Sinfully Summer (12 page)

There was nothing she could fault in the room. The luxurious bedspread felt silky to the touch, the mattress dipped under her weight just enough so that she wanted to curl up and purr. Better yet, the en suite meant she didn’t have to share a bathroom with Ric.

She slipped into a pair of leggings and a long pullover wondering what his life had been like before the Castillos had adopted him. He must have faced some horrors growing up on the streets.

As she washed her face and brushed her teeth, she remembered him warning her that Spain had as many thugs as London. Did he meet them? She shuddered. At least now she could guess where his violence came from and where he learned the credit card in the door trick.

Glancing around the plush room, Alexa tried to call on some anger, some fury at having to stay in his home. It was his hotel’s fault, and them spending time together was tense at the best of times. The fact that he must really not have any other options dissolved some of the irritation, but his accidental confession pushed it down till she was left cold.

The clanking of the lift sparked jitters in her belly. She thought about going through to the lounge, making herself at home on the cold sofa but she stopped herself. If she saw him, she’d want to know. Everything. And Ric’s cool brush off in his office told her it wasn’t a topic for conversation.

‘Alexa,’ he called from the lounge.

She eyed the bed, wondering if she dove under the sheets she’d be able to keep her hammering heart at bay enough to feign sleep.

Footsteps sounded in the hall and she crossed to the door, pulled it wide and planted a hand on her hip. She thought if she acted like things were normal, she could forget about his past and start seeing him as someone no different from her father. But Robert Green hadn’t had to deal with homelessness. Like her, he’d been born into the world with more money than he needed.

Ric still wore his dark suit, the white shirt rumpled and his tie had vanished. His hair framed his face in wild tufts and the shadows under his eyes made her heart melt. It took all her willpower to scowl at him instead of running him a hot bath and offering to make him something to eat.

His jaw clenched and he stopped a few feet away. ‘We need to talk.’

‘You want to talk now, after spending the day letting me think that you had a room for me to stay in?’

Anger was good. It made her forget about taking care of him—not that Ric needed her care. Alexa guessed anyone who survived what he had could look after themselves.

‘Kitchen.’ He walked passed her.

She heard the fridge clink open and then a thud as a bottle hit the counter and scurried in after him. Ric poured a huge shot of malt and downed it in one gulp. As he reached for the bottle again, Alexa interrupted him.

‘That bad a day?’ He turned to her, his expression unreadable. Alexa swallowed. ‘Drink won’t make me disappear.’ She tried to lighten his mood with humour but that didn’t seem to work either.

Ric poured another glass, then turned to lean against the worktop. ‘Take a seat,’ he instructed before bringing the tumbler to his lips and taking a sip this time. ‘If you’re going to be under my roof for the next three weeks, we need to set ground rules.’

Slumping onto the chair, she ground her teeth against the bollocking she wanted to throw at him. Under his roof
.
Biting her tongue, she consoled herself that now she didn’t feel sorry for the little boy who grew up on the streets or wonder what happened to him. No, now she saw the kind of man her father was. An arrogant, bossy, blackmailing, control-freak. Hot chest or not, Alexa was pleased to feel nothing other than anger. Looked like her hormones had finally acquired some common sense.

‘There will be no partying. If you’re not back by ten, the elevator will be locked and you won’t be able to come in.’

‘A ten o’clock curfew! Are you serious?’ Unbelievable. He was worse than Robert.

‘Yes. And under no circumstances will you bring anyone back.’

Alexa thought her body would explode with the anger burning through her veins. She couldn’t believe he assumed she would bring men back here and have sex with them, and the inflection in his tone said that’s exactly what he meant.

Well, he could think again. She got up and stormed across the cold tiles. Poking a finger into his chest, she said, ‘Honestly Ric, if I want to sleep with some hottie I meet at a bar, I wouldn’t bring him back here for you to ruin the mood.’

His eyes darkened in a way that had her brain screaming at her to shut up, that pushing him would be dangerous, but the words slipped out anyway. ‘And as for the curfew, I’m not sixteen. How do you expect me to meet all these men you think I’ll bring back to your home if I have to be in ridiculously early?’

