VITTORIO'S RUNAWAY BRIDE (The Vittorio Series) by Kimberley Reeves

us?”
    Logan’s scowl deepened.   “I was not aware there was anything wrong between us.   Did I not give you everything your heart desired, cara ?”
    Shelby framed his face in her hands.   “You gave me all the material things a woman could want and then some, but you didn’t give me my heart’s desire.   It’s you , Logan.   All I ever needed was you.”
    “You talk as if I was never around, as if I tried to make up for it by placating you with jewelry and clothes you apparently never even wanted.”
    He looked so much like a petulant little boy at that moment, Shelby couldn’t help but smile.   “I didn’t mean to infer the gifts you gave me weren’t appreciated because they were.   I know it was a way of expressing your affection for me and I adored you for taking the time to pick out something you thought I would like.   But what I really wanted, what I needed was to hear you say you loved me and to prove it by spending time alone with me.”
    “You think I do not regret the time I have to be away from you?   Mio Dio , I would like nothing better than to shirk my duty and leave work whenever I wished or shoo my family off without regard to their feelings, but I cannot.”
    Shelby’s smile faded.   “You make me sound selfish for wanting to be with my husband.”   She tried to pull away from him, but Logan would have none of it.
    “No, mio bello ,” he kissed her lightly on the lips, “you do not have it in you to be selfish, but you are perhaps a little naïve when it comes to marriage and all it entails.   There are certain sacrifices that must be made…”
    “No,” she said with a stubborn lift of her chin, “I don’t believe that for a minute.   Compromise is inevitable, but sacrificing means giving up something that’s important to one or both of us.   I won’t do it, Logan, so I suggest you come up with a compromise we can both live with.”
    “Compromise,” he said as if he’d never heard of the word before.
    “Negotiate, give and take, find the middle ground…”
    “I know what it means,” he cut her off, “but I am at a loss as to how I can negotiate time I do not have to spare.”
    Shelby’s eyes misted with tears.   “If it was important enough, you would find a way.”
    Logan crushed her to his chest.   “Make no mistake, mia moglie ,” he said fiercely, “nothing is more important to me than you are.   I will do whatever it takes to make you happy.”
    “Promise me,” she pleaded.
    His head dipped so they were cheek to cheek.   “I promise, mio amore , I promise.”
                                                                                           ***
    Logan glanced at his wife before turning his attention back to the road.   Her cheeks were flushed with color, her eyes sparkling with excitement as she tossed out one idea after another in a tone that relayed with vivid clarity just how happy she was.   He couldn’t help getting caught up in her enthusiasm and in truth, he was thrilled to death at the prospect of stealing even a few extra minutes a day with her.
    “I am sorry I did not think of it myself,” he told her when she stopped to catch her breath.
    Shelby stretched her arm across the seat   and slipped her hand   into his.   “I’m just happy you’re listening and agreeing with some of my suggestions.   You really like the idea of setting up an art studio in the Penthouse suites?”
    The Penthouse was on the top floor of Vittorio Enterprises and Logan used it whenever he needed a place to change clothes for a dinner appointment or just wanted to get away from the office for awhile.   He visualized taking a few leisurely lunch hours during the week with Shelby, although sharing a meal with her wasn’t the only thing he had in mind.   What better way to relieve the tension of the day than to bury himself in his wife’s delectable body?   A slow smile spread