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Confused and infuriated with herself, she was about to turn away when his eyes opened and he saw her.
For a moment they just stared at each other and she felt her cheeks burn as she saw the sudden flare of heat in his eyes. Every feminine part of her exploded with awareness and she knew from the sudden tension in his shoulders that he was experiencing the same powerful reaction.
Acknowledging the strength of the force that drew them together, he gave a cynical laugh. ‘Complicated, isn’t it?’
‘Yes.’ It would have been foolish to pretend that she didn’t know what he was talking about. She stood for a moment, trying to catch her breath, needing to speak and not knowing how to say what needed to be said. ‘I didn’t mean to force your hand. I thought we were good together.’
‘We were.’
‘But—you never would have wanted marriage.’
‘No.’ His face was closed, uncommunicative and she looked at him with mounting frustration.
‘Why? If a relationship is good, marriage just makes it better.’
His laugh hurt more than any harsh words. ‘And we’re a case in point, are we?’
‘Is there anything left between us?’
His answer was to rise to his feet and stride across to her. Without bothering to speak, he closed his fingers around her wrist, pulled her hard against him. ‘How can you ask that, when this thing between us has been choking us since the day we met?’
Without giving her a chance to reply, he brought his mouth down on hers.
As kisses went, this one wasn’t gentle but she didn’t even care. It was an explosion of mutual need, an acknowledgement of the passion and chemistry that kept both of them locked together when external forces might have driven them apart.
Excitement swamped her, her head swam with a rush of dizzying pleasure and she would have slid to the floor if he hadn’t wrapped his arms around her.
They kissed with desperation, their mouths locked together in a furious, reckless urgency that exploded away the flimsy barriers that had been erected between them.
It was only when his hand touched her breast that Faith regained sufficient mental ability to realise what she was doing.
‘We can’t fix problems with sex,’ she groaned, but the erotic skill of his mouth stole the words and her body shivered against his. ‘Raul, this is just too complicated to solve in this way—’
‘Life is complicated,’ he muttered, his lips trailing down the line of her jaw. ‘In real life, people are complicated and they behave in complicated ways.’
‘You didn’t think about my feelings.’
He lifted his head and looked at her. ‘Both of us were guilty of that.’ His return shot scored a direct hit and she stiffened.
‘With hindsight I can see that I should have told you I’d lost the baby, but my reasons for not telling you were unselfish.’ Her stumbled admission received no more response than a raised eyebrow and a careless lift of his shoulders.
‘If there’s one thing that the last few months has proved, it’s that neither of us knows the other as well as we thought.’ His handsome face was grim. ‘That is common. It’s the reason that so many marriages end in divorce. We can change that, Faith. But not if you run.’
She looked at him, torn by indecision, her head full of problems and questions. Logic told her to do one thing, her heart another.
‘If I stay, I won’t let you hurt me again,’ she warned in a voice that shook with emotion. ‘Don’t ever hurt me again.’
CHAPTER SEVEN
IT FELT strange being back when she’d thought she’d never see the place again.
Faith sat in silence in the back of the limousine as it drove through the ornate iron gates that guarded the entrance of the estancia.
She couldn’t quite believe she was actually here.
What if she was making the biggest mistake of her life by giving their marriage another chance?
She sighed and stared out of the window. Obviously she was just a pushover for a big, arrogant South American male.
But she knew it was more than that.
She loved him and she couldn’t just switch that off.
And she loved Argentina.
Despite the nagging ache in her head and the dull feeling of nausea in her stomach, part of her felt lighter just for being here. After the noise and bustle of Buenos Aires, the wide open space of the pampas was a welcome refuge.
It was an incomparably beautiful place.
Grassland stretched into the distance and a herd of Criollo ponies galloped and bucked, manes and tails flying, clearly enjoying the freedom of the wide, open planes.
As the car purred along the tree-lined avenue and curved round the final bend, Faith held her breath in expectation. Raul had once told her how he’d bought the place piece by piece.
He’d shown her photographs and she’d barely recognised the tumbledown, dusty buildings.
The ranch had been restored to its former colonial glory and now the dusky-pink stone walls of the main residence were covered in tumbling bougainvillea, the colours so bright that at a glance it seemed as if someone had gaily splashed paint against the walls. Three perfectly manicured polo lawns were bordered by pristine white fences and in another field a herd of exquisitely beautiful horses galloped and pranced, the quality of their bloodline indisputable.
Faith’s eyes slid to the row of expensive cars parked in the far corner of the immaculate yard.
Money, money and more money …
Raul had barely spoken during the journey, instead working on his laptop and fielding a never-ending series of calls, the subject of which had revolved around the purchase of a neighbouring estancia.
‘You’re buying more land?’
A strange expression flickered across his face and she sensed immediately that this was one deal he didn’t intend to discuss. ‘Are you making small talk or are you suddenly interested in the nature of my business?’
Four days had passed since they’d first arrived in Buenos Aires and apart from that one kiss, he hadn’t touched her. Once he’d put the ring back on her finger, he’d turned his attention to work, dividing his time between the phone and the computer. The only time they’d met up had been for dinner by the pool, a stiff, uncomfortable affair for Faith, an opportunity to refuel for Raul. He’d never lingered, instead opting to return to the room he used as an office. His desk faced the glass window and she’d caught glimpses of him lounging in his leather chair, long, muscular legs stretched out in front of him as he’d given hell to the person on the end of the phone.
