Harlequin Presents January 2015 Box Set 3 of 4(243)

And today she had this god-awful dinner to get through.

Pulling on her jeans, she stomped down the two flights of stairs to the kitchens with the idea of making herself a cup of tea. But the place was a hive of activity, the staff in the throes of preparations for this evening, and she was politely told that breakfast would be brought to her, wherever she would like it served.

An hour later her mood had still not improved. Bored with its company, she decided to find someone to share it with and, rapping on the door to Rafael’s office, she strode in without waiting for a reply.

‘Sì, verremo più tardi.’ He looked up from his phone conversation, not best pleased at her interruption, judging by the dark scowl on his face. ‘Sì—ciao.’ Ending the call, he put down the phone and fixed her with a hooded stare. ‘Lottie. Can I help you?’

‘Yes, you can, actually.’ She wanted to say that he could help her by telling her why he hadn’t come to her bed, why she had had to sleep alone again. But there was no way she would give him that satisfaction. No way she would tell him how much she longed to feel his arms around her every single night. Instead she turned to a safer grudge.

‘You can tell me what you mean by starting a foundation in Seraphina’s name without even telling me.’

Rafael sighed heavily. ‘Not this again. I really had no idea that I needed your permission.’

‘Well, you did—well, not my permission, but you could have asked...at least told me what you were doing.’

‘And would that have made any difference?’

‘Yes—yes, it would. If I had known about it I would have felt a part of it. Maybe I could have done some fundraising of my own, in England.’

This produced a derisive snort. ‘Do you happen to know many wealthy benefactors?’

Lottie glared at him furiously. ‘I do, as a matter of fact. The art world is full of people with more money than they know what to do with. I’m sure I would have been able to get some substantial donations—that’s if you had had the courtesy to tell me about it.’

‘And what would you have had to do to get these substantial donations, I wonder?’

His sneering insinuation made the blood pop in her ears. ‘Certainly not what you’re suggesting. I have no idea why you think the only way I can get on in the world is by sleeping with wealthy men.’

‘Because I am a man, Lottie, and I know how their minds work.’

‘Well, you don’t know how mine works.’

‘That, I’ll grant you, is true.’ Pressing his fingers to his temples, Rafael leant back in his chair, the bitter expression on his face clearly showing that he wasn’t agreeing with her—he was simply acknowledging the disaster of their marriage.

Sitting upright again, he steepled his fingers, looking at her over the top of them. ‘If you are so keen to contribute to the Seraphina Foundation I suggest you make a start by being the perfect hostess tonight. I’m sure you can be charming enough when it’s for a good cause. People have paid a lot of money for this event, and there is plenty more where that came from. It will be our job to persuade them to part with it.’

Lottie scowled at him. He might as well have told her to run along and make herself look pretty. Well, she wasn’t going to be dismissed that easily. Pulling up a chair, she sat down opposite him, ignoring his dangerously narrowed eyes.

‘So tell me about it—the Seraphina Foundation. How long has it been going?’

Rafael sighed heavily again. ‘Two years or so.’

‘So you started it shortly after I...’ Lottie faltered, suddenly wishing she hadn’t gone down this line of questioning. ‘After I left.’

‘Yes.’ His look told her that he had no intention of doing anything to ease her discomfort.

‘And how much money has it raised?’

‘I don’t have the exact figures at my fingertips.’

Her silence indicated that she wasn’t going to be fobbed off with that.

‘It is a considerable sum. People can be very generous with a little persuasion.’

‘And where has the money gone? I mean to neonatal units across the principality, or just one particular hospital?

‘Originally it was for Ospedale D’Aosta, but now that project has been completed we intend to carry on. There are many other hospitals whose neonatal units desperately need money to update their equipment and facilities and attract the best specialists in that field.’

He stopped abruptly, as if Lottie had tricked him into talking about this.

‘Now, if you will forgive me, I have a lot of work to get on with.’ Infuriatingly he looked down at his computer. ‘I suggest if you need any more information you look at the website.’