ever about it. Something had changed. Vincenzo had changed. And she was no longer sure what she was dealing with.
She squared her shoulders as she opened the sitting-room door. Even if the situation had changed in some way, the fact remained that Megan’s best chance of making a full recovery was by undergoing a transplant. The sooner she and Vincenzo made a start on making it happen, the better.
‘Is she asleep?’
‘Yes.’ Lowri shrugged with feigned nonchalance. She had never expected Vincenzo to visit her and to have him here in her home made her feel very on edge, especially in view of what he had suggested earlier about them sleeping together. The thought sent a rush of heat through her and she hurried on. ‘She took longer to settle than usual because of all the excitement, I expect.’
‘Choosing the wig obviously meant a lot to her,’ he agreed with a smile that tugged at her heartstrings in a way she didn’t welcome.
She didn’t want to feel any kind of connection to him. Certainly didn’t want to get emotionally involved with him. When Vincenzo returned to Italy, she didn’t want to be left with regrets. She just wanted to be pregnant with his child!
The thought was too much to deal with and she jumped to her feet. ‘Would you like a drink? I’ve a bottle of wine in the fridge if you’d care for a glass.’
‘ Grazie . That would be very nice. We shall be able to celebrate the news I received earlier this evening.’
‘Oh. What news was that?’ Lowri asked uncertainly.
‘The DNA results have confirmed that I am Megan’s father. That is something to celebrate, sì ?’
‘I...ehem. Yes, it is.’
Lowri dredged up a smile before she hurried from the room. She took the wine out of the fridge then took a deep breath. Now that they had proof of Vincenzo’s paternity, it was time to get down to the nitty-gritty and work out exactly when they were going to sleep together. Vincenzo was right, of course, because there was a far better chance of them conceiving a child naturally. Time was of the essence and she had to set aside any doubts she had and agree. Even so, she might not get pregnant straight away; it could take more than the one attempt, in fact.
Lowri groaned as she put the bottle and the glasses on a tray. That was something else she needed to think about. How many attempts would it take for her to get pregnant? And was she prepared to sleep with Vincenzo not just once but possibly several times?
Her hands were shaking as she carried the tray into the sitting room and set it down on the old toy chest that doubled as a coffee table. Picking up one of the glasses, she filled it with wine then handed it to Vincenzo and sat down before her legs gave way. It could take months before she got pregnant, dozens of occasions when she would need to sleep with him. Even if she ignored the logistics of making it happen, with her living in England and him living in Italy, was she really prepared for that?
‘What’s wrong?’ His voice was low but Lowri heard the concern it held. It surprised her so much that she found herself blurting out the truth.
‘I may not get pregnant straight away even if we do opt for the more natural method of conceiving.’
‘Of course. These things rarely happen on demand, or so I’m led to believe.’ His smile was cool but the awareness in his eyes filled her with heat. ‘We may need to sleep together more than once, Lowri.’
‘I...I just realised that.’
Lowri bit her lip, terrified that she would say something far too revealing. The thought of sleeping with Vincenzo again and again made her feel very odd. It would be that much harder to erase him from her life afterwards. That much more difficult to forget him and yet that was what she would have to do. Once they had achieved their objective, he would return to his world and she would remain here; their paths wouldn’t cross again. The thought was oddly distressing.
‘If you have any doubts about