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“No, they died.”
“I’m sorry.”
She shrugged. “It was nine years ago. Jose was only eight when they died.”
“You couldn’t have been that much older yourself.”
She flashed him a look. “I was nineteen. I had just started university.”
“So you had to care for him—there were no other relatives to help?”
She shook her head.
“Future plans?”
She leaned back against the side of the basket to look up at him. “He’s going to university,” she said with pride. “He plans to study physics. I think that’s why he was so interested in the how-to of flying this thing. He should be here, not me. He’d love it.”
“I can see Stefano’s rationale in having you partner me. If he knew me better, he’d know I’ll put up with almost anything to win. I’m sorry you are not enjoying the ride. But blame him, not me,” Rafael returned.
“Does that mean Teresa was a big help?” She was annoyed that even that society woman had outperformed her. At least Amalia felt she’d dressed more appropriately.
“Different situation, but she helped more than you’re doing.”
“So what do you need me for? You know how to fly this thing. I’d only be in the way.”
“You could talk to me to make the time go faster.”
“You want to hear about the exciting life of a personal assistant to a busy businessman? Somehow I doubt it.”
“Why not? It’ll be a novelty.” He liked the flash of fire she displayed from time to time.
He could tell his cavalier attitude rubbed her the wrong way. He should stop, but he was intrigued by the bursts of emotions that were quickly damped down. What would she be like if she let herself go with no restraints?
In a monotone she recited, “We get up and eat. I go to work, Jose to school. I come home and prepare dinner and we eat. He studies, I clean, do laundry or shopping. We go to sleep. How’s that for excitement?”
“You don’t mention a special friend.”
She shrugged. “Now is not the time to be dating. I have my brother to raise.”
“What happened to your parents?”
“They died in a boating accident.”
From what he could guess, money was an issue. Apparently the parents had not left their offspring comfortably covered in the financial realm.
“What would you do if you could do anything you wanted?” he asked.
She didn’t hesitate. “Be a Web designer. I would love to study more about graphic design, learn more about all the aspects of Web design and work from home on projects that I selected. Working hours I choose.”
He nodded slowly. He’d heard somewhere that a secretary’s job was very stressful because they had so little control over it. They were at the beck and call of the boss they worked for. He glanced across to the other balloon, still some distance away. He couldn’t see Helena clearly but wondered what she would do if she could do anything she wanted. He’d never asked. It probably would not be support all his endeavors.
The balloon spun around and began to waffle. Rafael quickly assessed the situation. There was an eddy of wind causing problems. Glancing around, he saw the other balloon also turning. Quickly opening the valve of the burners, he tried to rise above the turbulent air. Slowly the wild gyrations ceased.
Amalia had her eyes tightly closed and her hands clenched into fists, arms wrapped around her upbent legs.
“Are we going to crash?” she asked in a tight voice.
CHAPTER FOUR
“NOT today,” Rafael replied.
The balloon stabilized. Once the erratic motion ceased, Amalia opened her eyes. Rafael wished she could get over her fear and enjoy the trip. It would make it more pleasant for her, since she was essentially stuck with a week in the air. And easier on him as the hours stretched out.
Not that he should care. Stefano had known his PA wouldn’t be an asset—while Helena was so efficient, she had probably mastered the controls and was offering Stefano streamlined ways to do things. Still, it was Rafael who maintained a slight lead. If he could increase it over the next few days, he’d win the bet.
Giving another blast, he shut down the burners and went to sit beside his unwilling crew. The space was tight and his leg brushed against hers.
She shifted a couple of inches away and the action caused him to give way to the devilment that rose.
He reached for her hand, prying the fist open and interlacing his fingers with hers. She tugged, but he held firm.
“Let go,” she said.
“We need to get some ground rules established,” he said, ignoring her puny attempts to pull free. It gave him hope she really didn’t want to. It was so much easier to get things he wanted if women met him halfway.
“Like what?” she asked. He could hear the reluctant curiosity in her tone.
“Like, you can’t sit in this corner the entire seven days.”
“I told you I have a fear of heights.”
Slowly he traced the back of her hand with his thumb. Her skin was silky soft and cool.
“So don’t look down. Look out. Forget the space beneath us and enjoy the beauty of the flight. Together we can win this race.”
“You practically kidnapped me and now you expect me to help you?”
“I do. Make the most of the chance, as Jose said. And show your boss you don’t answer to him outside of work. He put you in this situation, not I.”
She thought it over a moment.
Rafael moved closer. He liked women, especially pretty ones with big brown eyes and windblown brown hair with streaks of gold. “Pretend—if only for a week—that this is what you want. If we win, the money goes to your favorite charity—which you have not yet told me. If Vicente wins, we get nothing and so all this effort would be in vain.”
She studied him with those large eyes, questioning, weighing.
“Maybe.”
Victory was close.
Leaning back, he continued to caress her hand, waiting. Maybe he needed to make the pot sweeter. “If we win, I’ll treat you and your brother to a week at a place of your choice.”
