The Italian Billionaire’s Nubian Queen

Chapter 5

So, Gabriel was there.

Matteo didn’t know why he was surprised, to be honest. Gabriel managed to do what he shouldn’t. That was what he did.

But why there?

He would soon find out, of course. Matteo walked back to his cottage, and there he was.

“Gabriel.”

“Well, brother dear! I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

“I decided to come last minute. What are you doing here?”

“Now, what kind of a greeting is that? You know I like California!”

“Do you?”

“Always so serious. Do you want me to go away, brother?”

Matteo was tempted to say yes, to be perfectly honest. He was tempted to tell his brother to pack up and go away.

“To your own cottage, yes. Do you want to be included in the schedule today? Lead a wine tasting session? Deliver an address?”

“God, no,” said Gabriel with a shudder.

But of course not. Gabriel didn’t like doing all of that. He liked giving interviews, preferably one-on-ones, and he liked board meetings where he could throw his weight around. And the weight of his shares, of course.

“Then I hope you’ll enjoy yourself. I must get to work.”

“So serious. Always so serious. Mama says hello.”

Matteo fought not to grit his teeth.

“I’m sure she does. Really, Gabriel, isn’t there anywhere else in California you would rather be? Explaining why you’re here but not a part of the event will be difficult.”

“I’m sure you will find a way, of course. You always do, don’t you? Now, excellent idea, for me to get back to my cottage. Nice improvements, by the way. The amenities are impressive. Especially the beauties.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The tall, dark, curly-haired one with the golden eyes, of course.”

Matteo froze.

“Excuse me?”

“You haven’t met her yet? That’s right, you wouldn’t step out on Martina, would you?”

Matteo resisted the urge to punch his brother. Gabriel was the only one in his life who could push his buttons like this. Affection, family loyalty—Matteo reminded himself of all the reasons why punching him would be a bad idea.

“You go too far, Gabriel. Please go to your cottage. Try and stay out of my way if you’re not here to work.”

“Gladly,” remarked his brother, and turned around and walked away. He cut a dramatic figure, striding away like that.

What on earth was going on? Why was Gabriel even there?

More importantly, was he pursuing Alyssa Benjamin? Everything in Matteo resisted the idea. No, Gabriel couldn’t have her.

Even as a child, Gabriel had always wanted what Matteo had. Even if Gabriel had always had more, even if Gabriel had gotten all the love and Matteo all the duty, his little brother had been jealous. Matteo knew that Gabriel wanted more, but he didn’t want to do the work. Just as important, he had neither the passion nor the skill. Or even the inclination to develop the skill.

But this was unexpected. Gabriel usually put his head down and stayed out of the way when he was around. He didn’t attempt to go head to head with him, not like this.

Matteo believed in being prepared. He grabbed his phone.

“Mr. Colombo, what do you need?”

“Gabriel is here. I need you to see if you can find out why.”

There was a moment of hesitation.

“Of course, Mr. Colombo. I’ll do whatever I can.”

“Thank you, Claudia. Oh, I need you to arrange a picnic lunch for me.”

Now there was a moment of shock. It was odd how he had learned to read Claudia’s silences. They’d worked together for about eight years. They knew each other very well, indeed.

“Yes, of course. Are there any preferences or allergies?”

“None that I know of. No diet restrictions. A picnic for two.”

“Of course, Mr. Colombo. It will be ready by 12.50, if that works for you.”

“Great. Thanks, Claudia.”

“I… Of course, Mr. Colombo. I’ll be there in half an hour to go over the keynote address, if you’re free.”

“Yes, sure. Sure thing.”

Matteo pushed all distractions, even the increasingly welcome distraction of Alyssa, out of his mind and got to work. It was a lighter workload than usual, as far as he was concerned, but it was still more work than most executives did all day.

Time didn’t fly. It never did, for him. He was always precisely aware of the ticking of time, and his own time was always planned down to the second. If Claudia found anything about him different, she didn’t mention it.

By the ten, when it was time to officially kick off the event, Matteo felt more like himself. But as he stood, ready to deliver the speech and lead the wine tasting, he looked for her, and he found her. Wild, and beautiful, with passion shining in her eyes, she was as powerful standing there in the sunlight as she’d been in his dream. She was compelling. He had to find out if it had just been a dream, after all. He had to find out if it had been more than that. He had to…

He had to find out who she was.

He was about to begin when Gabriel made his entrance. Heads turned, because why wouldn’t they? He was the brother and heir to all of that fortune, and he was beautiful, charming, and intelligent.

Matteo waited until heads turned back to him, and when he started speaking, nobody turned away again. This was his passion, his life. He could make people feel the joy he felt when he made those wines, when he planned ways to protect everything he made, when he wrought his legacy so carefully.

But his eyes were drawn, over and over again, to Alyssa. She stood out. Did she know that? She outshone everybody.

Especially when he announced that it was time for the tasting.

He couldn’t keep his eyes away from her, not when he talked everybody through the process. She was everything he could have hoped for, and he knew that she appreciated every note, every hint and every accent, as much as he could have hoped. When she finally opened her eyes and smiled, nodded as if it had been everything she’d wanted, something unknotted inside him.