LITMIR.BIZ

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in her breast and panic threaded through her belly. Where was Renzo? Would he ever forgive her? Would she ever have the right to wrap her arms around him again?

      And then she saw him, walking through the crowd toward the Viper, and her heart filled to bursting with love. She sprinted toward him, calling his name. He looked confused as he stopped. But then his eyes widened as he saw her, and his arms opened a split second before she crashed into them.

      He smelled like leather and gasoline and she closed her eyes and hugged him tight. But then he pushed her back until he could see her, and she nearly burst into tears at the look on his face. He seemed … happy.

      “Renzo, I—”

      “Faith, I love you,” he said, and her heart stopped. Literally stopped right there in the middle of the paddock with all the noise and craziness going on around them.

      But it kicked hard again, lurching forward at double speed. She was dizzy. Dizzy and drunk with happiness and love.

      “Did—did you just say …?”

      He tugged her to him and captured her mouth, kissing her until her toes curled, kissing her until she could hear cheering and clapping all around them. She could see the flashes of cameras from behind her closed lids, but she didn’t care. She didn’t care what they reported about her anymore. So long as Renzo loved her, they could say any damn thing they wished and print any picture they wanted. She would never be ashamed again.

      When he finally lifted his head, she clutched his arms for balance, her heart careening out of control with all she felt. But she still hadn’t said what she’d come to say.

      “Renzo, I want you to go out there and win. Do you understand? I want you to win.”

      He only smiled and slid his thumbs against her cheeks. “I don’t care, amore mia. It’s over, and I don’t care. I’m not racing.”

      She blinked. “Is it—” She couldn’t finish, so she glanced down to his leg, back up again.

      He shook his head. “No. But you were right. I need to end it now. I need to retire and let someone else take the team to victory. I’ve had my time in the spotlight.”

      Her eyes filled with tears. “Please don’t do this because of me. If you want to race, I want you to race. You’ve worked so hard.” She tipped her head toward the men in cherry-red uniforms who were standing and watching them. “They’ve worked hard. If you want to take the Viper out, then don’t stop because of me.”

      “I don’t need the success anymore,” he said. “I craved it because it was all I had, the only way to prove I was worthy….”

      He didn’t say anything for a long moment and she squeezed him tight. “Cara, everything I’ve done has been to prove that I was good enough to be my father’s son. He may not acknowledge me, but by God he will know who I am and be sorry. I’ve let it rule me for far too long, and I no longer need it to validate my life.” He smiled crookedly, and her heart broke for him. “I only need you.”

      “Oh Renzo, I understand.”

      “I know you do. We’re alike, you and I. I know you’ve struggled with your feelings about your father. You’ve taught me that you just have to let it go at a certain point. It will always haunt me, but it doesn’t have to rule me.”

      She squeezed him tight, her eyes flooding with tears. “Your father’s a fool. A stupid, blind, ridiculous man who doesn’t deserve you.”

      He laughed at her fierceness, but she meant it. “I know that, cara. Thanks to you.”

      There was an announcement of some kind, and then the teams began to move the motorcycles toward the starting grids. Matteo glanced over at them as he gave the order to move the Viper.

      Renzo turned his head to watch them. She could see the spark in his eyes, the glint that said he was proud of the motorcycle and knew it would be amazing. And she wanted him to have this moment more than she wanted anything else. Because that’s what you did when you loved someone.

      She smiled at him through her tears. “Go, Renzo. It’s okay. I swear it’s okay. Just come back to me in forty-five minutes, you hear?”

      He hesitated for a moment more. And then he bent and kissed her swiftly. “I will, Faith. I promise you I will.”

       EPILOGUE

      THEY were married in the Duomo in Florence with one thousand of their friends and colleagues—as well as Renzo’s mother and sister—packed inside the church. Outside in the square, thousands more gathered for the wedding of their favorite champion and his former PA. When Faith and Renzo emerged from the church, the crowd cheered in a loud, thundering rumble.

      It sounded the same as when Renzo had been standing on top of that podium in Qatar, Faith thought. He’d won the race that day, and then he’d announced his retirement from MotoGP while a shocked crowd gasped and groaned.

      But they’d forgiven him quickly, and the D’Angeli team was even now traveling the circuit and racking up wins on the Viper. The new production motorcycles had hit the dealerships, and business was booming.

      Renzo tugged her into his arms and kissed her on the steps of the church, and then they were hurrying to the car that would take them back to the villa. Of all the places they could have honeymooned, that’s where Faith wanted to be. Lola was there, and Fabrizio and Lucia. The vines were heavy with grapes that were ripening, the olive trees were bearing fruit, and the countryside was green during the day and golden in the evening. It was the most perfect place on earth, and she couldn’t imagine another place in the world she would rather be.

      They retreated to the bedroom where Renzo gave up patiently trying to divest her of her wedding gown and instead bunched the beautiful white taffeta around her hips as he held her against the wall and thrust into her urgently. It was the first time they’d made love without a barrier between them, and the sensation was exquisite.

      They managed to undress, and then they fell into bed and lost themselves in each other’s arms for the next few hours. Lucia brought dinner to the room, leaving it outside the door on a serving cart, and they sat on the private terrace overlooking the valley and ate. Faith was wearing a sheet and Renzo had slipped into a pair of briefs. It was as dressed as they would be for the next few days.

      Renzo looked over from where he sat across from her in the evening light and smiled. “I love you, Signora D’Angeli,” he said. “This is how I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

      Faith laughed. “I love you too, Renzo. But you do have a very successful company to run.”

      He sighed. “And I need a new PA. I am not looking forward to finding one to replace you.”

      Faith bristled. “Replace me? I hardly think so, mister. You can’t live without me, remember?”

      “No,” he said, smiling. “I can’t. But you are my wife, not my PA. You won’t always want to schedule my appointments and type my correspondence.”

      “I’m not particularly fond of typing correspondence,” she admitted.

      He grasped her hand and tugged her into his lap. The sheet slipped down her bosom, but she hardly cared, especially when his eyes flared with heat.

      “You can be my PA as long as you want,” he said. “And when it’s time to quit, you can interview the candidates if you like.”

      She put her arms around his neck and pressed herself closer to him. Oh, she was shameless when it came to wanting her gorgeous husband. “Since I’m the expert, yes. I would like that.”

      “There is only one condition,” he said.

      She reared back to look down at him. “What?”

      “If

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