The Italian Surgeon's Secret Baby Read online

  ‘The hospital.’

  The young woman’s eyes widened as she glanced at Aimee, remorse instantly filling her expression. ‘I’m sorry we made a mistake with your booking. I’ll heat the milk for your bambino.’

  Elene couldn’t lie. ‘It’s all right. Aimee’s not sick. I know someone who works there who will help me out.’ He’d have no choice. ‘But if you can heat the milk I’d be very grateful.’ Thank goodness Italian was her second language. How she’d manage otherwise didn’t bear thinking about.

  ‘My sister has a baby too.’

  Aimee’s not really mine. Make that not only mine. Because Aimee was hers in a complex kind of way. There was paperwork to prove it. Elene managed to keep the words behind closed lips. Having to explain was too complicated and time-consuming—and irrelevant. ‘Aimee’s had to put up with a lot of flying. She’s been a champ.’

  Finally settling into a taxi, she clicked the seatbelt into place, relieved there was a child’s seat since she hadn’t brought one with them, being too bulky and heavy with their other luggage. ‘Don’t go to sleep now, baby girl. Drink your milk instead. We’re nearly there.’ With every turn the taxi took her heart rate quickened. Should’ve stayed at home. Too late now. Or was it? Mattia had no idea she was in Italy, let alone about to knock on his door and burst his over-inflated bubble. She could still run away and forget all about keeping her promise to her best friend.

  Aimee’s little chest fell on a sigh as she scoffed the milk.

  Elene’s heart squeezed. ‘Love you, baby girl. We’re doing the right thing coming here.’ What if Mattia—?

  Don’t go there. Take this one step at a time. This was what Danielle wanted, and what she’d promised to do for her. But she didn’t plan on getting her heart broken. She was thinking about Aimee here, not Mattia’s sexiness, which she’d not managed to forget as she should’ve.

  So fight hard for Aimee, for both of you.

  It could be a costly battle. Her family had money, but Mattia’s was loaded to the point of being obscene. The smart thing would have been to stay in Wellington and pretend she hadn’t made the promise of her lifetime. The smart thing, also amoral. Being abandoned by her biological father before she’d been born had skewed her thinking until she’d finally met him as a teenager. That was when she’d totally accepted as her father the man who’d raised her after marrying her mother and knew how lucky she’d been. Everyone needed, was entitled to, the unconditional love of good parents. ‘Everyone, baby girl.’

  The taxi stopped outside Sorrento’s hospital all too soon. After settling Aimee into her stroller, Elene moved towards the lift that would take them up to Mattia’s office, tugging their bag behind her. Despite the spring heat, her skin lifted in cold bumps. The time had come. Her hand tightened around the stroller handle. ‘Please say I’m doing the right thing. It’s what your mother wanted but I can’t deny the fear of losing you to him blocking my throat.’ She had to trust all the kind things Danielle said about him.

  The lift must have been boosted by a rocket launcher. Ping, floor three. Then the doors slid open so fast she was spilling out into a corridor bustling with medical staff, orderlies pushing beds and patients on crutches. Sucking in her stomach, lifting her chin, she stepped into the office with the sign declaring ‘Dottore Mattia Ricco’ and up to the woman behind the desk and said, ‘My name is Elene Lowe. I am here to see Dr Ricco.’

  ‘You don’t have an appointment,’ responded the woman in a don’t-fool-with-me voice.

  ‘I don’t, but I can wait until he is finished for the day.’ Any time soon, surely? The clock outside the door had read eighteen-oh-five.

  ‘The doctor doesn’t see people without an appointment. He’s a very busy man.’

  ‘Please tell him I am here and let him decide if he’ll see me.’ Because if he refused she had his home address on her phone, and right about now she’d do whatever it took to find a bed for Aimee.

  The woman glanced at the closed door to the side. ‘I can’t do that.’

  Just then Aimee let out a shriek and began pummelling her thighs, pushing her little body against the stroller restraints.

  ‘I think my baby needs changing.’

  ‘There are public toilets on this floor.’

  Elene’s eyes suddenly stung. It was all too much. ‘Please.’

  ‘Sorry.’

