Nikki was too surprised to protest and expected to be disgusted by his bold action, but she wasn’t. His mouth, which she’d only seconds ago thought hard, was as supple and sweet as melted caramel. Then, too soon, it was over, and he drew away, leaving her lips warm and tingling.
“Thank you,” he said, his eyes blazing. “I’ll make sure to get you a new uniform.”
Nikki blinked. Her voice hoarse, she said, “Uniform?”
“Yes, your clothes are ruined.”
Nikki glanced down at her blouse and skirt, which were covered in mud and muck. “Oh, that’s okay. It was all for a good cause.”
He stiffened, surprised. “You’re American?”
“Yes.”
“I thought you might be—” He stopped and shook his head. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Maybe I should make some introductions,” the other man she’d mistaken for Lucian said, amused. “I’m Basilio, Lucian’s brother.”
Lucian kept his gaze on her. “It’s rare to have an American working here.” He shrugged. “But the economy is so bad, people get work where they can. Where are you staying?”
“Here,” Nikki said.
“On the island?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
She gestured to the mansion. “At the house.”
He rested a hand on his chest. “My house?”
“Yes.”
He tilted his head to the side. “I thought I’d seen you before. There’s something familiar about you. We must have met in passing?”
“No, but you met my sister, Monica Rozan.”
His face split into a warm smile. “Yes, that’s it. I see the resemblance.”
“Few people do.”
“Then they are blind.”
Nikki blushed and looked away.
“What brings you to the island?”
Basilio broke in. “Why don’t you get changed first, then talk?”
Nikki frowned. “I came because of you.”
Lucian raised a dark eyebrow. “Me?”
Basilio shivered. “Don’t you think it’s gotten a little chilly? We should go inside.”
Nikki ignored him. “Yes, to design a few rooms for you.”
Lucian sent his brother a hooded glance. “Yes, the rooms,” he said in an odd tone, the warmth in his gaze swiftly disappearing. “I’d forgotten about them. Let me change. Then we’ll talk. Excuse me.” He walked away.
Nikki felt her heart sinking as she watched him go. “He didn’t know I was coming.”
“No,” Basilio said quickly, keeping his voice light. “As he said, he just forgot.”
“He’s not the type of man to forget anything. He didn’t expect me to be here.” She turned to Basilio. “What’s going on?”
“Don’t worry about it. He’ll get used to the idea.”
“So you’re behind this?”
“Well, your sister thought—”
“My sister, too?”
“Nikki, please give this a chance. He needs your help. He just needs a little convincing, that’s all. With you here, it will be a lot easier.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Ready to go home?”
She knew it was a challenge—a dare. Was she brave enough to stay? Nikki thought about her office. Before she’d left New York, her office had been restored, she’d received a glowing report from the mistresses on their new place, she’d cleared her schedule for the next three months and she’d left Benjamin, who still expected a solid answer. No, she didn’t want to go back to her old life. At least not just yet.
She drew her shoulders back and lifted her chin. “I want to stay. Let me show you how persuasive I can be.”
Basilio smiled. “A woman after my own heart.” He took her elbow. “Come on. Let me walk you back to the house.”
She turned and saw a black animal jump from one tree to another. She stepped back.
“Oh, don’t mind him,” Basilio said gently, nudging her forward. “That’s just Lethe, Lucian’s cat.”
“Wasn’t Lethe the river of forgetfulness in a myth?”
“Yes, that’s my brother’s strange sense of humor. There are many things he would like to forget.”
Nikki glanced up at the golden eyes, which seemed to be following them.
“Don’t worry. He rarely attacks.”
Rarely didn’t mean never. Nikki picked up her pace and changed the subject. “What did Callia mean when she was talking about ghosts?”
Basilio shook his head. “It’s all her imagination. Pay no attention to her. She hasn’t been the same since the fire. She sees things that aren’t there. That’s why Lucian hired Kay to stay with her.”
Nikki nodded, not knowing what else to say. If it was all just Callia’s imagination, why did Kay seem so on edge? But that wasn’t her problem. She was here to redesign the house and nothing else.
As they approached the entrance, Nikki noticed a beautiful woman spreading a tablecloth on a wrought-iron glass table on the terrace. She looked like a lovely picture, but out of place. A sullenness surrounded her. She had a wild, elemental beauty, like the gathering of storm clouds that agitate the sea and make the leaves on the trees tremble.
“Who is that?” Nikki asked, intrigued by the woman.
“Iona. One of the few servants who stayed after the fire.”
“Oh, she doesn’t look happy.”
Basilio shrugged. “It’s work. Just stay out of her way and you’ll be fine.”
Nikki definitely would. The other woman looked up with liquid brown eyes. Nikki offered a smile, but the other woman didn’t return it. It didn’t matter, anyway. She had a more pressing issue.
She had to figure out how best to handle a man who didn’t want to work with her. She had no one else to blame for the situation, since she hadn’t let her sister explain anything and had run headlong into this project without getting all the details, such as was Lucian even interested? She knew that her sister and Lucian’s brother had good intentions, but obviously there were reasons why Lucian didn’t want the house redesigned. Were there still memories? Probably. But then again, after four years it was time for him to move forward and she could do that. She would do that. This was her golden opportunity and she wouldn’t let him kick her out of paradise.
Chapter 4
“Get rid of her.”
Basilio shut the door and watched his brother take a shirt from his closet. “Lucian, she just got here.”
“Whose fault is that?”
“I was going to tell you about her.”
Lucian buttoned up his shirt. “When?”
Basilio rubbed his chin. “When the time seemed right.”