page4 (1/2)

“Mari,” she corrected coolly

He frowned Usually that soft tone worked on women There was more to her than frosty order and sensible shoes, he could sense it But as her eyes blazed at hi to let him use her full na to fail hi respect

Who would have thought a trip to Canada would turn out to be so intriguing?

He had the ers on her belligerent cheek Even sitting on the stool, she was several inches below his face So petite and feround What would she do if he tried such a thing? Blush? He didn’t think so Sonant passion, but he didn’t think Mari was the type for that, either

No, an icy diatribe was more her style and he almost did it just to see ould happen To see the sparks ignite, and flare

So held him back

That wasn’t why he was here He ay from Italy, away from the constant demands and in a place where he alone could call the shots He’d let himself be distracted before and it hadn’t been pretty It had cost him Not quite so much as it had cost his father when his mother had walked out on them, but it had been adequately messy He’d let Ellie make a fool of him He’d risked his heart and had lost No, his initial instinct was right He would enjoy himself, but not take it any further than that

He was here to make the Bow Valley Inn into the Fiori Cascade and in order to do that he had to ith Mariella Ross

He stepped back “Showthe Fiori Cascade to a whole new level of opulence”

Luca stared at the papers oncehis ankles on the coffee table There was nothing really wrong with the hotel, not really It was a nice establishood service

But good wasn’t Fiori His father had taught him that

The new ht now it appeared the only thing she shared with his granduard for a few moments, but she was a woman bound up in rules and boundaries, that h the tour she’d mentioned how profitable or efficient their aood—he wanted to make a profit But it wasn’t the be all and end all There was more to the Fiori brand than a balance sheet It hat set Fiori apart from the rest