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‘I know,’ Gaetano fielded drily while also knowing that he could never, ever have i a ould admit that she had just used him for sex

It felt wrong to hiettingto stay out of her bed had played elance In fact he’d been a pushover, he conceded gri of early nights, dawn takeovers and afternoon siestas, hopefully the kinkier, the better, because his bride was still on a wonderful learning curve Did it really matter if she only wanted him for sex?

Why coht It was just sex, not soonise over or attach labels to Maledizione! What was she doing to his brain? Why was he dwelling on so so basic?

CHAPTER NINE

‘I BELIEVE THE medication you received in hospital may have disrupted your birth control Of course, no contraceptive pill is foolproof either It’s an interesting conundrum,’ Mr Abramo remarked as if the development were purely one of academic interest ‘Fortunately you’re in oabsolutely bloo, in fact!’

Poppy’s snant, one hundred per cent with no rooreater shock over that reality One night, one bout of passion, one baby Obviously, Gaetano would feel that he had been very unlucky What were the odds of such a development? What would he want to do? Hoould he react? She was already praying that he would not hope that sheto consider a termination

While it was true that she hadn’t planned on a baby, she still wanted the child that was now on its way Her baby and Gaetano’s, a little piece of Leonetti heritage that even Gaetano couldn’t take off her again, divorce or otherwise A little boy, a little girl, Poppy wasn’t fussy about the gender Indeed she was getting excited about the prospect of uilty about the fact How could she dare to look forward happily to an event that would probably seriously depress and infuriate Gaetano, who preferred to plan everything and liked to believe that he could control everybody and everything in his life? The baby would be a wildly out-of-control event And Gaetano had been frank from the outset that he did not want to risk a conception when they were planning to part Having foreseen that scenario, he had set out to prevent that situation arising

Before her conscience could claim her and stifle her natural impulses, Poppy paid a visit to a very exclusive baby shop in Florence where without the sement she purchased an incredibly expensive shawl and a tiny pair of exquisite white lace bootees When she e, she saw her pair of bodyguards exchanging knowing looks and, scolding herself for herwrapping paper for her gift

When she returned to La Fattoria for lunch, Gaetano was still in Paris But he ht there, Poppy thought with a wicked little smile Quite deliberately she had exhausted him A sexually satiated tired male was unlikely to be tempted by the offer of sex on the side She had kept hiht and had awakened him at dawn in a manner that he had sas the ultimate male fantasy His response had been incredibly enthusiastic But then Gaetano had remarkable stamina, she reflected sunnily She ached all over She ached in places she hadn’t known she could ache but it had all been in a good cause Surely Serena could no longer be considered a threat?

Given the smallest excuse, Gaetano would have abandoned Serena at the airport Her incessant flirtatiousness had begun to irritate hiht back Raunchy jokes about bankers and the round Gaetano had partied on board when he’d acquired his first private jet but those irresponsible days were far behind hi the new CEO of the Leonetti Bank He was quietly satisfied by the attain-held aift for Poppy during a break betweenhis lofty rise in status Ironically now that he had that status it meant less than he had expected to him His focus in life had definitely shifted in a different direction

Poppy got sleepy in the late afternoon and went for a nap She lay on the bed wondering about how best to share her neith Gaetano and tears prickled her eyes because she feared his reaction He wasn’t likely to be happy about her pregnancy and she had to accept that It would drive theether Fate had thrown the that couldn’t be easily worked around