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CHAPTER 22
The next weeks that followed their fight and break-up had been pure hell for Phoebe. She functioned on automatic pilot. The hurt was crushing her heart, but the love she was feeling for him, the craving for his touch was getting stronger by the minute.
In spite of her request to be left alone by him, Lorenzo called every day. On each occasion, she refused to speak to him. The truth was that she didn't trust herself yet, even on the phone. She was far too frail to confront him again.
Finding out about Mia Grimaldi had devastated Phoebe with guilt, jealousy, and mortification. Discovering that Lorenzo trusted Mia infinitely more than he trusted her had literally torn Phoebe apart. Did he even appreciate how much he already cared about Mia? Was he contemplating marriage with Mia?
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SHOW ME LOVE CHAPTER 23
Their corner of the quiet, exclusive restaurant was peaceful and empty. It was as if an exclusion zone had been set around their table. There didn't seem to be any other diners. Phoebe lifted her glass of wine. Lorenzo looked at her like she was about to bomb something. Then he reached across the table and literally snatched the glass right out of her hand.“You can't have that!” She gazed back at him in total bewilderment.“The master spoke again… And why not?”“Because you're pregnant. It's safest to stay off alcohol. Don't you know that?” Lorenzo demanded.“Was it something I supposed to know?”“You're a woman…”“So?”“Well… you're supposed to know about this sort of stuff,&rdqu
SHOW ME LOVE CHAPTER 24
Two months later, Phoebe walked into her local catholic church, to become Lorenzo's wife. She wore an elegant, fitted, off-the-shoulder dress in palest cream, the superb fabric exquisitely beaded and embroidered. It was her dream dress. In one move, she emptied her bank account of all her savings since she started working. Lorenzo insisted over and over again that she need to use one of the credit cards he had given her to buy everything, but all she used was to buy the matching shoes and all the other accessories. There was no one to walk her down the aisle, so she walked alone, and quite unconcerned.'Someone has to give you away,' Lorenzo had told her on the phone from Zurich, where he had been attending an important business meeting. 'I’m used to do things on my own. I’ve been doing i
SHOW ME LOVE CHAPTER 25
“What is this ‘someone like me’ stuff? What are you trying to say?” Lorenzo asked. “It means that I’m no high-society material. I’ve always been picked upon for being an illegitimate child. It was something everybody knew about me and it made my life a living hell until I grew enough to defend myself. But just so you’d know, I didn’t accept to be your wife for your money or for being saved, Lorenzo. Please believe that,” Phoebe replied putting her hand on his.“No damn wonder you find it so hard to lean on me.”“Lorenzo, most people I've tried to lean on in life fell over like pieces of a domino. The next second they chose to leave me behind or forget about me,” Phoebe said with a bitter laugh, wishing she hadn't mentioned her childhood.‘But I won't fell down or leave you alone,” Lorenzo intoned very seriously. “You have to learn to trust me,
SHOW ME LOVE CHAPTER 26
As their car reached the front entrance of the villa, Lorenzo sent a rueful glance down at her.“Until I met you, I really believed I was a skilled diplomat…”“You are… most of the time,” Phoebe told him baldly. “But I’m not a person who follows orders without questioning… Or say always the right things.”“You’re not, but I’m also a difficult person,” he said calmly. “Around you, I stop thinking straight and say things I shouldn’t.” “Letting your guard down from time to time it's not a tragedy, Lorenzo.” She smiled again and realized that what hurt her the most wasn’t being compared to Mia but to find out that she was still so present in Lorenzo's thoughts on their wedding day. But then it didn't
SHOW ME LOVE CHAPTER 27
“This is not the way I wanted the world to discover about our child,” Lorenzo commented trying to keep some restraint.“No...” Phoebe agreed, trembling.“You should’ve told me everything about your past. I might have been able to protect you… us better.” Hearing his tone filled with disappointment, Phoebe flinched. None of what was in that newspaper was her fault. There was some truth in the article, but also a lot of lies and exaggerations. His gaze was judgmental.“For starters, I had no idea that you and your mother were treated like pariahs. Another thing you didn’t mention.”“Lorenzo, my mother was an unmarried woman and all her rich friends started treating her even worse once her father lost their fortune.” Remembering those moments, what her mother
SHOW ME LOVE CHAPTER 28
Once she reached the warm soft sand on the beach, Phoebe kicked off her shoes and walked along through the surf whispering onto the shore. The sun shone blinding silvered reflections on the sea. It was hotter than it had been on her last visit. Well, she didn’t mind the heat. It seemed to drive out the chill inside her. Here they were on the very first day of their honeymoon and Mia had already practically torn them apart. Lorenzo had indeed been outraged by such lurid invasive publicity. And, whether she liked the role or not, Phoebe now knew that she had become Lorenzo's soft spot. He was a very proud man, and she didn't want him to be any less proud. But they had had yet another violent and destructive argument and she had got precisely nowhere. How many more could they afford to have before Lorenzo decide
SHOW ME LOVE CHAPTER 29
Sunny’s anxious face lit up with a hugely relieved smile the instant she saw Phoebe walking across the park towards her. She looked at Phoebe and her sad eyes and pale expression broke her heart. Damned Mia did a great number on Phoebe.“Thank goodness you didn't stand me up!” she gasped as she flew off the bench. “Come on, you’re coming to stay with us for as long as you want.” Phoebe dug her hands into the pockets of her jacket and avoid looking her in the eyes. She had cried a lot those past few days and didn’t want Sunny to worry or to tell that to George. “I can’t, Sunny. Don’t worry, I’m staying in a nice place.”“Phee… I want to help you. This is why I invited you here,” Sunny said squeezing her hand.“I’m ok, really. Or I&rs
SHOW ME LOVE CHAPTER 30
Instead of exploding at that rather unjust stab, Lorenzo froze in his distant corner of the back seat.“I guess you're right about that.” Phoebe sent him a slightly confused glance, registering the raw tension engraved into his bold, dark profile.“I honestly didn't think you might get worried until later… Much later,” she said without irony. “It took you eleven days to call Sunny,” Lorenzo stated tautly.“I had some things to work out.” Like how to live without him. How to exist with a constant craving that got more agonizing with every passing hour. How to push away the flawed memory of good times that kept hurting her even more in those days. Images of them, making love… For her, making love with Lorenzo had been earth-shattering sensa
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