people weren’t as judgmental about casual affairs and unexpected pregnancies as they were back in the days his grandfather had been running the company, but they still did a great deal of business in Italy and other foreign countries where the old values were carefully guarded and passed on to each new generation. It wouldn’t matter if Jenesa Harding really was pregnant; all she had to do was
claim
she was and the tabloid hounds would bury Luca alive with their libelous mudslinging.

Raffaele’s eyes narrowed on his target.
She was lucky he’d intercepted her rambling phone message to Luca and kept it to himself. Not that she deserved any mercy, but he shuddered to think what would have happened if it had been discovered by one of his three older brothers. A situation like this needed to be dealt with carefully and as quietly as possible; a method his brothers were incapable of employing due to their volatile natures. Delicate situations within the corporation were always handed off to Raffaele, and in his mind, this was no different than any other sensitive business transaction. He would be diplomatic, but firm. Negotiate terms they both found agreeable, and then send Jenesa Harding on her way.

Shaking off the revulsion that rippled through him when he considered why this vile creature had come here, Raffaele
affected a sexy smile few women could resist and swooped down on the unsuspecting woman. Approaching her from behind, he curled an arm around her trim waist, locking Jenesa firmly to his side. Startled dove gray eyes lifted to his. A harsh gasp whispered through her parted lips, followed by a violent tremor that touched him on a very primitive level. He didn’t condone Luca’s actions, but Raffaele was beginning to understand what had compelled him to behave so impulsively.

She felt soft and warm against the hard, masculine angles of his body; a woman in every sense of the word, and yet…an aura of innocence surrounded her. Protective instincts, bred into generations of male Vittorio’s, leapt to the forefront and made him forget what a cold, calculating viper Jenesa Harding was.
It was difficult to think when she looked so incredibly vulnerable; he could see the pulse point just above her collarbone thumping erratically.
Like a rabbit caught in a snare
, he thought, and felt his chest squeeze.

For one insane moment, Raffaele was tempted to lower his head an
d press his lips to her exquisitely milky skin, to flick his tongue across its silken perfection and feel her racing heart. It was the sudden shift in atmosphere that snapped him out of it and restored Raffaele’s sanity. The droning chatter around them had become laced with excitement as everyone’s attention was drawn towards the double doors leading into the ballroom. Silently cursing himself for falling under Jenesa’s bewitching spell when Luca and Caroline were due to arrive any second, he leaned close and whispered in her ear.

“We need to talk.”

To his astonishment, and immense relief, she nodded mutely and offered no resistance when he swept her through the open terrace doors and onto one of the garden paths. He felt like a brute, herding her as quickly as her spiky heels would allow, but he wanted as much distance between them and the party as possible to ensure their conversation would not be overheard. Reaching a secluded alcove where they could neither be seen nor heard, Raffaele dropped his hold on Jenesa and whirled around to face her.

To his dismay, the unexpected stop caused her to stumble and fall into
him, her sumptuous body connecting with his in a way that made Raffaele acutely aware of their physical differences. Contrived or merely an accident? His suspicious mind detoured into dangerous ground once more when she looked up at him, clearly mortified to find herself pressed up against his chest. Slashes of vivid scarlet stained her cheeks as she made a futile attempt to extract herself from his arms. For reasons he couldn’t explain, that fascinated him; when was the last time he’d seen a woman blush? And why was he behaving like a hormonal teenager and allowing it to muddle his brain?

The instant Raffaele set her free, Jenesa
began backing up. “I…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”  Her voice trailed off as she cast a nervous glance back towards the house, visibly tensing when she realized they were surrounded by sculptured shrubs. “Maybe we should…”

“Talk,” Raffaele interceded. “Th
at
is
why you came here, is it not?”

“Yes, of course. It’s just…won’t your guests wonder where you are? And your fiancé…?”

