Too Cold To Love by Doris O'Connor Read Free Book Online

Right now he
could kiss whoever designed that dress she was so beautifully filling out.
    "Don't you dare laugh at me you arrogant,
piece of … argh!" Elise ran out of steam, her tawny eyes filling with
tears which she resolutely blinked away before finishing the almost full
wineglass she had been nursing all through lunch in one angry swallow.
    "If it wasn't for Mimi, I would rather go
to jail then marry the likes of you. But that would leave her at the mercy of
whomever else you might bring in instead for this crazy plan of yours. She has
had too many changes already!"
    Marco did laugh then, a cold harsh sound.
    "Keep my daughter out of this if you know
what's good for you. Lucky for all concerned you have agreed to marry me, and
quite frankly I am not at all averse to dragging you in front of the registrar
kicking and screaming, if need be. Now your sister – and I want the truth,
woman, now!"
    He watched her take a deep breath, one hand
fisting the table cloth and the other clutching her wineglass as though her
life depended on it.
    Just as he thought he would have to add more
pressure for her to open up, Elise's words tumbled out, hesitant at first, then
faster and faster, and Marco leant forward enthralled by what he was hearing.
    "Jemima has always been in trouble over
something for as long as I can remember. She used to drive Mummy insane and
usually tried to get me into trouble along the way. More often than not it
worked. If Mum had ever known half of the things she got up to… I am older, so
have always had to be the responsible one, especially when Mummy got sick.
Jemima just kicked off even more, she couldn't cope with it, and in the end
…"
    Dannazioni , she
went so pale, and there was so much pain in her voice he couldn't help himself.
Marco reached across. One thumb wiped away the tears that fell silently – not
attention seeking loud sobs, like Jennifer had used – just a quiet desperation
that cut straight through all of the carefully constructed layers of ice around
his heart.
    "What happened, pasticcino?"
    "Mummy died within two months of being
diagnosed with ovarian cancer. It had spread to every organ of her body, and
she was riddled with it. She made me promise to look after Jemima before she
died. She was in so much pain at the end. It was awful."
    Elise's voice broke again, and damn it, he
needed to hold her. This brought back too many memories of his parents. Marco
threw some money on the table and, grabbing Elise, made a dash for the exit.
Somehow he got them back to the car, and once they were safely inside pulled
Elise on his lap, her tears seeping into the front of his shirt.
    "How old were you, pasticcino ?"
    Elise mumbled, "Ten", into his chest,
and Marco closed his eyes whilst kissing her hair and whistling under his
breath.
    He felt Elise push against his now damp chest,
and he reluctantly let her go watching her warily. Her beautiful eyes were red
rimmed, her hair a mess, where he ran his hands through it in a futile effort
to offer some comfort. Hah, he was offering comfort, whatever next. But heaven
help him, he wanted to make all that pain go away for her. No child should have
to deal with this.
    He smiled grimly remembering his own parent's
car accident that had robbed him of their loving guidance when he was sixteen.
That had been bad enough, and he'd had the rest of the Giovanni to help him
through.
    "What about your dad?"
    Elise shrugged her shoulders. "He left us
when we were very little. I can't remember much about him, just the arguments
he used to have with Mummy."
    Damn the man, if he could get his hands on the
good for nothing bastard.
    "He didn't come for you, when your mother
died?"
    "No, we were put into one foster home after
the other. I tried my best, but Jemima, well, she has a mind of her own, and
she acts before she thinks. She has always been the prettier and more
flamboyant one. Men flock to her, and she just laps it up."
    "Don't sell yourself short, pasticcino