Signed Over To Santino - Майя Блейк

Javier stopped Carla by pressing his lips against hers, hot and hard, and then pulled away before temptation got out of hand. Take the night, think about it, and give me your answer in the morning. I know youll choose wisely.

Youre so certain you know what Ill decide?

He shrugged. Besides the pleasure youll receive in my bed, theres the added benefit that once your father knows youre minetruly minehell think twice about threatening you again.

So those are my choices? Choose you or choose him?

The writings been on the wall for a while, Principessa. This way you know youre backing the right horse.

He flung the door open and grabbed her hand. In the bright light of the foyer he caught a clearer glimpse of her outfit and cursed himself for giving her the night to agree to his demands. The ache in his groin alone threatened to fracture his mind.

Although his every instinct screamed at him to go after her, when shed muttered goodnight and made a beeline for her bedroom Javier stayed put.

Morning would come soon enough.

Carla Nardozzi would be his.

MAYA BLAKEs hopes of becoming a writer were born when she picked up her first romance at thirteen. Little did she know her dream would come true! Does she still pinch herself every now and then to make sure its not a dream? Yes, she does! Feel free to pinch her, too, via Twitter, Facebook or Goodreads! Happy reading!

Signed Over to Santino

Maya Blake

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Contents

Cover

Introduction

About the Author

Title Page

PROLOGUE

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Endpage

Extract

Copyright

PROLOGUE

CARLA NARDOZZI TOOK the chauffeurs proffered hand, stepped out of the luxury SUV and was immediately bombarded with the sights and sounds of New York City. The journey from her Upper East Side hotel to Midtown had been as tense and chilly as the air conditioning blasting from the vents.

To her right, her father, Olivio Nardozzi, stood stiff and seething.

Carla wouldve summoned a genuine smile for the driver had she been able to function in anything other than a complete state of ongoing shock.

The past seven days had unfolded in a series of bombshells she could scarcely wrap her head around. Bombshells shed struggled to navigate without going under until shed eventually, exhausted, settled in a place of icy numbness. But the biggest trial of all lay ahead of her. Or more accurately, it lay above her, sixty-six floors up in the office of the man shed hoped never to set eyes on again.

As if pulled by powerful magnets, her gaze slid up the glass façade of the building housing the esteemed J Santino Inc.

An opportunity beyond your wildest dreams.

A once-in-a-lifetime endorsement deal.

A collaboration even a figure skater with your prominence would be insane to turn down.

For the better part of a year, those words had been impressed upon her by her father and her advisors. Lately, theyd been uttered in the solemn, no-nonsense tones of her agent and friend, Draco Angelis, whod been at a loss as to why she was resisting the life-changing deal.

Shed listened and nodded in all the right places but had known she would never accept the deal. Never have anything to do with the man heading the globally successful luxury goods company.

Shed kept her secret for three years and Carla had had no intention of facing it, or the man it involved, ever.

Until her reality had drastically altered.

A shiver that had nothing to do with the blustery March spring day rattled her bones.

In a few minutes, after long years of strictly regimented avoidance, she would be face to face with Javier Santino.

The man whod taken her virginity. The man whod granted her the most sensual, intensely unforgettable night of her life. The man whod then absorbed her shocked, poorly delivered words the morning after with granite-faced hatred, then proceeded to banish her from his life with the cold incisiveness of a scalpel-wielding surgeon.

Years later, Carla still couldnt recall those harrowing hours without the naked blade of fear striking her heart.

It was the reason shed avoided Javier Santino at all costs. It was the reason this was the last place she wouldve willingly placed herself.

Come on, the deal isnt going to finalise itself with you standing out here staring at the building.

The numbness that had wrapped itself tightly around her eased for a cracked moment, replaced with myriad volatile emotions as she stared at her father. Disappointment. Sadness. Anger. A deep and painful burgeoning acceptance that Olivio Nardozzi had a vastly differing definition of parental love than most normal fathers had for their children.

Bitterness surged high. We wouldnt be here if you hadnt gambled away

Dont start this again, Carla. He stepped closer on the busy sidewalk so they wouldnt be overheard by the trio of lawyers whod accompanied them and now stood on the sidewalk, ready to escort her into Javiers presence. We have aired this out many times already. I dont particularly want to air it once again, especially in public. You have an image to maintain. A faultless image we have both worked hard for. In less than an hours time, our financial worries will be on their way to being a thing of the past. We have to look forward.