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He was reluctant to get into it, but from the look in her eyes Danny wasn’t giving up. ‘My grandfather bailed me out of a juvenile correctional facility—said he’d give me a trial on the ranch. He said I could live with him if I worked for the privilege.’
‘And you fought him every step of the way?’ she guessed.
He didn’t deny it. ‘I didn’t want to work for anyone except myself. And when I saw this place in the middle of nowhere—’ He grimaced. ‘I didn’t feel as I do now about it, that’s for sure. It held no appeal for my teenage self.’
‘But you stayed?’ she pressed, her eyes filled with concern.
‘Yes, because I came to love the people. And now you’ve met them I’m sure you understand why.’
‘I do.’ She spoke softly and touched his arm.
He had to pause and hold himself in check for a moment, or he would have responded for sure.
‘I try never to be away from them for long,’ he went on then. ‘Because they and my grandfather opened my eyes to a different way of life—their way of life. And I could relate to it—to them. The passion they have for the country and their animals is the same as mine, and as soon as the gauchos discovered I had a way with horses, that was it—I was one of them. It was enough for me for a time, and then—like everyone else when they’re growing up—I had to get away. I was desperate to expand my horizons—to explore that other side of me, bequeathed to me by my mother.’
He laughed as he thought about it.
‘And then?’ Danny asked.
‘My grandfather was wise enough to back off and leave me to it.’
‘Where did you go?’
‘I hitched my wagon to whichever polo player was fashionable at the time.’ He shrugged. ‘By watching and learning I somehow managed to save up enough from my wages to buy my first pony. She was an old girl, on the point of retirement, but I was eager to try the game myself, and I made a passable polo pony out of her. Thanks to that mare I could take part in at least one chukka during amateur matches, where not every rider owned a string of ponies and we all did the best we could.’
‘Which brought your riding skills to the attention of those that mattered?’
‘Correct.’
She was standing close enough to touch, and that distracted him for another few moments.
‘Eventually I was entrusted with training a few medium-grade ponies.’ He cast his mind back to those uncertain days. ‘Then my grandfather became ill, but I was having too much of a good time to come home. I should have come. I owe everything I have to him. I just couldn’t see it at the time. Now do you understand why I am so committed to this place?’
‘Yes,’ she said quietly. ‘It explains a lot about you.’
‘Like why I’m such a selfish bastard?’ He laughed.
‘Like why you belong here,’ Danny argued. ‘And why you believe you can never do enough for this ranch or for the people who live here. You think you deserted your grandfather when he needed you most, but he had let you go, knowing you’d come back. He wanted you to see how wide your horizons could be. You haven’t let him down, Tiago—anything but.’
‘Some of the decisions I’ve had to make to keep this ranch haven’t been easy.’
She shook her head and laughed. ‘I think I know that.’ She looked into his eyes and hers darkened.
The pain in his groin increased. Taking hold of her wrist, he led her around the side of the house, and with the utmost self-control he held her away from him at the door.
‘Goodnight, Danny. The next time I see you will be at our wedding.’
* * *
Could there be anything more beautiful than his bride on their wedding day? He couldn’t hold back a smile as Danny walked slowly towards him down the petal-strewn aisle. She was coming to join him through packed rows of people whose smiling faces meant the world to him.
The fact that they were fast adopting Danny as one of their own was the icing on the cake for him, but he didn’t need anyone to tell him that he’d made a wonderful choice of bride. Danny had so much to offer the ranch and its people. When they were married he hoped she would play an even bigger role, adding the human touch he’d never had time to bring to the ranch.
The outdoor ceremony beneath an archway of flowers passed quickly, in a series of softly spoken words on Danny’s part and brisk assertions on his. He would take away a series of sensory memories, together with the relief of being married.
Danny was small and soft and fragrant—and so keyed-up, so alert she was almost trembling. Her close-fitting lace dress was rustling, though she wasn’t moving. It rustled when she breathed and her breasts rose above the confining fabric, and it rustled when she turned to him to speak her wedding vows, and through all this they were standing close, but not touching, and that tiny space keeping them apart was charged with electricity.
‘You may kiss the bride.’
