Page 183 of Modern Romance June 2025 5-8

She rolled her lips together and they made a soft popping sound when she stopped. ‘It’s a long story.’

‘We have a couple of hours.’

She tried not to squirm under his scrutiny. ‘Shouldn’t we be discussing how we’re going to take care of Katerina? I mean, do you have any experience with small children?’ She wanted to steer clear of any more embarrassing true confessions.

‘Not much. I was at boarding school when Isabella was young. I only saw her occasionally on visits home. And I’ve only seen Katerina a handful of times since the christening. That’s why I thought you should do this with me. Marcus told me you’ve seen her a fair bit.’

‘Yes, enough for her to know who I am, but Isabella or Marcus were always there too. My specialty is small animals, not small children, but I figure since I was a small kid once, it can’t be too hard, right?’

Vic’s sensual mouth lifted in a slanted smile and her heart gave a sudden lurch. ‘I’m not sure it works that way,cara.’

Gulp.She was losing count of how many times he’d addressed her with those delicious Italian endearments. ‘Yes, well, I guess we’ll muddle through somehow. But the poor little munchkin will be missing her parents, surely? I mean, she’s not yet two. Did they leave instructions on her routine and that sort of thing?’

‘The nanny will hopefully have informed my housekeeper of all that when she handed her over today.’

She frowned in concern. ‘But surely the nanny could’ve stayed until we got there? Poor little Katerina, she must be so confused and frightened to be suddenly left with a total stranger.’ She knew how her niece would be feeling because she had experienced it herself. Too many times to count. More times than she wanted to remember.

‘My housekeeper is more than capable of looking after her until we get there,’ Vic said. ‘She’s had four children and has several grandchildren of her own.’

She chewed at her lip, picturing the little toddler dumped off like a parcel with someone who was almost a stranger to take care of her and reassure her. She could still recall her own terrifying sense of abandonment all these years on from similar drop-offs. ‘But how well do you know your housekeeper? You said you’d only been to your villa a couple of times in the past year. She might be a wonderful housekeeper but a terrible childminder, even if she has grandchildren of her own. Child rearing practices have changed so much over the years. She might be doing or saying all sorts of things that are wrong by today’s standards.’

‘Katerina will be fine. Stop worrying. You’re forgetting she’s met Lucia many times before when Marcus and Isabella have stayed at the villa.’

‘But what about your mother and stepfather? They’re Katerina’s grandparents, or at least your mother is,’ Addie said.

Vic made a derisive sound at the back of his throat. ‘My stepfather isn’t fond of little kids.’

‘What about your mother?’

‘She adores Katerina.’

‘So why doesn’t she—?’

‘Because my stepfather makes sure my mother is too busy to be available to anyone but him.’

Addie sat back in her seat and frowned. It wasn’t hard to notice the bitterness in Vic’s tone and it made her wonder exactly what his childhood had been like once his stepfather came on the scene.

‘My stepfather isn’t fond of little kids.’

There was so much packed in that sentence and yet Vic’s half-sister seemed extremely fond of her father. Marcus and Isabella’s wedding had made Addie envious when she saw Isabella’s proud father walking her down the aisle. Addie’s father hadn’t even come to any of her school functions or birthdays. It seemed pretty unlikely he’d want to walk her down the aisle if by some miracle she did one day get married.

Addie tried to remember if Isabella or Marcus had ever mentioned the housekeeper, Lucia. She’d had nice housekeepers and nannies too, but it didn’t mean she was any less frightened to be suddenly without one or both of her parents. Children needed security and the slightest change could make them feel uneasy, uncertain and unloved. Addie’s mother, as the other grandmother, was clearly not available. Solange had even refused when Katerina was born to be called anything butSolange. Nograndma,grannyornannyfor her—it was too aging and not good for her brand. Solange would be the last person Marcus and Isabella could call on in an emergency, which was why Addie knew it was up to her to comfort and protect her little niece until her parents returned. But doing it with Vic Jacobetti was something she was not quite prepared for. But how could she prepare for something so outside her lived experience? He was a playboy. She was practically a nun.

‘Addie.’ It was the first time she had heard Vic call her by her preferred name and the sound of his deep and mellifluous voice with his Italian accent sent a fluttery sensation to her core. He pronounced Addie with a slight accentuation on the second syllable—Ad-dee.How could someone simply saying her name make her go weak at the knees?

She released her savaged lip and met his gaze. ‘It’ll be hours before we get there. Have you spoken to Lucia to see how Katerina is settling in?’

‘There hasn’t been time.’ A look of frustration crossed his face. ‘I had to cancel so many commitments in order to get there as it is.’

‘I’m sure Marcus and Isabella appreciate you sacrificing your valuable time.’ She hadn’t intended to be as sarcastic as she sounded—it just came out that way.

There was a moment or two of silence.

‘I understand you too had to cancel your own commitments,’ Vic said in a less impatient tone. ‘I appreciate you coming with me at such short notice, but I knew Marcus and Isabella would prefer us to do this together.’

‘Do this together…’

Somehow those words had an intimate sound to them that stirred her body into heightened awareness. An awareness that tingled through her blood like a mind-altering drug. Vic Jacobetti was such a worldly and experienced and sophisticated man. She was a shy and socially awkward virgin who hadn’t been kissed in years.

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