Authors: Doris O'Connor
Elise nodded, miserable at not being able to be
honest with him, but she had to protect Jemima from his wrath. If he ever found
out how he'd been duped… That didn't bear thinking about. Jemima, with no child
care qualifications at all whatsoever, looking after his beloved daughter. The
thought of Mimi made her smile. The little girl had taken residence in her
heart with such a speed she would never have thought possible after what
happened at her last assignment. Jemima must have missed that out of her CV
when she applied for this job.
Breathe, Elise, breathe, and don't think
about her now
.
Pain, guilt, misery, threatened to engulf Elise
before she resolutely put all that hurt back into the locked drawer in the dark
recesses of her mind that allowed her to function. She made herself recall
Marco's light smile instead when he told her that he was dropping her round
Mamma G's, instead of his house. Apparently they had decided between them that she
would be spending the night before their wedding at Mamma G's house. She had
some sort of surprise for Elise.
Marco reappeared just then, a garment bag flung
over his shoulder, his face tense as he handed it to her.
"Your dress for tomorrow."
"I have a dress."
"I have it under good authority that you
haven't. You have a suit. That," he casually gestured to the bag," is
a proper dress. Just because we're getting married at the registry office
doesn't mean you don't need a wedding dress. It should fit you. And besides I
would never hear the end of it from Mamma G."
Elise wondered what the tense expression on his
face meant. She tried to open the bag to have a look, but his large hand on
hers stopped her.
"Don't! Look at it when you're on your own.
It was my mother's wedding dress; she kept it for my bride. And before you ask,
the bitch never wore it. She turned her nose up at a hand-me-down, wanted
something new and expensive."
Elise winced at the pain in those few words.
"And you want me to wear this, Marco?"
He threw her a glance, his face grim, before
shrugging his wide shoulders as though he didn't care.
"No skin off my nose if you don't."
But he couldn't hide the white knuckled grip on
the steering wheel.
Chapter Eight
Elise, wrapped into a fluffy dressing gown,
stared into the flames of the open fire in Mamma G's living room. She wrapped
her hands around the steaming hot chocolate and breathed a sigh of contentment.
Her body felt deliciously relaxed, having been pummeled and shaped by the
masseur. He had been part of her surprise, together with the hairdresser and
beautician who had given her a complete body makeover. Truly fascinating the
places one could wax these days.
Stella and Kitty had joined her in the spa
afternoon, and Elise hadn't laughed that much in a long time. Those two were
crazy, they really were, and she'd felt a pang of envy at the easy camaraderie
between Kitty and her mother-in-law. She'd been surprised to learn that it
hadn't always been like this.
"Oh no, Stella couldn't stand me at first.
She thought I wasn't good enough for Alex."
"Why ever would she think that?" Elise
asked. "You're perfect for each other; everyone can see that."
Kitty laughed and shrugged her shoulders.
"Well, it was all a long time ago now, and
Stella thought she was doing the right thing. She doesn't miss a thing, I tell
you."
Elise had felt a trickle of unease rolling down
her spine at those words. Behind the laughter and the shared torture of all
that pummeling, she'd been all too aware of Mamma G's thoughtful gaze. The fine
hair on her neck stood up now. Sure enough Mamma G entered the room, clad in an
identical robe, her long, shiny black hair falling free down her back. It was
hard to believe she was in her late fifties; she could easily pass for early
forties.
Mimi will be a lucky little girl if she
inherits those strong genes.
"I put the air con on full blast, so we
should be nice and cozy in front of the fire. Nothing like an open fire and a
hot chocolate to relax you, is there?"
Elise smiled at her uneasily. It seemed a huge
extravagance to her to have a fire in the middle of summer, but it sure was
cozy. The Giovanni clearly had no need to watch the pennies, like Jemima and
she always had to do.
Thoughts of Jemima made Elise shift uneasily on
her plush seat. Marco said he would help her, but at what cost? And what if he
decided to investigate her further? He was bound to after all; the man left
nothing to chance. Elise barely suppressed a shudder at the thought of what he
may do to both of them when he found out. It would be when, not an if, of that
she was sure.
Oh blooming heck, what am I going to do?
"Now, my dear, what gloomy thoughts are
going through that pretty head of yours? You're marrying tomorrow; that should
make you smile."
Stella watched her through hooded eyes that
reminded her of Marco. Really she could be his mother, not his aunt.
"Sorry, guess I am nervous."
"Brides are entitled to be nervous, but
there is no need. Marco will do right by you; you'll see."
Elise couldn't help the almost snort, and
Stella's eyebrows rose as the full intensity of her blue eyed gaze settled on
her. Oh shoot, now she'd done it.
"If you have such a low opinion of my
nephew, then why are you marrying him, Elise? Or should I say Jemima?"
Elise almost dropped her cup of chocolate.
"Wh…what did you just say?"
"I'm no fool, Elise. I grant you the
resemblance is uncanny, but there are differences. The way you hold yourself,
the way you fidget with your hair, the easy way you've adopted the new clothes,
Marco has insisted on, and most importantly the way little Mimi is responding
to you, not to mention Marco."
Elise's heart hammered in her chest, her tummy
churning. Could this get any worse?
She made herself look at Mamma G and was stunned
to see the woman was smiling at her. Not sure whether that smile was that of a
cobra ready to strike she held her breath, whilst straightening her shoulders
ready to take whatever was coming.
"How long have you known?"
Stella's amused chuckle threw her further off
balance.