  Typical of Mattia to have a heartless lioness guarding his patch. Not that she had any right to complain, but there was no accounting for exhaustion and worry. ‘I am going in to see the doctor now, and taking my child with me.’

  The woman rose. ‘You can’t. He’s unavailable right this moment.’

  Of course. He’d be with a patient. She lifted Aimee out of the stroller. ‘Then I’ll sit here and wait. I am not going anywhere until I’ve talked to Mattia.’ She wasn’t risking him leaving while she was in a bathroom.

  ‘I’ll call Security.’

  ‘That won’t be necessary, Sonia,’ came an annoyed command from behind Elene. ‘I will see to this lady. You can go home. It is late for you to be here.’

  ‘But—’

  ‘No buts, Sonia. Please do as I say.’ Mattia might be talking to his secretary but his gaze was fixed on Elene when she twisted around to face him. Those almost black eyes were wide with surprise. ‘Elene.’

  So he hadn’t recognised her from behind. Nor her voice. Or he had and hoped he was wrong. ‘Mattia,’ she acknowledged. Let the show begin. Better yet, could it wait twenty-four hours? She might be more prepared.

  ‘This is an unexpected pleasure.’

  ‘I’m sure pleasure is the last thing you’re feeling.’ They had rarely got on well enough to have more than a professional relationship, and when he’d dumped her best friend in preparation to swan out of Wellington onto his next adventure they’d drawn battle lines.

  ‘Still blunt, I see.’

  ‘Only way to go,’ she snapped, before remembering she was supposed to get on with him or there’d be no hope for her or Aimee. ‘Sorry. It’s been a long and arduous couple of days and my tongue’s getting the better of me.’

  His gaze alighted on her mouth, his eyes widening almost imperceptibly. She was hallucinating. Could he be remembering that awkward moment back in Wellington? But why would he? It wasn’t as though he’d have been celibate in the intervening year after leaving Danielle. He asked, ‘You’ve come all this way to see me?’

  The disbelief was so tangible she could almost see it hanging in the air between them. She could certainly feel it. Not that she blamed him. Turn the situation around and she’d be reacting exactly the same. ‘Can we talk in private?’ Her arm tightened involuntarily around Aimee. Here we go. The stress expanded, spread through her like wildfire in a pine tree plantation.

  The dark gaze that had been focused on her lowered to her precious bundle, and Mattia rocked on his feet. His wide mouth flattened, and all that arrogance she remembered rose to the fore.

  ‘We should take this somewhere else,’ she managed through a dry mouth.

  Mattia raised his head to stare at her, shock beginning to shadow that gaze.

  He knows. Without a word being said, he’s seen what’s before him.

  Mattia stepped back from them—way back. ‘Congratulations on your child. How old is she?’

  Denial to the fore. ‘This is Aimee. She’s twelve months old.’ Do the sums. Believe your gut reaction.

  But Mattia wasn’t playing that game. He had one of his own on the go. ‘Twelve months, eh? You kept your relationship quiet. I thought you were sworn to a single life.’

  She still was. Which was none of his business. Careful, you have to talk with Mattia about some serious stuff in the coming days. ‘I wasn’t dating anyone when you were with Danielle.’

  ‘How is Danielle?’ His gaze flicked to Aimee, immediately looked away.
r />   Oh, no. She was about to leap right into the middle of the deepest pool without a lifebelt. Her heart was already diving. Inclining her head towards the door that led into his office, she whispered, ‘Can we?’

  ‘I think we must.’ He turned to his secretary, who hadn’t done as requested and left. ‘Sonia, I’ll see you tomorrow.’ His tone brooked no argument, yet the woman didn’t leap up to leave. Brave lady. Or did she have something on him?

  Could she share it with me? Gathering strength from Sonia’s attitude, Elene stepped past Mattia. Then faltered. He had never seemed so tall, nor his frame so solid and imposing. Not even when he’d held her, been about to kiss her. Then, when the office door clicked shut behind them, the air evaporated, leaving her lungs struggling to do their job. Without invitation, she sank onto the nearest chair and settled Aimee on her lap, an arm around her tiny waist.

  Mattia crossed purposefully to his desk but didn’t sit, instead staring down at her. At them.

