The Hidden Heart of Rico Rossi by Kate Hardy Page B

she
wanted
.
    ‘You look very nice,’ he said, disarming her.
    ‘Thank you.’ And why was it that, even though she knew what a liar he was, her knees still went weak when he smiled? Cross with herself for being such a pushover, she asked, ‘Where are we going?’
    ‘My hotel.’
    Somewhere private. Oh, help. She remembered what happened when they were in private hotel rooms together.
    ‘We’ll talk in my room. And then we’ll order dinner,’ he said.
    ‘And I get no say in this?’
    He spread his hands. ‘I just said we’ll talk in my room.’
    She narrowed her eyes at him. ‘You’re being bossy.’
    He shrugged. ‘We agreed to talk. And it makes sense for it to be the hotel; it’s neutral ground, and somewhere we won’t be overheard.’
    She locked the door behind her and followed him out to the taxi. He didn’t start a conversation, and she didn’t have a clue what to say without making a fool of herself, so they remained in silence until the taxi pulled up outside a boutique hotel in Bloomsbury.
    ‘Fountain Hotel’ was etched into the glass of the doors. Definitely a link with Rome, she thought.
    ‘Is this the hotel you’re thinking of buying?’ she asked as the taxi drove off.
    ‘Maybe.’
    She rolled her eyes. ‘I’m hardly going to go and tell the world what your plans are and scupper your business deals, am I?’
    ‘I guess not.’
    She sighed. ‘Rico, what are you doing here? I mean, with me?’
    ‘We have unfinished business, Ella
bellezza
. And we’re going to talk about it now.’
    They took the tiny lift up to his room. She could still remember the last time they’d been in a hotel room together, and warmth spread down her spine at the memories. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea and she should’ve insisted on them talking in a public place. Then again, what they were going to discuss was definitely something best done in private. She didn’t want anyone else overhearing what a fool she’d made of herself.
    When Rico opened the door and ushered her in, Ella was relieved to discover that he’d booked a suite rather than a room. Without a bed in sight, she might just be able to concentrate.
    He offered her a seat on one of the sofas. ‘Coffee? Something cold? A glass of wine?’
    ‘I’m fine, thanks.’ She stared levelly at him as he sat down on the opposite sofa. ‘So, where do we start?’
    ‘We can start with why you walked out on me in Rome.’
    ‘You know why. I found out you’d lied to me. I don’t like liars.’ She lifted her chin. ‘Why did you lie to me about who you were, Rico? You let me believe you were a tour guide.’
    ‘Which I was, for that day.’
    ‘Why couldn’t you have told me the truth later that evening, when we went out to dinner?’
    A muscle twitched in his cheek. ‘Because you would’ve changed.’
    She frowned. ‘How?’
    ‘Instead of seeing me for who I am, you would’ve seen me as the CEO of Rossi Hotels.’
    She frowned. ‘And what difference does that make?’
    ‘You befriended a tour guide, a man you thought didn’t have any money. You responded to me as a man. You liked me for who I was, not for my status.’
    She looked at him. ‘You once told me you thought I’d been seeing the wrong sort of man. It sounds to me as if you’ve been seeing the wrong kind of woman.’
    He rubbed a hand across his eyes. ‘Maybe.’
    ‘And, actually, I’m a bit insulted that you think I could be that shallow. I don’t judge people by the balance in their bank account.’
    He flushed a dull red. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it personally. It’s just how people always reacted to me in thepast.’ He raked a hand through his hair. ‘I’m making a mess of this. Ella, what I’m trying to say is that I liked who I was when I was with you. I liked the way you made me feel, and I wasn’t ready to give that up.’
    ‘But you thought I was shallow enough to respond differently to you once I found out who you were.’ She grimaced.