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‘Your pride?’ His eyes narrowed.
‘Yes, my pride,’ she insisted more forcefully.
Tiago lifted his hands away from her, as if the last thing he wanted now was to touch her.
‘Please don’t be angry.’
He stepped back. ‘Is this some sort of power-play?’ He stared down at her suspiciously. ‘Are you using sex as a weapon?’
‘Hardly. I’m not using sex at all.’
He was incredulous. He didn’t have a clue what could be motivating this. Danny had been so different on the jet. But as he advanced towards her she paled, and put her hands flat against his chest.
‘Please...’ she said, staring up at him.
What had he been thinking? Was he no better than Pintos? Had his desire for Danny blunted his brain entirely?
The world he inhabited was brutal and unforgiving. The brand of polo he played was more than competitive, it was aggressive. But aggression had no place when he was with Danny. Losing had never been an option for him, whether that be in the game of polo or the game of life. But Danny was different, and she required different rules. He’d been drawn to her in Brazil because she’d been fun to be around, but the more time he spent with her the more he realised just how badly she’d been hurt, and how well she hid that hurt.
And now he was going to add to it?
They stared at each other, and then he said, with a reluctant shrug, ‘I guess waiting until our wedding night could be a good idea.’
‘Liar,’ she whispered, smiling now. But then she added softly, ‘Thank you, Tiago. Thank you for understanding.’
‘Me?’ He smiled into her eyes. ‘Understand pride? I’m surprised at you, Danny. You should know I’m an expert on the subject.’
She exhaled raggedly and, having surmounted that hurdle, went on to the next. ‘I’ve got something for you,’ she revealed.
‘For me?’ Tiago couldn’t have looked more surprised. ‘Why have you bought something for me?’
Was she the first woman ever to buy him a gift?
‘Why shouldn’t I buy something for you?’ She was genuinely bewildered. ‘I wanted to thank you.’
‘Thank me?’ Tiago’s lips pressed down in puzzlement as he stared at her. ‘For what?’
‘For the chance to work alongside you—the chance to live here on your ranch for a year.’
Danny’s heart filled as she spoke. There were so many reasons to thank Tiago, starting with right back at the stables in Scotland, when he had saved her from Carlos Pintos. And now he had understood why waiting until they were married before having sex mattered so much to her.
Even further back, in Brazil the first time, when she had still been raw from her disillusionment with Pintos the first time around, it had been Tiago she’d always looked for—and not just because he was the most attractive man on the ranch...though that fact had been hard to ignore. He’d always been able to lift her spirits. He had made her feel relevant again when Pintos had called her a waste of space, and she had believed him. Tiago had never seemed less than pleased to see her, and he had made her feel like someone worth seeking out for a chat.
‘Watching you work has been a revelation for me,’ she said honestly. ‘Having this chance to meet the people you work with, to learn how they live, will be a privilege.’ She shook her head as she struggled to find the right words. ‘I’d work here for nothing for the chance to learn from you.’
‘You haven’t mentioned money once,’ he said—more as an observation than a criticism.
‘Why would I?’ Her elation dwindled as she remembered that this had always been about money for her. No wonder he was cynical. They both had a long way to go to build any trust between them.
‘So what did you buy me?’ he wanted to know.
She was glad of the change of focus, but embarrassed that her gift was small in comparison to the riches Tiago was used to. ‘I think you can safely call it a job-appropriate gift.’
‘What?’ he demanded. ‘A tin of hoof oil?’
Danny smiled. ‘Not exactly.’ Leaving his side, she went to collect the bulky parcel he’d taken out of her hands. ‘I just hope it’s okay.’
The gaucho who had made the special coin belt for her had explained that in the olden days these traditional belts decorated with silver coins had been used almost as portable bank accounts for gauchos, as they moved from place to place in search of work.
‘Now I’m curious,’ Tiago admitted as she pressed the package into his hands.
‘So open it.’ She stood back, relieved that the tension between them had eased—at least for now.
‘Deus, Danny, this is really special.’ Tiago handled the belt reverently, the silver coins chinking in a smooth riff as they passed through his fingers. ‘I can’t thank you enough.’
‘Do you really like it? It’s not too much?’
‘I love it. It’s perfect,’ he insisted. ‘And I love you for thinking of it.’