At last he could breathe freely. He was married. He owned the ranch. The relief of having the caveat in his grandfather’s will fulfilled was indescribable. His people sensed it too and cheered wildly, standing to applaud as he cupped Danny’s face in his hands. The future security of everyone here was assured now. This was his gift to his guests. He had an aide on hand, waiting to make a copy of the wedding certificate, as well as a courier standing by to deliver a hard copy to the lawyers as soon as this ceremony was over.
* * *
This was more romantic than she had dared to hope. Surrounded by fragrant blossoms in front of the registrar, she could feel love swelling all around her. She knew she was doing the right thing. Tiago’s steady gaze was all it took to convince her that her doubts before the wedding had been based on nothing more than pre-wedding nerves.
Surely Tiago must feel the magic too? How could he not? Danny wondered as he dipped his head and kissed her. She closed her eyes, knowing she’d never been so happy. Even the cruel barbs in the press couldn’t touch her now. She remembered some of them, and smiled as Tiago stared deep into her eyes.
‘Can a small-town girl rein in a man like Tiago Santos?’
Yes, she could.
‘Does a leopard change his spots?’
Yes, he had.
‘Will the Playboy be curbed by Miss Whiplash?’
That remark had made her laugh. Nothing mattered now except the fact that Tiago Santos and Danny Cameron were husband and wife. The reporters didn’t know him as she did. No one who hadn’t seen Tiago Santos on this ranch had seen the real man.
‘Well, Senhora Santos, are you ready to start your new life with me?’
‘I am.’
‘When you look at me like that,’ Tiago murmured, ‘all I can think about is taking you to bed. Is that bad?’
‘I like you bad. Tonight I think I’m going to be very bad too.’
‘I’m counting on it,’ Tiago assured her.
He excited her. She trembled in an entirely pleasurable way at the thought of their wedding night. She’d asked for this delay, and could hardly believe how long she’d waited—not long in actual terms of this week, but if she counted in her feverish erotic daydreams from that first moment she saw him in Brazil, that was quite a build-up to tonight.
She was about to find out if her imagination was equal to their wedding night. Pleasure thrummed through her at the thought that she might not even be close.
But they had guests to entertain first, Danny remembered as Tiago was distracted by some of his polo-playing friends.
While he was talking she stared at the jewel-encrusted band on her hand, sitting snugly next to the enormous diamond engagement ring. How incongruous they looked on her work-worn hands. Silk purse and sow’s ear came to mind.
She flashed a glance at Tiago—blisteringly hot, unreasonably handsome, sleekly tailored and unimaginably successful—and in spite of all the encouragement she’d been giving herself before the wedding she shrank a little inside her beautiful borrowed wedding dress.
* * *
The wedding party might have been last-minute but, as he had expected, everyone had pulled together to make it special. It was the best party he’d been to in a long time, and every time he looked at his bride he knew he’d made a good choice.
His groin was straining, begging for him to do something about it, but he was beginning to enjoy the agony—and he wanted to show off his beautiful wife. So many people were waiting to congratulate them that any chance of their being alone was slim, at least for now, but hearing tributes from the heart from his people made it easy to stay.
‘It’s thrilling to feel part of such a wonderful extended family,’ Danny told him. ‘I feel closer than ever to this ranch.’
Covering her hand with his, he linked their fingers. ‘Are you frustrated?’
Her eyes cleared as she took his meaning, and then she held his gaze and smiled. ‘Of course I am.’
Heat swept over him. He wanted her now.
‘Do you think me too obvious? Too unsophisticated?’
‘No. I think you’re a normal healthy woman, with a normal healthy appetite.’
He smiled into her eyes, but she pulled back.
‘Deus, Danny. You look as if I have you by the throat. You can’t be frightened of your wedding night?’
‘I’m not,’ she said, not entirely convincingly.
Putting his arm around her shoulder, he stared into her eyes. ‘So if it isn’t that, what is it?’ He thought of Pintos and the pain she’d suffered. ‘You do know I’d never hurt you, don’t you?’
She laughed—a little sadly, he thought. ‘Of course I do. At least not for a year,’ she joked, and was soon smiling again.
‘You will be secure for the rest of your life,’ he reminded her. ‘I promise you, Danny, I’ll never forget what you’ve done for me. You will never need to worry again.’
Her eyes clouded. ‘Do we have to talk about that now?’
‘No.’ He slanted a smile. ‘What would you rather talk about, chica?’