"Well it was obvious,really. Marco had
absolutely no interest in you before. Then you show up, he announces you're
engaged, and he looks as though he can't wait to eat you alive. And then
there's Mimi. It's obvious you adore her and vice versa. Your sister made her
giggle, but she never looked as relaxed as she is with you."
"Mimi is a very special little girl."
"That she is, and she needs a good mother,
not the harlot who gave birth to her, and completely messed Marco up."
"He really hates her, doesn't he?"
Stella's short laugh was ice cold. "And
with good reason, but he can explain that to you."
"Why are you not calling the police or
something?"
Again Stella just laughed.
"And that would achieve what exactly? I
will not have my family's dirty linen aired in public. You will learn soon
enough that we Giovanni stick together, and as you're marrying Marco tomorrow,
you'll be a Giovanni. I can assure you that Marco will not put us through
another divorce."
Elise's rising temper made her voice shrill.
"If you don't want another divorce in the
family, then maybe he shouldn't go through with blackmailing me into this.
Hardly the basis for a lasting marriage!"
"Ah, I was wondering how he got you to
agree. And who's to say this marriage won't last? He married for love last
time, and that didn't turn out too well. And if he doesn't get laid soon, that
boy will self-combust. So marriage it is. And as I know you at least love Mimi,
well, that's a good start."
Elise couldn't believe her ears.
"This isn't the dark ages, Mamma G. He
hardly needs to get married to get laid. You cannot seriously be suggesting
that Marco hasn't had a string of mistresses since he split with his ex?"
Elise had to sit back down again at the
expression in Stella's bemused eyes as she rolled her eyes.
"I'm sure my nephew has found other ways to
relieve himself, but that is hardly the same as a willing woman. I'm afraid his
views on sex outside of marriage are rather old fashioned." She narrowed
her eyes looking Elise over. "So I reckon you'll be good for him. Put it
this way, you'd better be."
Elise couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"Or what?"
"What do you think Marco will do when he
finds out that you're in fact Jemima?"
Elise barely supressed a shudder. She could
imagine his reaction only too well. "I'm not Jemima. I'm Elise, always
have been, always will be. Jemima assumed my identity to get this job."
Stella gave a low whistle at that."Why, I'm not entirely sure, but by
golly I'm going to find out, and then..."
"Then what? What could you possibly do to
your twin? Trust me I know how it is. Only I was the flighty one who married
the responsible brother. My twin married Marcos's father."
Then what indeed? Jemima was the only family she
had after all.
Hang on, what had she just said?
Elise looked at Stella
aghast. Well that explained the family resemblance.
"When Magda died in that car accident, I
took Marco under my wing, and he's like a son to me. Trust me you don't want to
lose your twin, ever, no matter how annoying they are."
Stella's eyes filled with tears. Elise reached out to her, but the older woman
just shook her head.
"So, what are you going to do about your impossible twin?"
"I don't know, but she's gone too far this
time, she really has. And Marco will go ape shit when he finds out, so I really
ought to just tell him and get it over with."
"
No!
"
Stella's sharp retort startled Elise.
"Marco has been through too much, and he
needs to be married in order to get that bitch out of our lives for good; so
I'm afraid you'll just have to carry on.
And Elise, you best make sure he has no complaints in the bedroom. You
owe him that much for this whole charade. And with that in mind, here is one of
your wedding presents." She threw a little bundle at Elise.
"Go on, open it. I guarantee it will make
your wedding night special, and he will not be able to keep his hands off you.
And before you ask, I'll make sure he's got a little something for you,
too."
Elise felt her cheeks flame looking into that
little parcel.
"You cannot be serious, Stella!"
Stella just smiled at her.
"Oh, but I am. Trust me, a good sex life
makes a marriage great, you'll see. The tales I could tell you of my late
husband and I. Marco reminds me so much of him. He was just as righteous and
self-contained, out of the bedroom anyway. Ah I've shocked you. Just ask Kitty.
I tend to be right, about these things anyhow."
Stella rose. "I'm off to bed, and you
should get some sleep, my dear. I can guarantee you won't get any tomorrow
night."
Chapter Nine
Marco scanned the room, his expression grim.
Where the hell was she? Kitty smiled at him encouragingly from the back row.
She held Mimi's hand. His daughter jumped on and off one of the seats. Kitty's
twins were fast asleep in their double stroller. Her son Noah sat very solemnly
watching the proceedings. Robert sat, arms crossed, disapproval clearly written
all over his face. Marco smiled grimly. His solicitor still didn't approve
then. He certainly liked the big paycheck, though, which was just so bloody
typical. Everyone had a price; you just needed to know what it was.
Alex's sisters and their brood of kids were
taking over the other side of the room completely, neatly disguising the fact
that the bride had no one. Not even a friend. He grimaced, remembering how
Elise had spat at him that she would not subject any of her friends to this
sham of a wedding. She'd been furious with him, and he shut her up with a kiss
that quickly turned far too passionate and had it not been for Mimi
interrupting them... Where the hell was she? The sooner they got married, the
sooner he could whisk her off to that hotel suite.
"Relax, Marco, she'll be here. Brides are
always late; you know that. Remember how long Kitty kept me waiting?"
Alex gave his cousin a playful shove and Marco
made himself smile at the registrar. The elderly woman in her no nonsense
business suit smiled back politely before shuffling some paper on her desk and
pointedly looking at the clock.
"She'll be here soon," Marco heard
himself say, his voice gruff to his own ears. She wouldn't dare not to be.
"Of course she will, probably just making
herself extra beautiful for her big day."