Marie Ferrarella – The Baby Bombshell: The Billionaire's Baby Swap / Dating for Two / The Valtieri Baby (страница 17)
“It’s not over yet.”
They went inside the sunroom. “Stay here. I’ll get two aperitif glasses.” He took one of the limoncello bottles with him.
She put their sack of purchases down on the table while she waited.
Soon he returned. “I checked on the children. They’re sound asleep. Stanzie and Paolo are happy with our gift and have gone off to have their own celebration.” He opened the other bottle and poured them each some liqueur. She took one, he picked up the other.
“I’d like to make a toast.” He stared into her eyes. “To our partnership, which I’ve wanted since the first day at the hospital.” He clicked her glass and drank.
His admission caused her hand to tremble as she sipped her drink that looked like liquid sunshine. “Giovanni, I—”
He stopped the flow of words with a touch of his finger to her lips, fanning the flame he’d ignited at dinner. “Can you imagine a time when we won’t be partners? Not every baby switch has a happy ending as we’ve learned after reading all the research. Our children deserve the very best from both of us. We owe it to them and each other for the rest of our lives.”
She pondered what he’d said. Partners had been an interesting choice of words. When he’d asked her to move in, he’d said he didn’t know for how long. Giovanni was used to thinking in business terms. In the metaphoric sense she agreed they’d be partners for a lifetime because of the link to the children. But in a literal sense she didn’t see them staying together longer than a month.
By then Ric would have grown attached to Giovanni. Vito would be old enough for the separation, since she planned to move back to Naples to finish her studies. The winter semester would be starting in September. There were good day-care centers suggested by the university. Valentina would make inquiries and find the one that suited her best.
Thank goodness for student loans. After she graduated and got a good job with an engineering firm, she’d pay it off. Knowing that Giovanni worked in Naples, she expected he’d come to see Vito, so that bond wouldn’t be broken. She’d see him and Ric from time to time. It could all work.
“I’ll think about everything you’ve said. Thanks again for the lovely evening.” She put the glass down. Get out of here, Valentina, before you can’t. “Now I’m headed for bed.”
“Buonanotte.”
Valentina’s heart thundered in her chest all the way to her room. There’d be little sleep for her tonight. But to her surprise, she did sleep until Vito awakened for his bottle at four.
Around seven she got up and dressed in jeans and a top, expecting that Giovanni would have left for work. But when she carried Vito down the hall to the nursery, she found him feeding Ric. He was clean shaven and wore another pair of jeans and a creamy colored crewneck shirt. It didn’t matter what he wore, he was a sensational-looking man.
She reached for a bottle and put it in the microwave. “Don’t you need to get to your office?”
His dark gaze swept over her, making her far too aware of him. “I’ve arranged for some time off. How would you like to go out on my cruiser? I thought we’d visit several places and be gone for two or three nights. You can do night duty for me at some point. It’s true I’ve been a cavallo di battaglia too long.”
“But don’t forget that being a workhorse put you in the reins of your family’s company in the first place.”
“I’m not sure if I like it. Right now I find that I’m loving to be on vacation and don’t want it to end.”
She knew how hard he worked, but this baby had forced him to take a break. No invitation could have thrilled her more. “The boat is the perfect way to enjoy ourselves with the children without having to take them in the car.”
“My thinking exactly. Unless there’s anything else you need to do, we’ll leave after breakfast.”
They worked together to pack up the children and their things. Valentina hurried to her room to do some packing. Before long they went downstairs with all their paraphernalia to eat.
After breakfast, they packed up the car. The Brunos waved them off.
Giovanni drove along a road that wound lower and lower to a private area of beach where he kept his boat tethered to the pier.
“What a wonderful cruiser!”
“When Paolo and Stanzie moved in the villa, I told them they could take it out whenever they wanted, so they’ve kept it in top condition.”
“It’s nice to see that a couple who work together are so much in love. You can tell by their glances and smiles at each other.”
