Harlequin Romance April 2015 Box Set (39 page)

Right now was Jules’s favorite part of the wedding preparations—a chance to sample mouthwatering cakes from dark chocolate to angelic white. Or in this case, sample the wide array of cupcakes. Jules grinned like a little kid as she eyed the display case filled with cupcakes decorated in every imaginable color.

“Relax.” The woman smiled at Stefano. “I promise this won’t hurt at all. In fact, you might enjoy it. If you two would just have a seat at the table over there, I’ll grab some samples.”

“Thank you.” Jules took Stefano’s hand and led him to the table. Once they were seated, Jules turned to him. “Would you relax? You’re making everyone uncomfortable.”

“What?” Stefano glanced across
the little white café-style table at her.

“Cheer up. This won’t take long, and you get to taste some delicious cupcakes.”

“Sorry. I was thinking about something else.”

“I’m sure you were,” she mumbled.

“I was.” His gaze narrowed in on her. “I was thinking about the vineyard.”

Apparently she hadn’t spoken quite as softly as she’d thought. “Are you that bored that you’d
rather be working?”

“Why must you jump to conclusions?”

She shrugged. Was she wrong? Was it possible he wasn’t wishing he was anywhere but here with her?

“Then why were you thinking about the vineyard?”

He leaned the little chair back on its two rear legs and crossed his arms as though trying to decide if he should take her into his confidence. That bothered her. After everything
she’d told him about her past, he really had to decide if she was trustworthy?

Before she could say a word, he spoke up. “It was brought to my attention that I’ve been cutting my father out of the business side of things at the vineyard. I guess I was so intent on keeping busy after Gianna died that I hadn’t noticed that he felt cut out. That was never my intention.”

“And you think your
father wants more responsibility.”

Stefano nodded. “He’s succeeded in keeping everything under control while I’ve been helping you with the wedding. And he seems happier. But then again, I don’t know if it’s the winery or if he’s falling in love.”

“What? With whom?”

Before Stefano could answer, the saleswoman returned with a tray full of cupcakes. Jules’s mouth started to water
just looking at the beautiful little cakes. With a knife they cut the cupcakes in half. The flavors ranged from lemon with buttercream frosting to red velvet with cream cheese frosting to banana crème. All in all there were eight flavors to choose from.

Jules didn’t know how she was going to make such a truly difficult decision. All of them tasted divine except maybe the vanilla. It was good,
but in comparison to the others, it was a bit boring.

“Well, did you make a decision?” the woman asked after returning from helping some other customers.

“I don’t know. They’re all so good.” Needing some help, she turned to Stefano. “What do you think?”

She didn’t normally turn to a man for advice. Typically the men she’d dated never wanted to involve themselves in decision making
of any form. It was easier to stand on the sidelines and let someone else do the problem solving. And she wouldn’t bother asking for Stefano’s input, but this decision was a big one. She didn’t want to get it wrong.

Who was she trying to kid? She valued Stefano’s opinion a lot. He had good taste and...she liked him. Even though he wasn’t crazy about weddings, he’d turned his life upside down
to help her out. Someday when he was ready to get on with his life, he’d make somebody a good husband.

She glanced across the table at him. He smiled at her, and her heart gave off a fluttering sensation. What were they talking about?

His gaze moved to the tray, now littered with crumbs. “I think I like the espresso with buttercream.”

“You do? Really?” He was a man after her own
tastes. When he nodded to confirm his choice, she countered with, “But what if not everyone cares for coffee flavor?”

The young woman spoke up. “That’s not a problem. You know that we can do two flavors.”

“That would be great.” Since he’d stepped up and picked out one flavor, now it was her turn. “I think the other should be strawberry with the cream cheese.”

The woman started typing
in the information. She paused and looked at Stefano. “And the groom’s name?”

Jules wasn’t about to let him mess this up. “The thing is he isn’t exactly the groom.”

“Really?” The woman’s brows rose beneath her bangs. “But you two look so perfect together. I would have sworn—oh, never mind. It’s none of my business. If you’ll just tell me your groom’s name, I’ll put it in the computer.”

She didn’t want the woman to get the wrong idea. “I’m not the bride. We—” Jules pointed back and forth between her and Stefano “—are the maid of honor and the best man.”

The woman’s eyes lit up and the worry lines left her face. “That makes sense, because I could sense that you two are a couple. And quite in love with each other. I can always tell these things.”

