Read Online Unmasking Elena Montella by Victoria Connelly - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Victoria Connelly
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believe congratulations are in order,’ she said, the fact that this was her future brother-in-law standing before her dawning on her at last.
A beautiful smile crossed his face and his dark eyes glittered. ‘Oh! Elena’s told you already?’
‘ Yes!’ she said, pulling a white towel out for him.
‘ Thank you,’ he said, roughly drying his hair before brushing the towel over his chest and arms.
‘ Have you set a date yet?’ she dared to ask.
‘ Er - no. Not yet. That’s kind of why I’ve come out here,’ he said, suddenly looking quite shy.
‘ Oh? Are you thinking of getting married in Venice?’
He smiled. ‘I hadn’t thought about that, but it’s a great idea.’
She smiled back at him, trying to picture him in a gondola with Elena. ‘It would be very romantic,’ she said, a wave of jealousy engulfing her. Corrado hadn’t once talked about getting engaged let alone setting a date for a wedding but she couldn’t really blame him. She hadn’t exactly been the most loving of girlfriends of late. Still, it was strange to think of Elena getting married. Rosanna had always known she would, of course, but this was all happening so fast. Hadn’t she just met this man?
‘ You work at the same college as her, don’t you?’ she asked, trying to steer the conversation back to small talk.
He frowned, his dark eyes seeming darker all of a sudden. ‘No,’ he said. ‘I’m an artist.’
‘ Really? Oh!’ she blinked in surprise. She’d obviously got confused somewhere along the line. She’d thought Elena’s fiancé was a teacher - like her. ‘So you teach art at the college?’ she asked, taking his wet towel from him and walking back through to the living room.
There was a pause before he answered. ‘No! I’m an artist,’ he said again.
She stared at him and she could feel her mouth dropping open once more. ‘But you’re Mark, no?’
‘ NO!’ he shouted. ‘ I’m Reuben .’
‘ Reuben? ’
‘ Yes!’ he said, his hands firm on his hips and his face set rigid.
‘ Oh!’ she said. What else could she say? It was one of those moments when you wish to become instantly invisible, when you’d give anything to take back what you’d just said. But there was no getting out of this now. Her words were out and this Reuben guy, whom she’d thought was Mark, was expecting some kind of explanation from her and she didn’t have one.
‘ What the hell’s going on? I thought you said Elena told you we were engaged?’
Rosanna’s heartrate accelerated. Something was terribly wrong here. Had she made a huge mistake? Was she confused? She looked around the apartment, wondering where on earth Elena was, and it was at that moment that she waltzed down from the bedroom. It got a bit confusing then because, for a few minutes, they were all shouting at each other at once.
‘ Elena! Who the hell is Mark?’
‘ Mark? What have you been saying, Rosanna?’
‘ Don’t blame me! What am I meant to think when I come back to find a stranger in the apartment wearing nothing but a towel?’
‘ Is this Mark someone you work with? Is that why you never let me meet you at the school?’
‘ Don’t be ridiculous, Reuben! Mark has got nothing to do with-’
‘ Your sister seems to think that you’re engaged to him!’
And on it went: questions, threats, recriminations until:
‘ QUIET! ’ Elena suddenly yelled.
Rosanna bit back what she was about to say next and decided it was probably better to say no more until this was sorted out - one way or another.
‘ Listen!’ Elena began. ‘There’s been a dreadful misunderstanding here. Reuben - please don’t look so serious. I told Rosanna about our engagement this morning.’
‘ So, what’s all this about some bloke called Mark?’ he interrupted.
It was exactly the question Rosanna wanted to ask her.
‘ He’s just someone I work with. I don’t know, we were just talking about my job and he came up. But that’s it.’
Rosanna glared
A beautiful smile crossed his face and his dark eyes glittered. ‘Oh! Elena’s told you already?’
‘ Yes!’ she said, pulling a white towel out for him.
‘ Thank you,’ he said, roughly drying his hair before brushing the towel over his chest and arms.
‘ Have you set a date yet?’ she dared to ask.
‘ Er - no. Not yet. That’s kind of why I’ve come out here,’ he said, suddenly looking quite shy.
‘ Oh? Are you thinking of getting married in Venice?’
He smiled. ‘I hadn’t thought about that, but it’s a great idea.’
She smiled back at him, trying to picture him in a gondola with Elena. ‘It would be very romantic,’ she said, a wave of jealousy engulfing her. Corrado hadn’t once talked about getting engaged let alone setting a date for a wedding but she couldn’t really blame him. She hadn’t exactly been the most loving of girlfriends of late. Still, it was strange to think of Elena getting married. Rosanna had always known she would, of course, but this was all happening so fast. Hadn’t she just met this man?
‘ You work at the same college as her, don’t you?’ she asked, trying to steer the conversation back to small talk.
He frowned, his dark eyes seeming darker all of a sudden. ‘No,’ he said. ‘I’m an artist.’
‘ Really? Oh!’ she blinked in surprise. She’d obviously got confused somewhere along the line. She’d thought Elena’s fiancé was a teacher - like her. ‘So you teach art at the college?’ she asked, taking his wet towel from him and walking back through to the living room.
There was a pause before he answered. ‘No! I’m an artist,’ he said again.
She stared at him and she could feel her mouth dropping open once more. ‘But you’re Mark, no?’
‘ NO!’ he shouted. ‘ I’m Reuben .’
‘ Reuben? ’
‘ Yes!’ he said, his hands firm on his hips and his face set rigid.
‘ Oh!’ she said. What else could she say? It was one of those moments when you wish to become instantly invisible, when you’d give anything to take back what you’d just said. But there was no getting out of this now. Her words were out and this Reuben guy, whom she’d thought was Mark, was expecting some kind of explanation from her and she didn’t have one.
‘ What the hell’s going on? I thought you said Elena told you we were engaged?’
Rosanna’s heartrate accelerated. Something was terribly wrong here. Had she made a huge mistake? Was she confused? She looked around the apartment, wondering where on earth Elena was, and it was at that moment that she waltzed down from the bedroom. It got a bit confusing then because, for a few minutes, they were all shouting at each other at once.
‘ Elena! Who the hell is Mark?’
‘ Mark? What have you been saying, Rosanna?’
‘ Don’t blame me! What am I meant to think when I come back to find a stranger in the apartment wearing nothing but a towel?’
‘ Is this Mark someone you work with? Is that why you never let me meet you at the school?’
‘ Don’t be ridiculous, Reuben! Mark has got nothing to do with-’
‘ Your sister seems to think that you’re engaged to him!’
And on it went: questions, threats, recriminations until:
‘ QUIET! ’ Elena suddenly yelled.
Rosanna bit back what she was about to say next and decided it was probably better to say no more until this was sorted out - one way or another.
‘ Listen!’ Elena began. ‘There’s been a dreadful misunderstanding here. Reuben - please don’t look so serious. I told Rosanna about our engagement this morning.’
‘ So, what’s all this about some bloke called Mark?’ he interrupted.
It was exactly the question Rosanna wanted to ask her.
‘ He’s just someone I work with. I don’t know, we were just talking about my job and he came up. But that’s it.’
Rosanna glared
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