VINA IN VENICE (THE 5 SISTERS) (20 page)

“
No, I didn’t
,” she snapped defensively.  “
They were college students the last time we visited and had no interest in a shy, teen-aged girl.”  Vina
guiltily
omitted to mention she’d had a crush on Emilio, the youngest of the three brothers.  “
Look, I’m sorry if
I
underplayed our relationship, but in all honesty, I wasn’t sure you wanted to announce it to the world when we really haven’t established any boundaries.”

“
You didn’t have any problem announcing it to Catrina,” he argued.  “As a matter of fact, you went out of your way to make her believe we had a very intimate relationship.”

Vina’s cheeks burned a furious red.  “I hardly think the circumstances are the same.  Cayo wasn’t attempting to coax me into the bathroom for a quickie.”

“No, he was just making sure you knew there were three men
eager
to renew their acquaintance with you.  And since you made it clear there was nothing between us, I’m sure he was only
two happy to report back that you were unattached and just as eager to see them.”

“Now you’re being ridiculous.  If this petty jealousy and possessive attitude is what I have to look forward to, then I’m not sure I even want to continue what we started.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, Vina regretted them.  Yes, she was angry with him for the way he was behaving, but she didn’t want to call a halt to the relationship that had begun to develop. 
She wanted to apologize, to retract what she’d said and assure Travis he had no reason to feel threatened by the Andollina brothers.  Before
she
could say any of those things, Travis took a step towards her, his face a mask of granite.

“If that’s the way you want it,” he said evenly.  “As long as you understand that if you’re a free agent, so am I.”

“Fine,” Vina replied numbly.

“
I’m going to my room.  Call me when you’re ready to go
grab something to eat
.  I made a promise to your parents to be your escort and I intend to fulfill that promise whether you want me to or not.”

Vina blinked back the tears.  “I…I’m tired.  I think I’ll just order room service.”

For a few breathless moments, she thought Travis was going to give in and attempt to make up. 
His arms dropped to his sides and he leaned towards her, his expression softening briefly before it turned cold again.

“I’ll arrange to have a pager sent up to your room in case you need to reach me.”

“Is that really necessary?  I mean…I can just call your room or…knock on your door if…”

“I may not be in my room,” he cut her off. 

Vina flinched as a sharp pain stabbed at her chest.  “Travis…”

“Enjoy your first night in Venice,” Travis said, then strode past her, leaving Vina standing there
with tears streaking down her cheeks.

Wrapping her arms around her waist, Vina swayed unsteadily.  Her first night in Ven
ice and she was spending it alone in her suite.  She felt like a glass vase that had been hurled at a brick wall
;
shattered
into a million pieces and hopelessly
beyond repair.   
 
 

Chapter 10
             

What the hell was wrong with him? 

Travis nodded to the cocktail waitress and swallowed down the last of his whiskey sour just as she returned with a fresh drink.
 
With a surly frown, h
e eyed the pager on the table but it remained
mutinously
silent.
 
He could hardly
blame Vina
for not calling
after the way he’d behaved
, but that didn’t make him any happier about it.
 

Okay, so t
hrowing a jealous fit over the Andollina brothers
was just as ridiculous as Vina claimed.
  And walking out on
her
after declaring the
y
were both free to pursue relationships with other people was
a notch above pure stupidity.
  Obviously they’d stepped outside the boundaries of friendship, but that didn’t tell him how deep her feelings ran.  It wa
s driving him crazy
, and as much a Travis hated the irrational way he’d responded, he couldn’t help
perceiving
all
other m
en
as potential threat
s.

“So much for your great plan to make her fall in love with you,” he mumbled to himself.

At least Cayo the Barbarian had been gracious enough to include him in the invitation for tomorrow night. 
It meant he
’d be able to keep an eye on Vina and
prevent her from being alone with any of the brothers.  O
ne way or another he
would
make
it understood that she was spoken for, although he’d have to be subtle about it.  The last thing he wanted was for Vina to
get her dander up and refute his claim
that
they were a couple.

He needed a plan, Travis thought
,
as he emptied his drink and sign
al
ed the waitress to bring another.
  No games, no tricks, just a solid plan to insure the only man she wanted
to
spend time
with was him. 
It
would require a monumental effort on his part
to
keep his temper in check
should
any of the Andollina’s
flirt
with Vina, but he
would
pull it off somehow.  After tomorrow night, he would keep her so busy
sight
seeing
,
there wouldn’t be time
for any more dinner parties or visits with long lost friends.

