VITTORIO'S WOMAN (The Vittorio Series) Read Online Free

destruction of my professional life, Mr. Vittorio.”   Lilly went to the nightstand and plucked the phone cord from the wall.  Clutching the phone in her hands, she turned back to Simon.  “As part of my therapy, you will have no contact with the outside world.  When you’re able to walk downstairs under your own power, I will do nothing to stop you from making that phone call.  Until then…”
    “ Donna pazzesca !”
    “In English please,” Lilly said sweetly.
    Simon swung his wheelchair around, a dark scowl marring his handsome features.  “ Crazy woman ,” he interpreted.  “You cannot get away with this.”
    “Ah, but I can, and with your sister’s blessing.  Face it, Mr. Vittorio, you are at my mercy.  If you want me out of your house, you will have to escort me out yourself.  I imagine part of the reason you’re so disagreeable is that you haven’t eaten, so we will take care of that first.”
    “I am not hungry and there is nothing you can do to force food past my teeth.   Try it and I will bite you, cara .”
    “There are other ways to get nourishment into your body,” Lilly told him.   “If necessary, I will have your arms strapped down and feed you intravenously.”
    Shocked disbelief was quickly followed by enraged fury.   “You would not dare,” he spoke with menacing softness.
    “You’re an intelligent man, Mr. Vittorio.   I’ve been told you have an uncanny ability to detect whether someone is being completely honest with you.  It’s made you the successful man you are.”  She moved closer, careful to keep her voice low and unwavering.  “Tell me, Simon, do you believe me when I say I will tie you down and feed you through a tube if I have to?”
    His lips pressed together in a thin line, and if it wasn’t for the dark stubble on his face, he would have looked very much like a spoiled little boy who’d just been told he wouldn’t get a cookie unless he cleaned his room first.   She wanted to throw her arms around him and promise that everything would be okay, but Simon’s pride would demand he reject anything resembling compassion…or worse, pity. 
    Lilly did feel sorry for him, but it certainly wasn’t pity.  It was difficult to see Simon like this.  She knew he was hurting, just as surely as she knew he’d never admit to a single soul the anguish he was going through.  It was his own private hell and he wanted to hoard it to himself, nurture it even.  And he would hate Lilly for drawing him out of it, but it was a price she was willing to pay, no matter the cost to her battered heart.
    “Good,” she finally said, “then we understand each other.   Milana…”  Lilly smiled when the door swung open and Milana walked in followed by Luisa, each of them carrying a tray of food.  “As I was saying, Milana is bringing us lunch.  Please set the trays on the table out on the balcony,” she instructed the women.
    “Milana, tell this woman she is not needed here,” Simon ordered, a smug smile tipping the corner of his mouth.
    Lilly shook her head in silent warning.  “My apologies,” she addressed Simon, “I forgot to mention that I have advised Milana and Luisa not to speak to you until you prove you can treat them with the respect they deserve.” 
    Luisa’s eyes widened, obviously distressed to hear she was barred from catering to Simon’s demands, but Milana nodded her approval and shuffled the older woman out of the room.   Thank you , Milana mouthed, then arched a curious brow when Lilly pressed the phone into her hands.  Explanations about Lilly’s methods would have to wait until later; right now she had an extremely agitated Simon to deal with.  He was still spouting oaths and demanding that Milana answer him when Lilly came around behind the wheelchair and gripped the handles.
    “Save your breath, Milana is gone and won’t come back until I ask her to.”  
    She pushed the chair out through the open doorway and onto the balcony,