His chocolate eyes, usually warm, now looked like they’d scorch the sockets. With a rigid jaw, he bent down so his lips were an inch from hers. Alexa’s hormones exploded like fireworks, but the anger hadn’t gone. No, the lust just ignited it further. She wanted to strangle him, wanted to kiss him and bite his lips, wanted…something.

‘You’re walking down a dangerous path,
querida
.’ The husky tone held a note of warning.

But Alexa had never listened to warnings and even if she wanted to stop, she couldn’t. If she didn’t get out what she needed to, she felt like she’d stop breathing with the pressure inside.

‘And you don’t have the right to control me, it’s my life. I’ll live it as I please. I am doing you a favour. If I wanted to go out and sleep with all the men in Spain—’

Ric hauled her against his chest and his lips crushed down on hers. The pressure inside her erupted into molten heat, bubbling through her veins. She fisted her hands in his hair and kissed him back, meeting his hunger with her own. When his tongue forced its way into her mouth, she sucked it in further. Her knees weakened at the taste of him.

Pushing away from the counter, he spun their bodies and then shoved her against the fridge, never letting up on the assault on her mouth. She didn’t care, not now. Not when his taste made her burn all over and the place between her thighs throb with increasing need.

His hands slid under her top, right up to her naked breasts. He skimmed the curve beneath with each thumb. Knees weak, she sagged against the fridge, her head thumping off the chrome as she panted. He hadn’t even really touched her yet and she was on the edge, ready to explode.

Those lips eased up on hers. He trailed softer kisses along her jaw, down the column of her throat to the base, at the same time he teased her hardened nipples. A whimper escaped her lips. If the blood wasn’t pounding in every one of her pulse points, she’d probably have blushed at the sound she made.

Both their haggard breathing filled the room as his hands and lips focused on her intently. Alexa’s mind fogged—or maybe she’d lost common sense—because the only thing she could think about was the fact that they both wore too many clothes.

Ric lifted his head and she glimpsed his feral hunger but, before she could consider it, he whipped her top right over her head. His gaze fell to her breasts which swelled in an attempt to get closer to him.

‘
Eres muy hermosa
.’

She wanted to ask what he said, wanted his lips back on her. Ric reached for her and she’d have met him half-way if she thought her legs would work. His shaking hand froze and his gaze lifted from her chest. She could see indecision, pain, tightening his expression.

Well, maybe the bastard should have thought about it before he stuck his tongue down her throat.

The molten heat morphed into cold sludge in her veins. She covered her breasts with an arm, ignoring the painful jolt in her heart. Bending down, she picked up her jumper and tugged it on. Ric walked back to the counter and downed another glass of liquor. Her eyes pricked and for the first time in her life, she felt truly rejected. Oh, she’d known her father hadn’t loved her, not really, but he still needed her to do his bidding. Ric didn’t want to want her, which hit her stomach like a heap of bricks. Even though she didn’t want to want him either.

‘I suppose that was my fault too?’ she asked, folding her arms across her breasts in the hope of hiding her arousal.
Bloody hormones.

‘No.’ His voice sounded rough. With his back to her, he went on, ‘That can’t happen again. You and I…’ Ric shook his head.

Alexa rubbed her chest in the hope it would take away the pain. She was too young to have a heart attack. ‘Would be a mistake,’ she finished for him. The words sounded right and it was what she really wanted. It didn’t stop the hurt though.

A part of her mind wondered if Sarah had been right, if her feelings for Ric would grow into something more. No.

He turned to her, his gaze searched her face. Twice he’d seen her almost naked and he’d still managed to reject her. Nothing like that to give a girl a complex.

‘Yes, it would.’

He looked relieved by her agreement. Maybe the turmoil inside didn’t show on her face. ‘You lost the bet.’ Just like she knew he would.

Ric nodded, a sober expression on his face. She turned and went back to her room. Sinking into the silky sheets, the bed didn’t make her want to purr this time. Everything was going to hell and nothing made sense any more.

He wasn’t who she thought he was, or at least not completely. What man could walk away from a willing woman when he’d been so aroused? And he had been, she’d felt it hard against her stomach. She pressed her face into the pillow to muffle her scream.

