Born in Blood Collection Volume 1 - Cora Reilly Page 0,117

knew he was only trying to avoid our father’s questions.

Aria and Luca, and Matteo and Gianna, as well as the rest of the Scuderi family occupied the table to our right. Aria gave me a smile before she returned her watchful gaze to her sister and Matteo, who seemed on the verge of an argument. Those two would have one hell of a marriage. Matteo didn’t seem to mind the glowers Gianna was sending his way.

“You look beautiful together,” Ines said, drawing my attention back to our table.

Dante regarded me with an unreadable expression.

The servers chose that moment to enter the ballroom with plates.

After the four-course dinner, it was finally time for our dance. Dante led me toward the dance floor and pulled me against his chest. I smiled up at him. He felt warm and strong, and was a good dancer. He smelled perfect, like a warm summer breeze and something very masculine. I couldn’t wait to share a bed with him, to see what he hid beneath the fabric of his expensive suit. If we had been alone, I would have rested my cheek against his shoulder, but everyone was watching us, and I didn’t think Dante liked to show intimacy in public.

Of course our guests didn’t care. Soon they started calling, “Bacio, bacio!”

Dante peered down at me with one cocked eyebrow. “Do we honor their wishes, or ignore them?”

“I think we should honor their wishes.” I really really wanted to honor their wishes.

Dante tightened his hold on my back and firmly pressed his lips against mine. His blue eyes were fixed on me, and for a moment I was sure I saw something like warmth in them. But then the guests flooded the dance floor to join in the dancing, and our kiss was over. Shortly after, Fiore Cavallaro asked me to dance and Dante had to dance with his mother. I smiled at my father-in-law, unsure how to act around him. He had the same cold aloofness going as Dante. “My wife and I had hoped Dante would choose someone who wasn’t married before,” he said, and I had trouble masking my shock.

The smile on my face became difficult to maintain, but I didn’t want people to realize that Fiore had said something that hurt me. “I understand,” I said quietly.

“But his reasoning convinced us. Dante needs an heir soon, and someone not quite as young might prove a better mother to our grandchildren.”

I nodded. Their cold logic was something I hated with every ounce of my being. Not that I could tell him that.

“I don’t intend to sound cruel, but this is a marriage of convenience, and I’m sure you know what’s expected of you.”

“I do. And I’m looking forward to having children with Dante.” It was true. I’d always wanted children. I’d even considered in-vitro fertilization when I’d still been married to Antonio, but I wanted the chance to get to know Dante better before I tried to get pregnant. Naturally, I couldn’t tell his father that either.

When the next song started, my brother took over from Fiore as was expected. “I’m glad you could come,” I told him as I looked up at him. He had my dark green eyes and almost black hair, but those were the only similarities between us. We’d never been close—not for lack of trying on my part, however. I wasn’t sure if that would ever change. He resented our father for coddling me, and sometimes I thought he resented me for having had it easier than him.

“I can’t stay long,” he said simply. I nodded, having expected nothing else. Orazio avoided our father as much as possible.

I was glad when Pietro, Ines’ husband, asked me to dance. He was a quiet man and didn’t step on my feet, so I wouldn’t have minded dancing with him until the end of the evening to avoid awkward conversation. Of course that would have been beyond inappropriate. After my dance with Pietro, hospitality dictated that I had to dance with the head of New York. While Aria looked perfectly comfortable around Luca now, I definitely wasn’t. Nevertheless, I accepted his hand when he held it out for me. He wasn’t smiling. I’d only ever seen glimpses of a real smile when he looked at Aria.

Dante was tall and muscled, but with Luca even I had to tilt my head back to maintain eye contact. I knew people were watching us as we danced. Dante’s steely gaze in particular followed every