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“Who is the woman sitting opposite me now?” Massimo asked. “Is she the social-climbing gold digger, or the girl with the golden heart?”
“What if I am both?” she asked, a fleeting shadow of sadness in her gray-blue eyes as they returned to his. “What if they are one and the same?”
The waiter appeared at that moment to take their order, giving Massimo time to reflect on her answer. Massimo had waited so long for revenge. He had thought of nothing else for five long years. Each punishing day working at building his investment empire had been for this chance to turn the tables on her. He had been ruthless in his pursuit of wealth and power. His anger toward his stepfather had become almost insignificant as he had planned his revenge on her.
He was not going to be lured in by her innocent act all over again.
This time he would have her where he wanted her, where he had dreamed of having her for the past five years.
In his bed.
MELANIE MILBURNE read her first Harlequin® novel when she was seventeen and has never looked back. She decided she would settle for nothing less than a tall, dark and handsome hero as her future husband. Well, she’s not only still reading romance, but writing it as well! And the tall, dark and handsome hero? She fell in love with him on the second date and was secretly engaged to him within six weeks.
Two sons later, they arrived in Hobart, Tasmania—the jewel in the Australian crown. Once their boys were safely in school, Melanie went back to university and upgraded, receiving her bachelor’s and then her master’s degree.
As part of her final assessment, she conducted a tutorial on the romance genre. While she was reading a paragraph from the novel of a prominent Harlequin® author, the door suddenly burst open. The husband she thought was working was actually standing there dressed in a tuxedo, his dark brown eyes centered on her startled blue ones. He strode purposefully across the room, hauled Melanie into his arms and kissed her deeply and passionately before setting her back down and leaving without a single word. The lecturer gave Melanie a high distinction and her fellow students gave her jealous glares! And so her pilgrimage into romance writing was set!
Melanie also enjoys long-distance running and is a nationally ranked masters swimmer in Australia. She learned to swim as an adult, so for anyone out there who thinks they can’t do something—you can! Her motto is “Don’t say I can’t; say I CAN TRY.”
Androletti’s Mistress
Melanie Milburne
~ UNEXPECTED BABIES ~
To my mother-in-law, Joyce, and my late
father-in-law, Alf Wilkinson. I dedicate this book
to you for the very special gift you gave me in
producing the most adorable man in the world—
your son. Thank you from the bottom
of my heart. Love you.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
EPILOGUE
CHAPTER ONE
IT WAS the sort of funeral where no one shed a tear.
Nikki accepted everyone’s condolences with a composed expression on her face, even though in spite of everything she still felt a sense of deep sadness as the coffin was lowered into the cold, dark soil.
‘So sorry about Joseph,’ one of the sales managers said as he shook her hand a few minutes later. ‘But he wouldn’t want to have lingered on any longer.’
‘Thank you, Henry,’ she said, even managing to crack a small, grateful smile. ‘No, indeed he wouldn’t.’
‘Mrs Ferliani?’ A journalist pushed through the small knot of mourners. ‘Have you any comment on the successful takeover bid of Ferliani Fashions conducted by your late husband’s stepson Massimo Androletti?’
Nikki felt a shockwave go through her body at the mention of that name. She’d already scanned the small congregation repeatedly, in case he’d had the audacity to appear, but so far she hadn’t caught sight of him. ‘No, I haven’t,’ she said coolly. ‘Now, please leave; this is a private ceremony.’
‘Is it true there is nothing left of your late husband’s estate?’ the journalist persisted. ‘That Massimo Androletti now owns the business and even the house you live in?’
Nikki set her mouth. ‘I have no comment.’
Another reporter joined the first. ‘Our sources say Joseph Ferliani lost a fortune on the stock exchange, and in an effort to recoup the losses gambled away everything he and you owned.’
‘Mrs Ferliani has already told you she has no comment to make,’ a deep male voice said from just behind Nikki.
She swung around to look a long way upwards into the black, diamond gaze of Massimo Androletti. She fought hard not to reveal how seeing him after all this time affected her, but Nikki was almost certain he had noticed the tiny up-and-down movement of her throat. His expression was mask-like, but there was a glint of steely purpose in his eyes that secretly terrified her. Her stomach hollowed out, her legs began to tremble and her chest felt as if something hard and thick had lodged itself halfway down, making it almost impossible to draw in the air necessary to breathe.
‘Come this way,’ he said, putting a hand beneath her elbow, the touch of his fingers sending a current of tingling awareness right through the thick sleeve of her winter coat.
Nikki considered resisting his attempt to lead her away, but thought better of it when she felt the subtle tightening of his hold, as if he’d already sensed her intention. As she felt his latent strength, her heart began to thump behind the wall of her chest as she thought of being alone with him.
He led her to his waiting limousine parked outside the cemetery. ‘Get in,’ he commanded curtly. ‘We have things to discuss.’
Nikki sat on the plush leather seat, her legs pressed tightly together as he joined her, the huge car now seeming far too small with his long legs and six-foot-three frame taking up most of the available space. Even the air inside the car seemed to have been reduced; it physically hurt to take in each breath as she tried to steady her growing panic with deep, calm breaths.
‘To the house, thank you, Ricardo,’ Massimo said as he leaned forward to speak through the panel.
Nikki shifted even further away as he sat back in the seat, her nostrils flaring slightly as the spicy fragrance of his aftershave drifted towards her. Her stomach gave a little flutter as her eyes went to the long, hard length of his thighs within touching distance of hers. She had once felt those strong legs entwined with hers, had felt his hard male body drive into her silky moistness, his hot, commanding mouth wreak havoc on all of her senses.
‘So,’ he said as he swung his cold, hard gaze towards her. ‘Your plans to land yourself a fortune failed in the end, did they not?’
Nikki tightened her mouth without responding