Читать книгу Modern Romance Collection: November 2017 Books 5 - 8 - Annie West - Страница 16

CHAPTER FIVE

THE LAST THING Lydia had expected was Raul to announce they were going away for the weekend and to be driven out of Madrid, into the countryside. Even more of a shock was the fact that he had relented and agreed to take her to see his mother. In the short time she’d spent with Raul, Lydia knew he didn’t do anything on a whim. Everything had a purpose. So what was this visit all about?

The question lingered in her mind until finally, after what had felt like hours of driving, due to the tension filling the car, he turned off the road. The car tyres scrunched over the gravel drive of a country villa, typically Spanish in every way. Not at all like the grandeur of his Madrid penthouse apartment.

‘This is nice,’ she said lightly as he turned off the engine, silence filling the car, blending with that ever-present tension as he looked at her. She’d been acutely aware of his presence next to her, of every move he’d made as he’d driven first on the busy roads away from the city and then to the quieter and smaller roads through farmland, interspersed with villages.

‘My weekend retreat,’ he offered as he got out of the car. She watched him walk around the front of it and towards her door, rebelliously enjoying the view of his long legs and lean body encased, as always, in a suit, which did little to hide his strength. Memories of how it had felt to be pressed against his body as rain had soaked them rushed back at her, adding to the air of expectancy zinging between them.

Aware he would think she was waiting for him to open her door, she quickly did so herself and slipped out of the low sports car. Standing outside in the fresh air of winter, she expected to feel less intimidated by him, but after the previous night and the kiss that had set fire to her whole body she was anything but. There wasn’t any escape from the attraction, no relief from the sizzle of tension now.

She couldn’t allow herself to be drawn in by it—by him. She had to keep in mind his motives for bringing her to Spain, to this romantic villa. It was purely money and wealth that drove him; not the need to find a brother he’d never known of, purely money. He might have all the trappings of wealth, but other than that he was no different from Daniel, wanting her for what she had, not who she really was.

‘And your mother lives here?’ She hoped the question was light and casual, belying the turmoil in her mind, but the look he fired her way was far from that. It was cold and calculating. Distanced yet intense.

‘No, she lives about half an hour’s drive into the hills.’

So she was alone with him again and this time there wouldn’t be an office to escape to. ‘I see.’

‘You made yourself perfectly clear last night, Lydia. You have nothing to fear from being here with me.’ The brusqueness of his voice backed up his words and she tried not to be disappointed as a small reckless part of her wanted him to kiss her again—and much more. She pushed that woman aside. She had to remain strong and as detached as he evidently was. It was the only way.

‘So we are here purely to see your mother?’

‘Sí. Did you think I had ulterior motives for bringing you here?’ Raul’s dark eyes fixed her to the spot, but the haughty façade she lived behind served her well.

‘Only to increase your wealth.’

He stepped towards her, but she stood firm, retained her cool composure. ‘All I want, Lydia, is for you to find my brother. Then I can secure the future of the company by settling the extortionate debts your father has run up and move forward in my life.’

Before she could register his words, he turned and walked towards the door of the villa. Deep within her, hidden expertly away, she trembled with shock. It might be her father’s debts he wanted repaid, but he’d just confirmed he was no better than either his father or hers. This was all about greed.

He opened the door and stepped back for her to enter the villa, which was not at all what she’d expected of this hard and dominating businessman. This was more like a home. It was comfortable and welcoming, not a sleek modern angle in sight. It was the kind of place she would choose, the kind of place to finally put down roots.

Her early years had been spent moving from one house to the next. She’d never had time to settle, time to make friends before the family was on the move again. Then, if that wasn’t unsettling enough, her mother had left her with her father. Luckily her grandmother had stepped in and her father had been all too ready to allow her to live with her grandmother, the only time she’d felt she belonged.

She pushed away that yearning need to make a place a home, to actually belong somewhere, and focused her attention on the reason for being here in the first place. To ensure her grandmother didn’t find out just how low her own son had sunk.

