Sweet Temptation by Cora Reilly

“I don’t want to talk about my dead wife,” I clipped.
She nodded quickly and bit her lip. Fuck, why did she have to look cute and
innocent. There were so many teenage girls who plastered their faces with
enough makeup to add ten years to their true age—not Giulia. She looked like
seventeen, and she wouldn’t miraculously look older in four months when she
turned eighteen. I’d have to ask her mother to put lots of makeup on her face for
the wedding day.
She tugged her hair behind one ear, revealing a sunflower earring.
“Do you always dress like this?” I motioned at her attire.
She glanced down her body with a small frown. “I like dresses.” The blush
on her cheeks darkened when she looked at me.
“I like dresses too,” I said. “Elegant dresses, fitting for a woman. I expect
you to dress more elegant in the future. You have to convey a certain image to
the outside. If you give me your measurements, I’ll send someone out to buy you
a new wardrobe.”
She stared.
“Understood?” I asked when she remained silent.
She blinked then nodded.
“Good,” I said. “There won’t be an official engagement celebration. I don’t
have time for it, and I don’t want us to be seen together in public before you are
of age.”
“Will I meet your children before we marry? Or see your mansion?”
“No. We won’t see each other until November, and you will meet Daniele
and Simona the day after our wedding.”
“Don’t you think it would be good if we got to know each other before we
marry?”
“I don’t see how that matters,” I said sharply.
She looked away. “Is there anything else you expect from me, except for a
change in wardrobe?”
I considered asking her to start the pill because I didn’t want any more
children, but I couldn’t bring myself to talk to a girl her age about it, which was
ridiculous considering I’d have to bed her on our wedding night.
I stood. “No. Now you should probably leave before your parents realize we
were alone.”
She stood then regarded me for a moment, cupping her elbows in her palms.
She turned and left without another word. After she’d left, Faro came back
inside.
He raised his eyebrows. “What did you say? The girl looked like she was
going to cry.”
My brows drew together. “Nothing.”
“I doubt it, but if you say so.”