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His business brain kicked into gear and he knew he’d just been handed the perfect solution to his problems. For the last week he’d been thinking about nothing but his father’s ultimatum. He’d hoped by now Cesare would admit he’d been totally unreasonable because of his health scare, but the wily old bastard hadn’t backed down. When Cesare Valente wanted something he usually got it.
Not that he’d said anything to his father about it. At first he’d been determined not to give in to Cesare’s demand and planned on ignoring it as long as he could.
But the guilt had been getting to him. How could he let the family business be handed over to a bunch of strangers? More importantly, how could he let Nick and Matt lose their rightful inheritance?
Now he didn’t have to, he decided. He’d grant part of his father’s wish only because he’d found a suitable woman.
As for producing a child…Cesare could whistle in the dark over that. His father would be retiring within the next couple of months anyway and wouldn’t be able to maintain his control over the business. No, a child wouldn’t be a part of the bargain.
It would be just him and the blonde. If she was as captivating as she looked, and if she was available, then he’d found the woman to marry.
Olivia Cannington.
“Good evening, Mr. Valente,” Olivia replied with as much cool politeness as she could. She’d recognized Alex Valente’s name as soon as her business partner had introduced them. The House of Valente was well-known throughout Australia for its excellence in perfume design and production.
“Alex,” he invited, his slate-gray eyes sweeping over her with a burning intensity that made her heart bump against her ribs.
Holding on to her composure, she inclined her head. “Alex.” She ignored the meaningful look Lianne gave her before the other woman excused herself and took off across the room to see to their other guests.
Instead, she let a moment pass as she took a sip of her champagne and tried not to show how much this handsome man affected her.
Darn him. The party after the show was usually a lighthearted affair, with everyone relaxed and ready to enjoy themselves after all the hard work they’d put in to make the collection a success.
But Alex Valente had spoiled the whole thing for her tonight. From the moment he’d stepped into the ballroom he’d caught her attention. It was an attention she didn’t welcome or need, but he’d been staring at her so hard during the show she’d lost her focus. It had unnerved her, making her stumble over her words. That had never happened to her before.
So she wasn’t particularly happy about meeting him now. “Did you enjoy the show?” For all his sophistication, she suspected he was more at home working in his office than attending a fashion show.
“It was…fascinating.”
“Do you often go to fashion shows?” she asked, making small talk, passing the time, hearing the chatter going on around them, the music getting louder.
A wry smile entered his eyes. “No. I only came to accompany my stepmother.”
Olivia remembered seeing the elegant woman sitting next to him. “I see. Did she stay for the party? Is she here now?” Perhaps he’d go find her and not come back. She silently sighed. That was about as likely as the moon turning to cheese.
“No, my father wasn’t feeling well tonight so she decided to go home.”
“I hope he’s okay.”
Alex’s mouth tightened. “He is.”
She considered his words. “You sound certain about that.”
“My father’s very good at getting his own way,” he said brusquely.
“I have a mother who’s the same,” she joked in a moment of empathy, then regretted allowing any correlation between her and Alex.
He didn’t smile.
There was a tiny pause. Then, “God, you’re beautiful.”
She blinked, hardening her heart as it bounced inside her chest. “Oh, puh-lease.”
His jaw clenched. “Don’t prejudge me, Olivia. I don’t need to flatter to get my way. If I like something, I say so. If I want something, I ask.”
“Or take,” she said, her lip curling, instinctively knowing what sort of man he was. Yes, he was a taker. One who’d take a woman to the heights, then down to the very depths of her being.
“See,” he mocked. “You know me already.”
She drew her shoulders back. “Mr. Valente—”
“Alex.”
“Alex, look. I don’t mean to be rude, but—”
“I have a proposition for you.”
Shocked, she still managed to shoot him a withering look. “That figures.”
An icy glint appeared in his eyes. “That’s quite an attitude you’ve got there.”
She suddenly felt defensive. “It’s justified.”
A moment crept by. “So every person you meet is judged by one criterion, are they?”
His question made her angry. He must be intelligent enough to know that all her life people had used her to get to her mother. And now they used her in her own right. Not that it got them very far these days.
Not after Eric.
What a fool she’d been for marrying such a liar and a cheat. Five years ago she’d been twenty-two and unprepared for his lesson in deception. Little had she known he’d wanted her for her money, until he’d found another woman with even more money and had run off with her.
Her chin lifted. “Mr. Valente, if all this is leading somewhere, please tell me where.”
“Dinner.”
Her heart thudded once. “What about it?”
“Have dinner with me tomorrow night.”
Her heart thudded twice. “I can’t.”
He met her gaze for long seconds. “You have another engagement?”
“No.”
There was a slight lifting of his brow. “Then why not have dinner with me?”
She hated this interrogation. “How do you know I’m not involved with someone?”
“If you are, I feel sorry for him. I wouldn’t like it if my woman was attracted to another man the way you are to me.”
