Chapter Nine #2
She scowled and threw an olive at him. He caught it with lightning-fast reflexes and popped it in his mouth, smiling. In fact, he felt like laughing. And he hadn’t felt like laughing in a long time. Probably not since he was last with this woman.
He said, ‘So tell me about this more meaningful work you want to do…’
Angelica was trying not to let her emotions get out of control but if she closed her eyes she could almost imagine that she and Leo had never broken up. It was seductive and dangerous, because they had. And then, as if that hadn’t been enough, they’d been rent even further apart.
‘I’ve been feeling for a while that I want to get out of modelling.
It’s a relentless business and I have no desire to be an influencer or start my own make-up or clothing line.
I’ve been thinking about setting up some sort of charity, an outreach programme to target young people involved in areas controlled by gangs and crime, not just in Italy but all over… ’
Leo popped a morsel of meat into his mouth. ‘How would it work?’
‘By offering a really comprehensive way out…bursaries, scholarships. A whole escape route through education with accommodation. A new life, far from their old lives.’
She went on, blossoming under Leo’s intent interest. ‘For instance, it was a religious charity that helped my mother to leave with my brother, but they could only afford to stay in Italy, where they would surely have been tracked down. I could afford to send them further afield, which…actually didn’t work out too well in the end, because Aldo still managed to find them. ’
She sat back, a little dejected. ‘I don’t know, maybe it’s not such a great idea.’
Leo sat forward. ‘Aldo had an agenda. He wanted you and so he went after information about you specifically. That’s the only reason he found them.
It is a good idea. It would take a lot of time and planning and coordination and fundraising, but it’s possible.
If I hadn’t been sent to a foster home on the mainland through the same sort of charity that had helped your mother and brother, my life would have been very different.
But you’re right, at the moment it’s disparate groups and the funds aren’t there to give them a real, solid chance.
If Aldo and I had been sent further afield, maybe to another country, who’s to say that he would have stayed entangled with some elements from our home? ’
‘You didn’t stay entangled,’ Angelica pointed out.
‘No, because after losing my entire family I had no illusions about how toxic that world was. My father wasn’t even a big player, he’d just got into debt and couldn’t pay the dues. The guy who killed them all was high on drugs, a loose cannon.’
‘What a pointless waste of life…and to have witnessed that was horrific.’
Leo took a sip of wine but Angelica noticed that his hand wasn’t quite steady. ‘I think the only reason they didn’t come after me was because I was eight. Too young to be a threat and not important enough to chase to use, even though they were and are using kids those ages to do their dirty work.’
‘My father wasn’t a big player either,’ confided Angelica.
They’d always skirted around the specifics of what had happened in their pasts before tonight.
‘He owned a shop and he’d been threatened into storing drugs and guns.
A rival gang broke in and stole everything one night and he died because of that. ’
Leo reached across the table and took Angelica’s hand. ‘I’m sorry.’
She looked at him, grief heavy in her chest. ‘I’m sorry too.’
‘We got out and you got your family out…they’re free.’
‘Yes.’ Angelica let the peace of that wash over her and her heart ached for Leo’s loss. So much worse than hers. She said, ‘I get it, you know…’
‘Get what?’
‘Why you don’t want to have a family. Who would want to risk that kind of trauma again?’
‘Precisely.’
Angelica wanted to say more but there was a look in Leo’s eye warning her off. He’d made the decision to close himself off to that risk and it wasn’t up for discussion and she’d be a fool to think she could persuade him otherwise.
Obeying a rogue urge, Angelica stood up abruptly. Leo looked up at her. ‘What are you doing?’
‘Going for a swim.’
‘It’s dark.’
Angelica shrugged. She walked away from the terrace, down the garden and onto the beach. The moon was so bright, it lit up the beach and water. Then she undid the knot holding her dress up and let it drop to the ground.
She looked behind her to see where Leo had followed her to the edge of the beach.
‘Coming?’ She turned around and ran straight into the water and dived underneath the silky surface, telling herself that she needed to eke out every moment with Leo while they were still together because soon enough it would be over again and— A shape under the water made her squeal even though she knew it was him.
His hands went around her waist and held her.
