Sweet Temptation by Cora Reilly

Cassio kept his promise. The next day he came home at dinnertime. To be
honest, I was surprised. I hadn’t thought he’d keep his promise that he’d given
with my naked body on top of him. Maybe I had my own trust issues to work
through.
He looked surprised when he walked into the kitchen where we had dinner
the last few days. Sybil stood from where she was seated, obviously unsure how
to act. Elia stood as well and inclined his head before he grabbed his plate and
headed through the backdoor, probably toward the guard house. He and I’d
cleared things up in the morning after Cassio informed him that I knew what was
going on. Elia had been awkward after that, obviously embarrassed, but I’d told
him that he’d done his job and that I wasn’t angry. He couldn’t have told Cassio
“no” after all.
“Why don’t you eat in the dining room?” he asked. Simona grinned when
she spotted her dad. Her fingers and cheeks were smeared with smashed peas,
but Cassio didn’t seem to mind. He walked up to her, pressed a kiss to her
forehead, and barely escaped her dirty grabby hands before she could ruin his
suit.
Daniele didn’t react in any way, only clutched the fork with the speared
carrot slice in his little fist. For a moment, I caught the longing in his eyes,
though. He wanted to be close to his dad, but something stopped him. Cassio
turned to Daniele and kissed the top of his head before he walked up to me.
Daniele watched us closely. Cassio touched my shoulder and squeezed lightly
before he took a seat across from me. I couldn’t deny it. I was disappointed. I
wished he’d have kissed me. Maybe he worried how Daniele would react. After
all, his mom had been dead for only six months.
“I prefer to have dinner in the dining room,” he said simply.