To Wear His Ring Again by Chantelle Shaw

Author:Chantelle Shaw [Shaw, Chantelle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2015-01-10T18:30:00+00:00

CHAPTER EIGHT

‘TRATTORIA PEPE!’ ISOBEL SMILED as she recognised the charming trattoria tucked in a corner of a small piazza, which was rarely discovered by tourists. Constantin had shown her many of Rome’s hidden gems when they had lived together, and the trattoria had been their favourite place to eat traditional, expertly prepared Roman food. ‘You brought me here the first time I visited Rome.’

‘Pepe’s signature dish of porchetta served with herbs, olives and mozzarella is still the best dish you’ll find in all of Rome, in my opinion,’ Constantin said as he ushered her inside the tiny restaurant.

They were welcomed by Pepe himself, and the trattoria’s owner greeted Isobel like a long-lost relative, kissing her on both cheeks as he spoke to her mainly in Italian, with the odd English word thrown in.

‘Sono lieto di incontrarvi di nuovo. I am happy to meet you again,’ she replied, when Pepe finally paused to draw a breath. The conversation continued for several minutes before the trattoria’s patron and head chef hurried back to his kitchen.

A young, good-looking waiter came to take their order and flirted outrageously with Isobel, until he saw the warning gleam in Constantin’s eyes and beat a hasty retreat.

‘I’m impressed by your fluency in Italian,’ he told Isobel drily when they were alone.

She shrugged. ‘It seemed a shame not to continue the lessons that I’d started when we were together.’ When she had married Constantin, she had been keen to learn his language, aware that he wanted to bring their child up to speak Italian. But there had not been a baby, she thought painfully, and soon she would no longer be his wife.

The waiter returned with their first course and gave Isobel a lingering look, before a terse word from Constantin sent him scurrying away.

She frowned. ‘Why were you rude to the waiter? He was just being friendly.’

‘If he had been any friendlier, he would have made love to you on the table.’ Constantin’s jaw hardened as he struggled to control the hot rush of possessiveness that had swept through him when the waiter had smiled at Isobel. He had felt a burning desire to rearrange the waiter’s handsome features with his fist. ‘We might get served quicker if you refrain from flirting with the restaurant staff,’ he growled.

‘I wasn’t flirting with the waiter.’ Isobel’s temper simmered. ‘You’re being ridiculous.’

Constantin took a long sip of wine. ‘It’s not surprising that you command attention from other men. You are very beautiful.’ He leaned back in his chair and subjected her to a slow appraisal, noting the glossy sheen of her long blonde hair and the sensual shape of her mouth. ‘But it’s not only your looks that make you noticeable. It’s something more than that. You were beautiful when I met you three years ago but you were painfully shy. You blushed every time I spoke to you,’ he said softly, ‘whereas now you have an air of self-confidence that most men would find undeniably attractive.’

Did he include himself with most men? Isobel wondered.

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