Stefano leaned forward
and opened his mouth. Before he could utter a single syllable, Jules kicked him under the table. His mouth snapped shut, and his brows drew together as he glared at her. She smiled broadly back at him, hoping to soothe his ruffled feathers.

“Now that we have that straightened out, if you’ll just give me the name of the bride and the groom, we’ll get this order in the system.”

When they
finally walked out the door, Jules was amazed at how laid-back and easygoing the woman was about the wedding. She had actually been sympathetic about Lizzie having to work instead of getting the chance to do the actual planning of her wedding.

Now if only everything else would fall into place. And Jules didn’t just mean for the wedding. No, she had something else in mind. A chance for people
to see her as something more than a scarred-up goth chick.

But to do that, she’d have to let her guard down. She’d have to do away with the things that after all these years were inherently her. Could she do it? And would it make a difference to Stefano?

CHAPTER TWELVE

W
HAT
WAS
UP
with Jules?

More importantly, what was up with him?

Stefano stared blindly at the blinking cursor on the computer monitor. Ever since they’d kissed, things had shifted between them. He’d lost his footing where Jules was concerned. And try as he might to get back to that solid ground of casual acquaintances, he couldn’t quite reach that plateau.

Instead, he’d tried losing himself in his work, like he’d done ever since Gianna’s tragic death, but that wasn’t working, either. His father was quite productive. By the time Stefano got back from his excursions to Rome with Jules, there wasn’t much for him to do, certainly nothing comprehensive requiring his full attention. And time on his hands at this point was not a good thing. All he
could think about was kissing Jules. A definite no-no.

Resisting her was getting harder and harder, especially when she slipped her soft hand in his. Did she have any clue what her touch did to him? And then she’d lift her chin and smile up at him, and his heart would careen into his ribs. His common sense fizzled and shorted out. His only saving grace had been that she always pulled away
before he could act on his impulses.

With a frustrated sigh, he glanced at the clock, finding it was almost lunchtime. He shut down the computer. It’d been a waste of a morning as he’d barely gotten a thing done for thinking about his beautiful houseguest.

Yesterday after they’d left the bakery, Jules had wanted some time to do a little shopping. He hadn’t minded. He’d needed some time
alone before sharing the small confines of the auto with her. He especially needed a break after that lady at the bakery kept going on and on about them being a couple. And it didn’t help that sometimes when Jules turned her green gaze on him, it was as though she was trying to tell him something—as if she wanted more from him than what he could offer her...or anyone.

Or was he seeing what
he wanted to see? That thought stopped him in his tracks as he made his way from the barn to the house. Was it possible Jules, with her outrageous makeup and hip clothes, had somehow gotten to him? His steps faltered. After all this time telling himself that he’d had it with love, was he starting to fall for the girl from New York?

He gave his head a shake. Wasn’t going to happen. He resumed
his trek to the villa. Suddenly his appetite for lunch had disappeared. All he could think about was Jules and how her green eyes spoke to him—telling him of her past emotional wounds. His gut reaction was to protect her and show her that life didn’t have to be so hard. But how could he do that when he knew for a fact that life was unpredictable and quite unfair?

No, the best thing he could
do for both of them was to back away. He’d been wrong to get so invested in this wedding. He might be the groom’s brother and best man, but he didn’t do wedding planning. By now Jules should know how to get into the city on her own and with all the electronic wizardry on her phone, she’d find her way around.

Yes, that’s what he’d do. He’d back out of this wedding froufrou and submerge himself
in work. After all, there was a tour and wine-tasting event on the calendar. He could think of ways to expand it, perhaps by adding some tales from his family’s colorful history. He didn’t have anything specific in mind, but he’d think on it.

He’d just neared the house when Jules stepped outside. His thoughts screeched to a halt as he took in her appearance. Her very different appearance.
He blinked to make sure he wasn’t seeing things.

She was wearing a pale blue cotton dress. It was short, just above the knee, and the skirt flared out a bit. The waist was snug and hinted at her curves. Her very fine curves. He struggled to keep his mouth from gaping open. His gaze traveled up over the white stripes of the bodice and stopped at her bare shoulders and arms. The only things
holding up that scrap of a dress were two thin straps. A lump formed in his throat.

She smiled at him, and the whole world seemed to glow. “Do you like my new purchase?”

