Читать книгу Scandals Of The Powerful - Sarah Morgan, Carol Marinelli - Страница 15

CHAPTER SIX

‘I AM not corrupt.’ It was as if he could read her mind. ‘It is my own money.’ He looked over to her. ‘I worked for ten years in my father’s business and turned it around. One of the nice things about making a fortune is you can then do whatever work you choose. My job now is to flush out certain people. Because of my wealth I get closer than any of them like.’

‘Like tonight?’

‘The restaurant do not want to say no to me either. They know I always am seated upstairs. It was good to observe them, to see the cousins seated at the same table and hating it.’

He left her alone for a moment and then returned with a large T-shirt for her. For a moment she considered asking where the bathroom was so she could put it on, but they were a bit past that. Still, he was back to the old Anton now. He turned his back and opened the fridge and pulled out some wine as Emily quickly took off his jacket and slipped the T-shirt on, then removed her shoes.

She sat on the sofa and tucked her legs under her, a part of her wanting only to find out about him, but she’d sworn no regrets and she did not want to be sitting at her desk on Monday without words for her work.

‘Why don’t the cousins get on?’ Emily asked as he handed her a drink.

‘Salvatore and Teresa had two sons, Benito and Carlo, brothers but rivals. Salvatore divided his empire up between them. They were killed a few years ago in a fire and the rivalry continued down the line to their children. The cousins are always trying to outdo each other. The only reason they were together tonight is for Teresa.’

‘Will they all be at the wedding tomorrow?’

‘Not all,’ Anton said. ‘There is Angelo—he is Carlo’s illegitimate son. They like to forget about him, but he has Corretti blood in his veins and he is slowly moving in on them. I doubt you will see Gio. He is one of Benito’s sons but tends to stay away from family things, though he might make an appearance. He is more interested in horses. There is the Corretti Cup in three weeks. He will be there for that.’

‘Will you be at that, too?’

‘Like a bad smell.’ Anton’s smile was black.

‘You hate them, don’t you?’

‘More than you could know.’ She could hear the loathing in his voice. ‘My family owned many properties all across Sicily, but we did not conform to the rules. We refused to bow to the Sicilian powers that be. There was a car bomb. My family was in it. I should have been in that vehicle. By chance I was not.’

‘The Correttis did that?’ She was horrified but he shook his head.

‘I do not know who. That is why I joined the polizia. My only interest now is working out who ordered the hit on my family.’

‘And then what?’

‘Justice.’

He was a police officer, Emily told herself. He just wanted the people responsible behind bars. Her imagination was working overtime from reading too much about the Correttis.

She looked down at the ring still on her finger.

‘Is this really your mother’s?’

He nodded. ‘Tonight it was worn for a very worthy cause.’

‘Anton...’ She was more confused than she had ever been. She understood now the guardedness to him, but the loathing in his voice unnerved her. She started pulling at the ring, but an olive-skinned hand halted her.

‘You’ll be needing that tomorrow. Why would my guest, my new fiancée, not be wearing her ring?’

‘You mean the wedding.’ Emily’s mouth gaped. ‘You’re invited?’

‘Of course. They hate me because they cannot buy me, yet they try to keep me on their side, too. So, would you care to join me?’

And not for the first time tonight, and certainly not for the last, as his mouth moved towards her, Emily found herself saying yes to Anton.