The joy between the couple surprised the voyeur, as if it were out of place. He was used to hard, angry coupling, absent joy, absent affection.
He fornicated as he fed—with a goal to pleasure and satisfaction, to filling a void and sating a hunger.
What he was witnessing was something else entirely.
The sound of trousers being unzipped echoed in the corridor. The woman exhaled in satisfaction as her lover pushed inside her.
The pair moved in concert, hands tugging and pulling, grunts of delight filling the air.
The woman’s back thudded against the windowpanes as her lover thrust more forcefully.
Her eyes were open, heated, until they fluttered closed and her ruby lips parted.
“I’m close,” she moaned, a series of inchoate sounds escaping her mouth as she climaxed.
The man said her name as he quickened his movements, his hips rolling and pushing. Then he, too, was overcome.
The scent of sex filled the air as the lovers clung to each other.
The Prince gritted his teeth, his arousal both painful and obvious beneath his black trousers.
He steeled himself against the sensation, shamelessly staring at the couple as they gently caressed each other. He could hear their lungs expand and contract and their heart rates begin to slow.
The professor lifted a hand to his wife’s face, caressing her cheekbone. She leaned into his touch, pressing her lips to the edge of his palm.
The Prince averted his eyes, as if he’d trespassed on an intimacy.
“Can you walk?” The professor placed his wife on her feet and bent to straighten her dress.
She laughed, the sound light and happy. “I think so. I might be a little wobbly.”
“Then allow me.” He lifted her in his arms and carried her down the corridor.
The Prince followed discreetly, peering around the corner as they disappeared into a bathroom.
He refused to entertain any of the conflicting thoughts he was having after having witnessed the passionate but tender scene. Instead, he adjusted his trousers, willing himself to calm down.
His thoughts wandered to the photograph that was hanging in the Botticelli room, but only for a moment.
His idea of justice and his plans for achieving it easily blotted out the possibility of sentiment.
He focused his attention on his people, his principality, and the lengths he would go to maintain his control of them. Then he waited for his prey to emerge from their hiding place.
Chapter 3
“Massimo, there you are. What’s the name of the young man we were speaking to earlier?”
“Who?” Dottor Vitali gazed up at his American friend, confused.
The professor scanned the guests as they assembled in one of the large lecture rooms downstairs, waiting to be seated for dinner.
“There.” Gabriel pointed to a man dressed in a black suit who was staring in their direction. The man who, unbeknownst to him, had followed him and his wife upstairs.
As if he’d heard the professor’s words from across the room, the figure turned abruptly in his direction and gave him a menacing look.
Vitali watched the wordless exchange between the man in the black suit and the professor and nodded.
“Ah, the Englishman. He made a substantial donation to the gallery when he learned of your benevolence and requested an invitation to tonight’s events. Apparently, he’s a patron of the Palazzo Medici Riccardi and funded its restoration.”
“His name?” Gabriel pressed.
Vitali stared into space absently.
“Massimo?” Gabriel snapped his fingers.
Vitali startled, his eyes moving to the professor’s. “What was I saying?”
Gabriel resisted the urge to huff in frustration. “You were going to tell me the name of the young Englishman who made a donation to the gallery.”
“Of course.” Vitali smiled. “I don’t remember his name but we will ask my assistant. He has the guest list.”
Gabriel pressed his lips together. “So you don’t know the man personally?”
“Not really. But I recall the donation was large and wired within an hour from a Swiss bank.”
Gabriel frowned. “I don’t trust him. Do me a favor and keep him away from Julianne.”
Vitali gave him a puzzled look.
“Has he insulted her?”
“Not yet.”
Vitali glanced at the Englishman.
“He’s one of those rich, young aristocrats who fled England to pursue pleasure in my country. We’ve seen thousands of his kind over the years. I’m sure he knows better than to trouble your wife.”
“Perhaps.” Gabriel’s tone was unconvincing, as was his expression as he stared at the stranger’s retreating back.
Vitali gestured to the front of the room. “Come, my friends. Please.”