The Italian Inheritance (9 page)

“So this is for my benefit?” Anna gave him a sideways glance. “Well, that’s very decent of you, Rafael. Perhaps you’re not the lawyer from hell after all.”

“I try my best,” he smiled, not quite meeting her eye.

Rafael proved to be a considerate and amusing companion.
He enthralled her with interesting facts about the island, legends and folk tales.

“H
ave
you lived here all your life?” Anna felt compelled to ask. He
seemed
incredibly knowledgeable
about the island.

“I used to come here for holidays as a teenager,” he told her. “But I grew up in Naples.”

“So you had family here?”

“Yes,” he replied vaguely, changing the subject. “How about you? Where did you grow up?”

“Oh, I lived with my mother in a small English village in Surrey. We had a lovely old
Victorian
house, which unfortunately had to be sold after she died.” She looked wistfully at Rafael. “I loved that house. My uncle used the money to send me to boarding school.”

“How old were you
when your mother died
?” His dark eyes
roamed casually over
her face.

“Twelve. It was an awful time and I was
desperately unhappy
for a few years,
but
then I made some good friends, friends I still have today, actually, and life improved
drastically
. I learned to look after myself.”

“It’s a valuable skill to possess,” remarked Ra
fael, a tad cryptically, but he didn’t elaborate. Instead
,
he changed the subject. “There are a couple of things you should see while you’re on the island.

“I’m listening...” Anna smiled indulgently. She didn’t know how much free time she’d have, or how long she could stay, but it was worth visiting one or two landmarks before she left. Capri turned out to be
far
more expensive than she imagined and she was already down to the last of her budget. Anyway, she enjoyed listening to Rafael speak. His deep voice with that sexy Italian accent definitely
did it for her. Amazingly she found herself gazing at his perfect bone structure under the rough exterior and thinking how under different circumstances...

But no, it wasn’t worth even going there. He wasn’t her type anyway. Gorgeous local Italian men were for holid
ay flings and one-night-stands, not long lasting relationships.
Right up her friend Lara’s
alley
, but
sadly not
Anna’s.
She was after something more substantial. A husband, a provider,
a father for he
r children.
S
he wasn’t going to find that on a week
-
long reconnaissance mi
ssion on the island of
Capri - that
was for sure.

So she concentrated on what he was saying, and mentally made a list of things to see, if she got the time, starting with the Grotta Azzurra
-
the Blue Grotto.
Perhaps tomorrow, after their meeting...

After they’d finished a bottle of wine and talked some more about the Amalfi Coast and all the romantic towns situated along the coastline, Anna was determined that someday, when she had the money, she would come back and explore it properly. Rafael had aroused her interest and made it sound so exotic.

“That was lovely. I’m stuffed,” complained Anna once their plates had been cleared away and two cappuccino’s had been placed before them. Secretly she welcomed the coffee after all that wine.
She was quite tipsy. In fact, so much so that she found herself
gazing appreciatively at her dinner companion. He really was superbly put together. Right from the top o
f his beautiful brown locks to the tips of his
casual
designer
footwear
.

Rafael caught her staring at him. “Do you like what you see?”

The brazen question caught her off-guard. She blinked. “Sorry,
I didn’t realise I was staring.
” How embarr
assing to be caught ogling. She gave a self-conscious laugh. “It’s
the wine. I don’t usually stare so blatantly at men.”

Rafael laughed. “Don’t worry. I believe you.”

Something in his tone caused her to ask,
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Did she appear so prim and proper that she wouldn’t dare
look
at a man if she liked him?

Rafael shrugged. “You don’t look like the type of girl who takes the initiative when it comes to men. You would rather wait for the man to approach you.”

At her look of astonishment he added, “Am I right?”

“No, you’re not right. I can take the initiative.” But when had she ever done that? Every boyfriend she’d had had asked her out.

“Oh, really?”

The bill came and Anna watched as he charged the meal to
his credit card. Platinum Visa. This guy wouldn’t have a clue what it was like to struggle through life. He was so self-assured, with his Rolex and platinum credit card. She sat up straighter.

“Yes, really. I would quite happily take the initiative if I met someone who was worth the effort.” Except the problem was she never met anyone who was worth the effort. Well, she hadn’t yet, anyway.

“So
,
what would you do?” He stared intently into her eyes. “If you liked someon
e, w
hat would you do?
How would you let them know?
”

Anna swallowed. Was he coming on to her? She felt her pulse rate quicken as she gazed back at him.
Or was he trying to make her feel uncomfortable?

She didn’t know what
think
.
The restaurant, the dinner,
the
light-hearted conversation
. It was all
so
surreal
.
After the frustration of the last few days,
and the hostility between them,
Anna couldn’t reconcile this sudden change in attitude.

She took a deep breath. “I’ll let you know when it happens.”

His mouth curved into a smile and he gave a little nod.
“You do t
hat.
”
There was an awkward pause. Rafael stood up
. “Shall we go?”