Raffaele’s brows furrowed. What kind of game was she playing now?
His fiancé?
He wasn’t even dating anyone in particular at the moment, and what would she know about his personal life anyway? Unless…was it possible she didn’t know who he was, that she had mistaken him for Luca? True, there was a very strong family resemblance among all of his brothers, but surely the woman was capable of recognizing a man she had slept with! It would explain why she came with him so willingly, but it could just as easily be part of a more elaborate scheme.

“The guests can wait,” he said
dismissively.

“And your fiancé?”

Raffaele shrugged. “She can wait, too.”

A spark of anger flashed behind Jenesa’s gray eyes. “
So you treat all women in the same superior manner,” she said with an accusatory glare. “I can’t say as I’m surprised. Less than a week before announcing your engagement, you seduce another woman into your bed and profuse to love her and then refuse to acknowledge her existence the very next day! What kind of man are you? No, don’t answer that,” she cut off his reply. “You just confirmed what I already know.”

“You
dare
to stand there and pass judgment on me?” Raffaele’s voice dipped dangerously low. “Perhaps you should ask yourself what kind of woman falls into bed with a man she has just met. And I can only assume the sex was so fantastic it resulted in a serious case of delirium because I can assure you, the words
I love you
have never been dragged from my mouth.”

“
Fantastic
sex?
With a selfish man like you? Oh, boy, do you have a high opinion of yourself, mister.”

“Are you saying it wasn’t?”

“How should I know? It’s not as if…”

“
What is that supposed to mean? Don’t you remember?” Raffaele raked his fingers through his hair, groaning inwardly. Things had just gone from bad to worse. First, he’d taken her insults personally and lost his temper, and now he had to deal with the possibility that Luca took this woman to bed when she was too inebriated to know what she was doing! “How much did you have to drink?”

Jenesa blinked. “How much did I drink?”

“
Alcohol
,” he said impatiently. “What were drinking and how much did you consume before you…before we climbed into the sack together.”

“
Do you have to be so crude? And what difference does it make if there was a little wine involved?”

“It makes a hell of a difference,” he barked.

“Oh, I get it,” she planted her hands on her hips. “Now I suppose you’re going to claim that I was so intoxicated I don’t even know who I slept with!”

“
Well, you
did
infer you didn’t remember how great the sex was.”

“So?”

“So…if you were sober, spending the night with me is
not
something you would have vague memories of. You would recall every touch, every kiss, the precise moment our bodies…”

“
All right, all right!  You win, okay? It was spectacular, out of this world, the best sex I’ve ever had. You’ve completely ruined me for all other men.”

“And now that we have that established,” Raffaele said with a cocky grin, “what is it that you want from me?”

“Nothing...”

“
Nothing?
You expect me to believe that after you crash my engagement party?”

“You didn’t let me finish.
And keep your wallet in your pants, Vittorio. I’m not trying to scam you out of your precious millions. It’s obvious you didn’t mean the things you said that night. All I want right now is for you to acknowledge that what you did was wrong.”

Raffaele didn’t believe her for one minute. “That’s it? I admit it was wrong to sleep with you and you’ll go away?”

“Not quite.”

“
Here it comes,” he muttered.

Jenesa’s temper spiked.
“You should be grateful I didn’t storm into that party and tell all your snobbish friends what a cheating bastard you are.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“What purpose would it serve? All you’d have to do is deny it and I would be humiliated when you had me escorted out. Look, it’s simple. You cheated on your fiancé and compounded your despicable behavior by leading another woman to believe you had feelings for her. Do you have any idea how much damage you’ve caused?”

At the moment,
Raffaele was having a very vivid image of the damage Luca’s jaw was going to sustain when he punched him. He was convinced Jenesa Harding had more on her mind than extracting an admission of moral corruption, and yet, she wasn’t demanding money and had made no attempt to get to Caroline or cause a scene at the party. Whatever her reasons for being here, Raffaele felt a sense of urgency to get it out of her. Once the engagement was announced and their guests toasted the couple, people would start migrating out to the gardens.