‘Then I suggest the sooner I can speak with your mother, the better. Time is ticking away and as I have no intention at all of marrying you in three weeks’ time I want my father’s debt settled.’ She tried to hide her see-sawing emotions and appear as calm as he was, watching as he moved around the villa, looking out of place in his smart suit. The ruthless businessman she’d come to know didn’t fit here at all.

‘You will not ask her anything directly.’ Raul’s firm voice snapped in the air around them like the first clap of thunder as a storm broke.

‘Then how am I supposed to fulfil my part of the deal?’ What was he trying to hide or, more to the point, what didn’t he want her to know?

‘My parents’ marriage was an arranged one and even as a young child I sensed the undercurrent of dislike between her and my father. They barely tolerated one another.’ Each word was emotionless and matter-of-fact. Exactly how she would describe her childhood and attempt to hide the hurt emotions of the child that still remained. Was Raul hurting too? Could it be that he was more capable of emotions than he wanted her to believe?

‘That is a scenario I am familiar with.’ She dropped the words in casually as she looked around the villa, liking it more with each passing second.

He looked at her as he walked across the room and opened doors to the terrace, the cool air of winter rushing in, fresh and stimulating. When his eyes met hers seconds later, that mask of indifference was well and truly in place. ‘My father led a double life, Lydia. For eight years he had two families.’

When she didn’t speak he continued, ‘I was sent to boarding school from a very young age and never knew family life. When I came home it was to hostilities and stand-offs. Then one day he was gone. So although I assume my mother knows all about the affairs my father had after that, as well as the mistress he’d lived with and had a family with alongside ours, I would rather she didn’t have to face it head-on.’

‘Fine,’ she said as she watched him, tall and powerful against the backdrop of the rural room of the villa. ‘I will find a way to enquire about Max without being too obvious.’

‘You will also leave her in no doubt that we are lovers. I don’t want her to find out what my father has done—ever.’

‘Why did he do it? Set the terms of his will like that?’

‘He obviously thought I was like him and that I would not tolerate sharing the success of the business with anyone. I suspect he thought I would find an enforced marriage more preferable.’ The bitterness in his voice was clear, but deep down she didn’t believe he was like that.

He looked at her, his eyes locking with hers for a moment, then walked out through the open doors onto a terrace that boasted a pool, covered now for the colder winter months, and, beyond that, stunning views of the countryside.

She watched as he walked across the terrace, saw the tension in his shoulders when he stood with his back to her, rigid and upright; sympathy filled her. She knew what it was like to grow up in a home where parents didn’t even know the meaning of the word marriage, let alone love. Such an upbringing had made her yearn for love and happiness, a desire that had led to one disastrous relationship and now this, a fake engagement. Would she ever find love? Did it really exist?

‘Won’t it hurt your mother more when she finds out our relationship is fake?’ She walked out onto the terrace, the chill of the afternoon making her shiver. Or was it the coldness coming from the man who’d kissed her so passionately she’d nearly gone up in flames?

‘That is a risk I am prepared to take.’ He turned to face her, the set of his jaw hard and angular. ‘I’d rather she thinks my engagement failed when we go back to our lives than learn the full extent of my father’s deceit and treachery.’

‘As you wish.’

‘It goes without saying that whatever you discover must never become common knowledge, something which you agreed to adhere to in the contract.’ He turned to face her, hard lines of worry on his brow. He still didn’t trust her, even though she was doing this to clear her name and her father’s debts.

‘You don’t trust me at all, do you?’

‘I never trust anyone, Lydia. Trust is like love—an empty word that people pretend to believe in.’

‘Do you really believe that?’ She couldn’t believe the venom of his words.

‘I do, but I have no wish to discuss it.’ He walked from the room and she knew he meant it; the discussion was over. She only hoped his mother was easier to talk to. The sooner she found out the name his brother might be using, the sooner she could walk away from Raul and his unyielding presence.

