Page 58 of Modern Romance October 2025 5-8

‘And you think he’s not above planting his daughter in a rival hotel for a bit of spying.’

He heard relief in his manager’s voice as he said, ‘Perhaps there’s an innocent explanation. But some of the stories I’ve heard about Alfredo Barbieri…’

Were probably correct. As Gio knew too well. His hackles rose and his grip tightened on the phone as he thought of Barbieridaringto mess with him.

‘It’s okay. You did the right thing.’

Barbieri wasn’t above commercial espionage. Or actual sabotage.

While Gio had tried to put the past behind him, deciding a fulfilled life was better than the bitterness of dwelling on old pain, Barbieri was the sort to harbour hatred for a lifetime. And to cause untold damage, even to innocents. Gio’s gut spasmed as he remembered.

Barbieri probably kept a detailed dossier on him and his business interests, which was one of the reasons Gio’s security was second to none. Gio certainly kept tabs on the older man, but only as a commercial competitor. He didn’t stoop to spying and certainly had no idea what his family looked like.

That didn’t mean he’d sit back and let Barbieri target him in a dirty tricks campaign.

‘I’m on my way back from Venice. I’ll be there this evening.’ His suite at the hotel was always ready for when he chose to stay in Rome. ‘I want to see this Stella White for myself. But put the word out amongst the staff that I’ll be incognito. I don’t want them referring to me by name.’

If his suspicions were right, it wouldn’t make any difference. Stella Barbieri would already know exactly who he was. She’d have been briefed by her father.

And if she didn’t recognise him? He shook his head. It could mean she was innocent and it was coincidence that she’d chosen to stay in the hotel of her father’s greatest rival.

But Gio didn’t believe in coincidence. When it came to Barbieri, innocence was an impossibility.

Gio watched the woman cross the foyer, pausing as she frowned over her phone.

Itwasher, Stella Barbieri. He’d looked her up online and there was no mistake.

He should be pleased that he was onto Barbieri’s ruse. Yet he felt no satisfaction. The knowledge sat cold and unpalatable in Gio’s belly. Even now, watching her loiter in the lobby, he didn’t want to believe she was Barbieri’s daughter and, it seemed, as deceitful as he.

Because he didn’t want to be dragged back into Barbieri’s orbit?

Or because she had big brown eyes and an air of vulnerability? That had to be an act.

He’d recently moved his headquarters to a building behind the hotel, connected by a glassed walkway. It was the hub of his operations, not only in Italy but across Europe and North America. Was that her target rather than the hotel? Or was it both?

What was her plan? To latch onto one of the hotel employees? Persuade them to part with sensitive information?

Something stirred deep within at the thought of her trying topersuadehis staff to be indiscreet. Obviously she’d target a man. In her white jeans and lemon-yellow shirt she looked summery and attractive. More, she looked…innocent.

Gio’s lips twisted. Innocent!

That had to be an act. Every photo he’d found of her showed her soignée in designer fashion, her hair up, emphasising the elegant line of her slender throat. She favoured ultra-feminine dresses or crisply tailored jackets and skirts, with high heels that drew attention to the seductive lines of her legs.

Stella Barbieri stopped again, this time near a cluster of huge potted plants. She looked the epitome of casual sexiness with her low sandals, high ponytail and glowing natural beauty.

Too deliberately casual?

Adrenaline pumped in his veins, and anger too.

His family had paid an impossibly high price for knowing Alfredo Barbieri. Gio refused to let his family’s nemesis take any more.

It was time to turn the tables. He might have decided not to waste his life pursuing a vendetta. But Barbieri had gone too far, sending her intohisterritory.

Andshe… Soon she’d discover her father wasn’t the only dangerous man in this business.

Gio stepped out from the shadowed area beyond the sweeping staircase, crossing the marble floor towards her. She moved too, head down, focused on her phone.

Then out of nowhere came a flash of bright red hair, a small body hurtling out of the lift towards the bright sunlight beyond the glass entry doors.