Dante's Marriage Pact (9 page)

“What did you want to do instead?”

“I have a natural facility for languages, along with a desire to see other countries and experience their cultures. So, I made a trade with Grandmother. For every course she wanted me to take, I enrolled in one I wanted. My ultimate dream has always been to get a job overseas as a translator.”

“That would have taken you out from under Leticia's thumb.” Draco pinpointed the problem with typical perceptiveness. “I assume she didn't react well to the idea?”

“She exploded when I told her.” Shayla shrugged. “I can understand. After all, there's only the two of us left. Considering everything she's been through, it made it all
the more imperative that I find a way to support us. She just objected to how I chose to go about it.”

His eyes narrowed. “Knowing your grandmother, she must have found a way to bring pressure to bear. Trowel on the guilt, good and thick.” He tilted his head to one side, analyzing, then smiled grimly. “She paid for your education. Used every last dime to her name. She'd lose the mansion if you didn't succeed as a translator. How am I doing so far? Close?”

“You are really good,” Shayla marveled. “That's exactly what she said. So I spent the next three years working nonstop in order to pay her back. And I postponed my own plans. When she announced that our diamond mines weren't depleted after all, that a surveyor had not only discovered more, but even better, they contained fire diamonds, I saw my opportunity to pursue the career I always wanted.”

“A serious miscalculation on Leticia's part. That's not like her.”

Shayla smiled. “She did raise the idea of reopening Charlestons with me once again until I forced her to accept the futility of her plan. I'm simply not competent to run the business. Approaching Dantes was the compromise. It would provide her with the money to revitalize the mansion and keep her comfortable for her remaining years. And it would allow me to find the job of my dreams, which I promptly did.”

“All of this went down before we met?”

Shayla nodded. “I updated my passport and applied for a number of positions that offered travel abroad. I was thrilled when the one I wanted the most panned out. Derek needed someone who could leave the country almost immediately. I told my grandmother about it right before I boarded the plane for San Francisco.”

“When were you scheduled to leave the country?” he asked in a neutral voice.

She forced herself to meet his gaze, even though she'd have preferred to look anywhere but. “The same evening as our date.”

“Why?” He ground out the question, anger reverberating through that single word.

She didn't prevaricate, but told him the truth. “Because I didn't want you to try to stop me.”

“Could I have?”

Lord, give her strength. She closed her eyes against the demand in his. Could he have stopped her? Without question. All it would have taken was a single kiss. Kiss? A single look. A single touch, Inferno to Inferno. When it came to Draco Dante, she had zero self-control.

He was waiting for her response and she gathered herself sufficiently to give it to him. “Suffice to say, I wasn't willing to risk the possibility,” she replied, neatly sidestepping the issue. “By the time you realized I was gone, I'd be on my way to Barcelona with Derek.” He wouldn't like this other part, either. “There's more.”

He grimaced. “Might as well put it all out there.”

She twisted her hands together, aware that when she finished he wouldn't press for marriage any longer. In fact, she'd be lucky if he didn't just pitch her out of the car, altogether. “My plan contained three parts, goals I wanted to achieve before I turned twenty-five. The first was to find the job of my dreams.”

“Enter Derek. Check.”

“The second was to provide for my grandmother by offering your family the lease to our mines.”

“Meet with the Dantes. Double check.” His eyes narrowed, amber hard. “And the third?”

“I turned twenty-five the morning after we met,” she began
before trailing off. She wanted to just say it, to get it out there and over with, but she found that she couldn't. Her breath escaped in a slow sigh.

It only took Draco a moment to catch on. “
That's
why you slept with me?” Outrage underscored the question. “You planned to lose your virginity before you turned twenty-five?”

She shook her head. “No!” She flinched. “Well, yes. But not the way you think.”

“And I was the lucky guy you chose?”

Did he have to make it sound so lurid? “You don't understand,” she tried again. “It wasn't about losing my virginity.” How did she explain? “I wanted, just once, to experience a wild, passionate affair. To be swept off my feet and have a single night of pure romance.”

“In other words, it could have been any man at the reception that night, even one of my relatives. I was simply the luck of the draw.” A muscle leaped along his jaw, warning that he held on to his temper by a mere thread. “It had nothing to do with The Inferno or who I was as a person. You just wanted to sleep with someone before jetting off with good ol' Derek.”

