Page 19 of Summer on Sunshine Bay

After talking to Heather, Eva felt like hitting him too, only he wouldn’t be smiling. It annoyed her that she found his smile as attractive as ever and that her niece still insisted on calling himUncleJames. Sage was the same.

Eva had tried to break them of the habit over the years, but it didn’t work. Not surprising, she supposed. Whenever James had come to see Lila—their visits had taken place in Sunshine Bay until she was twelve—he’d arrive bearing gifts, and he’d always brought something for Sage and Willow too. He’d spoiled the three of them, especially at Christmas, shipping over boxes of presents. Whenever money was tight—which, to be honest, was most of the time—Eva and Gia would mark half of them as being from Santa.

“Sorry about that.” Willow laughed and removed the duck from her waist. She leaned in and hugged James. “It’s nice to see you.”

“Obviously when Lila invoked the Cousins Pact, she didn’t share that her father owns Windemere,” Eva said, pulling out the chair between her daughter and Gia.

James frowned. “I what?”

Suddenly weary and deflated, Eva dropped onto the chair. “Oh, please, don’t try and deny it, James.”

“Eva, I have nothing to do with Windemere.”

His deep voice with his sexy British accent had always done it for her, in bed and out. It was annoying that it still had the power to make her toes curl. “I don’t bel—”

“Mom, it’s true. David’s father owns controlling interest in Windemere.” Lila ducked her head and took a sip of her ginger ale.

“Your colleague from London?” Eva asked, looking from Lila to James when he slid a protective arm around their daughter.

“David’s more than a colleague, Mom.” Her daughter’s voice dropped, and she mumbled, “He’s my fiancé.”

“Sorry, I must have misunderstood. I thought you said he’s your fiancé.” At the looks on her sister’s and niece’s faces, Eva’s laugh sputtered and died in her throat. “Tell me you did not just say you’re engaged to that boy, Lila Marie Rosetti.”

“Lila Marie RosettiSinclair,” James said, his glacial blue eyes holding Eva’s gaze, warning her in his not-so-subtle way to tread carefully.

Her sister did the same—only she lightly pinched Eva’s thigh instead of staring her down.

“This is exactly why I put off telling you, Mom. I knew how you’d react. How all of you’d react,” she said with a sweeping gesture around the table.

“Don’t include me, sweetheart. I’m happy for you. David’s a good—”

“Did you expect us to cheer, to be happy for you, Lila?” Eva asked, cutting off James. “We love you, and the last thing we want is for you to be hurt, and that’s exactly what will happen if you go through with this. You know our family’s history.” She reached for her daughter’s hand, ignoring the twinge of hurt when Lila pulled it away. “We are—”

“I don’t believe in the Rosetti curse, and even if I did, I wouldn’t let some silly superstition dictate my choices in life.”

Eva turned to her sister. “Do you hear that, G? Your niece believes the curse is nothing more than a silly superstition. Perhaps you want to enlighten her.”

“I’m sorry, Zia. I’m not trying to belittle your suffering or Nonna’s or any of the Rosetti women’s,” Lila said, and then she looked at Eva with an obstinate lift of her chin.

Lila might look like her father, but she’d inherited her grandmother’s stubbornness.

“But I’m marrying David, and nothing you can say will change my mind. I love you, and I want you to be part of my wedding, but if you can’t support me and be happy for me…” She trailed off with a shrug as if it didn’t matter to her, but Eva saw the shimmer of tears in her eyes.

“Oh, darling, of course we’ll support you. There’s nothing we want more than your happiness, and if you believe marrying David will make you happy, then who are we to stand in your way?” Eva smiled, and James’s eyes narrowed while around the table her daughter, sister, and niece blinked.

They had good reason to doubt her. She wasn’t about to let this David and his marriage proposal tear her and Lila apart by objecting to the wedding, but neither was she about to let her daughter make the biggest mistake of her life. Eva just needed time to convince Lila that marrying David would bring her nothing but heartache.

She pushed back from the table and stood up. “This calls for a celebration. I’ll get the champagne.”

Chapter Seven

Gia looked at Eva as if she’d lost her mind. No doubt her sister had been waiting for Eva to list all the reasons why Lila was making the biggest mistake of her life and then forbid her from going through with the wedding, threatening that if she did, she’d wash her hands of her. It’s what their mother had done when Gia told them she was getting married, and it had nearly torn their family apart.

When her sister opened her mouth, Eva told her in rapid-fire Italian—their daughters had never learned the language—that she was just buying time without alienating Lila, but one way or another, they’d stop the wedding.

Her sister’s shoulders lowered from around her ears. “That’s a good plan.” Gia winced, realizing she’d spoken in English, and tried to cover her slip. “Brand. That’s a good brand of champagne.”

Eva had a feeling that Gia hadn’t been quick enough to cover her slip when James stood up. “I’ll give you a hand.”

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