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‘A fact I’m yet to verify. The quicker you get on the plane, the quicker this can be resolved.’
She had no argument against that. And the reality was she’d come too far to turn back. And there was the small problem of Simon’s loan shark lurking in the background.
Taking a deep breath, she started to mount the steps. Recalling something he’d said, she twisted and nearly collided with his lean, muscular frame. The steadying hand he threw around her waist burned through to her skin. This close, without the hindrance of his mask, she could see how his envy-inducing cheekbones and long eyelashes framed his impossibly handsome face.
‘What did you mean about being thwarted?’
‘Sex, Ruby. I meant sex. We’re going to have it together. It’s going to be spectacular and, yes, I know you’re going to protest. But it will happen. So prepare yourself for it.’
She was still reeling from the raw, brazen words hours later as she tried to doze in her fully reclined seat two rows from where he conducted a teleconference call.
She had no idea how long the flight to Belize would take. She had no idea what the temperature would be this time of year.
In fact, her mind was empty of everything but the words Narciso had uttered to her on the steps of his plane.
Punching her pillow, she silently cursed herself for dwelling on it. It was never going to happen. She’d have to be ten kinds of fool to repeat what she’d nearly gone through with Simon—
‘If you punch that pillow one more time, it’ll give up its secrets, I’m sure of it.’
She twisted around and found him standing beside her seat, one hand held out.
‘Sleep is eluding you. Let’s spend some time together.’
‘No, thanks.’
He dropped his hand and shoved it into his pocket. Ruby tried not to stare at the way his shoulders flexed under the snow-white T-shirt he’d changed into. ‘Please yourself. But if you end up serving me food that I find abhorrent because you haven’t done your homework, you’ll only have yourself to blame.’
The challenge had the desired effect. Pushing aside the cashmere throw the stewardess had provided, she went after him.
He smiled mockingly and waved her into the club chair opposite his.
Ruby smoothed her dishevelled hair down, and activated her tablet. ‘Okay, shoot. What’s your favourite food?’
‘Life offers such vast richness. Having favourites is severely restricting.’
She sighed. ‘This isn’t going to be easy, is it?’
He shrugged. ‘I take entertainment where I can get it.’
‘Okay, next question. Any food allergies?’
‘Peanuts and avocado.’
Her head snapped up. ‘Seriously?’
‘I don’t joke with my health, amante.’
She noted it on her tablet. ‘How do you feel about Sicilian food?’
‘I’m completely indifferent.’
She looked up in surprise. ‘Really? Most Sicilians are passionate about everything to do with their homeland.’
‘Probably because they have a connection to be passionate about—’ He stopped suddenly and his jaw clenched.
She watched him try to rein in his control and her chest tightened. ‘And you don’t?’
Tension gripped his frame. ‘Not for a long time.’
Her tablet dimmed, but she didn’t reactivate it. The flash of anguish in his eyes snagged her attention.
‘Because of your father?’ she pushed.
His eyes narrowed. ‘Why does this interest you so much?’
The question took her aback, made her ask herself the same thing. ‘I...I thought we were making conversation.’
‘This is one subject I prefer to steer clear of. Capisce?’
‘Because you find it upsetting.’
He cursed under his breath and raked back his hair as that stubborn lock fell over his forehead again. ‘Not at all. The subject of my father fires up my blood. I just prefer not to discuss it with near strangers.’
Despite cautioning herself to stick to business, she found herself replying, ‘Haven’t you heard of the saying make love not war?’
‘Why do I need to choose one when I can have both? I’ll make love to you and I make war with Giacomo.’
‘For how long?’
‘How long can I make love to you? Is that another challenge to my manhood?’
‘I meant your father, and you know it.’
‘I intend to keep going until one of us is in the ground.’
She gasped. ‘You don’t really mean that, do you?’
Again that flash of pain, gone before it’d even formed. ‘Sì, I do.’
‘You know, he called you poison.’
This time the anguish stayed for several seconds, shattered his expression. Her heart fractured at the pain she glimpsed before his face settled into neutral indifference. ‘He’s right. I am poison.’
His unflinching admission made her heart contract. ‘What happened between you two?’
‘I was born.’
* * *
Narciso watched her try to make sense of his reply. She frowned, then shook her head. ‘I don’t understand.’
He wanted to laugh but the vice gripping his chest every time he thought of Giacomo made that impossible. He rose and walked to the bar at the mid-section of his plane. Pouring two glasses of mineral water, he brought one to her and gulped down the other. ‘That’s because you’re trying to decipher a hidden meaning. There is none. I was born. And Giacomo has hated that reality ever since.’