“It’s um...very nice.” He forced his gaze to meet hers.

“Walk with me.”

Her request wasn’t a question, but rather a honeyed command—one he wasn’t about to disobey. She passed by him, and all he could do was
stare. It was then that he noticed her hair. There were no ponytails. Instead her dark wavy hair was loose and flowing down her back.
What in the world?
She’d never worn it like that before, but he certainly approved.

He took long strides to catch up to her. “Where are we going?”

“To the barn. I still haven’t seen it, and I thought...well, I hoped that you might have a few minutes to
show me around.”

She wanted to see the winery? And she wanted him to show her around? What could it hurt? Maybe this would be a good prelude to him letting her know that he’d changed his mind about working on the wedding planning with her.

“Sure. Is there anything in particular that you want to see?”

Her sun-kissed shoulders rose and fell. “Whatever you want to show me will be fine.”

She was actually interested in his work—in his heritage. That was an area where Gianna had never showed any interest. The only thing that she had to say about the vineyard was that it took up all his time and that it kept them from moving to the city. He hadn’t realized when they’d married that she expected a different sort of life. He figured that marrying a local girl would ensure that they
both wanted a quiet way of life. He’d been so wrong.

He gave Jules the grand tour, starting at the office, and then they moved on to the processing room, where during the harvest the grapes were hand sorted. He showed her the barrel room where the wine was aged. The tour concluded in the spacious wine-tasting room with its long, thin table for the guests.

“We should head back for lunch.”
He guided her outside.

“Thank you for the personal tour. I really enjoyed it. I’m just sorry I’ll miss seeing all of the activity during the harvest.”

“You always have an open invitation to return anytime.”

She peered deeply into his eyes, and his heart thumped hard and fast. When she glanced away, her butterfly tattoo caught his attention. Just the tips of the wings peeked out
of the dress’s neckline. He longed to see all of it. He’d never seen anything so captivating. A struggle warred within him—common sense versus his raging testosterone. And the testosterone was taking the lead.

Jules turned away and started to walk. “This estate is so big. You certainly don’t have to worry about bothering any of your neighbors.”

The land was the last thing on his mind,
but he struggled to make intelligent conversation. “Over the generations, it has grown. Buying more of the surrounding properties was a priority.”

“Are you still looking into expanding?”

“If the opportunity presents itself, sure. But it isn’t my focus.” His only interest now was finding out if her lips were as sweet as the finest brachetto grape.

“What is your priority?”

It
was on the tip of his tongue to say that it was her—that making her deliriously happy was his priority. But he bit back the ridiculous words before he could utter them. What in the world was getting into him?

He cleared his throat as he searched for a reasonable answer. “The quality of the wine. And broadening our interaction with the public.”

Her footsteps were muffled by the grass.
“Sounds exciting.”

“You think so?”

“I do. I love the vineyard. I’m sure others will love it, too. It’s so peaceful and relaxing. I can see why you stayed on and continue to work with your father.”

“But surely you wouldn’t do the same thing if roles were reversed.” She was a city girl, born and bred. The tranquility was just a novelty thing. Sooner or later she’d want to move on...just
like his late wife.

“I could definitely see me living here. In another world, I’d have a big family with lots of room for the kids to play. And cats. And dogs. And maybe a horse or two.”

“Talk about a menagerie. Are you sure you’d be up for all of that?”

She shrugged. “It isn’t like it’s ever going to happen. I don’t live here, and as you well know I’m not exactly the poster girl
for motherhood. But sometimes it’s nice to dream.”

“I don’t see why you have to dream when you can make it a reality. Well, at least the part of being a mother and having a menagerie of cats and dogs.”

She stopped and stared up at him. “Look at me.”

He did as she asked. His heart started to pound again. He held his body rigid, resisting the urge to pull her close. He recalled vividly
how soft her curves were, and his resolve wavered.

“No, really look at me.” Her serious tone snapped him to attention. “What do you see?”

“I see your beautiful face without all of that makeup.”

“I didn’t see much point in it without air-conditioning. I end up wiping most of it off throughout the day.”

“That’s good.” When her brows lifted in a questioning fashion, he added,
“I mean it’s good that you gave up on the makeup. You don’t need it.”

