Page 8 of His Fantasy Bride (Things To Do Before You Die)

He’d come here straight from the airport, not wanting to put this off. His driver had dropped him off at the theater and taken his bags on to the hotel. He’d head over there now, shower, catch some sleep, and then go hunt down his runaway bride a second time.

And this time he wouldn’t be distracted.

Chapter Three

Something nudged her in the side. Gabby grunted and rolled over, burying her nose in the back of the sofa and pulling the blanket up over her head.

“Go away,” she mumbled.

“Time to get up, sleepyhead. And what are you doing fast asleep in the afternoon, anyway?”

Trying not to think.

But no way was she saying that to Theresa, who was just about the nosiest person Gabby knew. If she got an inkling anything was going on, she would attempt to worm the truth out of her. And she wouldn’t give up.

Theresa Scarlesi was her best friend, had been since they’d first met when they were both seven. But she was also Luca’s sister, and it was testing her loyalties as it was, asking her not to tell him Gabby’s whereabouts.

But then, Gabby hadn’t told Theresa of the little deal she had made with her brother. All she’d said was that she was avoiding Luca for a while. Theresa was sympathetic; after all, she believed Luca had broken Gabby’s heart a long time ago. In actual fact, he’d only bruised it a little. Gabby hadn’t really loved him. He’d just been a way for her to belong—or not, as it turned out.

But Theresa was a good friend and had offered her unconditional support, along with her couch, when Gabby had come back from Sicily homeless and a little…lost.

Six months later and she still hadn’t found herself.

Her life was one big messy mass of lies.

And, oh God, I just had sex with Vittorio D’Ascensio.

Arch enemy of the Scarlesis.

And it had been the best sex ever, even if it should never have happened. She had a flashback to the feel of him deep inside her, and her thighs clenched together.

“Haven’t you got a performance tonight?” Theresa asked, pulling her out of the pit of depravity her mind had sunk into.

She rolled back over and slowly emerged from her cocoon, sitting up and pushing her hair out of her face. “Yeah.” She glanced at her watch. She’d slept for three hours—a post coital snooze; sex always made her sleepy—and she had to be at the theater in an hour and a half.

“Here.” Theresa pushed a mug of coffee under her nose, and she wrapped her fingers around it, brought it to her face, and breathed in the caffeine fumes.

“Thank you.” She glanced up at her friend. “You want to meet after the show?”

“Can’t. I have a night shift.” Theresa was an ER nurse. It was all she had ever wanted to be, and she worked long hours but seemed to love it. Plus, she was in lust with one of the ER doctors who so far didn’t know she existed but for whom she had high hopes. “Are you okay?” Theresa sank into the chair opposite and was studying her, eyes narrowed. Theresa was pure Sicilian—curvy, dark haired and dark eyed, with smooth olive skin. A total contrast to Gabby.

She tried for a nonchalant shrug. “Why shouldn’t I be?”

“Your lips are swollen. You look like you’ve been thoroughly kissed.”

“I wish. Though I did fall flat on my face during rehearsal this morning—twice.”

“Hmm.”

Trouble was, Theresa knew her too well. Gabby swallowed the lukewarm coffee in one gulp, then pushed the blanket off and got to her feet. “Shower time.”

She stood under the hot spray, trying to wash away her worries and failing.

Oh Lord, why had Vito come backnow, after she’d finally let down her guard?

For the first few weeks after she’d run, she’d spent the whole time looking over her shoulder, expecting him to pop up at any moment.

And what had she felt when he hadn’t? Relief obviously. But lurking beneath the relief was a huge dose of disappointment. Had some stupid, pathetic part of her actually believed that deep down he’d lovedher?That he’d seen through her pretense to the real Gabby underneath and fallen in love.

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