Enemies at the Altar (14 page)

‘Y
OU
look absolutely amazing,’ Sienna said as she made one last adjustment to Gisele’s veil. ‘Emilio is going to be speechless when he sees you.’

Gisele smiled as she squeezed Sienna’s hands in hers. ‘
I
think Andreas is going to have a similar reaction when he sees you,’ she said. ‘You look stunning.’

‘Thanks …’ Sienna slipped her hands out of Gisele’s and moved to the dressing table so she could do a last minute touch-up of her make-up before Hilary, Gisele’s mother, came back from the suite next door where the hairdresser was styling her hair. With all the bustle of getting ready, it was the first time Sienna had been alone with her sister.

‘Is everything all right?’ Gisele asked.

Sienna met her twin’s grey-blue gaze in the mirror. It still startled her sometimes to see an identical replica of herself standing there. They were so physically alike it was uncanny, and yet they were so different. ‘I’m fine,’ she said, forcing a bright smile to her lips.

Gisele came over and put a gentle hand on Sienna’s bare shoulder. ‘You and Andreas are happy together, aren’t you?’ she asked. ‘It was such a whirlwind courtship, I just wondered if—’

‘Of course we’re happy,’ Sienna said, dipping the lipstick brush in a pot of lip-gloss. ‘We’re just peachy.’

‘You don’t have any regrets about having such a small wedding?’ Gisele asked.

Sienna’s hand trembled slightly as she painted her lips with the lipgloss. ‘No, why should I?’

Gisele caught her gaze in the mirror. ‘I saw you looking at me when Mum was helping me into my dress,’ she said. ‘You had such a sad look on your face. I realised then how difficult it must have been for you, getting married without your mother to help you. Is that why you kept things so simple?’

Sienna put the lip brush down with a little clatter on the dressing table. ‘I’m not like you, Gisele,’ she lied. ‘A big wedding has never interested me. For one thing, I’d be rubbish at organising it. I’d probably forget to invite someone terribly important or not order the right colour flowers. Anyway, can you see me wearing white? I wouldn’t make it to the church without spilling something on it or tripping over the train or something.’

Gisele smiled and tucked a wayward strand of Sienna’s hair back into the elegant style the hairdresser had arranged earlier. ‘You’re good for Andreas,’ she said, putting her hands on Sienna’s shoulders and meeting her gaze in the mirror once more. ‘I could tell from last night’s dinner that he has a tendency to be a little formal and distant. It probably comes from his wealthy background. He doesn’t feel comfortable letting people get too close until he works out whether he can trust them or not. I see the way he looks at you. It was as if he can’t quite believe his luck to have found someone who loves him for who he is, not for what he can provide.’

Sienna reached for the bronzer brush, even though
she really didn’t need it given that her cheeks were doing a perfectly fine job of blushing all by themselves. ‘He is lucky to have me,’ she said. ‘We’re lucky to have each other.’
Even if it’s only for another few months
, she thought.

‘He’ll make a wonderful father,’ Gisele said. ‘Have you talked about when you’ll start a family?’

Sienna averted her gaze. ‘I’m not … He’s not … We’re not … ready …’

Gisele smiled. ‘It’s just I have some news for you,’ she said. ‘I wondered if that was why you and Andreas married in such a rush. I got all excited. I thought it’d be so cool if we were pregnant together.’

Sienna swung around on the stool so quickly her head spun. ‘You’re pregnant?’ she said.

‘Yes,’ Gisele said, beaming radiantly. ‘Emilio is beside himself with pride. We haven’t told anyone, other than Mum. I wanted you to be one of the first to know. We’re having twins.’

‘Twins!’ Sienna grabbed Gisele’s hands, desperately trying to ignore the sudden pang of envy that seized her. It was wrong of her to feel jealous. It was hideous of her. It was selfish. She wasn’t the one who had longed for a family since she was a young girl. Sienna had no idea of what to do with a baby. She hadn’t even held one in her arms.

What right did she have to wonder what it would be like to carry a pregnancy to full term? To feel those tiny limbs growing and moving inside her? To hold that precious little bundle soon after it was born? To smell that sweet innocent smell and stroke that soft fluffy head?

A wave of longing rushed through her. It set off an ache that felt like a weight pressing down on her heart.