“Do you think you can bribe me, Señor Sandoval?’ she immediately said hotly. “It is enough to have the money be put to use and not just exchanged from one rich man to another.”
That response was not what he’d expected. “Do you have something against rich men?” he asked.
“Only when they are foolish in the extreme.”
He smiled slowly. “Like this bet?”
“Exactly. You shouldn’t have made the stupid wager.”
“But I did, and here we are. He’s the one who made the terms. You help me, I donate the winnings,” he said.
“And if you don’t win?”
“I won’t even consider that. But if I lose, I’ll still donate to your charity.”
“It’s a win-win for me then. So why would I help?” Amalia asked.
“For honor,” he said slowly. He knew more about this woman than she suspected. He was good at judging character and knew integrity was important to her.
She watched his thumb rubbing her hand for a long moment. He wondered if she would capitulate or continue to defy him. It would prove a long week if they were not pulling together.
“Agreed. Either way I win, but I’ll do what I can to make sure we both win,” she said slowly. Tugging her hand again, she watched as he slowly released her. Was that disappointment in her eyes?
“But you needn’t try your blandishments on me,” she continued. “I know you were voted Barcelona’s most eligible bachelor last year, but I’m not one of your society women to date for a couple of months before moving on. This is strictly business. Agreed?”
“Most certainly not. You interest me, Amalia. You don’t want me to grow bored on the flight, do you?” He loved being with her. She was so different from the other women he knew.
“I don’t care much about what you do on the flight. Just win so the money goes to the Sisters of Charity Children’s Home. That was my parents’ favorite charity and I want you to donate in their names.”
“And something for you?”
“Nothing for me.”
Rafael studied her expression for a moment. She was serious. It threw his calculations off. How could she not want something for herself? Everyone did. He didn’t mind, he had the money to indulge himself and his friends. He knew how life went. Those with money were targeted by those without. It wasn’t good or bad, just the way things were.
Or the way he thought they were. What was Amalia’s game?
“What?” Amalia asked. She found his stare unnerving, as if he were trying to dissect her or something.
“Just thinking,” he replied, and looked away. For a moment she wanted to ask him about what, but thought it best to leave things alone. He had already unsettled her enough for one day. She tucked her hands against her chest, still feeling the warmth of his palm, the erotic rubbing of his thumb. She wished he’d held on a bit more. Getting hot and bothered by his presence sure beat being afraid for her life. Though, given the two choices, she suspected that riding in the wretched balloon was safer than getting caught up with Rafael Sandoval.
Yet she wouldn’t be human, wouldn’t be a woman if she wasn’t intrigued by his sexy good looks and charming manner. She knew it had to be calculated, he’d been getting his own way for far too long to change his manner of operating. For a few seconds she’d let herself go, imagined he really cared for her. It would be beyond anything she’d ever experienced to have a fling with Rafael.
Her heart raced at the thought and she looked away lest he catch a glimmer of the awareness that rose every time she came near him. Actually, if she were honest with herself, every time she even thought about him.
“So what are the rules?” she asked a moment later.
He looked back and smiled. The light dancing in his eyes almost had her groaning with pleasure. He looked incredibly masculine with that devil-may-care look, and incredibly sexy with that smile.
“We pull together, all for one, one for all.”
She laughed. “That’s original.”
He smiled again. “Agreed?”
“I’m not out to sabotage your race,” she repeated.
“So there’s no problem with that one.”
“There’re more rules?”
He leaned closer. “We spend time getting to know each other.”
Her breath caught. He was close enough to her that she could feel his breath brush against her cheeks. Close enough that leaning forward only a few scant inches would put her mouth against his, her lips brushing his.
“We know each other quite well enough.” Was that breathless voice hers? She wanted to jump up and run away. A quick flick around the gondola convinced her that was totally impossible.
“We could know each other even better,” he said, his fingers brushing her hair lightly.
She jerked back as if stung, scooting away several inches and trying to show her displeasure. Only, she was afraid her reaction was a bit extreme.
“Didn’t we just agree you are wasting your time trying to charm me?” she said.
“Ah, but it’s so much fun,” he said, watching her with those dark eyes.
“I don’t think there’s any point in it.”
“It will make the journey more interesting. We can become friends.”
She rolled her eyes at that notion.
“Or lovers.”
She snapped her gaze right back at him. “You’re crazy. We don’t know each other enough to ever get to that level.”
“It doesn’t take long to get to know someone when confined to such a small space for endless hours,” he said, his voice deliberately pitched low and sexy.
She raised her right hand, index finger shaking at him. “Stop right there. We are not going to become that close.”
He leaned back and stretched out his long legs, taking up all the available floor space. “Maybe not. But it’s worth thinking about.”
“You need to think about this balloon and keeping us up in the air,” she said, scarcely able to form two words together as the mere thought of them tangled together in lovemaking almost erased all her thought processes.
He touched her cheek lightly and then rose in one easy movement and glanced around at the gauge. A second later the jets roared to life.
Once her breathing was under control, Amalia stood and looked around. Looking out instead of down, she spotted the other balloon. It looked closer than before. Now it was slightly higher than they were.
