THE WAVES OF the Mediterranean were sharper this morning, capped white as a brisk wind barreled over the water. Clouds darkened the horizon, puffy gray transitioning to a dark slate that advanced ever closer toward land.
Memories assailed her, of another stormy day long ago when rain had fallen into Lake Geneva as she sat on the window seat of her mother’s room. Johanna and she had escaped into the luxury of their mother’s suite as thunder had roared. Mom had been in bed, her skin so papery thin Calandra had imagined she could see her bones just below the surface.
Johanna had climbed into bed and snuggled against Mom’s listless body. Calandra, unable to stomach the knowledge that their mother was wasting away from a broken heart, had gone to the window seat, leaned her head against the cold glass and watched the drops fall onto the lake.
“Calandra,” her mother had whispered at last. Calandra had turned to look back at her, dark hair spread across the pillow, lips pale so that when she smiled, she looked like a ghost.
And then she’d uttered the words that had governed Calandra’s life ever since.
You’re so strong.
Was it the weather taking her to such dark memories? Or her own cringeworthy actions from the night before? She’d relived seeing that smile on his face, that horrid smile that she had put there with her cold words and her casual dismissal of the passion they’d shared, at least a dozen times since she’d gotten up.
It hadn’t been his fault. Far from it. She had been the one to kiss him. Once she started, she hadn’t been able to stop, her desire an addiction she’d needed to sate.
And then she’d been so angry with herself, so horrified at her behavior, that she’d taken it out on him.
Alejandro had called a driver to pick her up at the port and take her back to the villa. After spending an hour crafting half a dozen statements as she’d paced the guest quarters, she’d tossed them all out the window and decided that maybe, just for once, she’d wing it, let her emotions and remorse speak for themselves when Alejandro returned.
But he hadn’t come back. She’d sat up until nearly one in the morning waiting for his headlights to appear on the drive. Doubt had crept in with every passing of the hand on the clock in her room. She’d found her release under his skillful lovemaking. He’d had none. What if he had decided to seek out someone in Marseille? It wouldn’t be any of her business; they weren’t a couple, and her treatment of him—her employer, the father of her child, her only lover to date—had been abhorrent.
She had absolutely no business being jealous. No reason for experiencing the same kind of hurt she’d felt when she’d spotted that tabloid magazine at the supermarket and seen him walking into the hotel in London with that actress on his arm, gazing up at him in adoration.
At least that’s what she kept telling herself as she sipped her tea.
Thunder rumbled across the water, soft yet so deep she felt it in her bones. The sensation relaxed her muscles as she leaned back into her chair.
An angry voice yanked away her precious moment of peace. She sat straight up, her head whipping around as furious Spanish filled the air.
Calandra’s breath caught when she caught full sight of him. His hair was combed back from his face, damp like he’d just come out of the shower. With a loose gray shirt hanging off his broad shoulders, blue jeans clinging to those muscular legs and bare feet padding against the patio stones, the sexily casual look fanned the lust that seemed to always be within arm’s reach these days.
It wasn’t just how perfectly his clothes molded to his physique, though. No, it was the firmness in his granite jaw, the blazing anger in his stormy eyes, the tautness of his biceps beneath the shirtsleeves as he cursed into the phone.
“Terminamos con esta conversación. Adiós.”
He dropped into the chair opposite her. He blinked, then suddenly focused on her as if seeing her for the first time. The anger disappeared as he flashed her a cocky grin. One that didn’t quite reach his eyes.
“Parents. Hopefully I do better in that role than my father.”
He said it in jest, but his words caught her attention. “He wasn’t a good father?”
It was like watching a door being slammed shut as his face hardened. Just as it had last night. He grabbed an orange from the fruit bowl and focused his attention on peeling it.
“Room for improvement. How are you feeling this morning?”
A deft change of subject. But she followed his lead.
“Good.” She sucked in a breath. Time to apologize. Except the words froze in her throat as he bit into an orange slice. Juice dribbled down his chin. He swiped a hand across his chin and sucked the juice off a finger. Her heartbeat kicked into overdrive, remembering the way he’d sucked her nipple into his mouth last night as his hands had drifted...
“Calandra?”
“Sorry.” She mentally shook her head as she met his amused gaze. The bastard knew exactly what she’d been thinking. “What did you say?”
“I told the crew about the change in caterers. They’re excited to have Suzie and her crew.”
When the words registered, a thrill shot through her. “Really?”
“Yes. The food was spectacular, the service impeccable.” He shrugged. “Wasn’t expecting it, but they did well. And supporting a local school will bring in good publicity and earn us some points with the community.”
She didn’t even bother hiding her satisfied smile. “Thank you.”
He cocked his head, his eyes narrowed as he assessed her for a moment. “It’s I who should be thanking you.” His bark of laughter was harsh. “Well, that and that I’m the one making the decisions regarding this event. Javier told me I was ruining my chances at swaying the board before I even started.”
“Is that what you were arguing about?”
“That and you. Not about...” He gestured toward her stomach with the half-eaten orange. “That.”
“That?”
“What am I supposed to call it? We don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl.”
“The baby?”
Alejandro rolled his eyes. “That’s so...plain.”
