Will You Marry Me?: A Marriage Made in Italy / The Courage To Say Yes / The Matchmaker's Happy Ending

“Is it animal, vegetable or mineral?”

Leon burst into rich laughter. “You’ll get your answer before long.”

Her heart went into flutter mode, something that had started happening only since she’d been in Leon’s company.

He drove along the beach until they came to what appeared to be a theme park. After they got out he said, “I’ll carry Concetta. Come with me.”

Belle followed him to a large, open-air pool. She spotted some mammals leaping out of the water. “Dolphins?”

“Sì, signorina. Delfino.” Leon paid the admission and found them two seats in the packed arena where they were performing. Belle could pick out a few familiar words spoken by the man narrating the show in Italian. She loved the sound of the language. The children in the audience were enraptured by the sight.

“Look, Concetta!” Belle pointed to them. “Can you see the delfino?”

The baby got caught up in the excitement and clapped her hands like the kids surrounding them. More enchanted by her reaction than by the remarkable tricks happening in the water with the trainers, both Leon and Belle laughed with abandon.

After one spectacular feat, their eyes met and she flashed him a full, unguarded smile. Belle found it impossible to hold back her enjoyment in being here like this with the two of them, as if they were a family. It wasn’t until later, on their drive home, that she was brought back to reality, knowing she had a huge decision to make.

“I think my little tesoro needs her dinner.”

“Would you let me feed her and put her to bed?” Being with the baby brought Belle comfort, the kind she needed right now.

“Of course. It will give Talia a break.”

“Oh goody. Did you hear that, Concetta?” Belle was sitting next to her in the back of the sedan and kissed her half a dozen times.

Once they arrived at the villa, Leon carried her in the kitchen to her high chair and got out the baby food for Belle. Another fun-filled half hour passed while the child ate and played with her food, smearing some of it on the traytop as well as herself.

Laughter rumbled out of Leon. “I had no idea she could be this messy an eater.”

“Most babies make a huge mess when you make a game out of eating. She’s so happy. Look at the way she beams at you, Leon. It’s the cutest thing I ever saw. But let’s be honest. She’s in need of a bath big-time.”

“You took the words out of my mouth. Her little plastic tub is under the sink in the bathroom.”

“I’ll get everything set up.” As Belle turned to leave the room, Concetta started to cry, causing Belle to turn around. “Oh, sweetie, I’m just going upstairs.”

Leon darted her a piercing glance while he cleaned the baby off. “My daughter is already so crazy about you, she’s not going to want Talia’s attention.”

Belle’s heart thudded. “I hope that’s not true,” she whispered. “See you in a minute, Concetta.” She hurried through the house and up the stairs to the nursery. Once she’d started filling the tub, she found the baby shampoo and a towel.

“Leon?” she called out. “Everything’s ready!”

“Here we come!” He breezed into the bathroom, carrying his daughter in the altogether and lowering her into the water. Concetta talked her head off and splashed water everywhere.

“Already you’re a water baby, aren’t you, sweetheart? That’s a good thing, because you’ve got a swimming pool and the Adriatic right in your own backyard.” Leon grinned as he poured a little shampoo on her head.

Belle massaged it in. “Are you having fun, my little brown-eyed Susan?”

“What’s that?” Leon asked. His command of English was remarkable, but once in a while he could be surprised.

“A yellow flower like a daisy with a center just like her incredible eyes.”

He nodded. “The first time I looked into them, they reminded me of poppy throats.”

Spoken like a father in love with his little offshoot. “They’re both apt descriptions. One day she’s going to grow up and drive all the Rimini ragazzi wild.”

A burst of laughter broke from his throat. “Your knowledge of Italian is impressive. But let’s hope that eventuality is years away yet.”

“I don’t know. They grow up fast.” Belle kissed the baby’s neck. “Are you having fun, sweetheart? I know I am.” Truly, she’d never had so much fun in her life.

“That makes two of us,” Leon said in his deep voice.

He made a wonderful father. If every child could be so lucky...

Once the bath was over, she slipped a diaper on Concetta and Leon found a light green sleeper. “Here’s the bottle.” He handed it to her. “Would you like to give it to her?”

“You know I would.”

Belle sat down in the rocker with the baby and sang to her. So much playtime had made Concetta sleepy. Her eyelids drooped almost at once while she drank her formula. The long lashes reminded Belle of Leon’s. Before long the child stopped sucking and fell sound asleep.

Leon watched as Belle put the baby down in the crib on her back. After they’d left the nursery he turned to her.

“Now that we’ve got the evening to ourselves, I’m taking you out on the cabin cruiser so you can get a view of the coast from the water. It’s a sight you shouldn’t miss. The pier is a few steps down the beach, in the opposite direction from where you went earlier today.”

“I figured the lifeguard was one of your security people, but he didn’t try to stop me.”

Leon’s lips twitched. “While we’re out, I’d like to discuss something of vital importance with you. I’ve worked out a solution to our problem.”

“So have I.” She was going home on Sunday as planned, with no interference from him.

His black brows lifted in challenge, as if he could read her thoughts. “Then we’ll compare notes,” he said in an authoritative tone. His hauteur came naturally to him, because it was evident few people had ever dared thwart him. “Meet me on the back patio in twenty minutes. Bring a wrap. It will get cool later.”

She nodded before hurrying downstairs to her room. She couldn’t imagine what kind of solution he’d worked out, and didn’t want to listen to him, not when Dante’s happiness was at stake. But she was a guest in Leon’s home and couldn’t forget her debt to him. It was one she could never repay.

Without him acting on his uncanny instinct to follow through on her inquiry at the bank, she would have gone on searching for her mother in vain. The situation was untenable any way she looked at it.

A tap on the door a few minutes later brought her head around. “Signorina?” Belle rushed over to open it and discovered Carla. “The Countess Malatesta phoned while you were bathing the baby. She would like you to call her.” The maid handed Belle a note with the phone number written on it.

“Thank you, Carla.”

After she left, Belle pulled the cell phone out of her purse and called her mother. Two rings and she answered. “Arabella?”

It was still unbelievable to Belle that she was talking to the mother she’d ached for all her life. “Mom—I’m so glad you called. To hear your voice...it’s like a miracle to me.”

“I was just going to tell you the same thing, darling. What have you done with your day?”

Belle bit her lip. “I went sightseeing and Leon took me and the baby to see the dolphins. Then we fed her and bathed her. Now she’s just gone to sleep.” But Belle didn’t want to talk about Leon and the way he made her feel. Her mouth had gone so dry thinking about him, she could hardly swallow. “How’s Dante? I’ve been worried sick about him.”

“To be truthful, we’ve been worried, too. They’ve stayed in their wing of the palazzo all day. Since they have their own entrance, they could have gone out without our knowing it. Sullisto and I thought we’d done the right thing to tell him the truth this morning...” Her voice trailed off. “I know my husband’s hurt by this.”