Carpathian 00 - The Scarletti Curse

into these incidents?" he asked, thrusting her into their bedchamber so that the door banged closed behind them.
    "Maria Pia says I have a knack," Nicoletta admitted, unrepentant. She wiggled to remind him to put her down but found as her breasts moved against his chest through the material of her blouse that his skin was suddenly hot and his body aggressive.
    "Where are all the new gowns the seamstresses made for you?" Giovanni demanded, allowing her bare feet to touch the tiles.
    Nicoletta's eyes darkened, the smile fading from her mouth. "What is so wrong with my own clothes?"
    She sounded hurt.
    Giovanni's heart turned over at the forlorn note. "You cannot think I am ashamed of you, piccola" he said softly, his voice lowering an octave until it purred along her skin like the touch of his fingers. "I would not marry a woman of whom I was ashamed."
    "I like my own clothes. I am comfortable in them." She stepped back defensively. "I planned on wearing the new gowns when we must entertain." Even to her own ears she sounded young and uncertain. She took another step away from him. "I do not belong in this place, Don Scarletti. I cannot breathe here. I do not understand what goes on here. I cannot be a proper wife to one such as you."
    "What has brought this on, Nicoletta?" he asked softly, stalking her right across the room. "You are my wife. I will have no other. You are doing the things necessary to become the mistress of the palazzo. The guards, the servants—all of them accept you readily. Portia and Margerita know they must, too. They live in your home by your allowance."
    "I do not want that kind of power. I am from the villaggio. I know it entails much work to run a house of this size, but I do not like the way servants are treated here, and I cannot be a part of it." She tilted her chin at him even as he cut off her escape by planting his body firmly in front of hers.
    Giovanni reached out and gently tucked her hair behind her ear. The gesture was tender, and his palm brushing across her skin caused her to shiver with heat. "I am aware I did not realize Gostanz had so much .work. I have provided him with more help and made the changes he suggested. Bernado also informed me of certain needs at your suggestion. I thank you for bringing these matters to my attention. It was wrong of me to count on others to run my home without soliciting their advice."
    Nicoletta sighed, looking as confused as she felt. She had made promises to Beatrice that she would not reveal her secret, and she wouldn't go back on her word, but it was far more than Gostanz she was talking about. "Can you not see, you cannot take a plant from where it belongs and expect it to thrive. It will wither and die."
    "You have moved plants, cara mia," he pointed out gently. "I have been to your garden in the hills. You have managed to rearrange many plants, and they thrive and grow and seem healthy."
    Nicoletta swallowed hard, her eyes large and dark. "How long have you been watching me?" She was trembling, pressing one hand to her suddenly churning stomach.

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    His black gaze didn't waver as he looked at her. He was tall, arrogant, unrepentant. "What does it matter?"
    "It matters to me," she answered, her heart pounding loudly. She had thought she had freedom; she had thought the villaggio protected her. All along he had known of her. All along he had planned to take her from her home.
    "That is not true," he denied, even though she hadn't spoken her thoughts aloud, proof their tie was growing ever stronger. "I had no intention of claiming you for my own, only of protecting you. I did not want the Scarletti curse to claim you as it has all the others. I live every day with the knowledge that murder is in the hearts of men and that I brought you into this danger."
    "Why did you?"
    There was an insistent knock on the door. Giovanni closed his eyes and shook his head as if attempting to resist the interruption.
    "Why did you?" Nicoletta insisted. "This is important to me."
    "I know it is, piccola, but things are happening that I must take care of. Have patience, and do not condemn me for what I must do to safeguard our people." He raked a hand through his hair, looking suddenly world-weary.
    At once Nicoletta's heart turned over, and she found herself wanting to hold him. She even took a step toward him. Giovanni met her halfway, gathering her close, his lips in her hair. "I