Rome for Always (The BAD BOY BILLIONAIRES Collection) (2 page)

“Now I wish you all a good night and safe travel home,”
he said, “and when you think of men’s formal wear in Australia, think Belitalia.”

He’d thought that would be the end of it. He would exit
the stage and make his way back to his hotel suite where he would sleep off the
jetlag he’d been fighting all day. Unfortunately for him, he had no such luck. It
was another hour before he was able to extricate himself from reporters and the
clinging hands of ladies who seemed to have decided he wasn’t going to leave
the place that night.

Finally Iyana – who’d been waiting with the patience of
Job although he’d told her she could leave – stepped forward and hooked her arm
in his. “That’s it, folks,” she said, putting on her ‘woman-in-charge’ face. “Rome
is exhausted and if you don’t want to see him pass out in front of you, I
suggest you let him go.” It was only then that the tightly packed crowd
circling him began to thin and then a path cleared and they were able to slip
away.

In the limo Rome and Iyana had a good laugh. “I should
hire you as my bodyguard,” he said with a grin.

She smiled back. “Any time.”

As soon as they got back to the Park Hyatt Sydney, he
said his goodnight and headed for the penthouse suite. All he wanted to do just
then was crash for the night. Of course, not before he called Arie. There was
nothing that made him sleep better than to hear her voice just before his head
touched the pillow.

After a warm bath in the circular tub, wearing nothing
but his boxers, Rome sank with a sigh into the plush comfort of the king-sized
bed. He relaxed for a minute in the softness of the bedclothes but he was soon
reaching for the phone, intent on talking to his ladylove. At forty-five
minutes after midnight it would only be five forty-five in New Orleans. Perfect
timing. Arie should be home and able to talk.

He was reaching for the hotel phone when he noticed the
blinking light. How could he have missed that? He had a message.  He picked up
the receiver and dialed into the voicemail box. Arie. Rome sat up straight. She'd
called an hour before and she wanted him to call her right back.

For some reason a sense of dread, like a gray shroud,
wrapped itself around him. Maybe it was the restlessness in her voice, maybe it
was her tone. He couldn’t put his finger on it but something was seriously
wrong. His heart tightening in his chest, he began to dial the number.

“Hello? Rome?” Arie picked up on the second ring like
she’d been waiting by the phone. She sounded all right and he almost sagged
into the pillows in relief. But not yet. There was that unfamiliar tone in her
voice, almost like she was unsure of herself. Or maybe of him. He didn’t know
which.

“Yes, it’s me,” he said, wanting to get straight to the
point. “Are you all right? Is everything okay over there?”

“Everything’s…fine,” she said and there was that
hesitation again, almost like she didn’t know what to say next.

“No, everything’s not fine, Arie. What’s going on?” His
voice was brusque, the tension building inside him, putting him on edge. Why
the heck didn’t she come out and tell him what was wrong?

For a moment there was only silence then she sighed, and
it was a deep, dismal sound, so dismal it was scary.

“Rome,” she said, her voice low and almost hoarse, “I
don’t know how to tell you this but…the wedding is off.”

CHAPTER TWO

Rome’s heart leaped into his throat. Had he heard right?
“What…did you say?” The words almost couldn’t come out, his throat was so
tight.

“I’m...sorry,” Arie said, sounding like she, too, was
struggling with the words. “I said the wedding’s off.”

That hit him hard. “What do you mean, the wedding’s off?
What are you talking about?” His voice was louder now, the shock of what she
was saying almost making him lose it. “Are you serious?”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m sorry…but…but…I can’t
go through with it. I’m sorry, Rome, but I can’t marry you.” And then she was
sobbing into the phone, crying softly, the sound so full of pain that he felt
like she was ripping his heart out.