* * *

By the time they had finished the meal with his mother later that evening, Raul was beginning to think that maybe he could trust Lydia. For the entire evening she’d put on a brilliant show of being his fiancée. She’d acted to perfection the part of a woman who loved him and wanted to be with him for the rest of her life. She’d even convinced his mother that their chance meeting just a short while ago was lovers’ fate as she’d excitedly shown her the engagement ring.

‘I never thought I would see the day my son fell in love.’ His mother’s words, said in heavily accented English. Her enthusiasm for their happiness grated on his conscience and guilt nudged at him for the lies he had told her and the lies still yet to come. He’d told Lydia he’d rather his mother think their romance had ended than know the truth, but now, seeing the happiness on her face, he wasn’t so sure.

‘When is the wedding?’ his mother asked as she sipped at her wine.

‘Christmas Eve.’ Despite Lydia’s subtle scrutiny, he managed to say it calmly, but didn’t miss the question on his mother’s face.

‘Why the rush?’ For a moment she grappled with her limited English.

He took Lydia’s hand and looked into her eyes. ‘I met the woman I love. Why wait?’

Lydia held his gaze, blushing prettily and very convincingly, then smiled up at him. A warm smile that lit up her eyes, sending those sparks of lust hurtling through him once more as memories of their kiss in the rain surfaced.

‘We want to be married and, as neither of us wants a big fancy affair with lots of guests, Christmas Eve seemed perfect.’

‘Then you are not...?’ His mother’s question died away as he turned his attention to her, pulling Lydia close against him.

‘No. Goodness.’ Lydia laughed and the relief on his mother’s face shocked him. Did she suspect there was more to this engagement than love? Worse still, did she somehow know what his father had done with his will? She might have been a distant figure in his childhood, thanks to his father’s influence, but she was still his mother and that counted for something at least. He had no wish to hurt her.

‘We want to marry, as soon as possible and with the minimum of fuss.’ He spoke first in fast Spanish, to ensure his mother understood, then repeated it in English as he looked at Lydia.

‘And we’d like you to be there,’ Lydia enthused and Raul inwardly groaned as she got carried away with the role she was acting out. One more bit of deceit to extricate himself from.

‘I will be.’ His mother smiled then hugged them both in turn. He watched as Lydia hugged her back, recalling the little she’d told him of her childhood. She had painted a very cold picture. Had she missed out on a mother’s love?

‘There is one other person we’d like at the wedding,’ Lydia said softly, almost absently. Her skills for acting were very convincing. He’d have to be wary of that.

‘I think I know who that might be.’ His mother responded to Lydia but looked at him and he had the strange sensation of being out of control, completely at another person’s mercy, something he’d long ago decided never to be again. ‘His name is Maximiliano, after his father.’

To hear it confirmed—from his mother—hurt like hell. He had never been the son his father had wanted, even from the moment he’d been born. The honour of being given his father’s name had been bestowed on the son he’d truly wanted.

‘Do you know where we can find him?’ Lydia asked, not taking her attention from his mother once. Could she sense his anger, his growing dislike for a brother he’d never known, the only son his father had wanted?

She shook her head and changed the conversation immediately to something completely different, preferring to indulge in a conversation about village life, and Raul knew the opportunity had passed. He shook his head at Lydia as she looked up at him. He didn’t want his mother hounded about this. It obviously made her as angry as it made him.

He’d lost his father and she’d lost her husband. Of course she didn’t want to bring her husband’s love child into their lives now and she most certainly wouldn’t want him at her son’s wedding. No, this wasn’t the way to find out about his brother.

‘We need to go back to the villa,’ he said, smiling at his mother, trying to ignore the shocked look on Lydia’s face. He would have to find another way of tracing his brother. He was not going to have his mother’s life turned upside down just because his father had made one last dig at both of his sons, pitching them against each other.