Even the thought of dragging him to Water World didn’t cheer her up. He’d surely hate it but what was the point in goading him? She couldn’t sum up the will to torture him even though he was torturing her. And now she knew he’d prefer to go without rather than sleep with her.

Rolling over again to find a comfier spot on the bed, Alexa wondered what it was about her that repelled him so completely. She didn’t have a petite frame but, from that first day he’d caught her here in his penthouse, she knew her body wasn’t the problem. That only meant that it had to be her reputation and personality.

Squeezing her eyes shut she tried to summon her earlier anger but she felt like a balloon that had just been popped. Alexa knew these three weeks would probably be the longest of her life.

Chapter Eight

By Friday morning, Alexa hadn’t seen Ric once since the kiss. She didn’t know whether to feel disappointed or elated but her heart swayed toward the former. Running two hands down the front of her pencil skirt, she smiled, knowing that this was a skirt he’d approve of. It was long enough to hide the navy plaster on her knee.

She pushed the door to the bistro open and gave the server her name. He escorted her past linen covered tables through to the terrace at the other side. The summer sun had cooled off a bit today, so the suit jacket wasn’t too much to lunch in and she wanted to look as respectful as possible for this meeting. Charm, innocence and making a better second impression.

Mr Santos rose from the table and pulled out the chair opposite. With a warm smile, Alexa slid into it and did her best to ignore the butterflies swarming in her stomach.

‘It seems you are just as beautiful in a suit as you are a dress, Miss Green.’

Her stomach dipped remembering the dress and the way she’d acted at the first function Ric had taken her to. Hoping she could change his mind by showing a different side of herself, she said, ‘Thank you, Mr Santos.’

He nodded and then filled her glass with wine. ‘I am surprised to have received the request to meet after our last encounter, but I can’t deny my curiosity.’

Bringing the wine to her lips, she sipped the fruity liquid wishing she could down the whole lot. Maybe then her hands would stop shaking.

‘I wanted to personally apologise for my behaviour at the party.’ And now that she had an idea of how much it meant to Ric, she wanted Santos to reconsider and come to the charity ball.

Mr Santos nodded. ‘I accept, but is that the only reason you asked to meet?’

He gazed at her over the rim of the glass and she knew he was assessing her body language. Fighting the urge to swallow she smiled.

‘Not the only reason. I’d like you and your wife to reconsider Mr Castillo’s invitation.’ She had a freshly printed one in her bag, sans the ‘fun’ part.

‘Miss Green, my wife thinks associating ourselves with you will taint her reputation.’

Alexa’s heart thumped out an unsteady beat. She wished the stick insect was there so she could pitch the remainder of her wine over her peroxide mane. Instead, she smiled warmly.

‘I understand. The British media love a good story and I’ve never given them a reason not to follow me.’ For the first time in her life, she wished she could grab her eighteen year old self by the shoulders and shake some sense into her. ‘But the worst of what they printed happened years ago. I’m not that silly little girl any more. I run my own business in London. The last picture taken outside of a nightclub was unfortunate. A reporter caught me stumbling when the heel of my shoe snapped.’

‘I can’t say I’ve seen any of the pictures, but my wife is adamant that you are a renowned party girl.’

After another sip of wine, he smiled warmly at her—the same one he’d given her when they’d met. Her shoulders relaxed.

‘But between you and me, my wife is prone to exaggerating the truth.’ He winked at her before polishing off the remainder of his glass. She grinned back. ‘Why don’t we finish this bottle?’

‘I’d love to.’ The tightness in her chest evaporated and she enjoyed the rest of the afternoon with Mr Santos who insisted she call him Pablo.

The elevator doors opened. Ric took a deep breath before he stepped into the penthouse. Tonight would be the first time he’d laid eyes on Alexa since Wednesday evening and he had no idea how she’d react to him. Luckily, he’d been needed more and more at the building site and emails regarding the charity ball were the only communication that passed between them. The formal way they’d been addressing one another didn’t sit well with him, but when the alternative led to him kissing her, he didn’t want to stir things up. Leaving his home at the crack of dawn and returning after midnight meant he’d never had to see her, even though he felt the pull to her stronger than ever.