Sweet Temptation by Cora Reilly

headed downstairs, Giulia close behind me. I could only hope Daniele wouldn’t
wake as well. I couldn’t comfort them both, not that he would let me console
him.
Stifling my frustration, I entered the kitchen. It had been a while since I’d
prepared a bottle, but Sybil had set everything out in preparation.
I nodded toward the bottles and formula. “You have to prepare the bottle.”
Giulia’s eyes snapped to me. “I’ve never done it.”
I sighed then held Simona out to her. “Then you’ll have to hold her while I
show you how to do it.”
Giulia glanced at my daughter, swallowing. Embarrassment filled her face as
she met my gaze, and I knew what she’d say before she did. “I’ve never held a
baby in my life.”
For a moment, I felt the urge to lash out at her verbally, but I shoved it down.
Giulia had even less say in marrying me than I did. It wasn’t her fault that she
didn’t know the first thing about being a mother. “It’s not difficult. Just hold out
your arms and take her.”
“What if I drop her? Or hurt her? Or—”
“Giulia, it’s going to be fine. You won’t drop her, and you won’t hurt her.”
Giulia nodded and finally held out her arms. I put Simona into them, and
Giulia immediately cradled her to her chest. “Oh, she’s heavier than I thought.”
I hovered beside her to see if she could handle it, but Giulia only had eyes
for Simona. She looked terrified and a little lost. Then Simona did what she
always did when anyone but me or my sisters or mother held her; she began
bawling, her tiny arms and legs thrashing as she tried to squirm away from the
stranger.
Giulia’s eyes grew wide, scared, as she sought my gaze for help.
Sighing, I went over to the bottles. “Try to console her. She needs to get used
to you.” Simona had never taken to Sybil or the other maids. If the same
happened with Giulia, months of sleepless nights would turn into years and my
daughter would remain without a mother figure in her life. It was an option I
didn’t want to entertain.
“Shh… Shh.” Giulia rocked Simona, but even from afar I could see her
anxiety, and Simona could probably feel it too. The crying didn’t cease. If
possible, it got even more intense. I moved faster, preparing the formula, trying
not to let the cries snap my patience. I wanted to call Felix right this moment and
tell him that he’d regret lying to me, that I’d find a way to make him pay. The
best way, of course, to pay him back would be to nullify our marriage because
he’d cheated me of a promised mother figure. With the bottle, I walked over to
Giulia, who looked close to tears herself. But it would be absolutely
dishonorable to cancel the marriage at this point, and not just that…. Nothing in
this world would make me give up Giulia now that I had her. Maybe she wasn’t
the mother my children needed, but fuck, she was what I craved.
The moment I took Simona from Giulia, her shoulders sagged with relief.
Simona quieted in my hold and accepted the bottle, watching me with teary eyes,