Her Shameful Secret Read Online Free PDF

was with Isabella. When they’d been together nothing else had existed. Isabella Williams had been his escape. And eventually his downfall.
    “What did you tell your mother about me?” Isabella grimaced as the question sprang from her lips. She hadn’t meant to ask, but it was obvious that her reputation had preceded her. Isabella knew she shouldn’t care but it bothered her.
    There was something about Antonio’s mother that intimidated her. The woman was beautifully groomed, from her coiffed hair to her pedicured feet, but shealso had an aura of power. No one would treat Maria Rossi with anything less than respect. Isabella had felt grubby next to her.
    “We never discussed you,” he said stiffly.
    She wouldn’t be surprised if that were true. Antonio rarely discussed his family. Everything she knew about his mother and his late father had come from Giovanni. And he’d probably been just as private about his love life with his family.
    Isabella turned and approached Antonio. “But she knows you and I were once together?”
    “Not from me.”
    “Giovanni?” No wonder his mother hated her.
    “My mother was prying into the reason why her sons weren’t on speaking terms again.” Antonio crossed his arms and looked away. “I’m sure Gio concocted some story that made him look like the innocent victim.”
    “Again?” Her tired brain caught onto that word. “You and Giovanni had been estranged before?”
    Antonio’s jaw clenched. “Yes.”
    She felt the weight of guilt lift a little. All this time she’d thought she had ruined the strong bond between brothers. “But how could that be?” she asked as she remembered Giovanni and Antonio together. They’d had a tendency to use the same expressions, finish each other’s sentences. “You two were close.”
    Antonio shrugged. “Gio had been trying to make amends and was on his best behavior. It was one of the few times we got along.”
    “Why did you accept him back into your life?” That didn’t seem like something Antonio would do. You screwed up once and you were banished from Antonio’s life. You didn’t get another chance.
    “I thought he had changed.” He sighed. “I wanted him to change.”
    She saw the grief in his expression. She wanted to reach out and bring him comfort, but she knew Antonio would not appreciate the gesture. “How old were you when you first stopped talking to each other?”
    His harsh features tightened. “I don’t want to discuss it.”
    “Why not?”
    “I answered your questions, now it’s my turn.”
    Isabella jerked her head back. She saw the intensity in his eyes, the determined set of his jaw. Was he really trying to deflect her questions or had this all been a technique to draw her closer? Make her think he was opening up to her so she would feel obligated to do the same?
    Isabella braced her shoulders. “I didn’t agree to that.”
    “Why did Gio include you in his will?”
    “I have no idea. I didn’t ask him to.” But she suspected she knew the answer. Giovanni had been playing games and now she was going to lose everything.
    “The lawyers say that Gio changed his will a month ago.”
    Isabella paled. That could not be a coincidence. “S-so?”
    Antonio tilted his head to one side as he studied her face. “You know why. No one else does. No one knows why he gave you millions.”
    “M-millions?” she whispered. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
    “And half the shares in Rossi Industries.”
    “What?” The shock reverberated through her body.
    “He gave you half my birthright,” Antonio said in a growl.
    She clapped her hand over her mouth. Oh, Giovanni. What have you done? Why did you do this?
    “I lost part of my birthright once before,” his said, his voice a harsh whisper. “I have no intention of losing it again.”
    Isabella frowned. She felt like she was missing crucial information. “What are you talking about?”
    Antonio didn’t hear her. “Why did Gio give all this to you ?