There would be no sweet-smelling babies for her. Andreas had already made it clear how unsuitable he thought her as a mother for his children. He had left nothing to chance. Every time they had made love he had used protection.

The ache tightened in her chest like a spanner working on a nut and bolt.

Just as Sienna couldn’t imagine having someone else kiss her or make love to her, she couldn’t imagine having someone else’s baby. She didn’t
want
anyone else’s baby.

‘Do you know if they’re identical?’ she asked, thinking of those little limbs wrapped around each other like she and Gisele had been.

‘Yes,’ Gisele said. ‘The ultrasound showed they’re sharing the same placenta.’

‘And what about the sex?’ Sienna asked. ‘Do you know if they’re boys or girls?’

‘Boys,’ Gisele said, placing a hand on her only very slightly rounded tummy. ‘After losing Lily, I never thought I’d be able to face a pregnancy again, but this time I just know it’s going to be different. It
feels
different.’

The door of the suite opened and Hilary came in, looking every inch the stylishly coiffed and very proud mother of the bride. ‘Ready, darling?’ she said to Gisele. ‘Emilio is eagerly awaiting his beautiful bride.’

Sienna handed Gisele the bridal bouquet, forcing an I’m-so-happy-for-you-smile to her lips, while inside her heart felt as if it were being backed over by an earth-mover.

She had already forfeited love.

Would she have to forfeit motherhood as well?

Andreas felt his heart do a couple of leapfrogs in his chest as Sienna walked up the aisle ahead of her twin sister. She was wearing a floor-length latte-coloured satin gown with a cream bow tied over her left hip. Her hair was up in an elegant style that gave her a distinctly regal air. She was breathtakingly beautiful, but then, so too was her twin sister.

He tore his eyes away from Sienna to look at Gisele as she floated up the aisle in an ivory satin gown and a stunning veil and diamond tiara. Before the bridal party dinner last night he had only seen photographs of her in the press. The likeness, even in print, was amazing but meeting her in the flesh had been totally surreal. It was like looking at a mirror image of Sienna.

It occurred to him then, with an unexpected twinge of guilt, that this was what Sienna would have looked like as a proper bride if he had married her under normal circumstances.

Had
she
wanted something like this?

He felt another ferocious fist of guilt grab at his gut.

Didn’t most young women dream of having their day as a fairy tale princess?

As the service got underway he watched to see if any of the heartfelt vows that were being exchanged were affecting Sienna. She stood looking at her sister and the handsome groom with a smile on her lips, but Andreas wasn’t sure if that glittery moisture in her eyes was from happiness or something else. She looked rather pale, he thought, and once or twice he saw her lick her lips, from nervousness or dryness, he couldn’t quite tell.

Andreas was surprised to find the service so moving. He had attended weddings before and, while he had mostly enjoyed them, he had not felt a lump of emotion
suddenly stick like a nut halfway down his throat when the groom promised to love and protect his bride.

Emilio Andreoni was clearly a man deeply in love. His voice cracked unashamedly as he slipped the wedding band on Gisele’s finger. Gisele looked up at him with absolute devotion, tears of joy shining in her eyes.

Andreas felt ashamed of how his marriage to Sienna had been such a sterile, businesslike affair. She hadn’t looked at him with her eyes full of love. Hers had glittered with hatred. Their clinical, emotionless union made a mockery of one so sacred and deeply poignant as this. How had his life become such a tawdry sideshow alley game of smoke and mirrors?

He caught Sienna’s eye across the church. She smiled at him but it was a weak movement of her lips that didn’t involve her eyes. She looked away again, focusing her gaze on the bride and groom as they exchanged their first kiss as a married couple.

Andreas wondered if she was thinking of
their
first kiss. Their mouths had never touched until they had exchanged those meaningless vows. He was reminded of the electric shock of that kiss every time he had kissed her since. It was a power surge in his flesh. He could feel it now just thinking about it. His body ached for her. His blood thrummed with it. He had expected the pulse of lust to wane a little by now, but if anything it had increased. Would the five months left of their marriage contract be enough to satisfy him?

Because she was part of the bridal party, Sienna was separated from Andreas for most of the reception. It made his hunger for her all the more intense. He couldn’t wait until the formalities were over so he could
stake his claim. His whole body prickled with annoyance when she danced with the best man as part of the bridal waltz routine. Andreas clenched and unclenched his fists under the table as he watched the best man’s arms go around her and bring her up close.