He guided Lydia towards the door, wanting to leave before something more was said to upset his mother, and was standing beneath the archway, which in summer became covered in bougainvillea, when his mother called to Lydia, who exchanged a glance with him then went back to see her. He waited, not wanting to see the moment when his mother would be duped once more into thinking he and Lydia were in love. A few minutes later, Lydia reappeared, looking as uncomfortable as he felt. At least she had a conscience.

He wanted to ask her what had been said, but decided against it. In a few weeks the fake engagement would be over and whatever it was wouldn’t matter any more.

* * *

Lydia had clutched her small bag in her lap as Raul had navigated the twisty turns of the road back to his villa, aware that she was now holding the key to her freedom. His mother had pushed an old envelope into her hands and the words she’d spoken in heavily accented English still collided with Lydia’s conscience. She should have put the woman at ease and spoken Spanish, but she was still uneasy about doing so after Raul’s put-down and she wasn’t yet ready to prove to him she was anything other than an empty-headed party girl.

She stood now, looking out over the dark countryside, wondering what exactly was in the envelope and why his mother had kept it from him all along. She’d have to wait until she was alone. The last thing she wanted to do was unleash the secret until she knew what it was and if it would help her find Raul’s brother. She had to know if it really did reveal enough to enable her to walk away from Raul, her father’s debts cleared. She could still hear his mother’s words as she’d thrust the envelope into her hands, struggling to put what she wanted to say into English. Her eyes, as dark as her son’s but much softer, had implored Lydia to listen, to hear what she had to say. It was the kind of look that crossed any language barrier.

‘I have guarded this secret from my son since the day he was born and now, as the woman he loves, it is your secret to guard—or share.’

‘What wise words did my mother give you?’ Raul’s voice made her jump as he came up behind her. His nearness set off the thudding in her heart and she tried to tell herself it was because of the secret she now held and definitely not because of the man.

‘You startled me,’ she said as she whirled round to face him, finding herself just that little bit too close. He looked down at her, questions and suspicion brimming in his eyes.

Today she’d seen a very different man from the hard businessman she’d first met in London and her thoughts towards him were changing. Just like her, he had every reason to portray a tough exterior to the world. But knowing this made her vulnerable to him and, worse, made it dangerous being close to a man she was undeniably attracted to. Apart from that kiss last night, she’d kept her distance and her sanity, but now, holding the key to his past and to her freedom, her resistance had slipped a little lower.

‘Did she tell you anything more about my brother?’ His words were soft and coaxing but fierceness in his eyes betrayed his emotions more clearly than she was certain he would have wanted.

‘No, she didn’t tell me anything about your brother.’ Lydia embellished the truth, not liking having to lie, but until she knew what was in that envelope she couldn’t tell him. Partly to protect him but more out of respect for whatever it was that his mother had concealed. She must have had a good reason for doing it, but as soon as Lydia knew she would tell him and then hopefully free herself of this ridiculous contract.

‘She must have said something.’ His dark eyes narrowed in suspicion and she glanced at her bag as it lay on the table behind him, holding the information about his brother that they both needed to know. For her it was freedom and for him it was nothing but gaining yet more wealth.

‘She believes we are in love, Raul,’ she said and walked away from him, needing to create some space around her. She needed to think and find a way to hide the ever-increasing attraction that had far more to do with a genuine interest in him than the spark of lust-filled desire he had referred to. ‘She just wanted to wish us well and make sure I knew how happy she was that you’d found someone to love.’

His eyes narrowed and he said something under his breath in Spanish. Something she understood.

She thinks I love you?

Lydia ignored the stab of hurt that rushed through her. ‘Of course, I didn’t enlighten her to the fact that neither of us believes in love at all.’

‘This is going to hurt her, when we don’t go through with the marriage.’ He dragged his fingers through his hair, distracting her for a moment from her misgivings, and she tried to focus her mind as he continued in that sexy accent. ‘I didn’t want that.’

‘Then perhaps you should tell her the truth and ask outright if she knows just who her husband was seeing, who the mother of his other son is?’