Travis glared at the pager.  Vina was
his
, and before they left Venice
they were going to come to a clear understanding about that
.  A
nd a few other things too.  As a matter of fact, maybe he would just go up to her suite right now and set the record straight.
  He mulled that thought over while he polished off another drink
,
then dropped a healthy tip on the table and stood up to leave.  Through an alcohol induced haze, Travis realized that drinking on an empty stomach probably hadn’t been one of his better
ideas
.

He closed his eyes for a moment but it didn’t help much; the room was still spinning when he opened them again. 
After taking a
few cautious steps
,
he
decided th
at
cautious was definitely
the key word here
, especially
since
he was swaying
like
a sapling in a stiff summer breeze.
  Staying focused was a bit of
a
challenge too, but he managed to get outside and onto the path leading back to his suite. 
Now, if he could only remember
which
suite he was in…

***

Vina sulked for quite some time after Travis left
.  His behavior and the things he’d said
still
hurt, especially the part about being free agents
,
followed by his assertion
s
he
would need a pager to reach him because he wouldn’t be in his room.  As if she would page him when he was probably down at the bar scoping out the dark-haired beauties
of Venice.  It wouldn’t take long for him to find a female companion
either
,
she thought despondently.  All Travis had to do was walk into a room and women noticed him.

Admittedly, she shouldn’t have made the remark about being unsure whether she wanted to continue what they’d started
, but she hadn’t really expected him to throw in the towel so easily
.
  How could
he
display such blatant jealousy of the Andollina brothers, which indicated he had strong feelings for her, and
then turn around and
call it quits
as if she meant nothing at all to him?
  It didn’t make sense.

She was standing out on the
bedroom
balcony, desperately trying to keep her mind from conjuring up images of Travis with another woman when she heard a strange noise coming from inside the suite.  A sliver of fear raced up her spine when she realized just how alone she was at the moment. 
If someone had broken into the suite, there was no way to get out to
the
living room where the pager was. 

H
ysterical laughter bubbl
ed
up inside her.  E
ven if she
could get her hands on
the pager before the intruder got to her, what good would it do?  It wasn’t as if she could page Travis and then wait for him to call back.
  Vina slipped back in
to
the bedroom, her heart thundering inside her chest as her eyes darted around the room.  It was a minor reli
ef to find it empty because
the noise
seemed louder and more insistent now
.  She tilted her head, listening for several seconds before determining someone was rattling a door handle.

Vina crept out of the bedroom, silently making her way to the door of her suite.  If someone was trying to break in, it occurred to her that they certainly wouldn’t be making a production of it by
creating
so much noise. 
Unless they thought
you were
gone and
weren’t concerned anyone would hear them.
 
O
n
the other hand
…she stopped in front of the door and watched as the door knob twisted
back and forth…
maybe
someone
had simply
mistaken her suite for theirs
and couldn’t get the card key to work.

At least they hadn’t gotten inside yet, and she could always call the lobby and have them send someone from security if the person looked even remotely suspicious. 
She glance
d
back at the phone before drawing in a breath of courage and went to the door to peer out the peek-hole. 
When Vina saw who it was, h
er first reaction was sheer relief, the second was anger. 

What in the world was Travis doing
?  Was he
hoping to
frighten her
so
she would page him
and
beg for protection by
her
big, strong man?  What if she had called security?  How embarrassing would it have been if they rushed up here only to find it was Travis playing a cruel joke?

Vina was mad as a hornet when she turned the knob and yanked the door open.  The blistering rebuke she’d intended to lay on him was replaced by a startled gasp when Travis stumbled
through the doorway, nearly knocking
Vina
over as he flew
past her.  He must have been leaning on the door when she opened it
and been thrown off balance; a theory that was prove
n
a second later when she heard a loud thump and turned to find him sprawled on the floor.

Her anger forgotten, Vina hastily shut the door and rushed over to see if he was okay.  “Travis…I’m so sorry,” she apologized, dropping to her knees.  “Are you
hurt?  Did you hit your head?  Travis, say something!”

Travis groaned as he rolled onto his back.
  His eyes widened, as if he was surprised to see her.  “Vina, what are you doing in my room, and why…” his gaze swept over the short nightie she was wearing, “are you dressed like that?”

Vina nearly choked
on the indignant outrage
that surged through her. 
Judging by his slurred speech and obvious disorientation, Travis had indulged in a few too many drinks and was so inebriated he
didn’t realize
he’d
gone to the wrong suite.
  To make matters worse,
he actually believed she
had
somehow gained access to his room and was waiting for him
in
a
skimpy
nightie.

“
I am so angry with you right now,” her voice shook. 
“Do you have any idea what you put me through tonight?
”