They stepped out into the balmy night air. Anna couldn’t believe how warm it still was despite being nearly midnight.
Time had flown.
They’d been at the restaurant for over three hours.

Rafael led the way back to Villa Rosa. They walked at a leisurely pace, without talking, listening as the chatter and music of the town faded into the background. Every now and then Rafael’s hand
brushed
against hers sending l
ittle shivers down her bare arm
.

Anna
was
suddenly
acutely aware of his
masculine presence
, only inches away from her.
It seemed to envelop her like some mysterious magnetic force. He wa
s so virile, so good looking—a
nd so not her type. But he exuded sex appeal, tonight especially. Maybe it was because he’d been so cold and distant up until now, that this change was having such an effect on her.

“So I’ll see you tomorrow?” Anna
clarified,
as the rambling rose bushes clinging to the gates of the entrance to the
hotel
came into view.

“Yes,
come to my office around eleven
,” confirmed Rafael, turning to face her. “We can do some background checks and try to get some clarity on your position.”

Anna nodded. There was a pause in which
he took a hesitant step towards her
.
Anna froze, her breath catching in her throat. His dark gaze dropped to her mouth.

Oh no, he was going to kiss her.

“I had a great time tonight,” said Anna
hurriedly,
trying to break the mo
ment
. “Thank you for dinner.”

“My pleasure,” said Rafael softly
, and took another step forward.

Pulse racing, Anna was about to turn and bolt when she felt his warm hand on her forearm.
Her eyes flew to his face.
Rafael
smiled and
pulled her gently towards him. Anna felt she should probably resist but she couldn’t quite remember why. The mixture of the wine, the warm evening and his
sensual
smile
completely overwhelmed her.

Then all rational thought vanished as his lips came down on hers.

Hungrily, Anna kissed Rafael back. All the tension of the last few days, the frustration, the fighting and her botched
surveillance attempt—e
verything was released in her response. Anna couldn’t get enough of him, her hands fisted desperately in his hair and she was consumed by his taste, his scent and his touch.

Rafael matched her sudden frenzied passion by wrapping his arms around her waist and holding her tightly against him. Her breasts crushed against his chest, her pelvis flush against his hips and her thighs pushed against his. He kissed her back hard, delving his tongue into her mouth as if he were devouring her.

After a few long moments, they both suddenly broke away, breathing hard. Anna could feel Rafael’s heart beating like a bongo drum against hers.

They stared at each other with a mixture of surprise and in Anna’s case, uncertainty.

What the hell had just happened?

Somehow she’d completely lost control. Her heart hammered so loudly in her chest she felt at any minute it might jump straight up her throat. Out of nowhere this wave of passion had engulfed them when their lips
had
touched and she’d totally lost control of her emotions, something that had never happened to her before.

In her previous relationships, of which there had been dismally few, she’d never felt this degree of passion, this wild, uncontrollable emotion.

Her first
serious
boyfriend had been
Andrew,
a trainee doctor
. He was
bright with good earning potential, but not particularly
keen on children, which was a huge no-no for her
. Then came William, the architect from next door who took her out a few times, but was more interested in his pet gerbil
than he was in her. Then came Phillip, the chef, who was sweet, but his gruelling hours would be a problem if she ever wanted to settle down with him and have kids. So she had pretty much decided to quit casual dating until she found someone who was w
orth the effort, someone who checked all her boxes.

She gazed at Rafael who was trying to compose himself.
He ticked none of her boxes—e
xcept maybe the stable job one. He certainly had that. B
y
the looks of things he ran the Capri office single-handedly, and judging by his conversation with the Mayor, was a man of some standing.

And he was good looking, make that exceptional looking. Except
looks weren’t
really one of her criteria.
That
was more of a nice-to-have, rather than a must-have.

But he was not marriage material. In fact, he was so far from it the concept was unthinkable. He could be cold and unfeeling, not to mention cynical and suspicious. Plus, she barely knew him.

So why had she reacted to him the way she had?

Rafael stared at her with a mixture of surprise and desire. His eyes glittered softly in the moonlight. He seemed to be pondering his next move.

“Sorry, I seem to have got
ten
a bit carried away. It must be the wine,” she blurted out before he got any ideas about taking their kiss further. That would be a disaster. If this is what a mere kiss could do to her, imagine the rest... she didn’t dare.

So this is what it feels like to be
knocked off your feet
by a kiss
, she mused.

Dangerous.

When Rafael didn’t immediately reply, she added, “Well, thank you for a lovely evening. I’d better go in now, it’s very late and I’ve had a long day.”

And without waiting for him to speak, she retreated hastily inside the protective walls of the hotel.

Rafael could hardly think straight he had such a raging hard-on. That kiss had blown him away.

Out of nowhere he’d felt this surge of adrenalin and the urge to consume her, body and soul, had overwhelmed him. Her taste, her smell, the softness of her skin all contributed to a sensory overload of mammoth proportions and Rafael had lost complete control over his thoughts. He’d acted purely on instinct. For a minute there he’d felt like he couldn’t get enough of her. His heart was still thumping like a jack-hammer.