A wave of humiliation sent heat streaking across her cheeks while tears pricked her eyes. She fought them back, fought for composure. During the planning stages, having a one-night stand had sounded intrepid, romantic even. Something so out-of-character that she hadn't dared consider it while living in her grandmother's home. Unfortunately, she'd become the poster child for the consequences of illicit sex, even with protection. They might as well slap a photo of her, along with her giant belly, on all the high school walls in the country as a warning.
This could be you!

“To be fair, I don't think you were too concerned about
who I was as a person, either,” she pointed out. “Not at first.”

“In other words, if you'd known I was a Dante beforehand, you'd have tumbled into some other man's bed that night.”

The tears she'd been holding back through sheer force of will overflowed. “I'm sorry. I don't know what else to say. I wanted to be honest with you so you'd understand why marriage is out of the question. You don't love me anymore than I love you.”

He swore. “Don't cry. Please, don't cry, Shayla. It can't be good for either you or the baby.”

“I'm not a damn water tap,” she managed to protest through her tears. “It's not like I can turn it off with a twist of a knob.”

For some reason that made his mouth twitch and a second later she was laughing and crying all at the same time. He opened her purse, found a packet of tissues and pulled one out. He dabbed at her cheeks and eyes and nose.

“Listen to me, sweetheart,” he said. “You're tired. I'm tired. We probably could have picked a better time for this conversation.”

“I needed to be honest with you.”

“I got that. Maybe all that honesty should have come at a slower pace and after a good night's sleep.” He gave it further consideration. “And maybe accompanied by several shots of Johnnie Walker.”

“Okay.” She leaned back against the leather seat and closed her eyes. Exhaustion rolled across her like fog across the bay. “I'm trying, Draco. I've moved out here so our baby will be close to you and the rest of the Dantes. But that's as far as I'm willing to go. I'm not sure I can handle marriage on top of everything else.”

“Why?” The question exploded from him, hanging in the air.

It took an unbelievable amount of effort just to open a single eye. “I don't suppose there's any Johnnie Walker stashed in here somewhere?”

“Am I going to need it?”

“Probably.”

“Hell.” He gave an irritable shrug. “You might as well get it all out. I can't deal with it if I don't know what the problem is.”

“That's what you said last time,” she muttered.

“Go on. Hit me.”

“Okay, here it is… I worked for four long years to carve out the sort of life I wanted. It only took me one night to put an end to that dream.” She splayed her hand across her extended abdomen, gave it a gentle rub. “Don't misunderstand. I'll love our baby. I'll never regret having him.” She shook her head in exasperation. “
Him?
Now you have me doing it.”

“Trust me. It's going to be a boy.”

“Fine.” She dismissed that with a flick of her fingers. “The point is… Those few months abroad were the best of my life. I was unchained and independent. Until then, I'd never experienced that level of freedom before. Now you want me to marry you. To move in with you. To forcibly create a family. It's going to be tough enough that I'm here in a strange city with a newborn. I'm not sure I can handle marriage on top of everything else. To be honest, I don't want to lose any more of my independence.”

Draco was silent for a long time and she wondered if she'd offended him again. “You don't have to handle marriage,” he finally said. “There's another option.”

Hope blossomed. “What option?”

“We'll make a premarital agreement…a marriage pact, if that works for you. We marry to give the baby the Dante name, but we don't have to live together, if you'd rather not.” She caught a certain grimness in his voice, a stoic quality that
disturbed her. “It'll be your choice. If and when you want a real marriage, we can reconsider that possibility.”

“You'd be willing to do that?” she asked in surprise. “Wouldn't your family notice?”

“It's none of their business.”

She gave a short laugh. “That might be your opinion and it might be mine, as well, but I've discovered that it's never the opinion of the rest of the family. They always think they have the right to interfere.”

“There's only one person's opinion that matters to me and that's yours. As for my family… Don't worry about them. I'll keep them off your back.”

She could feel herself softening. She probably should have insisted on revisiting the discussion in the morning when she'd had time to rest and consider. But instead, she found herself nodding. “Okay, I agree.”

He stilled. “You'll marry me?”

“Yes,” she found herself saying. Clearly, she'd lost her mind.

“Tomorrow?”

Her eyebrows winged upward. “Can we get married that fast?”

“Absolutely. I'll make the arrangements as soon as we get home.”

Panic built in the pit of her stomach and more than anything she wanted to change her mind. Instead, she nodded. “It's a deal.”

He gathered her up in his arms. “Since we can't toast our agreement with champagne, we'll seal the deal with another time-honored tradition.”