“But why?” he asked, not understanding at all. “Why
can’t you marry me? What happened?” As he clutched the receiver to his ear his
thoughts raced like wild horses through his head. He couldn’t think straight. His
world was crashing down around his ears and he didn’t know where to turn. “Arie,
please,” he said, sounding desperate and not caring a hoot, “don’t you love me
anymore?”

The answer to that was full-fledged bawling on the other
end of the line and it was all Rome could do to stay still. His darling was in
distress but she was on the other side of the world and he couldn’t reach her. He
couldn’t touch her, he couldn’t hold her in his arms. “Arie, please answer me,”
he begged. “As long as you still love me, whatever it is, we’ll work it out. Please.
Just tell me what’s wrong.”

“It’s…it’s…” She broke down again, alternating between
sobbing and crying out loud, and he couldn’t make head or tail of what she was
trying to say through the tears. “It’s a baby.”

Now she really wasn’t making any sense. “It’s a baby?
What’s a baby? What are you talking about, Arie?”

“I…I’m getting a baby. Please.” She was sobbing again. “Please
forgive me. No, I know you can’t forgive me. It’s too much.”

“Holy shit.” Rome breathed the words as he stared,
unseeing, out the huge bay windows of his hotel suite. Arie was pregnant.

It was weird because they’d used protection every time. Weird
but not impossible. They were going to have a baby.

“You silly goose,” he said, laughing into the phone. “What
are you crying about? Did you think I’d be angry? You’re getting a head start
on our family. I love it.” He was still laughing even as the sobs continued,
unabated. If anything, they were getting louder.

“Arie, stop that.” It was time to put his foot down. She
was getting emotional and that could not be good for the baby. “Listen to me,”
he said. “Take a slow, deep breath and calm down. No more crying, okay?”

“O…okay,” she said on a hiccup. “I’ll…I’ll try.”

“Good. Just keep taking deep breaths and when you’re
calm you can tell me all about it.” Arie couldn’t see him but Rome was grinning
ear-to-ear. He was going to be a father.

Of course, he’d expected this, just not quite so soon. He
wanted Arie to bear him children, lots of them if she would agree. Well, maybe
not lots, but three or even four. He wanted her to have a big family around her
to make up for all those years she’d felt so alone after she’d left foster care.
Being from a huge and close-knit family, he still couldn’t imagine what it was
like to have no-one in the world but yourself.

But Arie was talking again, her words cutting into his
daydream. “Yes, honey? What did you say?” He turned his full attention back to
his wife-to-be.

“But the baby,” she said, her voice hoarse from her
tears. “The baby…it’s not yours. It’s-”

“What the f…” He stopped himself just in time. “What did
you just say?”

“I’m sorry, Rome, I didn’t mean to do this to you. I
didn’t know it would come through…” And then she started sobbing again.

Rome felt like he’d just been rammed in the gut by someone
wearing a cast iron helmet. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Arie was
pregnant…by another man.

His heart plunging to the pit of his stomach, he did the
only thing he could do right then. He decided to end the call. He needed time
to think. “Arie, I have to go,” he said, the shock, hurt and pain making his
voice sound harsh. “I’ll talk to you when I get back to New Orleans.”

And with that he hung up the phone knowing that, after tonight,
nothing between them would ever be the same again.

***

“Oh Lord, what am I going to say? How am I going to
explain?” Arie was mumbling to herself as she sat on the edge of the sofa,
twisting her hands in her lap.

It was already twenty minutes since Rome called from the
airport, saying he was on his way. He would be here any minute now and she didn't
know how she was going to face him.

She didn’t have to worry about that much longer because
before she knew it, and long before she was even ready, she heard the roar of
the Maserati's engine and the sound of tires coming to a screeching halt on her
driveway. Arie hopped up off the couch but she didn’t go running to the door as
she normally would. This time she drew in a slow, steadying breath then put one
foot in front of the other, forcing herself to move forward to answer the now
chiming doorbell.