He loved her.
No. Tiago didn’t love her, Danny reasoned, losing patience with her romantic self for allowing that thought to slip through. He loved her for thinking of him and for choosing the belt.
‘Manuelo said you’d like it.’
‘Manuelo helped you with your choice?’ He seemed impressed by this. ‘Manuelo must like you. He and his family have been making these belts for generations, but he won’t make them for just anyone. These traditions are another reason why this ranch is so special to me.’
‘You don’t have to tell me how much this ranch means to you.’
Catching her close, Tiago kissed her—first on each cheek and then, after a pause, on her mouth. He had never kissed her like that before. It was a tender, lingering kiss that made her eyes sting with tears, and when he pulled back there was a look in his eyes that thrilled her. It was warm and assessing and thoughtful.
‘What?’ she prompted when he didn’t speak.
He slanted her a smile. It planted that attractive crease in his cheek. ‘I bought something for you,’ he revealed. ‘I hope you like it. I went shopping in town.’
She smiled back at him as she imagined Tiago battling with the crowds. ‘Now, that I would like to have seen.’
‘I bought you this...’ Reaching into the back pocket of his jeans, he brought out the most astonishing diamond ring. ‘Do you like it?’
She was too stupefied to speak. And when she did find her voice she could only blurt, ‘You kept that in your back pocket?’
‘The boxes were boring,’ Tiago said, frowning. ‘They were all the same. What’s the point of them? Everyone has them. I’m not everyone—and neither are you. If you don’t like it I’ll change it.’
She turned the fabulous ring over in her hand, hypnotised by the prisms of light flashing from it.
‘What?’ he said. ‘You don’t seem keen. Is it too big? Too small? Too sparkly?’
Relaxing at last, she laughed. ‘I’m sorry. I don’t seem very grateful, do I? It’s absolutely beautiful, Tiago, but I can’t accept it.’
‘Rubbish,’ he flashed. ‘But just in case...’ He reached into his jeans again. ‘I bought a few more, in case you didn’t like that one.’
She gasped as he tipped a selection of rings into her hand to join the first. Each was a fabulous jewel in its own right, and there was every possible style, colour of stone and variety of cut.
‘Take your time,’ he said with a shrug, as if he had given her a selection of candy to choose from. ‘Or keep them all, if you prefer.’
Wealth on this scale was incomprehensible to Danny. ‘But I don’t understand...’
‘What’s to understand?’ Tiago demanded. ‘We’re getting married. I want my wife to have the best.’
‘Yes, but...’ She hesitated, knowing she would rather have a tender word from him, or a teasing look like those they’d used to share in Brazil. This felt like another payment—a bonus to secure the deal.
‘This is a gift,’ Tiago said, as if reading her mind. ‘My gift to you.’
She still wasn’t convinced. Had all his mistresses received similar gifts? Suddenly the rings felt cold and heavy in her hand.
‘I can’t keep them.’
‘Of course you can.’ Tiago closed her hand around them. ‘Keep them all. Swap them round from day to day, and then you’ll never be tired of them.’
‘I can’t do that.’ She was genuinely shocked. ‘I can’t casually swap these rings around as I might change my clothes. Any ring you give me is going to be a precious keepsake and full of meaning. Its value will lie in more than the stone.’
He frowned. ‘So you don’t like my gift?’
‘I didn’t say that. I love them. But all these are too much. You don’t have to do this, Tiago. Under the circumstances, wouldn’t it be more appropriate if you gave me something simple? Or nothing at all. I don’t have to have a ring.’
‘I want you to have a ring,’ he insisted.
‘Because of what other people might think?’ she suggested.
‘I don’t give a damn what other people think,’ he flared. ‘Take the rings. Sell them if you don’t want to wear them—put the money towards stock for your new premises, if that’s what you want to do.’
His voice had turned cold. She could tell she had hurt him. Her heart shrank at the thought. They were so close, and yet miles apart.
‘You’re a very generous man, Tiago’ she said quietly, closing her hand around the rings. ‘Thank you.’
‘Good,’ he said briskly, as if he were glad to have the matter dealt with.