She had a split second to prepare herself before he lowered his head and kissed her, kissed her with a thoroughness that drove every other thought from her head. Their kiss yesterday had been filled with hunger and demand. The one on the
plane a gentle benediction. This one was sheer temptation, as though he were reminding her of that wonderfully illicit evening nine months ago when passion had ruled the night and she'd unknowingly surrendered to the ultimate temptation.

Now Draco's kiss stormed her senses, making her forget everything but this man and this moment. For a brief instant she even forgot the baby tucked safely beneath her heart, a baby who'd been the result of that surrender. A baby born from passion and who would know the love of both parents, as well as countless family members.

For her baby's sake, marrying Draco was the smart choice. The only choice. But for her own sake…?

Before she could consider the question, he reluctantly released her and glanced outside. Shayla suddenly realized they'd arrived. While the driver unloaded their bags, Draco helped her from the car, a process that became more difficult with each passing day. A tip passed from his hand to the chauffer's and then they were alone.

She took a moment to study his home while she attempted to unknot the muscles in her back. The house stood wide and proud, a stunning multilevel wood-and-glass structure perched high on the hillside with an incredible view of the bay.

“It's gorgeous,” she murmured.

“Wait until you see the inside.”

He guided her along the walkway to the front door, stuck his key in the lock and flung open the door. Gently, carefully, tenderly, he lifted her in his arms and carried her across the threshold. “Welcome home,” he said.

At the same moment an endless crowd of people jumped out from doorways and closets and from behind furniture, all shouting, “Surprise!”

The instant they realized Draco wasn't alone, silence descended. All eyes locked on Shayla…or more specifically,
Shayla's belly. Primo stood front and center in the middle of the throng, his golden gaze taking in the situation in a single fierce glance.

“Well,” he said after a long, awkward moment. “It would seem the surprise is on us, eh?”

D
raco watched his wife-to-be take one look at Primo and start babbling. In Italian, no less.

“We're getting married, I swear. First thing in the morning. Well, not first thing. I have a doctor's appointment that I don't think Draco will let me miss. But right after that we're going straight to a justice of the peace and tying the knot. And don't blame your grandson. It's not his fault. He didn't know I was pregnant and he's been looking for me for nine months and would have insisted we marry even if I weren't.” She paused long enough to snatch a quick breath. “Pregnant, I mean.”

Draco gently eased Shayla onto her feet. “So, what's
your
surprise?” he asked his family.

Primo locked eyes with Draco, a wealth of information passing between them without a single word being spoken. “Your home. It is finished,” his grandfather announced at last. “We are giving you a surprise hothouse party. The women, they say it is tradition.”

It took Draco a split second to realize that hothouse meant housewarming. “Thank you. I appreciate it. Maybe we can also make it a pre-wedding celebration?”

His gaze swept his relatives, taking in the various reactions ranging from shock to bemusement to out-and-out laughter. Then they closed ranks. After all, they were Dantes and Dantes protected their own. They swept up Shayla, carried her off and eased her onto a couch, building pillows around her for added comfort. One by one, family members approached and introduced themselves while they plied her with food and friendly get-to-know-you questions.

Primo jerked his head toward the outside deck and Draco released a sigh of regret that he wasn't also being pillowed and fed—and wouldn't be anytime in the near future. Once they were outside Primo fumbled in his pocket for the cigar he always carried there, much to Nonna's annoyance, not to mention his physician's. He offered a second to Draco, who knew better than to refuse, given the current circumstances. The two men took their time with the trimming and lighting.

Then Primo devastated Draco with a single look. “You did this to her?”

The words, the look, all had him flinching. “The baby is mine, yes. I'm sorry, Primo. This isn't the way I'd planned things.”

“I am unaware of the fact that you plan at all.”

The comment stung. Once upon a time it might have been true. But he'd worked long and hard the past decade to prove himself. To overcome the shame of losing the fire diamonds at a time his family teetered on the brink of financial ruin.

Draco fought for patience. “You know The Inferno hit the night of the Eternity reception. And you know Shayla disappeared the next day after we met to discuss leasing the Charleston mines.” He paced to the railing and studied the
spectacular view through eyes blinded by the past rather than focused on the present. “I've been searching for her ever since she left. Two days ago I finally found her.”

“You marry tomorrow?”

“Yes.”

“Not by this justice of the peace,
istigatore.
”

Draco's mouth tightened. He'd always been considered a troublemaker by his grandfather. Only time would change that. Or maybe, once labeled, it would never change. “How, when and where?”