“Well, here goes nothing,” she breathed, preparing
herself for the worst. She knew this would end badly but wasn’t that the story
of her life? Why should this situation be any different? She placed her hand on
the doorknob then, steeling herself for the blast from the furnace of Rome
Milano’s anger, she opened the door.

What she saw made her heart slip off its seat and slide
down to her toes. Rome was there, tall and dark in the doorway, looking down at
her. But it wasn’t the Rome she knew and loved. No, as she lifted her gaze to
look up at this man, what she saw was a face so grim it made her shiver. And
the eyes, those weren’t Rome’s eyes. They were gone, those deep brown ones like
molten dark chocolate, and in their place were eyes as hard as flint.

Quickly, Arie dropped her gaze. She couldn’t bear his
frigid glare. She’d expected anger, red-hot rage, but not this. Heaven knew she
would have preferred a raging fire to this ice-cold ire.

Not looking up, she stepped back and opened the door
wide and, as he’d done so many times before, Rome Milano walked into Bayou
House.  This time, though, everything was different. This time he’d come to say
goodbye.

But first, she had some explaining to do.

“Arie,” he said, his voice cool as he stared down at
her.

“Hello, Rome.” She tried to make her voice just as cool
but, to her dismay, it came out soft and tremulous. She cleared her throat. “Uhm,
have a seat. I’ll be right with you.”

For a moment he just stared at her then he shook his
head. “I don’t want to sit. We need to talk.”

“I know,” she said, and she was clutching her hands
again, and it was all she could do to keep from wringing them. “But we can’t
talk standing here in the hallway. Let’s talk in the sitting room.”

Rome was still frowning but he shrugged and then he stalked
off, leaving her staring at his broad, rigid back.

With a sigh of resignation Arie set off after him but
when she got there he didn’t even give her a chance to have a seat before he
started.  “Why didn’t you tell me, Arie?”

“I…didn’t mean to hurt-”

“Who the hell is he? Who is this man you love so much
that you would throw this all away?” Rome shook his head, his glare changing
into a look of profound pain. “When you said you loved me you were lying the
whole time. How could you do this to me?”

“But I love you, Rome. I love you so much.” Arie made to
step forward, to put a hand on his arm, but the look he gave her made her pull
up short.

“Don’t even try that.” The scorn came, swift and
stinging, in his voice. "You love me but you went and slept with another
man? What kind of fool do you take me for?”

“But there is no other man, Rome. It’s just the baby.  If
you just let me explain-”

He burst out laughing but it was a harsh, bitter sound. “This,
I’ve gotta hear. So you got yourself pregnant. Rich.” He gave a humorless
chuckle and folded his arms across his chest. “Go on,” he said with a jerk of
his head. “Tell me how you managed that.”

“Rome, please. Just sit so we can talk.”

“Spill it, Arie. This is not a social call. Just say
what you have to say so I can get the hell out of here.”

There was nothing left to do but blurt it out. She’d
wanted to tell him slowly, show him how she’d come to that life-changing
decision, but it was clear that he wouldn’t be there long enough for her to go
through all that. He would walk right out if she didn’t get to the point. So
she did.

“I’m going to have a baby,” she said as she stared up at
him, her heart pounding in anticipation of the backlash, “but I’m not pregnant.
My baby’s coming from Armenia.”

“Coming from…you mean you’re adopting?”

“Yes,” she said, nodding and she took a step forward. “I’m
so sorry. I should have told you. It’s just…I’d given up hope. They told me I
couldn’t have her, that they’d found a more suitable family. I didn’t know all
that would change.”

“What? I’m confused. Come again?”

This time Rome did sit, and as he sat looking up at her,
the confusion plain on his face, Arie realized she was making a mess of the
whole thing.

“May I start at the beginning, Rome?” she asked, and
when his frown deepened like he meant to say no, she gave him a pleading look. “I
just want to make you understand. You’ll let me speak and tell you what
happened?” When he nodded slowly she pressed again. “And you won’t interrupt?”