Emily Arden

He felt torn. He wanted her to feel safe with him, but he also wanted her to feel the sort of heady excitement that any young girl should feel when they fall in love. He wanted to give her everything she craved, and he was not quite sure he could do it.

It was wonderful to see the sparkle back in her eyes. He wanted to keep it there. For the first time in years he__ found himself actually caring about how someone else felt. He__ been spending so much time being a tough successful businessman that he__ almost forgotten how pleasurable it was to help make other people happy.

He looked at her and could see she was trembling, her face even paler than usual and her eyes wide and vulnerable. His heart went out to her and he reached towards her, gathering her much smaller hand into his.__t__ OK Rosa. Whatever you have to say to me, it__ OK. Don__ be afraid _ nothing will come between us now.

Another tear appeared and then another, trailing silently down her cheeks. This was so much harder than she__ thought it would be. She was usually so articulate, yet at the moment her brain seemed to have turned to mush.He turned his head to kiss the tears from her cheek, and it was as though his act of tenderness finally unleashed the truth that was struggling to emerge.

Ironically, just when she needed to get as much sleep as possible to prepare her for the next few days, her excited anticipation kept her awake long into the night.

Just at that moment she glanced towards him and saw him smiling at her, his eyes lingering on her with warmth and an indefinable something else. Her heart caught in her chest

If he spoke, he knew that he would break the spell. As soon as she knew her Romeo wasn__ coming she would be disappointed. She would doubtless be angry with him, perhaps even sense that it was somehow his fault.But at this moment she was happy and breathless with anticipation. Tonight was her night and she wanted to be loved.

Benedict__ hand clenched by his side, still tingling where it had touched her. He wished she__ let him do more. It was so romantic out here in the darkness; the cool breeze rustling through the trees and the moonlight showing faintly through cloud. They were completely alone and it felt like the sort of night where anything could happen. It was a pity that Tamsin didn__ seem to feel the same way.

Roberto knew that he now had the power to influence the future. He needed to send a message back, and whatever he chose to say would affect Rosa and would help to guide her future choices. He felt a strong sense of guilt and responsibility about the situation in which he found himself, but he knew that he had to make it work. Somehow he needed to find a way to do the best that he could by his Rosa.

She made him feel guilty at times. The problem was that she was so honest herself, almost transparent. It seemed criminal to be deceiving her.