Italian Romance Read Online Free

tell her that tomorrow – not that
the rest of my family haven’t done so already.”
    When Alessandro didn’t immediately respond, Kay continued, “maybe
she hasn’t filled you in on the details but Kay was engaged to Jake Cutler, a
man she’s supposed to be marrying in September. A month ago, she goes off to
Italy on holiday, falls for your brother and emails Jake to let him know
the wedding's off and she’s not coming back to New Zealand. She left behind her
fiancé, her friends, her job, her home – for a man she hardly knows. Everyone
thinks she’s been brainwashed.”
    “ Brainwashed ?”
    “How else can you explain it?”
    “Maybe Melissa hasn’t filled you in on the details of my
brother’s life before he met your sister,” Alessandro shot back, “Vincenzo was
engaged to marry a girl he’d been with since they were both twenty-two and he
left her for Melissa.”
    “Twenty-two?” Kay replied incredulously, “but he’s in his early
thirties now!”
    “Engagements last a long time in Italy,” Alessandro’s voice was
getting more glacial by the moment, “it takes a long time to save up for a
deposit for a house and secure a mortgage. Vincenzo and Sabina had been
together so long it was as if they were married. It broke the hearts of two
families when your sister arrived on the scene. She has no idea what she’s
done.”
    “Neither has your brother,” Kay snapped, “it’s a wonder you’re
still speaking to him. I’m the only one in my family who is still talking to
Melissa but she doesn’t seem to care.”
    “Our parents have told Vincenzo that unless he gives Melissa up
and goes back to Sabina, they want nothing more to do with him,” Alessandro
said. “That’s a terrible thing in Italy. Family is everything here but your
sister has bewitched Vincenzo. I’ve begged him to reconsider but he won’t
listen.”
    “My sister hasn’t bewitched anyone,” Kay countered, “she’s
the one who’s been influenced, the one who was in the most vulnerable position
– on holiday in a romantic city, away from her family and friends. It was easy
for your brother to prey on her.”
    “Vincenzo isn't a predator!” Alessandro’s voice cut through the
humid night air, “women like you like to lay the blame at a man’s feet. Your
sister knew what she was doing. She wasn’t some innocent girl! She got her
hooks into Vincenzo the moment she met him!”
    “What a load of rubbish!” Kay’s anger flared, “you’ve got a
twisted mind if that’s the most logical scenario you can come up with. My
sister was in love with her fiancé! This is obviously just some holiday fling
that’s gotten out of hand. And for the record, you don’t know the first thing
about me so don’t start telling me what I like or don’t like. You hardly seem
an expert on women. You’re just another reason I don’t want Melissa to stay on
in Rome. If Vincenzo is anything like you, Melissa wants nothing to do with
him!”
     Shaking with rage, Kay stalked to the hotel’s entrance and
stabbed the intercom. Mercifully, the gate clicked open and Kay pushed through.
She could feel Alessandro Falcone’s gaze piercing her through the darkness but
she didn’t look back. She wished she hadn’t lost her temper but his arrogance had
goaded her.
    She had to convince Melissa to rid herself of this man and his
family.
     
    ***
     
    Kay sat outside the pizzeria and watched passers-by trickle across
the sun-baked square. Underneath the shade of an awning it was pleasant to sit
outdoors, while just a few feet away Rome’s cobbles were hot enough to fry an
egg on. Kay took a sip of sparkling water and watched the waiter slide a
bubbling margherita pizza onto the table in front of her. Melissa had
ordered a pizza topped with rocket and cherry tomatoes. Despite the heat, both
women were hungry. They tucked into their pizzas and Kay marveled at how bread,
tomato and cheese could be so delicious.
     They were half-way through their