Free The Vendetta by Kecia Adams

their linked hands to her flushed face.
    When he turned his attention back to her he said, “I knew you would come. Glad to see me?”
    “No,” she lied.
    He laughed. That luscious mouth curved into a grin that she found difficult to resist. Then he raised her hand and kissed it.
    “Well, then,” he said, “I’ll have to do something about that right away.”
    Her eyes flew wide as he drew her close and swept her into a deep, and very real, kiss.
     
    * * *
     
     
    In spite of her reluctance, or maybe because of it, Nick molded his mouth to Lisa’s soft lips. Dangerous joy rocketed through him at her sweet and immediate surrender. He pressed her close to his body and intensified the sweep of his tongue. Just to tease her, he thought, to make her smile.
    A horn beeped outside and jolted him back to awareness of his surroundings. Dio, what was he doing?
    He lifted his head and looked down at Lisa’s flushed face and wide eyes. He flicked her soft cheek with one finger. “All right?”
    She smiled. Ah, there it was. His heart lightened.
    “Hmm,” she said. “I am now.”
    He laughed.
    He kept her hand in his and pulled her outside where his car and driver waited by the curb. The porter had just finished loading her bags in the trunk, and Nick’s driver opened the door for them. Nick slid onto the leather back seat after Lisa and gave quick instructions for the trip into Rome. Not accompanying her to her grandmother’s palazzo would be out of the question.
    He’d been surprised when the principessa had called him to tell him Lisa was on her way to Rome. Her Excellency had even congratulated him on the successful completion of his end of their bargain. But it had been Lisa’s soft voice on his phone that had made her pending visit real for him. Her message had filled him with unwanted anticipation. Lisa was the one person who just might tempt him away from his plan.
    He looked over at her. Her face was turned away from him as she looked out the window at the passing scenery, but her scent and her presence filled the back of the car. He beat back a stab of arousal.
    He didn’t know what had pushed her decision to come back. He doubted it had been his seduction, though. He smiled. Perhaps it had been his gift.
    “Did you find a good place to display your new piece of art?” he asked.
    She turned her head quickly, her eyes wide and sparkling. “Nick, how could you give me that enormous sculpture? I’ll have to give my couch away to make room in my apartment.”
    He laughed. “You liked it, then.”
    She gave him a direct look. Then a small smile appeared on her delicate mouth. “I don’t even know what to say. Of course I liked it. You saw that at the gallery in Telluride.”
    “Perfect,” he said, and then held back another grin at her small sound of frustration.
    He saw her hands clench together in her lap. She speared him with an intense look, her now serious eyes searching his face. “What is all this really about, Nick? You seem to know my grandmother. Or at least where she lives. Where do you fit in here?”
    The jump of nerves in his stomach was something new. Lisa was nothing if not direct—he’d already learned that about her. He’d debated how much to tell her about his quest for the Rembrandt, knowing she’d ask for details. He just hadn’t expected her to ask so soon. If he acquainted her with some of the facts now, he knew it could either deepen their connection or sever it for good. But the truth was, he still needed that painting.
    The principessa, manipulative old dame that she was, had held something back. Nick didn’t know what her secret was, but she hadn’t yet delivered the painting he’d been promised. He’d been frustrated by the delay, but intrigued enough by Lisa’s arrival in Rome to let the game play out. In order to achieve the revenge he’d envisioned, he would have to play all his cards with delicate skill. One of those cards was telling Lisa at least part of his