The Temporary Wife: Luca and Valentina's Story(77)

“Let’s go, Luca. We’ll be late.”

I quickly set the new photo of her as my phone’s background and send it to Abuela, feeling oddly pleased with myself. Abuela and I have been getting on great lately, and Valentina doesn’t know it, but I now know all kinds of embarrassing childhood stories. Her calls have become something I look forward to. Sometimes it’s simply to ask me if Valentina and I have eaten yet, and other times it’s to tell me stories of the past. Valentina’s mother won’t warm up to me, but Abuela definitely has.

“You really look far too beautiful,” I grumble as we walk into the venue the charity ball is being held in. With each passing day, it becomes harder to keep this marriage hidden. I want everyone to know that she’s mine, that touching her will invoke my wrath.

She smiles at me, her eyes twinkling. “Thank you, husband.”

Damn it. That’s fucking foul play, and she knows it. “You’d better remember,” I murmur.

“Remember what?”

“That I’m your husband.”

She chuckles and straightens out the lapels of my tux. I bite back a smile when I see the diamonds in her wedding ring glittering in the light. “How could I ever forget?” she asks me.

“Fuck,” I growl. “You’re such a good girl, baby.” Looks like she didn’t take her wedding ring off after I put it on her this morning, and the sight of it on her finger brings me such intense fucking pleasure. “Let’s wrap this up quickly so we can go home. You deserve a reward for wearing your ring to an event like this one.”

Her gaze darkens, and she looks away. “I’ll hold you to it,” she murmurs, her voice low.

Fucking hell. Should I just take my wife home right now and bribe the Kennedys?

“Oh, there they are!” Valentina says, her hand wrapping around mine. She pulls me along before abruptly letting go, her cheeks heating when she realizes she was holding my hand. I love how she’s slipping up lately. It’s clear she’s warming to the thought of us being a couple out in the open. Just a little longer. If I can hold on a little longer, I’ll be able to convince her to publicize our marriage. I can’t rush anything when it comes to her.

“Luca?” Alec says, surprised. “I haven’t seen you in a while. How are you?”

We shake hands, and Alec’s wife, Elena, hugs me tightly, much to her husband’s chagrin. He pulls her into him and wraps his hand around her waist possessively, making me chuckle. I always thought that he was overly obsessed with his wife, but I finally get it.

“Alec, Elena, you must have already met my wi—” I pause and catch myself in time. “My… wildly intelligent Executive Secretary,” I end up saying, my expression stony. What the fuck did I just say?

Valentina looks at me, her expression flustered but surprisingly, not angry. Just a few weeks ago, she’d have been furious over a near slip-up like that. Maybe she really is warming to the idea of truly being my wife.

I stand back as she charms Alec with her knowledge and professionalism. When she’s like that, I can’t take my eyes off her. I love every version of her, but this one is my favorite. Valentina on a mission, filled with passion and confidence, is a sight to behold. It took her weeks to put together a proposal for Alec, and I have no doubt he won’t be able to deny her. When my wife wants something, she never fails. Truthfully, she didn’t need to try so hard. I’m not at liberty to disclose it to her, but I know which client Ben brought in. Even if Alec says no, Valentina still won’t struggle to beat Ben. Anyone she would bring in will be better than what that jackass can accomplish.

“You’re in love with her,” Elena says as she moves to stand by my side, a few steps away from Alec and Valentina.

I turn toward her, surprised. “I… I’m sorry, what?”

She chuckles and turns back toward Valentina. “You nearly called her your wife, didn’t you?”

Damn. I was hoping she missed that.

“You look at her the way my husband looks at me,” she says, a smile on her face. “Let me tell you a secret, Luca. When Alec and I first got married, it was a marriage of convenience that no one knew about. It was meant to be a simple deal, and love was never part of the plan.”

I turn toward her, wide-eyed. “What?”

She chuckles at my obvious disbelief. “You two are probably fooling everyone, but you can’t fool Alec and me. Not when we’ve been in your exact situation.”

Alec and Elena are so insanely in love with each other that it seems impossible for their marriage to have been one of convenience.

“I’ll tell you another secret.” I glance at her, wary. I dislike how quickly she figured us out. “Alec and I nearly got divorced because he refused to admit that he loved me. Don’t let that happen to you. If you love her, you need to let her know, and you need to treat her right. Alec ended up suffering and groveling for months in an effort to save our marriage. Don’t let it get that far, Luca.”

I turn back toward my wife and sigh. “It isn’t me,” I tell her. “I’m not the problem. It’s her. She doesn’t love me, and she has no interest in turning this into anything more than it is. You have no idea how many tricks I had to play to even get her to marry me.”

Elena looks into my eyes, her gaze searching. “Have you ever told her that you love her, and that your marriage is no longer the deal it started off as? How do you know that she isn’t just adhering to the boundaries you mutually agreed on because she doesn’t know you want her to overstep?”