  Too late, Elene realised she should’ve remained on her feet. Down here, she was at a disadvantage. No change then. But, for a moment, under that unnerving gaze locked on her, she’d forgotten how to fight her corner.

  Two words cracked across the silence. ‘So? Danielle?’

  No easy way to say this. ‘Died. Cancer.’ Two months down the track, it hurt like yesterday. The pain was a rock behind her heart. She missed her friend so much. There was anger at Danielle being taken so young, when she had so much to look forward to and a daughter who needed her and who’d barely got to know her mother.

  A breath hissed over Mattia’s lips. ‘That I did not expect.’

  ‘Who would?’ Danielle had been thirty-four, fit, supposedly healthy, with everything ahead of her.

  His fingers raked his dark hair. ‘Can I ask what type?’

  ‘Cervical. It was rapid.’ And brutal. A familiar nausea soured her mouth. Caring for her best friend in those last months had been the hardest thing she’d ever done.

  Aimee squawked.

  Grateful for the interruption, Elene lightened her grip and kissed Aimee’s cheek. ‘Sorry, darling.’ When she looked up there was no avoiding that dark, inscrutable gaze fixed on them. She had to get this over with. ‘The cancer was discovered before Aimee was born.’

  One abrupt nod. ‘So the child is Danielle’s?’

  You’ve already figured that out. ‘Aimee. Her name is Aimee.’ Elene leapt up and strode across to stand right in front of him. ‘Get it?’

  She had to give him credit. He didn’t back away or make a dash for the door. ‘Yes, I get it.’

  That stole her thunder. Did he really understand what she’d been saying without putting it into words? Probably not. Why would he? It wasn’t as though Danielle had rung and told him the instant she’d found out. She hadn’t told him at all. But there’d been that moment of recognition in Mattia’s eyes. Could be she’d misinterpreted it.

  Returning to the chair, Elene sat down and tried to relax. Getting angry or upset wasn’t going to achieve a thing, and she hadn’t been kicked out—yet. ‘Aimee’s nearly one, was born on the third of May last year.’

  ‘Taurus.’

  ‘What?’ This man with a scientific mind knew his star signs? She’d thought she was beyond being surprised.

  ‘The bull. Deliberate in actions, methodical. Likes luxury.’

  Surprise got the better of her. ‘You know this how?’

  ‘I too am Taurus. You’ve got your hands full with this one.’

  ‘We have.’ I want Aimee full-time, but I can’t deny your role.

  ‘Now we’re getting to the crux of your visit.’ Mattia parked his honed butt on the corner of his desk. ‘Tell me exactly why you’re here.’

  * * *

  Truthfully? Mattia did not want to know. He really, really didn’t. Sure, he’d made a summation of the situation, but to hear Elene confirm it would mean there’d be no way out. No going back to the life he’d had up until ten minutes ago. At this moment, there was still hope.

  So Mattia focused on Elene instead. The instant he’d seen her standing in his reception area, that long auburn hair all askew, escaping the band meant to keep it in place, the slump in her small shoulders, the curve of her hips against the light fabric of her baggy trousers, he’d felt something he shouldn’t have. A wave of lust. For Elene? Couldn’t be, when they’d kept each other at arm’s length, especially after the night he’d come within a whisker of kissing her. Yet the tightening in his crotch was definitely the sensation that went with sexual need. The woman who’d done nothing but annoy the hell out of him had found another way to vex him.

  Danielle Hicks had always laughed at how he got so uptight around her friend, said he should get to know Elene properly because she was the best. Sadness engulfed him. Danielle. No one deserved her fate. She’d been such a vibrant woman, bigger than life, fun with a capital F. Being a doctor, he knew there were no boundaries when it came to life dishing out bad calls, but that didn’t mean he had to like them. ‘I’m sorry about Danielle,’ he told Elene with all sincerity. She must’ve been devastated, still would be.

  ‘Thank you.’ Sì, definitely a wealth of pain and passion in those two simple words.

  Mattia found his eyes tracking to the child now starting to grizzle.

  Instantly Elene was cuddling and kissing her, before placing her on the floor to crawl. ‘There you go, sweetheart. Freedom at last. All that flying’s over. For now.’