He turned to glare at her. ‘My father kept another woman’s presence and that of his child from my mother. I do not think she will tell us anything.’

‘But she might know something.’ Lydia tried to keep the desperation from her voice. She had to find his brother. The alternative was just too much to contemplate.

‘No. My father deceived her in the worst possible way—and me.’

‘Maybe this clause in his will is his way of making amends.’ Lydia clutched at futile straws of hope, trying to smooth the roughened waters they were now on. ‘Maybe he’s trying to force you together, to accept one another.’

‘It is a last chance of having a stab at the son he never really wanted.’ Raul’s voice became a growl as he tried to keep his anger in check and deep down she knew his pain. She’d been the daughter her mother and father had not wanted and the only child her mother had carried to term. She knew all about not being wanted.

Despite this she knew he was thinking out loud and for a moment she wanted to tell him about the envelope in her bag. Wouldn’t he want to know its contents? She almost relented, but if she gave it to him wouldn’t that give him all the power once more, when all she wanted to do was get out of the farce of an engagement and back to her life—as a single woman?

‘Well, whatever it is, it’s a mess I intend to get myself out of.’ She spoke forcibly, trying to instil confidence into herself. She had to find a way out of this engagement. She couldn’t risk ending up married to such a cold, unemotional man and, if this was it, she wasn’t prepared to tell him yet.

‘As do I. If you haven’t come up with something within the next few days, then we will have to build on our show of an engagement. Start making more definite plans.’

‘Won’t that give your mother false hope? After all, neither of us plans to go through with this marriage.’

‘Right now I would rather she discover that we are not in love and not getting married than discover the true extent of my father’s treachery.’

‘What is it you have in mind?’ she asked suspiciously, not liking the calculated way his mind worked.

‘We will be seen out in Madrid next week, but the best opportunity to bring a flourishing affair to the attention of the board will be at a thirtieth wedding anniversary party being given by one of them and, knowing the couple concerned, it will be a lavish affair, attended by the elite of Madrid’s society. A chance for you to indulge in your favoured pastime of shopping.’

‘I see, so I am to be paraded around like one of your conquests.’

‘No. You will be on my arm as my intended bride. A very different thing from a conquest.’ There was smugness in his voice. Damn the man. He knew exactly how to get the upper hand.

‘As you wish. I will, as always, do my job to the best of my ability.’ The haughty words flew from her lips and she glared challengingly at him, daring him to disagree.

‘That is all I ask for, Lydia.’

‘Is it?’ She looked hard at him, trying to forget that all-consuming kiss they’d shared in Madrid, the kiss that, if she hadn’t put a stop to it, would have become something they both wanted but couldn’t have. There was no place in their so-called engagement for desire or passion. None whatsoever.

He moved towards her, making her heart leap. ‘Sí, Lydia, it is.’

She sidestepped him. ‘Then I will say goodnight.’

For a moment she thought he was going to say something else, but instead he just smiled, that soft, seductive smile he’d used in his office just hours before she’d all but begged him to kiss her. ‘Goodnight, Lydia.’

Before she could change her mind, she grabbed her purse from the table and went to her room. She closed the door and sat on her bed, taking out the old, yellowed envelope and looking at it for a few moments.

Finally, she opened it, the paper crinkling as she did so. It was in Spanish and she was thankful of her studies. His mother had hired a private investigator and his typewritten reports of Raul’s father’s whereabouts contained all she needed to track Max down.

She was free. They were free. She should tell Raul.

She walked to the door and was about to open it, but paused. What would he think when she went to look for him after the underlying tension in all he’d said before she’d come to her room? Would he think that she wanted to carry on from their kiss? No, she couldn’t risk that, not after the way she had all but begged him to kiss her, to hold her close. A fierce blush rushed over her cheeks as she recalled the way she’d clung to him, pressing her body against his so wantonly.

She couldn’t risk a repeat of that kiss. She had to hold on to the fact that she had all she needed to free herself of Raul Valdez and, if she wanted to, blow his controlled world apart.