LITMIR.BIZ

Скачать книгу

you’re sitting there,” Matt said as he pulled covered platters from the refrigerator. “You should start thinking of the proper way to thank me for this fantastic dinner.”

      She returned his wicked grin. “Exactly how good of a cook are you?”

      “My mama taught me well. Though I believe she intended for me to feed myself. Not use my culinary skills to seduce women.”

      “But you’re so good at both. She should be proud.”

      They laughed and traded banter, and dinner was everything she’d anticipated when he’d asked her to stay—a low-key, enjoyable evening with a man who liked her.

      Matt wasn’t the only one who needed to heal. She got that. But he had a prayer of getting there one day, especially if she truly helped him along. Unfortunately, there wasn’t anything he could do in return to fix her vocal cords. She was permanently scarred, and at best, this Venice interlude was a distraction from the rest of her life and what she would do with it.

      For ten years, she’d worked hard, so hard, to climb the charts. Nothing had been handed to her. Only by tapping into her emotions and feeding her muse with the next greatest adventure had she found success. Being aimless and idle grated on her almost as much as having no voice. She wanted—needed—meaning again, but what if she invested in something and it kicked her to the curb like music had?

      The public’s hostile clamoring for a piece of her just increased the difficulty in answering the questions. But how long could she go on ignoring the fact that the person who really needed that answer was Evangeline?

      Milano Sera was a benign compromise, and the addition of Matt’s strength made it somehow seem a lot safer. She should do it, if for no other reason than to gain some progress toward the answers. If Franco put her back against the wall and demanded an explanation of who she was going to be from now on, all she had to do was say armadillo.

      * * *

      Evangeline’s former publicist agreed to work with Milano Sera’s team to arrange an interview, with two important stipulations—Matt must be given free rein on the set, and Franco had to tape the show remotely from Vincenzo’s house.

      No one argued. Two days after Evangeline tucked her belongings into Matt’s dresser, the taping was a go.

      She checked her makeup one last time in the framed mirror above the marble double-sink vanity. A remote taping meant limited resources, so she’d handled her own clothes and hair in the ensuite bathroom she’d been sharing with Matt. No change from regular life; the days of stylists and three dedicated makeup artists were long over. She didn’t mind. The activity gave her a chance to calm her nerves.

      Eva stared back at her from the mirror. Whatever happened today was happening to Eva. She had to remember that.

      When she and Matt entered Vincenzo’s palazzo, the buzz of activity stopped as if a plug had been pulled. A statuesque, authoritative woman in her forties barreled over to pump Evangeline’s hand and escort her to the makeshift set, introducing herself as the show’s producer.

      Gingerly, Evangeline perched in the tall, canvas chair the producer had indicated and smoothed her fuchsia skirt as the camera director lined up the shot, fiddled with the lighting and barked orders at the stressed assistants. Matt watched it all without comment from the edge of the camera zone, one hand shoved in his back pocket. It was a deceptively casual stance, but his keen blue eyes missed nothing.

      So far, so good. The anchor of Matt’s presence went a long way.

      Franco strolled over to take the other chair, appropriately slick in his Armani suit and practiced smile.

      “Eva, I’m happy you changed your mind.”

      Sure he was. The ratings boost would likely make his year.

      An assistant clipped the small microphone inside Evangeline’s strappy top, which she’d specifically chosen because its design allowed for the microphone to be completely hidden.

      “I enjoy watching Milano Sera so I’m happy to be here, as well.”

      Franco nodded, though he surely didn’t believe either falsehood. Another assistant dashed over and frowned over Evangeline’s microphone as Franco murmured to the statuesque director.

      “There’s a small difficulty, signorina.” The assistant unclipped the microphone and dashed away to return with another one. “Speak to Franco now.”

      “Thank you for having me, Mr. Buonotti,” she said obediently.

      Franco shook his head and tapped his earpiece. “It’s no good.”

      The producer and another man whispered to each other furiously as assistants milled around.

      “What’s the problem?” she asked Franco. Foreboding settled in her chest at his blank expression.

      “Your voice, cara. It’s not working well with this remote equipment,” he explained, not the least bit apologetic, as if the equipment wasn’t to blame, but she was. “Too low. They can’t get it to register.”

      Her cheeks heated. Rejected by the taping equipment.

      “Try again. Speak directly into the microphone.” Franco cleared his throat. “Tell me, Eva. What is your life like now that your voice has been so tragically altered?”

      A cold, clammy sweat broke out across her neck. Slicked her palms. Eva. He was talking about Eva’s voice. Not hers.

      “Um.” She shook her head as her brain shut down.

      Matt was wrong. The interview hadn’t even started yet, and already Franco was probing her wounds with inflammatory phrasing. Fashion tips, she could handle. Why had she naively believed Matt that shopping would be Franco’s focus?

      Armadillo.

      Her throat clamped closed and she couldn’t get the word out. Couldn’t make any sound at all.

      This wasn’t happening to Eva, it was happening to her.

      But then Matt was there, leading her from the chair and tersely informing the producer that Eva did not deign to give interviews to second-rate talk shows without proper equipment.

      “Nice,” she said when she could speak again, which happened right around the time she crossed the threshold of Matt’s house. “You’re the best manager I’ve ever had.”

      “I’m sorry I suggested that.”

      He was still bristling, his expression hard and unyielding. And maybe a little frightening.

      “It’s not your fault.”

      “It is. I had no idea he’d be so insensitive.”

      He muttered a particularly inventive slur on Franco’s paternity and heritage simultaneously.

      Amazing how Matt could still make her smile in the midst of emotional uproar.

      “If it makes you feel better, you made up for it, like by quadruple.”

      It hadn’t been merely a rescue, but an expert extraction completed without letting on to her distress and giving Milano Sera’s team the impression they’d upset her diva personality. A miraculous feat in her opinion.

      “It does not make me feel better.” He flipped on the lights to dispel the February gloom. Instantly, she cheered. This was still a haven. “You told me exactly what would happen. But I was so sure I knew what would help.”

      Clearly frustrated, he heaved a sigh.

      She tucked herself into his embrace and laid her head on his shoulder, right at the hollow she’d first discovered while they were dancing. “You’ve given me exactly what I needed. A place to block all that out.”

      His arms tightened, drawing her into his body deliciously. “I’m glad, sweetheart. Palazzo D’Inverno is available to you as long as you want it.”

      Not

Скачать книгу