  Mattia ignored the ‘for now’. ‘You came straight through?’ That’d be some haul for anyone, let alone a toddler.

  ‘Yes. It might’ve been better to stop overnight in Hong Kong, but I thought I’d get here, then relax. A prolonged stop mightn’t have worked for Aimee. Then again, I could be wrong.’

  The child sank onto her butt and stared around the room, finally bringing dark eyes to rest on him. His eyes. Mattia fought the stab of wonder hitting his belly. But she was his. No denying the toddler came from his gene pool. There were photos on his desk showing almost identical faces—only those belonged to his niece and nephew. Cute like Aimee. Some time in the few weeks he’d dated Danielle he’d created a child. His hands clenched against his hips. He was a babbo. Like it or not.

  That he could accept—well, he would after time to think about it and absorb the truth of the matter. He wasn’t going to admit as much to Elene though. Not yet. Not until he learned what was behind this visit. It wouldn’t be straightforward—meet your child and get to know her.

  Elene’s sudden appearance without warning was a worry in itself. Back in Wellington, her snippy remarks about his womanising had rankled. She’d also pushed the guilt button for that hot moment with her when he was in the midst of a fling with her friend. In defence, he’d always been honest with women about what he required from a relationship and if they couldn’t agree he moved on fast. Elene had never accepted that Danielle was happy to go along with the rules. Elene was a warrior when it came to protecting her friend. So it stood to reason she’d be the same with her friend’s daughter. My daughter. No. Don’t accept it so readily. There had to be proof and legalities and a whole load of other things to consider first. His stomach clenched so tight it hurt. Because he already knew half the score. Aimee was his. He’d never walk away from her, no matter what.

  He demanded of Elene, ‘Why are you here?’ To ask for money? To hand over Aimee and leave, free of obligations? No, even with his high level of distrust he knew she wouldn’t do that. Or would she? Raising a child would interfere with her career, and he’d seen how serious she took nursing. Couldn’t fault her there. He could use her talents here, with the ridiculous lack of suitable nurses at the moment.

  ‘We don’t have anywhere to stay.’ She’d gone for the immediate situation, not the bigger one. ‘I’m hoping you can look past our previous disagreements to help me out.’

  Sì, sh
e could still push his buttons. If he wasn’t careful he could find himself enjoying that. Mattia studied the pale face in front of him. Shadows stained her cheeks, her mouth drooped, as did her whole body, really. She was shattered, and who wouldn’t be after those long flights getting here from New Zealand? Throw a baby into the mix and it was a wonder she was conscious.

  ‘Believe me, the last thing I’m feeling like is arguing.’ Nor was he mentioning the unexpected heat lancing him internally from seeing her again. She was a breath of fresh, though angry, air.

  ‘I’m sorry for turning up like this. I’d hoped for a night to recuperate,’ she acquiesced, worrying him more than almost anything else she could’ve done.

  ‘You came here directly from the airport?’

  ‘Via the hotel that double-booked my room.’

  Blink, blink.

  Don’t cry. You are a tough, snippy woman—you don’t do tears.

  Then her words swiped his brain. Elene meant it when she said she didn’t have anywhere to stay. Got it wrong about what would worry him the most, hadn’t he? She’d just handed him a grenade. Offering her a place to stay for a few days would mean seeing his daughter every day—bringing home the truth: bang, bang, bang. Having to spend endless hours in Elene’s company was another problem that’d be equally difficult to handle. He breathed deep. Tossing her out on the street wasn’t an option. His house was enormous; this mightn’t be as difficult as he envisioned. Besides, it was said, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. At the moment Elene fell into the latter category. ‘I believe you have a nappy to change.’ He’d overheard her conversation with Sonia.

  Her head dropped, rose, in a slow nodding gesture. ‘I do.’

  He took charge. ‘I have a patient to check on. It won’t take long, then we’ll head home. Unless you want me to change the nappy first.’ It wasn’t as though he didn’t know how.

  She stared at him like there was no strength left in any part of her small frame. As if he’d offered her a gift she was waiting for him to snatch back. Finally she muttered, ‘I’ll do the nappy.’