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 Oh God, I hope not, Lydia blurted, before
slapping a hand over her mouth.
Mariciana shook her head.  He s naughtier
now than he was then.
 What? Tony frowned.  I do a public
service. I m keeping the nursing staff of the
NHS happy.
Billy London
160
Lydia felt her cheeks heat with
embarrassment. I m going to kill you later, she
thought.
Jovanni patted Lydia s hand.  He does
that. Embarrassing his family is par for the
course.
Lydia blinked in surprise.  I m family?
 The minute your brother crossed our
threshold and told my wife her tortellini was
the best thing he d ever tasted, yes.
Marciana topped up her teacup.  We ve got
forms for you to change your name to Caristo
whenever you re ready. Don t feel obliged,
though.
Lydia glanced at Tony.  What have you
been saying?
 Nothing. My parents tend to get
overexcited at the prospect of me settling
down.
 Reassuring and insulting all at once.
 Don t worry, Lyds your sharpness is so
very us. All you need to do is learn the
language.
161
On Caristo s Watch
Jovanni clapped his hands together.  I ll
teach you. First things first, bonjorno.
Lydia repeated after him and was given a
firm handshake. Jovanni s eyes lightened with
delight.  Bueno. Very good pronunciation.
 All right, enough, you two. I need to take
Lyds to work.
She was going to say she didn t have to be
at work until eight this evening, but Tony sent
her a look so full of intent that she got to her
feet.   Fraid so.
Marciana had a knowing look on her face.
 Well, you come back any time. Start those
Italian lessons and meet the rest of the family.
That way if you hear any back chat, you can tell
them off.
Lydia received hugs and kisses, and the
remainder of the tarts in perfect Tupperware,
before Tony drove her back to the flat.  Italian
lessons. Really?
Billy London
162
 Speak to Gina about that one of these
days, he said, sounding serious. She felt his
hand brush over hers.  They really like you.
 Are you sure?
 Trust me, my parents have about as much
impulse control as I do. If they didn t like you,
you d know. Hell, you d have been sitting in the
car until I d finished eating.
 If you had left me here to have tea with
your parents, there d have been an
Apocalypse, Lydia swore.
 But I didn t. You got to see me as a
chubby little baby naked in a bubbly bath.
She laughed.  You were adorable as a
baby.
 You re only being nice to me because I m
taking you home to do bad things to you.
When they reached her flat, he did do
things to her, none of them bad. Now that they
were alone together, Tony brought Lydia to an
endless edge of pleasure before he allowed her
to peak. He left her an absolute mess; the only
163
On Caristo s Watch
way she d salvage her hair would be with a lot
of gel and pins. Or a Britney shave.
Tony reached across her and picked up her
phone from the side.  Almost seven.
 I m going to be late, she groaned,
wincing as she swung her feet onto the carpet.
A hefty arm curled around her waist and
pulled her back into an even warmer body.
 Stay. Skip it.
She gave his arm a slap.  No bad
influencing. I don t distract you from your job,
you don t distract me from mine.
His fingers gently encircled her breast
before lightly pinching her nipple. A shudder
skated over her skin.  You ll enjoy it.
 I can enjoy it later. Come on, Caristo,
don t you have things to do?
She turned to see an irreverent grin on his
face and forced herself from the bed.  Honestly,
behave. And get dressed you ll have to drive
me so I won t be late.
Billy London
164
Tony made a sound of disapproval in
his throat, yet did as she commanded. Unable
to help herself, she fell asleep on the drive.
When she woke, they were outside the hospital
and Tony had placed an energy drink in her lap.
She drained it quickly and leapt out of the car,
circling it to Tony s seat.
 Yes, Nurse Mills? he asked mildly.
 Pick me up? I finish at six.
 Of course.
She went on her tiptoes and received a
brief kiss that made her wish she d taken his
advice and skipped work altogether. They could
be in bed right now. What did she do before she
met him?  Lyds?
 Hmm? she answered dreamily, rubbing
her thumb carelessly over his cheek. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]