“No one could ever say that about Tatania and me. The secret is to fall in love first. Those lucky enough for that to happen have love going for them when they marry.”
“I’m sorry your marriage didn’t work. I know you’ve told me it’s all your fault, but I know that’s not true. Did she really not know you were a hard worker? I bet if you asked her, she would have to admit she looked past that trait in you. If she could have been honest with herself, she might have decided to follow her own instincts to find a man who wasn’t a workaholic.”
“Hindsight is a wonderful thing.”
“Don’t I know it,” she said with a wry smile. “If I hadn’t felt like such a failure, I would have realized why Matteo had so much influence over me by telling me what I needed to hear.”
He shook his dark head. “A failure? When you’ve almost received your graduate degree in engineering at the age of twenty-five?”
“Looking back, I realize how odd that sounds now. But growing up, it felt like my brothers received all the attention and I admit I was jealous. My mother tried to help me. She said that one day I’d become my own person and those feelings would go away.”
Giovanni stared hard at her. “Have they gone?”
“Now that I’m a mother, I’ve been forced to grow up. Somehow those feelings of jealousy I harbored seem absurd in light of the problems you and I have been forced to face.”
He nodded. “Becoming a parent has been a life-changing experience for me, too. Work used to be everything. But since Vito was born, I can’t get home to him at night fast enough.”
“They are absolutely precious.”
“We’re very lucky.”
“Yes,” she whispered.
They got the children on board with the other items. Then he reached for the infant life preservers his siblings had used for their babies. After putting them on the children, they placed them in their carry-cots and lowered the visors to shield them from the sun. After undoing the ropes, Giovanni started the engine and they made their way at a wakeless speed into open water.
THE GULF OF SALERNO offered some of the most divine scenery imaginable. Along this winding coastline, steep rocky slopes rushed down to the sea, and tiny villages with colorful houses stacked on top of each other clung to the rugged cliffs.
Had Valentina ever been this happy? She couldn’t remember.
While Giovanni piloted the boat, she walked to the rear of the fabulous cruiser, resting one knee on the banquette to watch birds and fish, along with the colorful sailboats off in the distance. Later, after lunch, they carried the babies below to one of the bedrooms for their nap. For the next few hours she and Giovanni were free to enjoy this pleasurable moment out of time.
“Since I’ve anchored the boat, will you be all right if I take a swim?”
“Of course.”
“I’d ask you to join me.”
“No. One of us has to stay on board. Go for it, Giovanni. The water is so inviting.”
“I’ll be right back.” He disappeared below, leaving her alone to brood over the time when they had to say a real goodbye. She had to fight thoughts of one day being married to him. He’d only recently been divorced. To take on a new wife would be the last thing he’d want. Though they wouldn’t be parting company for a while, her heart was already rebelling.
Giovanni emerged on deck in blue swim trunks. His hard-muscled body took her breath before he slid over the side into the water and started swimming around the cruiser with the speed of a torpedo. He circled maybe ten times, then trod water close to the end of the boat with his hair sleeked back.
She smiled at him. “You look like you’re having a marvelous time.”
“I haven’t taken a day off like this in years.”
“Neither have I.”
“I’ll get back on board so you can have a turn.”
“I would, but I’m not ready to swim in the sea yet. Please stay out there as long as you want. I’m enjoying watching you.”
“After we go back to my place, you can use the pool so I’m able to watch you.”
Warmth rushed to her face that had nothing to do with the sun. “I don’t want to go back. This is glorious.”
“Then we won’t.”
She drank the rest of her water. Don’t tempt me, Giovanni. “You have a business to run.”
“Didn’t you hear what I just told you? Right now my only business is to love Ric and make him feel secure. With your help it’s happening.”
“I don’t know how I would have gotten through all this without your help. Vito is a different baby.”
He flashed her a smile that melted her bones. “We do good work.”
Too good. Her mind told her she shouldn’t have gotten involved with him once they’d left the hospital, but that wasn’t what her heart was telling her.