She sucked in a lungful of air. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not attracted to you.”
He raised his brows.
“Look, I’m sure any other woman would be only too glad to go out with you.” She drew herself up taller. “Please excuse me, now.” With that, she walked away with her back straight and her head held high and let herself be swallowed up in the crowd.
She half expected him to follow her, but after that he seemed to have disappeared. She was glad, she told herself. She already had a headache from the music that was getting progressively louder.
Going out for dinner with a man like Alex Valente would not be prudent, she knew. She already had enough disasters to deal with—she wouldn’t add possible heartache to the list.
Chapter Two
The next day Olivia was in her office when a courier delivered a letter for her marked Personal.
There was just something about that strong handwriting that put her on alert. She gazed down at the white envelope in her hand, noting the way her name had been written in bold strokes. Her heart skipped a beat. Was she being silly to think this was from Alex Valente?
It was.
It read, Dinner tonight. Seven-thirty. Sylvester’s Restaurant.
She stared at the note, her blood pressure beginning to rise. The sheer arrogance of the man! He sure didn’t take no for an answer.
Heavens, just the thought of spending an evening with Alex Valente was enough to give her a serious case of goose bumps. She couldn’t deny she was deeply attracted to him. There was a strength about him that appealed to her.
Of course that was probably because the men in her life had always been weak in some way or other. Her parents had divorced when she was two, and her father had ignored her for most of her life. Her successive two stepfathers had both been kind but self-centered. And her ex-husband had only been interested in himself. They hadn’t been good examples of the male species.
So why did she think Alex Valente was?
By six that evening she knew she would meet him. She had too much to worry about these days and wondering what Alex wanted from her did not need to be added to her list.
At least the restaurant was neutral ground, she told herself, showering then dressing in one of her own classic designs. The cream-colored pantsuit flattered her tall slim figure. Matching leather pumps completed a sophisticated but businesslike effect.
She might as well have worn nothing, she mused an hour later. Alex had watched her entrance into the restaurant with a masculine appreciation that sent a tingle of anticipation along her spine.
“Glad you could make it,” he said, his voice low and throaty as she reached the corner table.
“I’m not,” she said, then quickly cleared the huskiness from her throat.
A knowing look entered his eyes. “So why did you come?”
She angled her chin at him. “To tell you that I found your note arrogant and to make it clear I want nothing to do with you.”
“You could have just phoned and said the same thing.”
“But would you have given up?”
He arched a brow. “Do I look like a man who gives up?”
“No.”
“Then you have your answer.” He held out her chair for her. “Let’s eat first.”
She swallowed. First? She didn’t much feel like eating, but the waiter was hovering, so she went through the motions and ordered a glass of mineral water, then glanced at the menu and ordered veal.
“You’ve obviously done some checking to find me,” she said, once they were alone.
“I needed to get the note to you,” he dismissed, as if checking up on people was what he did every day.
Well, she’d done some checking herself this afternoon, but she wasn’t about to tell him that. She’d heard of the House of Valente—who hadn’t? But until now she’d never been interested in reading the odd gossip column about the love exploits of the three Valente brothers.
“Alex, I—”
“I love your name,” he cut across her, his voice suddenly deepening to a murmur. “Olivia.”
Her heart fluttered at the sound of her name on his lips. He made it sound so sexy…so downright delicious…so…
All at once she realized what he was doing and her mouth tightened. He obviously liked to interrupt her with a personal comment just to throw her off-balance.
“I was named after Larry,” she told him, hiding a smirk.
His brow arched. “Larry?”
“Sir Laurence Olivier. You know, the actor.”
His hard, sensual mouth visibly relaxed. “Oh. I know who he is. Or was.”
She emphasized a sigh. “Alas, he died before I was born, but he was like a favorite uncle to my mother.”
Alex’s eyes held amusement. “I can see you’re trying to put me in my place.”
An odd exhilaration filled her. “Did it work?”
“No. But then, I have friends in high places, too. And they’re all still alive.” One corner of his mouth twisted upward. “I’d say you’ve tried that little trick before.”
“Not since I was a teenager. I’ve grown up since then.”
“And very nicely, too,” he drawled.
While the waiter was placing their drinks on the table, Olivia couldn’t help but take a proper look at Alex from beneath her lashes. Lord. The man was handsome to a fault, his dark looks a lethal combination of virility and commanding self-confidence, the superbly tailored suit he wore merely an excuse to take a second look at him.
Then she noticed he’d seen her assessing him. Her cheeks warmed as her heart tried to settle. She was grateful when he started to discuss less personal things and Olivia felt herself relax as the conversation stayed on general topics.
“Are you close to your mother, Olivia?” he said, just after the waiter took away their empty plates.
Uneasiness sliced through her. “Why do you ask?”
“You were raised by your grandmother here in Australia, weren’t you? Your mother lived in Los Angeles.” He made it sound as if her mother had deserted her.
