Dante’s Girl (The Paradise Diaries #1)(60)
Author: Courtney Cole

“Nice try.  Please.  Do me this favor.  Just stay in bed for this morning.  Catch up on emails, do whatever you’d like… as long as it’s from this bed.”

I pause and give him an evil look.

“Can I do whatever I’d like from this bed?”

“Of course you can,” Dante begins and then he realizes my meaning and he grins.  “Anything but that,” he tells me.  “You need to rest. Do you promise?”

I slump back against the pillows. “Fine,” I pout.

But I’m not really pouting.  He wants to take care of me and that makes my heart go pitty-pat.

He leans down and kisses my forehead.

“I’ve got to go into town and do a few things with my father.  But Mia will pick you up and bring you to the Regatta.  And once I’m done waving at the crowds, I’ll meet up with you.  Okay?”

I nod.  “Okay.  I’ll see you then.”

Dante turns and strides across the bedroom with his confident long steps, but he turns at the door.

“I love you,” he says.  And then he smiles and my heart melts.

“I love you, too,” I answer.

And he slips out of the room.  I pick at my breakfast for a while and sniff at the flowers that he brought.  And I drink the coffee.

Then I curl into my pillow and take a little nap.  After the bumps and bruises from this past week, I’m going to need some beauty sleep for tonight.

* * *

I’m super glad that I slept most of the afternoon.

I decide that as I’m jostled about by the crowds overlooking the Bay of Valese.  I’m still tired, even though I slept for hours.  Even though I’m standing here with the sun on my shoulders surrounded by a festival-like atmosphere and anxious to see Dante.  In spite of all of that, I’m still tired.

I’m so lame.

But I’m excited, too. I can’t help it.  Everyone around me is excited and their excitement is contagious.

Apparently, the Regatta is a big deal thing here. There are streamers and signs and balloons and street vendors.  It’s a huge party and everyone is happy.

Hundreds of boats have signed up for the big race.  I can see all of their sails billowing in the breeze as the boats line up for the start.  Apparently, the winner gets $10,000 and the annual trophy, which is a huge sailboat made from crystal.

It’s sitting on a giant pedestal now on the edge of the beach.

I can see it from here, glittering in the sun.

“There’s Dante,” Mia tells me, nudging my arm.

I look and sure enough, there he is.

The Daniella is floating out in the middle of the bay, although it is moving just a little closer to shore.  I can hear the metallic sounds of a microphone being tested.  And Dante just stepped out onto the deck of the yacht.  He’s turned around now, talking to his father.

I look around, at the happy faces, and I’m glad that I’m here.  There is a band playing happy music.  I can’t understand the words of the songs because they’re singing in Caberran, but the music sounds happy.  People are dancing in the streets and a little boy next to me tugs at his mother’s arm until she buys him pink cotton candy from a street vendor.  I smile at him and then for some reason, I look past his mom, into the crowd.

And on the edge of everyone, through the sea of strange faces, I see Vincent.

He’s standing alone, observing the festivities.

I shake my head.

“Hey look,” I tell Mia.  “It’s Vincent.”  She hasn’t heard from him since the night on the boat.  He hadn’t even answered any of her texts.  And she deserves to know why.

“Jerk!” she snaps, glaring at him.  “I’m not wasting my time, Reece.”

I start to say something else, to encourage her to confront him, when another face appears next to Vincent.

A face with white-blond hair and ice-blue eyes.

Nate.

I suck in my breath.

Vincent drops his head to say something in Nate’s ear and it is clear that they are together.

Again.

There is something strange going on here.

My mind immediately starts spinning, trying to fit pieces together.  Nate and Vincent.  Vincent and Nate.  They shouldn’t be together. They have nothing in common.  Yet, they must.  But what?

My mind spins.

What do they have in common?

What?

The Regatta?

Mia?

Me?

And then my gaze brushes across the Daniella and I know.

Dante.

Of course it’s Dante.  They were whispering on the grounds of his estate.  They are together now at the Regatta that he is hosting.  Vincent is probably who Nate was talking to that day on the beach when I overheard him talking about Dante.

What are they planning?

What the eff are they planning?

I look at Mia and she is staring at them too.  And I can see on her face that she is also trying to figure it out.

“What’s going on?” I ask her.

She shakes her head.  “I don’t know.”

I look back at them and they are gone now, disappeared into the crowd.  And then I catch one glimpse of Vincent’s back. He’s headed down to toward the beach.  And before I can think, I start shoving through the crowd to follow him.  Mia is close on my heels.

“Excuse me,” I tell people as I shove them. “I’m sorry.  Excuse me.”

Vincent doesn’t notice me because he’s still far enough ahead of me.

I wind my way down to the beach and I see Vincent ducking down in a secluded area about fifty yards away.

As I run toward him, I look at the Daniella.  Dimitri, Elena and Dante are all on the stern of the ship and I hear Dimitri begin talking into the microphone.  Dante and Elena are waving at the crowd.

And I no longer care if Vincent sees me, because I can feel in my heart that something is very, very wrong here.

Vincent bends down, kneeling on his knees in the sand and I see wires in his hands.

Wires.

He looks up and sees me at the same time as I see something small and black in his hands.  And it is attached to the wires.  He’s alarmed and starts to get up and I whirl around.

“Dante!” I scream.  Mia starts screaming too and we’re screaming at the top of our lungs.  But so is the rest of the crowd.  Everyone is clapping and screaming and whistling and Dante can’t hear us over the rest of them.