“I will provide you with the place. My place.” Primo stabbed his cigar in Draco's direction. “A small backyard wedding, yes? With the family. And no city official, but a priest. If we can arrange this for tomorrow,
buon.
If not,
presto.
Very soon.” He fixed his grandson with a calculating gaze. “My math, it is good. I can add how many months and weeks have slipped by since the reception. The baby, he will not wait much longer.”

“No, he won't.”

“And your Nonna, she will cry if
il bambino
comes into the world without the Dante name to protect him. You know what I do to any man who makes my
bellezza
weep?” Primo's eyes glittered with threat and promise. “Would you care to guess,
nipote?
”

Draco's mouth settled into grim lines. The same thing he'd do to any man who made Shayla weep. Beat the living crap out of him. “I have a pretty good idea. Trust me, I won't allow that to happen.”

“Buon, buon.”
Primo clapped his hand on Draco's shoulder. “I know you have searched for your Inferno mate these many months. Luc tells me you asked Juice to help find her the very night you lost her. You have done right in this. But you should not have taken her to your bed without first putting
your ring on her finger. To do so dishonors the two of you, not to mention your family. You know this now, yes?”

“
Sì
, Primo.
Sono spiacente
,” he apologized.

A smoke trail swept in the direction of the relatives clustered in the living room. “Your family, we will all stay a short while longer, then leave you and Shayla. She needs rest so she does not have the baby before the priest blesses your union. As for the preparations for the ceremony, Nonna and I will take care of these.”

Draco inclined his head. “
Grazie
. Shayla and I will arrange for a license tomorrow.”

Primo proved himself as good as his word. Within the hour, everyone pitched in to sweep the house clean of clutter and debris. Leftover food disappeared into Draco's cavernous refrigerator, neatly wrapped and labeled. Hugs and kisses were freely dispensed. Then, one by one, the Dantes departed.

An abrupt silence crashed down around Draco and Shayla, strumming to life an unexpected awkwardness. “Why don't I show you the house,” he suggested in an effort to break the intensity of the moment.

Shayla seized on the suggestion with patent relief. “I'd like that. I feel like I've been sitting forever.”

He took her through the house, pleased by her sincere pleasure and delight at the vaulted ceilings, open spaces and endless windows that offered spectacular views of Angel Island, Belvedere and the bay. The instant he realized exhaustion had replaced enjoyment, he urged her upstairs, where he intended to tuck her into bed as soon as possible.

He opened the door to the master bedroom. “You're welcome to join me in here.” One look at her face gave him the unwelcome answer to that suggestion. “But perhaps you'd be more comfortable in this room.”

He led her past a tightly closed door toward a bedroom at
the far end of the house from the master suite. She paused outside of the middle room. “What's in here?” she asked.

“Another bedroom,” he said dismissively. “It doesn't have a private bath, so—” He attempted to urge her past, but she didn't budge from her position.

Pulling free of his arm, she opened the door and stepped inside. Her breath caught. He'd hoped to inspect the room before showing it to Shayla since he'd only given the decorator and his cousin's wife, Ariana, two days to complete it and hadn't been certain whether their efforts had met with success.

Draco entered behind Shayla and discovered that his demands had not just been met, but exceeded. Whimsy ruled. Silly abounded. Wondrous had ventured into the nursery and nestled in to stay. Shayla wandered deeper into the room, touching the lace-edged changing table with its silly mobile hanging above it. Real and imaginary creatures dangled in every imaginable position from the strings. Some clung for dear life, others hung by wings or toes, one by its tail, each with comical expressions.

The walls were the only part of the room left incomplete, he noted, and blessed Ariana for what she'd been able to finish. Three were painted to resemble a magical forest, rife with playful fairies and trolls and other fantastical creatures. Anyone who saw them would instantly identify them as the work of Ariana's alter ego—Mrs. Pennywinkle, children's book author and illustrator. But the one behind the crib remained notably blank.

Oh, well. He'd tried. And he could guarantee that she had, as well. Considering how surprised the family had been by Shayla's pregnancy, it was clear that Ariana had acceded to his wishes and remained mum about his request for a nursery, even from her husband, Lazz. His mouth curved into a wry smile. Though she hadn't warned him about
the housewarming party, no doubt her way to balance the scales.

For the rest of the room, Draco had recommended yellow as the overriding color since it echoed one of the blankets Shayla had made for the baby. The crib was simple and sturdy and rated the safest on the market, the rocking chair positioned adjacent to it the most comfortable money could buy. A baby monitor stood at the ready.

