Rags To Riches Collection. Rebecca Winters

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      ‘You go. You and bambina.’ Carlotta made a valiant attempt to speak English. ‘Signor Piras say you leave now. This day.’

      ‘I see.’ Heart thumping, Beth scooped up Sophie and hurried out of the nursery. Had Cesario decided not to go ahead with the DNA test and was now sending her and Sophie home? And, if so, had he made that decision because she had called a halt to their passion the previous night?

      As she reached the bottom of the staircase he emerged from his study and strode across the hall to meet her. Today the devil-may-care pirate had been transformed into a suave billionaire banker. Dressed in an impeccably tailored charcoal-grey suit, pale blue shirt and navy tie, he was to die for, Beth thought weakly. Even his unruly black hair had been tamed a little. But his veneer of sophistication could not disguise his dominant masculinity. He was formidably powerful and undoubtedly ruthless.

      Those granite grey eyes above his slashing cheekbones were as hard as steel as he subjected her to an unsparing scrutiny, noting the soft flush of colour that briefly stained her pale face when her gaze met his.

      ‘Why is Carlotta packing Sophie’s things? She said that we are to leave the castle.’

      ‘I have meetings scheduled at the Piras-Cossu Bank today and I’ve decided that you and Sophie should come to Rome with me. I’ve contacted a clinic who will carry out the DNA test there. The results should be back within two weeks. I’m sure you agree that the sooner we know the truth of Sophie’s parentage the better,’ he said coolly.

      Beth tried to ignore her feeling of dread that if the test proved Cesario was Sophie’s father he would demand custody of her. ‘Has the landslide been cleared already?’ She had assumed that they would be trapped at the castle for several days.

      ‘No, but the weather has improved, which means that my helicopter can land in the castle grounds. The rain and thick cloud of the last few days made visibility too poor to fly,’ he explained when she gave him a startled look.

      ‘I’m not taking Sophie on a helicopter.’ The flight on a commercial jet to Sardinia had been nerve-racking enough. It had been the first time Beth had flown and she hadn’t enjoyed the experience.

      ‘It’s perfectly safe,’ Cesario assured her. ‘I regularly commute to Rome by helicopter.’

      He turned his attention to Sophie and gave her a gentle smile. To Beth’s surprise the baby, who was usually reticent with strangers, smiled back and held out her arms to him.

      ‘Come on, piccola,’ he murmured, his stern features softening as he lifted her and held her against his shoulder. He strode out of the front door, but paused on the steps and glanced back impatiently at Beth. ‘We need to leave.’ He skimmed his eyes over her and added in an amused voice, ‘I see you’ve dressed to audition for a role in The Sound of Music.’

      Beth felt a spurt of temper which made her forget her worries about flying. She was well aware that her black skirt was too long and the grey tee shirt too drab. She did not need him to remind her that she was a non-starter in the fashion stakes. ‘I don’t own many clothes,’ she snapped, as she followed him across the courtyard to where the helicopter was waiting.

      ‘That is something else we will take care of while we are in Rome,’ he murmured obliquely.

      There was no chance for her to ask him what he meant while the pilot helped her climb into the helicopter and instructed her to fasten her seat belt. She glanced around the luxurious cabin, at the cream leather seats and polished walnut fitments, including a small drinks bar, and ruefully compared it to the cramped economy seats on the budget airline plane she had flown on to Sardinia. Nothing emphasised Cesario’s billionaire status more acutely than this private helicopter. She did not belong in his rarefied world of the super-rich, she acknowledged heavily. But if Sophie was his child she would have no right to deny the little girl the privileged life Cesario could give her.

      Her heart was in her mouth when the helicopter took off, and she closed her eyes so that she could not see the ground growing farther and farther away.

      ‘Try to relax,’ Cesario said softly, no hint of teasing in his deep voice. He curled his big hand over hers. ‘If you look to your right you can see Lake Cedrino, and over there that high peak is Monte Corrasi, one of the highest mountains in Sardinia.’

      The view was breathtaking, Beth discovered, when she warily lifted her lashes. Cesario continued to point out various places of interest and her tension gradually eased—although she was not as relaxed as Sophie, who had fallen asleep in her baby seat.

      Soon they were flying over the coast and across the sea towards mainland Italy. ‘We should be in Rome in twenty minutes,’ Cesario told her after a while. ‘We’ll go straight to my apartment. I’ve arranged for a representative from the clinic to meet us there, so that he can take mouth swabs for the DNA test.’

      ‘I don’t see why it was necessary for me and Sophie to come with you.’ Beth had been puzzling over his decision for most of the flight. ‘Couldn’t you have arranged for the person from the clinic to have flown to the castle?’

      ‘I could have done. But I have another reason for bringing you to Rome.’ At her enquiring look he continued, ‘I have tickets for the ballet. The Teatro dell’Opera di Roma orchestra and ballet company are putting on a production of Romeo and Juliet. Tonight is the opening night and I thought you might like to come with me.’

      ‘I’ve never been to the ballet—I’ve only ever watched it on TV.’ Beth quickly quashed her spurt of excitement. ‘But if you have already booked the tickets surely you must have planned to take someone else? You can’t disappoint your.’ she hesitated, wondering about the identity of the other person ‘.friend by taking me instead.’

      Cesario shrugged. ‘My guest can no longer come, so her ticket is available. It would be a shame to waste it.’

      ‘I see.’ An inexplicable feeling of jealousy seared Beth’s insides as she guessed that Cesario had intended to take his mistress to the ballet. No doubt the woman was gorgeous and sophisticated, as suited Italy’s most eligible billionaire banker. ‘I’d better not come,’ she said stiffly. ‘It might make things awkward between you and your girlfriend.’

      Cesario heard the disappointment in her voice and was tempted to shake her—or kiss her. Kissing her was definitely the preferable option, he acknowledged as his gaze lingered on her soft pink mouth.

      ‘I don’t have a current girlfriend. I bought the ticket for my PA, as a thank-you for the hard work she does for me, but something has come up and she is no longer free tonight.’

      It was only a little white lie, Cesario assured himself. He was not going to admit that, after Beth had told him last night about how she had longed for ballet lessons when she was a child, he had phoned one of his contacts and told him to get hold of tickets for tonight’s performance, whatever the cost.

      Cesario was searching for something in his briefcase, but Beth had the strangest feeling that he was avoiding looking at her. ‘Come with me tonight if you want to,’ he said casually. ‘I thought you said you liked ballet. But if you’re not interested.’

      ‘Oh, I am. I’d love to come.’ Another thought struck Beth. ‘But what about Sophie? I can’t leave her, and I’m sure babies aren’t welcome at the opera house.’

      ‘Don’t СКАЧАТЬ