Gianni's Pride
Who’s been sleeping in my bed? Smouldering, rich, and lethally attractive, Gianni Fitzgerald is the master of any situation. But a seven-hour journey with his small son is evidence that even he has his limitations! Exhausted, he falls into bed… When Miranda wakes to find a strange – utterly gorgeous – man in her bed she thinks she must be dreaming!But Gianni’s the real, red-hot Italian deal – and one look at Miranda sets his pulse racing! The rewards of letting her close are huge – but so are the risks… Can Gianni conquer his pride and admit that he might have met his match?
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The initial stabbing jolt of fear lasted a half-beat before she relaxed and smiled. Obviously this was a dream—because no man had a face like that.
It was a master class in perfection, Miranda decided as she studied the shade and shadow of the dark fallen angel before her. Sharp angles and strong curves made this a face that went beyond mere symmetrical prettiness.
She stared, feeling an almost physical tug as she looked into velvety dark heavy-lidded eyes fringed by long, spiky lashes.
It was some moments later when, with a small sigh, she let her gaze stray to the fantasy mouth, its sculpted lips somehow managing to be stern and overtly sensual at the same time. The small crescent-shaped scar a few centimetres from the right corner of that extraordinary mouth was startlingly white against the uniform toasty gold of his skin, somehow emphasising how perfect everything else was.
‘Good morning.’
Her eyelashes fluttered against her sleep-flushed cheek. Like the face, the voice belonged in a dream. Deep and throaty, it even had the tantalising hint of an accent. The man with broad, taut, heavily muscled shoulders, a dark shadow on his square jaw, was the sort of man many women’s dreams were made of … though he seemed awfully real for a dream … and wasn’t she awake …?
About the Author
KIM LAWRENCE lives on a farm in rural Anglesey. She runs two miles daily, and finds this an excellent opportunity to unwind and seek inspiration for her writing! It also helps her keep up with her husband, two active sons, and the various stray animals which have adopted them. Always a fanatical consumer of fiction, she is now equally enthusiastic about writing. She loves a happy ending!
Recent titles by the same author:
IN A STORM OF SCANDAL
THE THORN IN HIS SIDE (21st Century Bosses) A SPANISH AWAKENING (One Night In …) STRANDED, SEDUCED, PREGNANT
Did you know these are also available as eBooks?Visit www.millsandboon.co.uk
CHAPTER ONE
IT WAS eleven, a good two hours later than he had anticipated arriving, when Gianni eventually pulled up in the beat-up borrowed four-wheel drive. All things considered, he had decided with regret that the low-slung, sleek, powerful sports model that he enjoyed driving was not really a man-plus-child sort of vehicle—not only did young children not travel light, they were poor respecters of cream leather upholstery—and the rather more upmarket version he used to ferry his son around town was in for a service.
Besides, this was meant to be a low-profile trip; he was dropping off the radar for—if Sam was true to her word—a few days. It could not have come at a worse time from a business and personal perspective.
It was considered something of an honour to be asked to give the keynote lecture at the prestigious international literary festival—the previous year the honour had gone to an ex head of state. After pulling out at the last minute as a mere head of a publishing house, no matter how globally successful a brand it had become, Gianni doubted this accolade would be coming his way any time again soon! He had hopes that the lovely young model he had had to cancel on would be more forgiving but if not … there were other models.
He glanced into the back seat. His son had been asleep five whole minutes—five minutes of blissful silence apart from the worrying knocking noise in the ancient engine. No crying, no howling, no pathetic whimpers and, most importantly, no throwing up! A self-derisive half-smile twisted the sculpted contours of his hard mouth as Gianni reflected on the distinctly patronising note in his response when Clare, Liam’s nanny, had expressed doubts about undertaking the journey without her.
‘It’s late, he’s tired—he’ll probably sleep most of the way. While I accept you’re indispensable, Clare, I think I can muddle through. Enjoy your holiday.’
Humouring her, he had accepted the proffered travel bands and even half listened to her lengthy explanation of how they should be applied to the pressure points on Liam’s wrists to lessen nausea, and then he’d tuned out a great deal of the rest of the advice she gave while privately thinking, How hard can it be to strap a sleeping four-year-old child into the back seat of a car and drive a hundred miles?
He shook his dark head. He was just glad now he hadn’t expressed these views out loud or he would be feeling more of a fool than he already did. He also wished he had not left those travel bands on the table in the hall or given in to Liam’s requests for a burger and fries at the first rest stop. It had been all downhill from there.
Gianni winced now to recall his flippant parting shot.
‘Yes, Gianni, definitely a piece of cake,’ he muttered under his breath as he unclipped the harness of his son’s booster seat, trying hard not to inhale—the wet wipes supplied by a sympathetic woman in the last motorway services had not removed all the smell. Gianni scooped the sleeping child into his arms and nudged the car door closed with his knee, wincing as it banged loud in the still night.