‘He hates being a father?’
He paused before answering, unwilling to utter the words he hadn’t said aloud for a very long time, not since he’d wailed it as a pathetic little boy to the housekeeper who’d been the closest thing he’d known to a mother.
‘No. He hates me.’
Shock darkened Ruby’s eyes.
He sat back down abruptly, and willed back the control he’d felt slipping from him since he’d walked into the poker den in Macau last night. He glanced up and saw sympathy blazing from Ruby’s face. The rawness abated a little but, no matter how much he tried, he couldn’t shake off the unsettling emptiness inside him.
He swallowed his water and set the glass down.
‘Enough about me. Tell me about your father.’
She stiffened. ‘I’d rather not.’
‘You were ready to share just a little while ago.’ He settled deeper into his seat and watched her face. And it was a stunning face. The combination of innocence and defiance in her eyes kept him intrigued. She didn’t hide her emotions very well. Right now, she was fighting pain and squirming with a desire to change the subject.
The sudden urge to help her, to offer the same sympathy she’d just exhibited, took him by surprise.
Dio, what was wrong with him?
This woman who’d flown thousands of miles after him was an enigma. An enigma with daddy issues. He should be staying well clear.
He leaned forward. ‘Since you seem shocked by the depth of my...feelings towards Giacomo, I’m assuming your feelings towards your father are much less...volatile?’
Those full lips he wanted to taste again so badly pressed together for a moment. ‘I don’t hate my father, no. But I prefer to keep my distance from them.’
‘Them?’
She fidgeted. ‘You’re going to find out anyway. My parents are Ricardo and Paloma Trevelli.’
Her stare held a little defiance and a whole load of vulnerability. ‘Sorry, you lost me.’
A delicate frown marred her perfect skin. Again his fingers ached to touch. Soon, he promised himself.
‘How come you own several media companies and yet have no clue what goes on in the world?’
‘My line of work doesn’t mean I compromise my privacy. So your parents are famous?’
Her eyelids swept down to cover her expression. ‘You could say that. They’re famous celebrity TV chefs.’
‘And their fame disgusts you?’ he deduced.
Blue eyes flicked to his. ‘I didn’t say that.’
‘Your voice. Your eyes. Your body. They all give you away, Ruby Trevelli.’ He loved the way her name sounded on his lips. He wanted to keep saying it... ‘So you despise them for being famous and cashing in on it. Isn’t that what you’re doing?’
‘No! I’d never whore myself the way—’ She stopped and bit her lip.
‘Do they know you have this view of them?’ he asked.
She shrugged. ‘They’ve chosen a lifestyle I prefer not to be a part of. It’s that simple.’
‘Ruby...’ he waited until her eyes met his ‘...we both know it’s not that simple.’
Shadows chased across her face and her mouth trembled before she firmed it again. Before he could think twice, he reached out and touched her hand.
She swallowed hard, then pulled her tablet towards her. ‘How many people will I be catering for at your event?’
He told himself he wasn’t disappointed by her withdrawal. ‘Are we back to all business again?’
‘Yes. I think it’s safer, don’t you?’
Narciso couldn’t deny the veracity of that. Dredging up his past was the last thing he’d intended when he’d boarded his plane. And yet, he resented her switch to all-business mode.
‘If you say so,’ he replied. ‘You think you can handle a VIP dinner?’
‘I believe in my talent as much as you believe in your abilities as the Warlock of Wall Street. If I say I’ll rock your socks off, I will.’
A reluctant smile tugged at his lips. ‘A confident woman is such a turn-on.’
She glared at him. ‘If you say so,’ she replied sweetly. ‘Is there a guest of honour that I should pay particular attention to?’
‘Vladimir Rudenko. I’m in the last stages of ironing out a deal with him. He’s the VIP guest.’
She started to make another note when her tablet pinged. He heard her sharp intake of breath before she paled.
‘What is it?’
‘It’s nothing.’
The blatant lie set his teeth on edge. ‘Don’t lie to me.’ He reached for the tablet but she snatched it off the table.
‘It’s a private thing, all right?’
‘A private thing that’s obviously upset you.’ He watched her chest rise and fall in agitation and experienced that disconcerting urge to help again.
‘Yes, but it’s my problem and I’ll deal with it.’
Before he could probe further, she jumped up. ‘You said I could use the bedroom if I wanted. I’ll go finish making my notes now and get some sleep, if that’s okay?’
It wasn’t okay with him. Nothing had been okay since he met Ruby Trevelli. But short of physically restraining her, an action sure to bring brimstone upon his head, he let her go.
‘We won’t be landing for another six hours. I’ll wake you before we do.’
