Carpathian 00 - The Scarletti Curse

his full height. "Don Scarletti, I must tell you, Nicoletta is my betrothed."
    Nicoletta gasped in shock. She gaped at the young man, terrified that the don might order him taken to the dungeon or, worse, challenge him to a duel.
    Giovanni's black eyebrows shot up. He pulled Nicoletta's hand against the heavy muscles of his chest and held it against his steady heartbeat. His thumb feathered back and forth across her hand in a small caress. "I do not think Nicoletta can be betrothed to both of us, and I have the prior claim. I am sorry. I realize any man would wish to make Nicoletta his wife, but I will not give her up."

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    Cristano took a deep breath. "There are special circumstances you should know."
    "No, Cristano." Nicoletta shook her head vigorously, her hair flying out like a cape. Silky strands tangled on the don's blue-shadowed jaw, creating an instant intimacy between them. He didn't attempt to pull the strands away, but rather tugged Nicoletta even closer to him.
    Giovanni bent his head to her so that his mouth was sinfully close. "Do not be distressed, piccola. You are not accountable for what others choose to say or do," he whispered against her skin, his breath warm and comforting. For a moment Nicoletta's heart returned to its normal rhythm, but then Giovanni turned the full force of his black eyes on Cristano. His gaze glittered with something dangerous, something very menacing.
    Nicoletta began to tremble. She shook her head mutely, her enormous eyes on Cristano, eloquent with fear. The don's hand slid up her arm, rubbing lazily to warm her.
    "Before you speak, Signore Cristano, remember that the woman you are discussing is my betrothed and under my protection." Once again Giovanni spoke quietly, but there was such a shimmer of menace in his tone that they all appeared frozen in place.
    Cristano fixed his eyes on Nicoletta, gathered his courage, and blurted out his lie. "Nicoletta and I have lain together."
    Ketsia's dark eyes grew big and round. She pressed a hand to her mouth to keep from emitting a screech of shock. The silence was ominous, stretching out so long that Nicoletta wanted to scream under the sheer strain of it. Even the insects seemed hushed beneath the weight of the don's dark disapproval.
    Giovanni caught Nicoletta's chin in his hand and forced her to look at him. He stared down into her eyes for a long while. Then a slow smile softened the hard edges of his mouth. You are such an innocent. You have not been with this lout, nor do you love him.
    Nicoletta shook her head, unable to look away from the don and unable to break free of the hypnotic spell he always seemed to cast over her. She couldn't have lied to him if her life depended on it, and it very well might. He might have let her go if he thought she had lain with Cristano.
    I would never let you go, so do not think this silly boy is your way out. Slowly, almost reluctantly, Giovanni released Nicoletta's gaze and turned to regard Cristano with his intense, merciless stare. "You should know better than to attempt to ruin a woman's reputation. Walk with me, boy. You have need to learn manners." He gestured toward the labyrinth.
    Nicoletta circled Ketsia's shoulders with one arm and, with a frown on her face, watched the two men approaching the huge masses of groomed shrubbery that formed the maze.
    Ketsia tugged at her skirt. "Do you think he will run Cristano through with a sword for lying about you?"
    The little girl spoke loudly enough for Cristano to hear. Cristano hunched his shoulders, and the tips of his ears turned red. Nicoletta felt sorry for him.
    "Hush, bambina. Don Scarletti knows Cristano is just being silly. He would not resort to so cruel a thing." Nicoletta didn't sound as convinced as she would have liked.
    Maria Pia and Sophie joined them in the courtyard. Sophie stared at Ketsia with a mixture of Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    apprehension and interest. She marched right up to Nicoletta and took her hand, giving Ketsia a haughty look. "Nicoletta is mia fa-miglia now. She is mia zia."
    Ketsia made a face at the little girl. "She will not be your zia until she is married to the don. Nicoletta is my best friend."
    "We are all going to be best friends," Nicoletta hastily intervened. "Sophie, this is Ketsia. We shall all have so much fun together."
    Sophie relaxed a bit when Nicoletta