‘Why not?’ Lily demanded. ‘Why not have a paternity— test and put all this misery behind us?’
‘If I turned out to be the father, that does not prove your fidelity,’ Vito grated.
Only his ex-wife, Capricia, and her fertility expert, knew of his failure as a man. The memory of Capricia’s scornful face as she’d waved the doctors report under his nose was almost as painful as his infertility itself.
He would never admit his failure to anyone else—especially not to Lily.
‘But…’ Lily hesitated, looking up at his troubled face. There was something different in his expression, something she hadn’t seen before. But she couldn’t ponder it for too long. It had been hard enough to make this conversation happen, and it wasn’t over yet. She owed it to herself to keep trying to get through to Vito. And he owed it to her to give a proper explanation.
‘Where does that leave us?’ she continued. ‘If we don’t have trust—where can we go from here?’
‘This isn’t about us,’ Vito said coldly. ‘This is about saving your baby from a miserable life as an illegitimate— child.’
‘But you can’t deny me a paternity test then not even tell me why you don’t believe me,’ Lily insisted. ‘How can I defend myself if I don’t know what proof you think you have against me?’
‘What you’ve done is indefensible,’ Vito said, picking up his suit and shirt and striding towards the door. ‘I don’t have to give you any more information to weave your web of lies around.’
In a moment he was gone, and Lily was left alone, staring miserably after him. The last two days had been an overwhelming series of shocks, and now she realised she was shaking with reaction to it all.
She sat down on the chair, feeling her hand settle on something soft and warm. Without thinking she picked it up. It was Vito’s black cashmere sweater. She lifted it automatically to her face, pressing the luxurious woollen fabric to her skin, and breathed in deeply, inhaling Vito’s aroma.
Tears suddenly sprung to her eyes as she remembered the last time she had been enfolded in his embrace while he’d been wearing that sweater. She’d come inside from the foggy city, holding a joyful secret inside her. She’d felt so safe and so secure in his arms—thinking that he cared about her and would protect her from anything.
But it had all been an empty illusion. Five minutes later he had turned on her. And from then on her life had been sucked into a whirlpool of misery, getting increasingly— out of her control. And this last argument had been the worst, with Vito not even giving her the information— she needed to defend herself.
But she’d had enough. She wouldn’t put up with it any more. She might not be able to fight Vito over his accusation of infidelity. But there was some control she could take. She wasn’t going to keep looking back at the special relationship she’d mistakenly believed she’d had with Vito. From now on she was going to concentrate on her future and make the best out of her new life.
She looked down at the black sweater which she was still holding on her lap. It was a harsh reminder of how much her life with Vito had changed—a reminder she did not need.
She stood up decisively and carried the sweater across the room. She opened the window and tossed it out into the canal below.
CHAPTER SIX
‘WE’LL eat out tonight,’ Vito said. ‘To mark your return to Venice.’
‘That would be nice.’ Lily spoke mildly, determined not to let Vito see she was still shaken from their earlier argument.
It would be good to get out of the palazzo. It was less than twenty-four hours since Vito had brought her back to his home, and so far she’d been a bundle of nerves.
It wasn’t surprising that she felt on edge after what had happened, nevertheless she’d tried to take her own advice and stop dwelling on it. She’d spent the afternoon pointlessly trying to lose herself in a good book, but even a favourite pastime like reading hadn’t distracted her from all the unsettling thoughts that were whirling round persistently inside her head.
‘We’ll go to Luigi’s,’ Vito said.
‘Oh…I…’ Lily drew an anxious breath and stared up at Vito, quickly trying to think of an excuse not to go to Luigi’s. After what had happened on Lily’s last night in Venice, bringingVito and Luigi into contact could be risky.
The restaurant had always been one of their favourite— places to eat. It was within easy walking distance of the palazzo, served some of the best dishes in Venice, and it had a wonderful ambiance. Luigi, the proprietor, was— a true character with an expansive personality and a generous nature.