She crossed to the dresser and opened a few of the drawers to reveal garments so tiny it made Draco nervous to imagine their having a baby who could fit into them. Last of all, she opened the louvered closet doors to reveal colorful containers overflowing with toys.

He shifted in place. “I might have gotten carried away.”

She glanced over her shoulder and lifted an eyebrow. “Might?”

He blew out his breath. “Did.” He shot an uneasy glance around the room, striving to see it through Shayla's eyes. “I guess I should have waited so you could have some input.”

She turned to regard him through watchful eyes. “How much input did you have? You only found out about my pregnancy, what? Two days ago?”

Was she upset because he hadn't included her in the decision making? He shrugged. “I wish we could have chosen everything ourselves, but I wasn't sure there'd be time before the baby was born.” His mouth quirked into a smile. “I did some research and explained to the decorator what I wanted, I gather at greater length and with more detail than any other room in the house. At least, that's what he finally told me.”

Shayla approached. To his surprise, she folded her arms around his neck and tugged him down for a slow, sweet kiss. “Thank you. This is amazing. It's also absolutely perfect.”

He rested his forehead against hers. “I know you want
your own place. But maybe for the first few months it would work best to stay here where I can help.”

She surprised him again by nodding. “That sounds reasonable. I don't have a problem living with you for the time being so long as you stick to our pact and I can move into my own place when I'm ready.”

It wasn't a total surrender, but it gave him time. Time to convince her to turn “for the time being” into plain old forever. To create a real marriage together and a real family. Maybe he could prove that he'd never confine her, but would give her the freedom she craved to accomplish new goals. Craft new dreams. Better dreams. Somehow, someway, he needed to provide her with all the things she lacked so she'd stay instead of run.

Slow down, Dante
. First things first, and patience would be at the top of his to-do list, even though it was in seriously short supply these days. He inclined his head toward the door. “Why don't I show you your room?” he offered with an easy smile.

He ushered her into the room next to the nursery. It was smaller than his but with a private bath, small sitting area and cantilevered redwood deck that wrapped around the house and connected with his bedroom. He'd considered having a door cut into the nursery so it accessed the deck, as well, but decided against it for safety reasons.

“We can move the crib and rocker in here temporarily if that would be easier for you,” he offered.

She nodded and he caught a flash of exhaustion buried in her eyes. “Thank you. I'd prefer that.”

He swept back the bedcovers with one hand and gathered her up with the other. “We can decide all that later. Right now, you need sleep. Dr. Dorling would be furious if he knew we hadn't tucked you in the instant we arrived.”

He didn't give her a chance to protest, but eased her onto
the mattress. Kneeling, he removed her shoes. “Do you want to strip down or will you be comfortable enough like this?”

“I'm too tired to strip down,” she confessed.

“Then sleep. I'll bring the bags up in a little while along with some dinner and you can change then. You can even indulge yourself and eat in bed.”

She yawned, half smothering her reply. “After that meal your relatives prepared, I don't think I'll be able to eat again for a week.”

He helped settle her in bed and arranged the pillows for added comfort and support. “Some soup, then?”

Shayla's eyes drooped and she sighed in pleasure. “Some of that minestrone your grandfather made? I've never tasted anything so delicious.”

“Absolutely.”

He doubted she heard his response. She fell sound asleep on her last word. He checked on her periodically, not the least surprised when she didn't stir. Long after the sun set and evening had deepened into night, he slipped into the room once again. It was clear she wouldn't wake until morning and he gently unbuttoned her dress, easing it off. He debated stripping away all her clothing, but decided she might feel self-conscious about his seeing her naked so late in her pregnancy.

Personally, he thought her unbelievably beautiful. She was softer than before, rounder, her curves lush with impending motherhood. There was also an ethereal radiance about her, an otherworldliness that made him hesitant to touch her, as though she'd magically vanish if he dared lay a hand on her. Vanish like one of the mystical creatures decorating the nursery walls. The mere thought of her disappearing again caused his heart to give a painful lurch.

Soon she'd be both wife and mother, just as he'd be husband
and father. How odd that two short days before he'd been neither of those things, hadn't even known that one reckless night with this woman had created a child. But he found himself fiercely glad that it had happened, that a new life had been breathed into existence from a moment of perfect passion.

He knelt beside the bed and rested his hand against the baby Shayla held safely tucked within her. The Inferno hummed as though recognizing its connection to what snuggled beneath. Draco closed his eyes, realizing he'd fallen and fallen hard. For mother. For child. And then he pressed his cheek to that restless mound, whispered to his son and made promises he'd do everything within his power to keep.