Would Tiago ever understand that this wasn’t about the money? Or that she hurt because they had not once said they loved each other? But why should they? It wouldn’t be right. It wouldn’t be appropriate. She might love Tiago, but even on their wedding day it wouldn’t be right to tell him how she felt. They had a contract—nothing more. She had payment. He had the ranch. This wasn’t about love. This wedding was for public consumption, to put a seal of approval on the secret they held between them that would bind them together for no more than a year.
She moved restlessly, and was rewarded by the lift of his ebony brow. It didn’t help her composure when she wanted him so badly in every way there was. She ached to be held in his arms and made love to in every sense. Their faces were so close she could see the glint of tiger-gold in his eyes, and that look...that darkening slumberous look.
‘Is there anything I can do to help you?’ he murmured, teasing her into an even higher state of arousal with those words. ‘Bearing in mind that we may be here for some time...?’
CHAPTER TEN (#uf3466473-cc7b-57e2-9e86-3bab36943bc7)
HER BODY PULSED with need while her mind screamed at her to hold back. ‘Help me with what?’ She frowned, pretending ignorance—anything rather than give way to Tiago and be lost.
He shared none of her inhibitions. ‘Help you with that ache,’ he said frankly, holding her gaze.
‘I’m not sure what ache you’re talking about.’
‘Think back to the jet.’
‘Here?’
Now he had shocked her. She was no prude, but what had happened between them in Tiago’s bedroom on his private jet couldn’t possibly happen here at their wedding party.
His expression grew darker. ‘No one will notice,’ he said, with the hint of a smile.
‘You are joking?’ Danny answered, looking around the room.
They were somewhat secluded from the other guests, but might be interrupted at any time. The idea was both shocking and thrilling for Danny.
‘Am I?’ He was already moving her skirts aside. ‘Stop finding reasons not to, and concentrate on why you should.’ His mouth was still curving wickedly—and so confidently. ‘Look at me, Danny,’ he murmured. ‘Just keep looking at me, and let me do the rest...’
She gasped as his hand found her. It felt so warm and big and strong and sure as he cupped her. Tiago was so wicked, but she couldn’t stop herself edging forward just a little to help him. She was already lost, her senses in chaos, and her body was tuned to his smallest touch. She had been well trained by Tiago on the flight over, to respond to pleasure this way, and she instantly concentrated on that one place to the exclusion of everything else.
The noise of the party, the chatter and laughter of their guests, even the band playing loudly, couldn’t compete with the thundering of her heart or the rasp of her breathing as Tiago’s lightest touch brought wave after wave of pleasure washing over her.
‘Tell me to stop if you want to,’ he said in a matter-of-fact tone as she lost it completely.
She could only answer him with a soft groan when the fiercest waves had subsided—and then he began to move his hand with more intent. She sucked in a sharp breath as his fingers worked their magic. Tiago knew just what to do, what she liked, and how to administer pleasure in a leisurely fashion, so she could savour every moment and make it last.
His fingers were so sensitive to her needs, so skilful as they went about their work. At first he avoided the place where she needed him most, and teasing her this way made her mad for him. By moving a little further forward in her chair she managed to increase the pressure of his hand, and then he passed his forefinger lightly over her straining clitoris until she gasped—only to moan with disappointment when he pulled away.
‘Not for long, chica,’ he whispered, his breath warm against her face.
His hand quickly found the ribbons holding her bridal thong in place. It was a wisp of lace, nothing more, but he took his time unlooping the bow; unwrapping her slowly, like the revealing of a gift he was in no mood to rush.
‘Move to the very edge of the chair,’ he instructed, ‘and lean back.’
She was quick to do as he said, her excitement intensified by the risk involved as their guests milled all around them.
‘There’s so much noise no one will notice what you do, but try not to cry out too loudly,’ Tiago advised. ‘Now, open your legs a little wider for me.’
She opened them as wide as she could, wanting that plump, needy place to be the centre of his universe.
‘Oh, yes...’
Excited by the risk, and by the promise in Tiago’s lazy tone, she rested back and waited.
‘Relax... Enjoy...’ he murmured, as if she needed prompting. ‘Just leave everything to me.’
Oh, she would... She would...
‘Ah...’ The touch of his slightly roughened finger-pad was exquisite.
‘I’ll catch you when you fall,’ he promised. ‘Just keep looking into my eyes and I’ll tell you when.’
‘You’ll know?’ she somehow managed to gasp out.
‘I’ll know.’
