Read Online The Playboy of Rome by Jennifer Faye - Free Book Online

overlooking the sprawling vineyard and olive grove. The home’s lemon-yellow exterior was offset by a red tile roof and pale blue shutters lining the windows and doors. The three-story structure gave off a cheerful appeal that called to Lizzie.
    Her gaze came to rest on a sweeping veranda with blue-and-white lawn furniture, which added an inviting quality. What a perfect place to kick back while enjoying a gentle breeze over her sun-warmed skin and sipping an icy lemonade.
    “This is where you live?”
    Dante cut the engine. “This is where my family lives.”
    “It’s so big.”
    “It has to be to accommodate so many generations. It seems like every generation expands or adds something.”
    She especially liked the private balconies. She could easily imagine having her morning coffee there while Dante read the newspaper. “I couldn’t even imagine what it would be like to call this my home.”
    “A little smothering.”
    “Smothering? You can’t be serious.” She turned, taking in the endless fields.
    He shrugged. “When you have so many people keeping an eye on you constantly, it can be.”
    “But there’s just your grandfather, father and brother, isn’t it?”
    “You’re forgetting about all of my aunts, uncles and cousins. They stop over daily. There’s never a lack of relatives. In fact, the dinner table seats twelve and never has an empty chair. They disapproved of my father not remarrying. So they made a point of ensuring my brother and I had a woman’s influence.”
    “And did it work?”
    “What? Oh, you mean the woman’s-influence thing. I guess it helped. I just know that it was annoying always tripping over family members.”
    She frowned at him. “You should be grateful that they cared enough!”
    His eyes grew round at her agitated tone. “I...I am.”
    She didn’t believe him.
    She couldn’t even imagine how wonderful it would be to have so much family. He took it all for granted, not having sense enough to count his blessings. She’d have done anything to have a big, loving family.
    “Not everyone is as lucky as you.” With that, she got out of the car, no longer wanting to hear how hard Dante had it putting up with his relatives.
    He was the luckiest person she knew. He wasn’t much older than herself and he already owned his very own restaurant—a successful one at that. Not to mention his jaw-dropping apartment. And she couldn’t forget his flashy sports car. And on top of all that, he had a family that cared about him. Stacked up against her life, she was left lacking. She was up to her eyeballs in debt. And without the money from this television spot, she didn’t know how she’d survive.
    But how did she explain any of that to him? How would he ever understand when he couldn’t even appreciate what he had? She’d met people like him before—specifically a guy in college. He was an only child—and spoiled. He thought he understood what hardship was when he had to buy a used car to replace the brand-new one his parents had bought him—a car he’d wrecked while out partying with the guys. She stifled the groan of frustration that rose in her throat. Hardship was choosing between paying the rent or buying groceries.
    A gentle breeze brushed over her cheeks and whipped her hair into her face. She tucked the loose strands behind her ear. The air felt good. It eased her tense muscles, sweeping up her frustration and carrying it away.
    In this particular case, she’d overreacted. Big-time. She had better keep a firmer grip on her emotions or soon Dante would learn about her past. She didn’t want him to look down on her like she was less than everyone else since her mother hadn’t loved her enough to straighten out her life and her father was someone without a name—a face. The breath caught in her throat.
    She hated that being around Dante was bringing all of these old feelings of inadequacy to the surface. She’d buried them long ago. Coming here was a mistake.