Saved by the CEO(32)

"Louisa said I'd fall in love," he whispered.

"Excuse me?"

"When we were talking about being godparents. She told me I would fall in love with Rosa."

He remembered every detail of their conversation, from the advice she  gave to the way the sun crowned her head as he said goodbye. "She was  right in more ways than one."

His heart threatened to crack open, the way it had every hour since  Louisa had said goodbye. Struggling to keep the pieces together, he  looked to his sister. "I love her," he said in a quiet voice.

"I know."

Neither of them had to say what they were both thinking. That finally  after years without it, Nico had found love, only to chase it away.

"I tried to explain myself the other night but she wouldn't listen, and  now she won't take my phone calls," he said. "I'd go to the palazzo, but  I'm afraid she'll refuse to come out." Or send him away. Either outcome  frightened him into inertia. "Tell me, Marianna. What do I do?"

"I don't think you're going to like my answer."

"If you're going to tell me there's nothing I can do, you're right.  There has to be something I can do." Surely she didn't expect him to sit  around and do nothing while the love of his life slipped through his  fingers. "If I could only get her to talk with me."

"Why? So you can explain and try to charm her into forgiving you?"

Nico held his sleeping niece a little closer. "Is that such a bad plan?"

"I don't know. How well did charm work for her ex-husband?"

"I'm not him."

"Then prove it to her."

"How? How do I make her see that I don't want to control her?"

"You let her be her own person. And that includes letting her come to you for help when she's ready.

"What if she never comes to me again?"

He didn't realize his knee was bouncing in agitation until Marianna put  her hand on his leg. "Poor Nico. So used to being in charge of the  situation. Haven't you figured out by now that love isn't something that  makes sense? If it did, our parents would never have gotten together."

Their parents. Despite his sadness, he had to smile at her comment.  "Never were two people less suited for one another," he said.

"Or more meant to be," Marianna replied, squeezing his knee. "I think  you and Louisa are meant to be, as well, but you have to be patient."

"I don't know if I can." Each day that passed without speaking to her made the hole in his chest a little wider.

"Of course you can, Mr. Viticulture. Think of it like a harvest. You wouldn't pick a grape with a poor Brix level, would you?"

"No," he replied. "But waiting on a grape is a lot less painful, too."

"You can do it."

He smiled at the woman beside him. His beautiful baby sister all  grown-up and glowing with motherhood. "When did you get so wise?"

"Oh, I've always been wise. You just never bothered to ask me for  advice. Might as well face it, dear brother," she said, "when it comes  to love, you've got a lot to learn."

Yes, he did. He only hoped he'd be able to learn with Louisa by his side.

If space was what she needed to find her way back to him, then space was what he would give her.

His resolve lasted five minutes. Then the phone rang.

* * *

"After weeks of speculation, the Halencian royal family confirmed today  that Prince Antonio and Princess Christina are expecting their first  child. The royal heir is due to arrive early next spring. No other  details have been released..."

The television screen showed a photo of Antonio and Christina dancing at  their wedding. The same photo that had reignited the Luscious Louisa  scandal. Nice to know news outlets recycled resources.

Clicking off the news, Louisa tossed the remote onto the cushions. She  was happy for the royal couple. Really she was. They may have had some  bumpy times at the beginning of their marriage, but the pair were very  much in love.

Funny how that had happened to a lot of the people she knew in Monte  Calanetti. The whole "love conquering all" thing, that is. Too bad it  missed her. Then again, maybe it was her fault. After all, she'd loved  Steven and love hadn't come in to conquer anything. What made her think  the situation would be any different simply because she loved-                       
       
           



       

Oh God, was she really ready to admit she loved Nico?

She checked her phone for messages. What was a little salt in the wound  when you were already miserable, right? Nothing. After six impassioned  voice mails, Nico had stopped calling. Guess he'd finally gotten the  message. Or lost interest.

Make up your mind, Louisa. What do you want?

Nico, a voice whispered. She shut the voice off. What she wanted was to  stop feeling as if she'd been kicked in the chest. Nothing she did  seemed to curb the ache. Every day she immersed herself in cleaning and  home renovations, working herself to the point of exhaustion. There  wasn't a piece of wood she hadn't polished or a weed she hadn't removed  from the back garden. But despite collapsing in a deep sleep every  night, she woke in the morning feeling the same emptiness inside.

The doorbell rang. "Go away," she called to whoever was on the other side.

"Louisa!" Nico bellowed from the other side of the door. "Open up. I need to talk to you."

Careful what you wish for. The anger in his voice could mean only one thing. He'd found out about the Realtor.

He pounded on the door again. "Louisa! You let me in this minute or so help me I will kick the door in."

Nothing like a threat to kill her self-pity. Anger took over and she  reached for the doorknob. "If you damage so much as a speck of dust,  I'll..."

Dear Lord, he looked awful. One of the qualities she'd noticed from the  beginning was Nico's robust appearance. The man on her doorstep looked  tired, his healthy color turned pale and sallow. His eyes, while  flashing with anger, were flat and lifeless beneath the spark. He  looked, to be blunt, as bad as she felt.

"Is it true?" Without waiting for an invitation or answer, he stomped  inside, toward the main staircase. There he stood at the foot, arms  folded across his body, waiting.

"Tell me you're not seriously thinking of selling your home."

"You got the call, didn't you?"

"But why?" he asked.

"Seriously, you have to ask?" He and Monte Calanetti were irrevocably  entwined. How was she supposed to stay in the village and live her life  when every corner she turned would present some reminder of him?

"I thought it would make things easier," she told him, walking into the living room. Maybe if she dismissed him...

Of course he followed. "For who?" he asked. "You?"

"Yes." And for him. He wouldn't be forced to share his hometown with an ex-lover as his neighbor.

Nico didn't say a word. Instead he crossed the room, to the cabinet  where she stored the fernet. At first she thought he might pour himself a  glass, but he put the bottle back on the shelf.

"Amazing," he said, shaking his head. "You do like to run away from your problems, don't you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Well, you ran away from Boston to Monte Calanetti. You wanted to run  away when the paparazzi came and now you are running away from me."

Louisa couldn't believe him. "I'm not running from you," she said.

"Oh really? Then what are you doing?"

"I'm..." She was...

Starting fresh again. In a new place. Away from Monte Calanetti.

All right, maybe she was running away. Maybe she needed to run away in  order to save her independence. "What I do or don't do is none of your  business," she snapped. "If I want to sell the palazzo, I will."

"Is that so? And here I thought I exercised such control over your actions."

Damn him. Who did he think he was, twisting her words? "If I am leaving  Monte Calanetti, it's because you tried to take over my life, and you  know it."

"I did no such thing."

"Oh yeah? Then what was calling Dominic?"

"A mistake."

A damn big one, too. She was tired of having this argument. As far as  she was concerned, they'd already had it one too many times.

Unfortunately, Nico thought differently. "It was wrong of me to call  Dominic without telling you. I was excited to be able to help you, and I  didn't think about how my help might make you feel."

Louisa had liked the conversation better before. Anger was so much easier to oppose than this softer, conciliatory tone.

She stared out the window. The Tuscan hills were starting to turn.  Shades of brown mixed with the green. In another few months, it would be  a year since her arrival. Seemed like only yesterday she and Dani had  met on the bus from Florence. And she remembered the first time she'd  met Nico. He'd sauntered through the front door without knocking and  demanded proof she owned the palazzo. Here's a man who insists on being  in charge, she remembered thinking. Her insides had practically melted  at the thought, and that had scared the hell out of her. Because she  didn't want to be attracted to a strong man.