Page 35 of Seduced By the Enemy

He nodded slowly.

“Your family, my family, it makes it impossible. So there’s no way I can be hurt by anything that happens between us, because no matter how good things are,” and now it was Emilia who reached for him, lacing their fingers together and squeezing them, to physically underscore her words. “We both know it can never, ever be more than this.”

Her smile was slow, and somehow kind of sad, even when her expression didn’t mirror that. He resented how well he could interpret her features, how easily he could read her and spot when she was masking the complexity of her feelings.

“Then it’s a good thing ‘this’ is enough.”

“More than enough,” she agreed, and now her smile was more relaxed. He ignored the gaping hole in his chest, the tightening in his gut, and focused instead on the fact he was spending the afternoon with a woman he couldn’t get enough of. She was right, anyway. They both knew there was no future for them, but they could make the most of the here and now. With that very much in the forefront of his mind, Salvatore placed his champagne flute on the trolley first, and then hers, before leaning forward so he could kiss Emilia, his naked body pressed to hers, so the sensations running through him were almost overwhelming.

And utterly, incomprehensibly perfect.

One week later

Global Hunger Eradication Initiative Gala, New York.

Emilia’s eyesscanned the room even before she realised she was doing it. Despite the fact she and Salvatore had spent the past week making the most of the privacy their suite afforded, and seeing him was no longer a luxury, there was something about seeing himhere,in this environment, that made her insides tremble with anticipation.

At least her brothers weren’t here. For this event, Emilia was the sole Valentino in attendance, which took the pressure off her, to some extent. There was no need to spend the entire time disguising the way she was looking for Salvatore. Nor to be afraid one of her sisters in law would notice the way she couldn’tstoplooking at him.

The event was being hosted in the foyer of what had once been an enormous, private home—long ago converted to a library by the owners, for the benefit of the city. Emilia had been here before, for a different event, and had been just as awed then by the stunning architecture as she was now. Enormous marble pillars created a classical effect that was only enhanced by the soft mood lighting and dramatic floral arrangements. At the top of the central, sweeping staircase, a string quartet had been set up, and the gentle strains of their music added an elegance to the hum of the room. Finely dressed guests milled—a mix of wealthy philanthropists, politicians and celebrities, talking and laughing.

Emilia was in one such group, nodding and half-listening to the conversation, all the while allowing her gaze to flit across thecrowd every few minutes, waiting, anticipating,knowinghe was somewhere and almost giddy with the excitement of seeing him again.

Which was ridiculous.

They were seeing each other often enough that it shouldn’t have been a source of such excitement to contemplate this, and yet… she sucked in a sharp breath of air as finally her eyes landed on him. Well, on the back of his head, at least. Strange how easily she picked him out of the crowd, despite it only being a glimpse of him, but she instantly recognised the set of his broad shoulders, the bearing, so much so she could practicallyseehis face even when it was angled away.

She tried not to stare, but she couldn’t help it. Excitement fizzed in her belly as she imagined how she could extricate herself from this conversation and get closer to him. Closer than this, at least. Out of the corner of her eye, a flash of red caught her attention, and she shifted her attention to a striking woman with light blonde hair and a stunning figure, as she cut through the crowd.

Emilia couldn’t sayhowshe knew Salvatore was her destination. But if Emilia’s eyes were locked on Salvatore, then the same could be said for this woman, who seemed to have the precision of a homing pigeon. As Emilia watched, the woman tapped Salvatore on the shoulder, so he glanced at her first, and Emilia caught enough of his expression to see that he was, at first, reserved. Then, however, he turned more fully, and his entire demeanor changed, his expression breaking out into a look of pure, unadulterated pleasure, as he wrapped his arms around the woman and pulled her tight to his body, holding her there as though seeing her was the highlight of his night.

Holding her there as though he couldn’t let go.

Emilia stared, the air leaving her lungs in a rush, so her eyes filled with stars and she felt lightheaded. She dug her fingernailsinto the palm of one hand, knowing she needed to look away, but not quite able to.

Salvatore lifted his head, still smiling, and the woman’s hands gripped his upper arms, her bright red nails, matching the dress, digging into the material of his tuxedo jacket. Emilia’s stomach twisted into knots, and her throat felt all thick and dry.

The woman said something, and Salvatore nodded. Something else, another nod, and then they were turning, Salvatore’s hand in the small of her back, just above the swell of her bottom, as they moved away from his group, and disappeared completely from view.

The anticipation Emilia had been feeling – so pleasant a moment ago – was now like ice in her veins. She no longer saw the dramatic beauty of the foyer, nor heard the perfection of the music. All she could hear, and feel, was the throbbing of her heart, as it fast-pumped blood through her body, so it washed through her ears with a frantic, nauseating regularity.

“Are you aware of the innovations, Emilia?”

She’d completely missed the conversation, and made an effort to focus, even when her brain was still trying to process what she’d just witnessed.

She’d never seen the other woman before, so she wasn’t a regular at these things. But that didn’t mean anything. She was clearly familiar to Salvatore, and it didn’t take the mental acuity of a brain surgeon to put two and two together and get ‘ex girlfriend’.

Why should that surprise her? She knew about Salvatore’s past. She’d known that going into this. It was probably inevitable that she should come face to face with some figment of his life before Emilia. How foolish of her not to have contemplated that. Nor to have thought about what the future looked like, beyond this relationship. This would be over, soon enough, and then they’d have to go back to pretending each other didn’t exist,ignoring one another at these events. Seeing one another talk to other people. Go home with them.

Her heart rate kicked up a notch.

“Emilia? Are you feeling okay?”

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, pressing her fingertips to her temple. “I just need a moment.”

“Do you need company?” One of the women in the group asked. Emilia couldn’t remember her name, but the woman’s concern was obvious.

Emilia shook her head. Company was the last thing she wanted. “I’m fine. Thank you. Excuse me,” she added, as she took a few steps away and then turned, looking around for the quickest route to reprieve—she needed time. Just a little time, to process this.

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