They could stand where they were—the water came up to Angelica’s breasts and Leo’s lower belly.
His hands moved up, cupping the firm flesh, thumbs rubbing across her pebbled nipples.
She sucked in a breath, hands going to his arms where his muscles bunched under her fingers.
‘No more talk of the past, hm? Let’s just enjoy this.’
As if she’d needed him to confirm her own thoughts.
She went close to him and wound her arms around his neck. ‘Sounds like a good idea.’
‘The car is here.’
Angelica sighed and turned away from the view of the iconic blue/green of the Caribbean Sea. She slipped shades over her eyes so Leo might not read how sad she was to leave this bubble behind.
They’d spent two more days in paradise, in a haze of sensual abandon, eating, drinking, swimming and sleeping. They’d been careful not to stray into the past again, keeping their conversation light and focused on the present.
And now, they were headed back to New York for a couple of days because Leo had meetings, and Angelica had a shoot booked for an iconic jewellery brand.
They hadn’t discussed exactly how much longer they’d continue this fake marriage but they both seemed to be tacitly agreeing not to question it. For now.
Leo was standing a few feet away in chinos and a light blue short-sleeved polo shirt that enhanced his darker tan and virile power. Muscles bulging under the short sleeves. He had lost the tight, slightly stern look he’d had since she’d seen him again.
It was as if they’d both unwound the shackles of the last three years and let them go.
‘OK, I’m ready.’ Angelica took a breath and filed away the memories of this idyllic hiatus, and let Leo guide her into the back of the car, his hand on her arm doing little to stop the inevitable physical reaction to his touch.
For a moment she felt panic. What if no other man ever made her feel as he did? What kind of a life would that be—always comparing someone to your first love?
Not love. It’s not love, Angelica desperately told herself as they were driven to the tiny island airfield, looking out of the window in a bid to avoid looking at Leo. But, she knew she was lying to herself. Nothing had changed. She was still in love with Leonardo Falzone.
Angelica realised that her linen trouser suit wasn’t really appropriate when they arrived in New York and the temperature had dropped precipitously since they’d been here before. Winter was coming.
Leo had spent most of the flight on his phone and laptop, working.
Angelica had spoken with her New York agent, who was excited about a potential opportunity for Angelica to become the face of one of the world’s most famous beauty lines.
Angelica knew that at the age of twenty-four, which some might consider the twilight years of her modelling career, she was incredibly lucky to still be in demand, but she told her agent she’d think about it.
Signing up to a deal like that was a commitment that once she would have jumped at but which now felt constrictive.
Leo reached for her hand across the back of the car and she looked at him, forcing a smile.
He frowned. ‘Hey, what’s up?’
Absurdly, Angelica felt like crying, her emotions far too close to the surface. She shook her head. ‘Nothing, just post-holiday blues.’ She told him about the conversation with her agent.
Leo said carefully, ‘Shouldn’t you be looking a lot more excited? That’s a massive opportunity. I’ve even heard of them.’
Angelica smiled for real this time. It had been an ongoing joke since they’d met that Leo hadn’t the first clue about the fashion and beauty industry, not even recognising iconic designer names.
‘It is, and I’m grateful for it but…it feels like a watershed moment. If I keep taking jobs like this, I’m committing to a life I’m not sure I want any more.’
Leo looked at her for a moment and then said, ‘The philanthropic wing of Falzone Global Management is here in New York.’ His mouth tightened.
‘Needless to say, Aldo didn’t have much use for them in the last few years.
I could set up a meeting for you, if you like.
They’d be great for advising you on how to take the next steps in creating a charity. ’
A spurt of excitement filled Angelica’s gut. Her eyes widened. ‘Could you really? That would be amazing.’
He nodded. ‘Of course, I’ll do it right away. Do you want to meet them today?’
Angelica shrugged. ‘Why not?’
‘You can come to the office with me, then.’
‘OK.’ She grinned.
Leo reached out a hand and fleetingly touched her bottom lip with his thumb. ‘That’s better.’
Angelica’s heart hitched. She brought up her hand and caught Leo’s wrist and she nipped at his thumb with her teeth. His eyes flared golden. So much more golden in the last few days than that unreadable black.