The Italian's Blushing Gardener Read Online Free Page B

would be such a shame to see it spoilt.’
    ‘It won’t matter to you for a few weeks a year, surely?’ He shrugged.
    Kira was puzzled. ‘So you’re going to be away a lot?’
    ‘No, but you’ll be leaving with the summer, won’t you?’
    Kira coloured up angrily. ‘Why should I?’
    ‘So you won’t be flitting between here and your home in England?’ He looked surprised.
    She shook her head defiantly. ‘No! I thought I’d made it clear—I don’t have a home in England any more. In any case, I couldn’t bear to leave at the end of summer, as the holiday-home owners do. How could I abandon my home here? The Bella Terra valley is everything I want—peace and beauty.’
    Stefano’s dark brows lightened a little. ‘I assume that means you could find no peace in England, so you brought your beauty here?’
    His voice was low and melodious but his eyes shone with mischief. Drawn to look straight at him again, Kira could not help lifting her lips in the ghost of a smile, but she said nothing.
    ‘I don’t know of many people who would willingly hide away in such an isolated spot,’ he murmured. ‘You’re not afraid to stand up for yourself, you work for your living and you love this place as much as I intend to. How could anything make such a forthright, independent woman leave England under a cloud?’
    Kira lifted one hand and began to fiddle with a skein of her dark auburn hair.
    ‘It was a combination of things,’ she said, hoping to stop him asking any more awkward questions.
    He lifted his brows still higher, encouraging her to unburden herself. She shifted from foot to foot. Her fingers moved from her hair to toy with the thin gold chain around her neck. Stefano watched her. He seemed genuinely interested, and ready to listen. Suddenly she was tired of bottling everything up, and keeping herself to herself. She wanted to talk. She needed someone who might sympathise, or at least answer back. It hardly mattered about the words. She had never seen Stefano Albani before today, and might never see him again. He had already proved himself to be sympathetic. If she explained the whole miserable business to him, as an impartial third party, it might make her feel better.
    It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him the whole sorry story. She pushed the guilty words against her teeth, trying to force them out. It was no good. She had kept silent for so long, she didn’t know where to begin. Finally, she shook her head.
    ‘It’s nothing.’
    He considered her gravely. ‘I think it is. Something is obviously weighing heavily on your mind.’
    He took a step towards her. Kira knew he moved almost silently, but the brush of his leather-soled shoes sounded loud in the peace of the reception room. She stared at the floor. She winced when his feet appeared in her field of view, but it was still a shock to feel the gentle touch of his hand on her shoulder.
    ‘There’s no need to jump. I’m only offering a little support,’ he said.
    ‘I don’t need it,’ she said staunchly, but he took no notice and never moved. His touch was warm, reassuring…seductive. In spite of herself, Kira relished the feeling. Then he spoiled the effect. His touch vibrated slightly. She looked up, and saw laughter in his eyes.
    ‘One day, I would really enjoy the chance to discuss sins with you, Miss Kira Banks. Whatever you may have done, I’m sure I can top it!’
    With a sharp twist of her head, Kira looked away. She could not bear to let him see her misery. Squeezing her lids tightly closed, she battled to stop the tears falling. She was so lost in her own despair she was completely unprepared for what happened next. Stefano closed the gap between them. His arms glided around her. She was drawn into his body again, and it felt so natural she let it happen without a word. For a few heart-stopping seconds she leaned against him. The sensation of his shirt pressed against her cheek and the enveloping male fragrance of him