The truth was that she was even more beautiful without it. She had such a fresh young face, and it needed no enhancement at all. He was captivated by her natural beauty. And with her hair loose and blowing in the breeze, she had a down-to-earth appeal. No longer did she look like she’d just walked off a rock video. Now
she looked like someone who might actually belong in his world. But part of him missed her hip, chic look. That in and of itself surprised him.

Her head tilted to the side, but her gaze never left his. “What are you thinking?”

He hadn’t realized he’d gotten so caught up in his thoughts. “I was thinking about you.”

“And what did you decide?”

“That you are beautiful.” He looked
deep into her eyes and saw disbelief. He’d have to prove it to her. “Your green eyes are a shade or two deeper than the grape leaves. And your long, dark lashes make your eyes very alluring. Your skin is smooth and makes me long to run my fingers down its velvety softness.”

Color rose in her cheeks. “You’re missing the point. The scars. You can’t miss them. And they’re ugly.”

“They aren’t
ugly. You aren’t ugly.”

She shook her head. “You’re just saying that to make me feel better.”

“I’m speaking the truth.” He desperately wanted her to believe him.

“No, you aren’t.” She let out an exasperated sigh. “I didn’t tell you the details before, maybe I should now. Maybe then you’ll understand why I find the scars so ugly.”

He opened his mouth to protest but then closed
it without saying a word. Perhaps talking about it would be good for her.

“I told you that my mother did this to me, but what I didn’t tell you was that it was during one of her drunken bouts. She was angry because she’d run out of vodka. I was on my way home from playing with the neighbor. She smacked me and I lost my balance at the top of the porch steps. Down I went, hitting...hitting
my head on the edge of the steps and landing on the cement sidewalk.”

Stefano clenched his hands. How could a mother do that to her own child? It was inconceivable. And yet the only words he could find to convey his sympathy seemed so inadequate. And it really didn’t matter because no words could make up for what she’d experienced at the hand of the one person who was supposed to love and
protect her.

“I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be. It was the best thing to happen to me.” Her eyes were shiny with unshed tears, but she kept it together. “When I lived with my mother, there was never enough to eat. Rarely was there clean laundry. And the longer it went on, the meaner she became. If they hadn’t taken me away, I’d have never met Lizzie.” Jules stopped and drew in an uneven breath.
“My mother wasn’t strong enough to take care of both of us. Eventually she turned to drugs and OD’d. Now do you finally understand why I shouldn’t be a mother?”

“I think that you’re amazing and the strongest person I know.” He meant every single word. She had impressed him before this, and now he was just in awe of her. “And above it all, I still believe you can achieve whatever you set your
mind on. But none of that changes what I see when I look at you. You’re beautiful. From the wrinkle in your forehead when you’re confused to the tip of your nose to your rosy lips that are just ripe for tasting.”

And without thinking of the ramifications of what he was about to do, he leaned forward and lowered his head. The only thing that mattered now was making her feel better. He had
to let her know that those scars didn’t define her. She was beautiful in spite of them. And her beauty resonated from the inside out.

His lips gently brushed against hers. He didn’t want to scare her off. When he pulled back a little, he heard her undeniable sigh of enjoyment. She liked his touch, and he liked touching her. What would it hurt to follow up that kiss with another one?

He sought out her lips again. They were sweet like chocolate. His hands slipped around her waist, and she leaned into him. He’d been waiting so long to do this again. And it was even better than what he’d remembered.

The kiss went on and on. She should be kissed like this and often. Jules deserved to be cherished and loved. And if somehow he could convince her of this, he would. He couldn’t
imagine her throwing her life away because of some scars that weren’t even that noticeable.

Her soft curves molded perfectly to him. And when a soft moan reached his ears, he wasn’t so sure which of them had made the sound of pure pleasure. Not that it mattered as her fingers wrapped around his neck and raked through his hair, sending a whole new wave of excitement through him. Every nerve
ending stood at attention.

“Beautiful day, isn’t it?”

The sound of his father’s distant voice sent them flying apart as though lightning had struck the ground between them. Her cheeks turned a dusty pink and her lips a shade of deep rosy red. She looked as if she’d been ravished. And he’d never seen her look more beautiful.

Stefano gave himself a mental jerk. What in the world had
he just let happen? His gaze sought out Jules. He meant to send her a sympathetic look, but her eyes wouldn’t meet his. Instead of making things better, he’d only succeeded in making them worse.