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One
This tione too far
Rafe Dante stared at the bevy of wo subtly—and not so subtly—paraded beneath his nose by various family members He’d lost count of the number of women he’d been forced to shake hands with He knehy they were doing it They were all deterrimaced No, more than just a wife
They hoped to find his Inferno soul otten seriously out of hand For some reason, his family had it firmly fixed in their heads that it took only one touch for soed between a Dante and his soul et it?
Not only didn’t he believe in The Inferno, but he had no interest in ever experiencing h, had taught him that lesson in the short span of time from “I do” to “My laill be in touch” Of course, that phone call had never coo his wife had chartered a private plane to Mexico to recover froe to him and met a far worse fate when her plane crashed into ano survivors
Rafe’s younger brother, Draco, joined him and folded his ar the roo contents, both jeweled and female “Ready to surrender and just pick one?”
“Get serious”
“I am Dead serious”
Rafe turned on his brother, only too happy to vent some of his irritation “Do you have any idea what the past three months have been like?”
“I do I’ve been watching from the sidelines, in case you hadn’t noticed I’m also keenly aware that once you succu squad As far as I’ as possible”
“I’ on it”
Rafe returned his attention to the shihed Dantes international jewelry reception possessed everything ahe wanted
The wine came from a Sonoma, California, vineyard just a few hours from the family’s San Francisco home office He knew the label on the bottles was as exclusive as the guest list The women were beautiful, wealthy and shone as brilliantly as the wedding rings on display around the private showroo… Well, that often fell within his purview, at least it did when Dantes Courier Service transported the stunning array of gemstones and finished pieces
And yet Rafe was nagged by a sense of utter boredom How many times had he attended receptions siilant eye from the shadows Always the watchful lone wolf instinctively avoided by the guests, until one family member or another thrust a potential bride in his direction It was a pattern that had repeated itself so many times he’d lost count
This occasion celebrated the exclusive release of the latest Dantes collection, the Eternity line of one-of-a-kind wedding rings Each was unique, co the fire diamonds for which his fas, the company owned by Rafe’s sister-in-law, Téa Dante, who’d married his older brother, Luc, three s that symbolized love and commitment filled Rafe with bitterness
Been there Done that Still had the scars to prove it
And then he saw her
The little blonde pixie working the reception as one of the caterers couldn’t claieous woman in the room, but for some reason Rafe couldn’t take his eyes off her
He couldn’t say why she attracted his attention or explain the vague sizzle she stirred Granted, her features were quite lovely, delicate and fine boned with enough whi Maybe it was her hair and eyes—hair the same shade as the ice-white sand of a Caribbean island and eyes the glorious turquoise of the rolling ocean waves that splashed and frolicked across those pristine beaches Then there was that sizzle he couldn’t explain, a vague coet closer to her in every possible way
She circulated through the display roo glide thatIn fact, she possessed a dancer’s body, lean and graceful, if a bit pint-size, every delectable inch showcased by the fitted black slacks and tight red vest of her uniform