Gianni - The Santinis

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Authors: Melissa Schroeder
hadn’t.
She had slipped out of town. More like ran out of town to Atlanta for
a weekend. It really hadn’t been because she was avoiding him.
    “ I went to see
Etta.”
    “ Ran away.”
    She almost stepped
back and apologized, but something out of the corner of her eye
caught her attention. Maryanne was shaking her head and Kianna
realized that she shouldn’t back down.
    “ I went to see
my sister. I figured she wanted to spend time with me and I wasn’t
in the mood to put up with a whiny little shell of a man.”
    There was a whistle
and she didn’t know if it was Leo or Max but it told her she
might have taken a step too far. Gianni’s eyes narrowed.
    “ You really
know how to push my buttons, woman.”
    She didn’t
know what he meant by that until he stepped forward and bent at the
waist. The next moment, her world tilted as he lifted her up and over
his shoulder.
    “ Gianni put me
down!”
    “ No.”
    “ Maryanne,”
she screeched but when she looked in her direction, Maryanne was
waving goodbye.
    He set her down on
her feet and backed her back up against his truck.
    “ What was that
for?” she asked.
    “ I wanted a
little privacy for what I want to say to you.”
    She glanced to the
window and he followed her line of vision. Most of the customers and
all of the staff were watching. Gianni cursed.
    “ I wanted them
out of earshot at least.”
    She crossed her
arms. “So say it, PJ. I don’t have all damned day.”
    He looked at her
then laughed. “I swear, Zoe was right about you. You aren’t
as sweet as everything thinks you are. Damned pain in my ass. I try
and tell a woman I love her and she throws me out of her house and
disappears.”
    Her throat closed up
and she tried to swallow. “You love me?”
    “ Of course I
do. God, I can’t think of anyone but you.” He cupped her
face. “I’m sorry I was such an ass. I didn’t mean
to do that. I shouldn’t have said those horrible things.”
    Just hearing him say
it had tears burning the backs of her eyes. When she blinked a few of
them escaped.
    “ Don’t
cry, baby. I can’t stand seeing you sad.”
    She shook her head.
“No, not sad. I should have told you about Charley. It’s
just…well I have a lot to tell you about that part of my life.
But I never have been ashamed of you. Are you kidding me? Hell, I
want to flaunt you around on campus.”
    He chuckled. “I’m
not sure how I feel about that.”
    “ It was
exactly what I said. I hate that part of my work. I only go
because…well I feel I have an obligation. I would hate to make
you do that kind of thing.”
    He kissed her then,
slowly, deeply. “I love you, Kianna.”
    “ I love you
too, Gianni.”
    He smiled that
pretty smile of his and she couldn’t help but laugh and hug him
closer. “I really do love you, even if you are my boy toy.”
    He laughed, then
sobered and reached into the pocket of his jeans.
    “ I know you
were married before and it wasn’t going the way you wanted it
to before Charley was killed.” He opened the box. In the center
of the red satin sat an engagement ring. Not something new. It was
antique, a simple solitaire. It sparkled in the bright sunlight.
    “ I found it in
an antique shop the other day and I bought it.”
    She couldn’t
take her gaze away from it. “The other day?”
    “ I wasn’t
sure why, but for some reason, I felt the need to buy it.”
    She glanced up at
him. “Yeah?”
    He nodded and for
the first time since meeting him, he looked…well…nervous.
    “ It’s
beautiful.”
    “ It’s
just the thing I thought you would like. Its circa 1920.” When
she didn’t say anything he sighed. “I’m asking you
to marry me, Kianna.”
    Her vision wavered.
    “ I know it’s
a lot to ask for and you might be hoping to make tenure and having to
move will hurt any chances of that.”
    She shook her head.
“That’s not important.”
    “ No? Are you
sure?”
    “ I’ve
only cared about teaching. I love the job. Tenure was just

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