Jealousy was a new experience for him. He could not remember ever feeling it before. He bristled with it. It made his teeth grind together. It made his jaw ache. It made his blood boil.

His gaze narrowed. Was Sienna
flirting
with that guy? She was smiling up at him with that dazzling smile of hers. Her left hand was on the guy’s shoulder and her right encased in the grasp of his. Her body was moving in time to the music, a slow romantic waltz that had her pelvis brushing against the best man’s every now and again as her feet tangled with his.

Andreas strode across the dance floor and laid a firm hand on the best man’s shoulder. ‘I’d like to dance with my wife,’ he said.

The best man dropped his hold on Sienna and stepped back. ‘Sure,’ he said with an easy smile. ‘She’s a fabulous dancer. I have two left feet but she made me dance like a pro.’

Andreas ground his teeth behind his stiff smile. ‘She is indeed an expert at executing tricky manoeuvres.’

Sienna’s grey-blue gaze collided with his once the best man had gone. ‘What the hell are you playing at?’ she asked in a hushed voice. ‘You interrupted the bridal party waltz, for God’s sake.’

Andreas turned her so she wasn’t facing the wedding guests. ‘I had to step in before you made a complete fool of yourself,’ he said. ‘You were practically crawling into that guy’s skin.’

She glowered up at him. ‘I was not!’

He tugged her against him. ‘The only man you should be getting up close and personal with is me,’ he said. ‘We’re married, remember?’

‘Only for another five months,’ she said, challenging him with her haughty gaze. ‘After that, I’m free to be with anyone I want and you won’t be able to do a thing to stop me.’

He whipped her around as the music changed tempo, his groin alive with want as her slender thighs bumped against his. ‘I wouldn’t dream of trying,’ he said, ‘but for now you are my wife and I expect you to act accordingly.’

Her eyes flashed at him like blue lightning. ‘I’m not really your wife,’ she said. ‘This is just an act, a stupid little game of charades. I’m surprised no one has already guessed we’re not the real deal. I’m sure Gisele already suspects something.’

‘What makes you think that?’ Andreas said, holding her close to him as another couple glided past.

‘She kept grilling me on why we got married so quickly and why I hadn’t gone for a big wedding,’ she said, frowning and chewing at her lip as if the conversation had somehow distressed her.

Andreas deftly led her off the dance floor to a secluded area behind a column. He kept his arms around her, his body thrumming with need with her standing thigh to thigh with him. ‘Are you disappointed we didn’t have a proper wedding?’ he asked.

She pulled her chin back against her neck in a gesture of scorn. ‘Are you joking? Of course I’m not disappointed. What we have is a sham. It was bad enough lying in front of a celebrant, let alone a priest and a
huge congregation. Anyway, it’s different for Gisele. She loves Emilio and he loves her. They have their whole lives to look forward to.’

Andreas held her gaze for a beat or two. A shadow had passed through her eyes and her beautiful white teeth began to nibble at her bottom lip again. He pushed against the soft pillow of her lip with the pad of his fingertip. ‘What’s wrong?’ he asked.

She jerked her head away from his touch. ‘Nothing.’

‘I know you better than that,
ma petite
. You always do that to your lip when you’re brooding or mulling over something.’

She drew in a breath and then let it out on a long exhalation. ‘I’m being stupid and sentimental,’ she said, slipping out of his hold. ‘Weddings do that to me, or at least ones like this.’

‘Yes, well, it was certainly a very moving service,’ Andreas conceded. ‘Anyone can see Emilio and Gisele belong together. I’ve never seen a more radiant bride.’

‘Gisele’s pregnant,’ she said. ‘She’s having twins.’

‘That’s wonderful news,’ he said. ‘You must be very happy for her.’

‘I am … It’s just …’ She bit her lip again and dropped her eyes from his.

‘Just what?’ he asked, cupping the side of her face to bring her gaze back in line with his.

Her eyes shimmered for a moment but then she blinked and her gaze cleared. ‘Just as well you’re using protection,’ she said lightly as she slipped out of his hold. ‘Can you imagine the snotty nosed little brats we would make? If we had twins, I bet they’d fight like demons from the moment of conception. I’d probably
get stretch marks from all the punches and kicks going on inside.’