Melo squeezed her free hand into a fist. Made her face blank. One, two … Finally he released her. Melo gritted her teeth resisting the urge to slap him. This was Rosa's party. Not the place to have a scene.
"Sebastiano," she acknowledged, pulling her hand away rapidly and clasping it with its twin in front of her dress. "I haven't seen you for a long time. How are you?"
Maybe she could distract the man by getting him to talk about his favorite subject, himself.
Sebastiano launched into a detailed monologue. He talked about the extensive renovations he was doing to his house in the hills. His successful business. The new jet he'd bought to travel from Florence to Rome.
Melo stifled a yawn. When they'd been in school and he'd singled her out senior year and brought all his considerable charms into play to woo her, she'd been flattered. He was the first boy to pay her any sort of attention; all the other boys were drawn to Rosa's blonde perfection like moths to the flame.
But Sebastiano had seemed different. It was only when he suggested double dates with Rosa and her boyfriend that she suspected he was using her to get closer to her sister. And when Rosa's relationship broke up soon thereafter, and Sebastiano chucked her so he could move in for the kill …
Well that just confirmed it.
Rosa hadn't given him the time of day. She still wouldn't.
It was unbelievable he'd decided to attend the party; he couldn't possibly be unaware of how the Bellucci girls felt about him, could he?
She glanced over to where he was gesticulating and still talking about himself. Then glanced around the room, seeking a savior. If she had to listen to any more she'd explode.
Cade was walking her direction.
It was a funny thing about tuxedos. They really separated the men from the boys. Sebastiano looked like a waiter in his custom-made Armani. Cade, on the other hand, was every woman's dream. Tall, devastatingly good looking, and grumpy as hell.
Sebastiano reached out to grasp Melo's arm.
And Cade's expression darkened from grumpy to furious.
In a moment of madness, Melo turned to Sebastiano, and gifted him with her widest smile. She raised her eyebrows questioningly. She hadn't heard a word he said, but he wasn't holding any grudges. His chest puffed up like a dog being patted.
"I was asking you to dance." He leaned closer. "I would like to have you in my arms again."
Her stomach turned over at the very thought, but before she had a chance to react Cade was there.
He stood so close, the heat of his body warmed through her soft silk dress. She breathed him in, and her heart thudded hard. She forced air out through crushed lungs; swaying toward him like a compass unerringly finding true north.
"Melo, can I talk to you for a moment?"
Her dazed brain dimly registered his words and her head automatically tilted back and forth.
A sharp tongue-click snapped her back to reality, and her glance flicked to Sebastiano. If looks could kill, Cade would have gone up in flames instantly. It was so ridiculously macho Melo almost giggled.
"Melo and I were just about to dance." Sebastiano curled his fingers around her upper arm.
His touch was abhorrent, and she picked his hand off like removing a caterpillar from a rose.
"If you remember, Sebastiano, I hadn't given you my answer." She lowered her voice not wanting to publicly humiliate him, even though he sure deserved it. "And my answer is no. I would not like to dance with you."
"Va bene. La vostra perdita."
He spoke Italian in blatant rudeness, then spun on a heel and strode away.
"What did he say?" Cade's fists were clenched at his sides and his body tensed as he watched the other man leave.
"He said your loss." Melo grinned.
The guy had such a huge ego, he probably believed it too. "Nothing to punch him out for." She schooled her face into a polite mask. "Now, what did you want to talk to me about?"
Cade folded his arms. His body relaxed, as if the threat had been neutralized. He reached out and casually smoothed a lock of hair back from her face, and her heart fluttered wildly. "I didn't have anything to talk to you about. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."
"Of course I was okay. Didn't I look okay?" Melo frowned.
She was in the process of being bored to death, that was all. Something easily remedied by walking away.
"You looked interested." Cade's top lip curled as if he'd eaten something unpleasant. "And that guy … " He crossed his arms over his chest and scowled.
"What are you, my brother? I'm more than capable of choosing who I want to be interested in, Cade. I don't need your help." She stuck out her chin and stared him down.
This was ridiculous. He didn't want her, but was trying to make sure she didn't make any foolish choices. Anger heated her blood.
Cade reached out and captured her hand. "Stop being angry."
That sure didn't help. She started to pull her hand away, but he gripped tighter.
His face softened and a "play with me" smile teased his lips. "Come on, Melo. Stop being angry."
He'd teased her when they were kids. Had always been able to get around her. To her frustration, he still could.
"Huh." Her mouth pouted, but her hand stayed in his.
"I didn't like you looking at him like that. Didn't want you to be interested," Cade confessed. "I want you to be interested in me. Only me." He pulled her close, and whispered in her ear. "Now, will you dance with me?"
The band was playing a slow ballad as they walked out onto the dance floor. Couples swirled past under the chandelier's soft light. Cade's hand slid around her waist, and she moved close against him like an obedient sleepwalker.
"I remember being here, before." His warm breath feathered over her ear as their bodies fused in perfect time. "When we were kids."
It had been a day she'd never forgotten. Rosa and Adam were off somewhere, and when Cade arrived at the villa, she suggested they go and look at the roman ruins unearthed in the field on the outskirts of Signora Bettina's land. The climb to the site was strenuous, and she'd almost fallen a couple of times on the rough pebbles of the track. Cade had held her hand. And her heart had almost burst with happiness.
"I remember." She trembled at the feel of his fingers splayed against her spine. Her nipples tightened as they brushed against his chest. They were in public, but she couldn't resist pushing her body closer against him.
She pulled in a deep breath, and thought back to that time, long ago. Standing in the ruins watching the archaeologists excavate the past was thrilling. And when they'd unearthed an intact bowl, Cade's excitement had matched her own. They sat on a rock, gazing out to sea, and talked for hours.
"You talked about how the echoes of people long ago fuse into the earth."
She glanced up at his shadowed jaw line. Even after all these years he remembered her fanciful girlish notions. The realization stunned and thrilled in equal measure.
"I didn't think you'd remember," she whispered.
"How could I forget? I'd felt it too." His mouth dusted the top of her head, and she gave in to the temptation to rest her head against his broad shoulder.
"After my father's death we had to sell the ranch. We'd lived on the land for three generations. It was our land, and the ghosts of my ancestors were always there. I felt them. Imagined them looking out for me." The hand around her waist tightened. "I thought I was the only person in the world who felt like that. Hearing you say it was amazing."
"What happened to the ranch?" When he'd been a boy, she'd never dared ask. The bleak look that flooded his eyes each time he mentioned his past had warned her away.
"It was demolished. To make way for progress."
She glanced up. His mouth was set in a tight line.
"They put a highway through it and built over the land. Thousands of houses."
Melo's heart clenched. Even when he'd made his fortune he wouldn't have been able to turn the clock back and save his home; there was no home to save. All trace of his family had been obliterated. Her fingers feathered over his jaw.
He glanced down, a wicked light gleaming in his eyes.
"How about we get some air?"
****
It was cooler in the garden, and more private. A few couples had ventured out into the moonlit darkness, but away from the crowd they could finally be alone.
In silent accord they walked toward a solitary bench overlooking the darkened garden. It was a relief to sit quietly for a few moments to get his head together. Somehow, they'd started talking about the ranch. He hadn't even thought about the ranch in years. There was no use in hankering after something long lost. He'd learnt that the hard way.