CHAPTER EIGHT (#uf3466473-cc7b-57e2-9e86-3bab36943bc7)
SHE WAS FALLING in love with this man, Danny realised as they rode out side by side later that day. But how could she ever relax totally with Tiago, the gaucho who made her laugh and who had taught her so many things about horses, when she had to handle his cold-blooded playboy side too?
That would have to be a problem for another day, she concluded as he looked at her.
He glanced at their horses. ‘Shall we test them?’
‘Why not?’
His dark force was irresistible. Tiago’s love of challenge and risk and danger was fast becoming her secret pleasure. The heat and passion of Brazil must have infected her, she realised as they urged their horses on. The sun was warm, the breeze was cool, and scent from the flowers they were trampling saturated the air she breathed. There surely could be nothing more exhilarating than this. Nothing that could release the tension inside her faster.
Except for one thing, she thought as she flashed a glance at Tiago, who looked so relaxed, and yet so dark and dangerous in the saddle—and that would have to wait until their wedding night.
Tiago reined in beside the river that watered his land, and for a moment she allowed herself to believe she needed nothing more out of life than this. She could work alongside Tiago for a year without wanting him to feel the same way she did.
Couldn’t she?
He had never looked better than here, where there were no pretensions, no dress shirts, no tailored suits—just Tiago in the raw, in ripped and faded jeans, with battered leather chaps over them, a faded top clinging to his hard-muscled torso, and a bandana tied carelessly around his wild black hair.
She was rapt as he pointed things out to her. The giant-sized Rhea bird, disappearing into the long grass, and a wild cat that surprised her by diving into the river as Tiago explained that this particular breed of cat ate frogs.
He turned to her. ‘This is a nature reserve. All the animals are safe here. My vets are responsible for them just as they are for my horses.’
She was learning a lot—and not just about the animals. Hearing about Tiago’s interests and his active concern for this land told her more about him than anyone could.
‘Last one to the house makes the coffee?’ he suggested as he turned his horse.
‘You don’t frighten me,’ she called back, laughing.
She went ahead, but Tiago caught up with her easily and for a few strides they rode side by side. But he couldn’t resist taking the lead. She let him go, just for the sheer pleasure of watching him with one hand on the reins and his hips working effortlessly to a lazy rhythm. Arousal lodged deep inside her at the sight of him, and she finally admitted to herself that Friday couldn’t come quickly enough.
Clattering into the yard after him, she dismounted.
Tiago’s dark eyes were wicked, and there was a smile on his lips as she started untacking her pony. ‘Make sure you sleep tonight. There won’t be much sleeping on Friday.’
Hefting his tack, he walked past her.
She stilled with her hand resting on the saddle. She had to take a deep breath before she could continue. She wanted him. His deep, husky voice had sent heat coursing through her. She wanted to marry Tiago. Worse, she wanted to live with him and share his life. But every time that thought slipped through she had to remind herself that theirs was a marriage of convenience, with a time limit of one year. Any fantasies on her part were just that: fantasies.
* * *
It seemed surreal to be standing in the middle of a dance floor at Tiago’s side. They were at the gauchos’ party and he was calling for silence with his arms raised.
Everything was moving at breakneck speed. In two days they would be married.
So? What was her problem? The wedding on Friday was no surprise, so why the jitters?
She was decked out in her one and only dress, with her hair neatly tied back and hardly any make-up, trying to make a good impression. She was at ease around these people in the corral, or in the kitchen, but here, at Tiago’s side, it all seemed so improbable. He was like a god to them, and she had just sprung out of nowhere. What must they think?
Never mind what anyone thought—for the sake of these people she had to make a go of this. Why cause problems when Tiago had worked so hard to save the ranch?
‘Danny?’
Tiago’s voice held a note of command and her eyes flashed open. How could she live with this man, love him, and then leave him without a backward glance?
She couldn’t.
Glancing round the smiling faces, she felt like the worst kind of confidence trickster. The only way she could get through this was by concentrating on the fact that her marriage to Tiago would secure the future of everyone here. Meanwhile, Brazil’s most eligible bachelor—the man she adored—was announcing their wedding to cries of excitement from the crowd.
‘I realise that Danny will have already told some of you, and you may think that this has all happened at the speed of light, but Danny and I have known each other for quite some time, and recently our friendship has turned into something more.’