The conversation was so...normal, she realized with a start. As if they were an ordinary couple bickering good-naturedly over finding out the sex of their child. It stirred a longing for other normal things, like having a partner to share that first smile with.
“Anyway,” Alejandro continued, unaware of her inner turmoil, “I told him I hired you to oversee the last details. He already thinks I’m wasting time and money on this venture as it is.”
“I imagine your half-a-million-dollar payout for one week didn’t sit well.”
“None of his business. Yes, I’m paying you more because I impregnated you.” He held up a hand as she opened her mouth to retort. “But I’m also paying you what you’re worth. You earned an MBA from MIT and you worked for Cabrera Wines for three years. That’s after your four-year stint at another firm as an associate event planner.”
The retort died as she sat back, stunned. “You know all that about me?”
“Yes.” He held her gaze for a long moment. “I didn’t just stare at your cleavage at those events.”
She arched a brow. “You looked at my ass, too?”
“It’s a great ass.” A grin flashed, then was unexpectedly replaced by a serious countenance. “But I listened, too. I know you increased Cabrera Wines’ event attendance by two hundred percent over two years. I know you got Adrian that feature in Time because they heard about his parties. I’m paying you what you’re worth, Calandra.”
Other than Aunt Norine, no one had ever stood up for her. She’d learned early and she’d learned hard. She had no one to depend on but herself.
Until now. Even when she’d found out about the baby, every time she’d envisioned the future, it had been with Johanna those first couple of years, then alone as Johanna moved on with her life. Just her and her child. But every time Alejandro did something like this, the image of a family became more vivid, more enticing.
That he’d still defend her after last night meant even more. It also laid bare a truth she could no longer deny—he had hired her for her. Unlike Father, who’d used money to manipulate situations and people to his advantage, Alejandro believed in her.
Seconds ticked by. Calandra kept her eyes trained on the ocean, the rise and fall of the turquoise waves, and off Alejandro.
She could feel him, though. Watching her. That gaze, the color of the sea, laying waste to the wall she’d built over the years and stripping her bare until she felt naked. Exposed.
“Your father is a fool,” she finally said. A fool for doubting his son, for trying to micromanage a brilliant mind. For whatever he’d done to hurt his son.
Alejandro ran a hand through his hair, dark curls pulled back to reveal the sharpness of his cheekbones, the strong cut of his jaw, before falling back down to graze the tanned column of his neck.
“He is. But I spent years acting like a fool just to try to piss him off.” His teeth flashed white in the morning sunlight. “Although I’ve been quite successful.”
She shook her head, trying and failing to suppress a smile. “You do excel at pissing people off.”
Alejandro’s grin disappeared as he glanced down to where her hand still lay protectively over the slight swell of her stomach.
Calandra’s nose wrinkled. “When will you tell him?”
“I don’t know. I doubt he’ll be excited by his greatest disappointment siring offspring. But don’t worry,” he added with a reassuring smile. “The rest of the family will be more supportive. And kind. Especially my mother. She’ll be thrilled.”
His words sliced through the camaraderie and brought her crashing back to reality. Since the age of twelve, it had been her, Johanna and Aunt Norine. And Aunt Norine had been gone for almost two years now.
Just the thought of Alejandro being involved had been hard to digest. Toss in his mother, two billionaire brothers, a fiancée and a bastard of a father, and she could barely keep her tea down.
But that was for another time. She paused. He’d been the one to initiate their encounters so far. As he’d pointed out, if they were truly going to get to know each other better, they needed to spend time together.
“I have a few details to confirm for the party, but if the storm passes, I thought about going to Calanques National Park this afternoon.” She inhaled deeply. “Would you like to join me?”
He blinked. Time passed, each second stretching longer than the last. Another rumble of thunder rolled across the landscape, louder and more aggressive as the amber liquid in her teacup trembled.
“Unfortunately,” Alejandro finally said, “I have a virtual meeting with my father most of the day and tomorrow to discuss the construction delays and review finances.”
His rejection sliced through her. No animosity in his words, no cruelty on his face. But she had no doubt that, had she not let her fear get the better of her last night, he would have been interested, perhaps even excited, to spend time with her.
“I hope it goes well,” she managed to force out.
He stood and bowed his head to her and started to walk off, head held high, his stride steady. Something, though, was amiss. It should frighten her, how easily she was able to pick up on his moods now, discern that something was wrong.
“Alejandro.”
He turned and glanced back at her.
“I’m sorry. About last night.” She looked down at her hands. “I took out my own insecurities on you.”
A shrug. “Happens. I could have handled it better.”
She swallowed hard. He was accepting her apology. Time to let it go.
“Thank you. And...” She floundered for a moment, trying to find the right words. “I know how much the renovation of La Reina means to you. I thought hiring me was just a way to give me money. Even though I think you’re still overpaying me—” his lips quirked “—I know it wasn’t just that.”
He nodded. “You’re welcome.”
And then he left. Still the confident walk, back straight, head tall. Yet something dark seemed to cling to his shoulders, slow his stride as he walked away and didn’t look back.
Leaving her alone with the encroaching thunder, the dark swirl of the sea and her own storm of emotions waging war inside her chest.