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“I’ll get it. Where abouts?”
She gnawed on her lower lip. “In my suitcase.”
“Fine. Wait here.”
She almost laughed. Where did he think she was going to go?
He reappeared a moment later, jacket in hand, eyes not meeting hers.
“Ready?”
She sighed. “Sure.” It felt a little, though, like she’d willingly—excitedly even—agreed to enter her own torture chamber. Why had she been stupid enough to think he’d change? That anything would be different about Dante just because he’d seemed to say he wanted a fresh start for them? This Dante was just the same as always. And if Georgia felt as though she were entering a torture chamber, it was clear that he was already there, wanting to keep her as much at arm’s length as possible, and still feeling as though his jaw was being drilled.
When they left the house, each took great care not to touch the other, and at the car, the closest he got was opening the door for Georgia then moving swiftly around to the driver side and sliding into his seat.
She got the message loud and clear: truce or not, his boundaries were firmly in place and nothing and no one was bringing them down.
CHAPTER TEN
HE’D MANAGED TO KEEP things feeling more or less like a job interview and he was relieved about that. Yes, he needed to get to know her better. She was going to be the mother of his child. But he didn’t want it to seem, for even a moment, like a date. Nor like he was enjoying himself.
Which he definitely wasn’t.
She was almost heart-stoppingly beautiful, but even that made him feel guilty. How could he find another woman so attractive? How could he be attracted to her even now, knowing how disastrous it had been to give into those impulses?
And so he’d kept his distance and asked bland questions about her upbringing and her parents and her school and her friends, life in Australia, her dreams, her thoughts about global politics. He found her incredibly well-versed in all things, so much so he wondered if she spent hours each day reading the newspaper or listening to podcasts about current events? If he was looking for things which they had in common, then this was definitely one of them. Not only had Dante always had an interest in global events, with a company that had tentacles spreading across the world, and business interests in all corners of it, he had to stay apprised of events internationally. They could find shared ground discussing these things, at least.
His only disappointment in the night was how hard he found it to ignore her beauty, and the effect it had on him.
She wasn’t just beautiful, he realised, when their main course plates were cleared away. She was vibrant and addictive. When she spoke, she used her mouth but also her eyes and her hands to communicate, and the latter reminded her of butterflies dancing on the breeze, moving through the air with grace and enthusiasm, to further highlight whatever point she was making.
“What did your brothers say about the news?”
She hesitated. “I haven’t told them yet.”
Something flickered inside Dante’s belly. “No?”
She shook her head.
“Is it something you would prefer to say face to face?
“Not necessarily.”
“Then why not tell them?”
“I will.”
“I mean, why not tell them now?”
She shrugged. “I’ll tell them soon.”
“Do you need support?”
She formed her hand into a fist, smiled tightly. “No, thanks.”
A waiter appeared, earning a frustrated look from Dante.
“Would you like to see the dessert menu?”
