Angelo swallowed and it struck Ally out of nowhere that he looked uncomfortable. More than uncomfortable. On edge. She wanted to read special significance into that but didn’t dare let herself. Despite what he seemed to imply.
‘You’re splitting hairs, Angelo. Just tell me why you’re here.’
While she still had the strength to pretend his presence didn’t affect her. By her calculations that would be all of three minutes.
His mouth quirked up at one side as if in reluctant amusement. ‘Trust you to cut straight to the chase,amoremio.’ Then his amusement faded and his expression grew serious again. ‘I came here because ofyou. I can’t let you go. I didn’t try to stop you leaving because I knew you needed time and space to deal with everything you’ve been through. But there are things I have to say, things you need to hear.’
Ally stared up into his strained, handsome face and wondered if she dared trust her ears. This was too like one of those fantasies that she hadn’t been able to stop imagining, no matter how hard she tried.
Pride rose to her aid. ‘I’m not a substitute for Alexa. And I’m not some obligation or responsibility. I might have washed ashore on your beach but I don’t need your protection or your guilt.’
Angelo’s head snapped back as if slapped.
‘You think I feel...obliged to look out for you?’
‘You said it yourself. You have an overdeveloped protective streak. But I’m not a member of your family, Angelo.’ Hurt resonated deep inside. ‘I’m not some duty to be taken care of.’
Dark eyes held hers and a quiver of longing engulfed her.
‘I do want to look after you, Ally, but I fully understand you’re strong and independent and you don’tneedme to protect you.’ His voice dipped strangely. ‘As for being a substitute for Alexa, never! It’s true that in the beginning I believed you were her but that’s not why I’m attracted to you and definitelynotwhy I made love to you.’
Stunned, she gaped at him, watching him rub a hand around the back of his neck as if, like her, his muscles bunched too tight.
‘Your resemblance to Alexa kept me at a distance initially. It’s thedifferencesbetween you that attract me. Your personality, your mind, your attitude and generosity. That’s why I care for you. That’s why I want to be with you.’
‘Youcarefor me?’
Ally’s death grip on her collar tightened till her fingers ached.
‘I do.’ Angelo lifted his arms in a wide shrug. ‘I practised what I’d say to you all the way here but I’ve forgotten all my prepared words.’
She blinked. He was dangerously persuasive as it was.
At the look in his eyes, lush heat spread through her taut body in rolling waves. It was a look Ally had never seen before. Like wonder and desperation and something far more profound, all rolled together.
Her heartbeat quickened as he stepped closer.
‘What Alexa and I shared was shallow and brief. It would have ended a lot sooner except business was frantic and I spent a lot of time away from her. I was about to end things when she announced she was pregnant.’
He breathed deep and went on. ‘It wasyouI made love to that night, Ally, not some memory of your cousin as you seem to think. For the record, I find you infinitely more desirable than I ever found Alexa. And while you might have been the virgin that night, I can tell you it was a first for me too. It was the first time Imade loveto a woman with my mind, bodyandheart.’
He paused and she heard his harsh breathing, as if from supreme exertion. Or strong feelings.
A perfect match for the raw emotion welling up inside her.
‘I’ve never connected with any other woman like that, ever.’
Dumbfounded, Ally watched his hand cover his heart and her heart melted in response.
‘Laugh if you like, but it’s true.’ His deep voice grated across sensitive flesh, leaving her trembling with shock and excitement. ‘I’ve held back from emotional relationships because I feared they would make me weak. I saw my mother’s pain when my father died, saw the way it almost killed her, and was terrified of the same thing happening to me.That’sthe real reason I’ve only wanted short affairs before now, not, as I told myself, because I was too busy with work.’ He paused, his gaze holding hers. ‘Yet with you I tumbled into love in just a week and that’s not going to change.’
Ally licked her lips, wondering if she could find her voice. There must be more she needed to ask because surely this was too much to believe. Her heart was hammering and it felt as if a whole flock of swallows swooped and dived in her abdomen.
All that emerged, in a mere scratch of sound, was, ‘It’s not going to change?’
He shook his head, that rich espresso gaze pinioning hers in a way that rooted her to the spot.
‘Never. I might be new to love, Ally, but I’m sure. This isn’t a passing fancy. This is the real thing. And it’s not about duty. It’s about what’s in my heart.’