Faith had immediately retreated to her favourite place, the cosy sofa that took advantage of the same view that Raul enjoyed from his office. She’d cradled a book in her lap, but hadn’t read a single word. Instead she’d stared out of the window, her thoughts far removed from the printed page of a book.
She’d always thought that the physical side of their relationship was the one area where they would never have a problem. But apart from that one, searing kiss, Raul hadn’t touched her. When he’d slept, which wasn’t often, he’d slept in the spare room and she hadn’t questioned him because she hadn’t wanted to appear insecure.
But she couldn’t help wondering why.
Was it because her hair was short?
Was it because she’d lost weight?
Halfway through her second day in his apartment, a delivery had arrived for her and she’d opened the various boxes and discovered an entire wardrobe. Dresses, shoes, casual wear, underwear, nightwear—the fact that it had been lacking nothing was a testament to Raul’s experience of women but she’d tried not to think about that as she’d riffled her way through the various boxes.
If she was seriously going to give their marriage another go, then she needed to stop thinking like that.
So now, as she arrived at the estancia, she was wearing a cool summer dress in soft, muted shades of green and a simple pair of sandals. Lifting her hand to her head, she fingered her hair self-consciously and he caught the gesture and gave a frown.
‘Don’t. I like it.’
It was the first compliment he’d paid her since he’d stormed into the hospital on that first day and Faith gazed at him in surprise. ‘You do?’
‘Yes.’ He gave a smile that was faintly mocking. ‘You look like a pixie.’
‘Oh.’ She wanted to ask whether he found pixies sexy but then realised that she already knew the answer to that question. Obviously not, since he hadn’t been near her for the past four days.
And she was relieved about that, she told herself firmly, because she wasn’t ready to make love with him yet. Yes he was impossibly sexy, but for her it was more complicated than that. Her feelings were bruised and damaged and before she committed herself emotionally, she needed to know that he cared about her.
She needed him to show it.
Maria, the housekeeper, hurried across the courtyard towards them and Raul gave her a warm smile.
‘Buenos dias, Maria, qué tal?’
Wistfully remembering a time when he’d smiled at her with the same warmth, Faith also greeted the older lady and then followed her towards the luxurious Beach House that was Raul’s private residence.
He could have lived in the thirty-two-roomed estancia, but instead he’d turned it into his corporate headquarters, complete with suites of rooms for entertaining and overnight guests. For his own personal use, he’d chosen the privacy and intimacy of the Beach House, well away from the busy commercial world of the estancia.
The first time she’d seen it, Faith had been unable to believe that such paradise actually existed.
It was hidden from the main house by trees and fencing, and opened onto a private beach so breathtakingly idyllic that the world outside seemed not to exist and the only sound was the gentle hiss of waves breaking onto the perfect curve of white sand.
‘Everything is ready for you,’ Maria told Raul as she opened the door for them. ‘Just as you instructed.’
Dragging her gaze from the sea, Faith gave a gasp of surprise. The elegant Beach House was filled with the scent of flowers and someone had obviously given a great deal of thought to their return. On the table, a basket was piled high with exotic fruit and a bottle of vintage champagne lay chilling in an ice bucket.
‘All Raul’s idea,’ Maria said, her approval evident in her smile. ‘Newlyweds deserve something a little special.’
Faith felt the colour pour into her cheeks. Just what did Raul’s staff know about the last few weeks? Had they guessed about the state of their marriage?
Clearly keen to leave them alone, Maria said something else in Spanish to Raul and then left the Beach House, closing the door behind her.
Faith glanced around her, her mouth dry. ‘You asked for this?’
‘To prove that I am capable of being thoughtful,’ he drawled softly, reaching for the bottle of champagne and tugging out the cork.
Faith was on the verge of pointing out the fact that she would have preferred a conversation, but decided that this wasn’t the time to dent the atmosphere.
‘What do your staff know about the last few weeks?’
‘I have no idea.’ Raul poured the glistening liquid into two glasses. ‘I’m not in the habit of discussing my personal life with the staff.’
‘Well, you must have given them some explanation for the fact we haven’t been living here.’
‘Why?’ Genuinely puzzled by her question, Raul unbuttoned his shirt and walked towards the bedroom. ‘I have no idea what they think and I couldn’t care less. And neither should you.’
They were so different, Faith thought helplessly, watching as he slid the shirt from his shoulders. ‘Actually I do care what they think,’ she muttered and he gave a wolfish smile.
‘Then learn not to, because most people in this world are not that generous-spirited. If you really want to know, they’re thinking you’re obviously extremely hot in bed or there is no way you’d be wearing that ring on your finger.’
She flushed to the roots of her hair. ‘Oh.’
His smile widened and he walked into the bedroom without giving her a chance to respond and she stared after him with exasperation.
There was so much that they still needed to talk about.
So much that she needed to know. ‘Raul?’ She followed him into the bedroom. ‘We can’t carry on like this. The past few days, you’ve been driving yourself into the ground, working until you’re ready to drop. I don’t know whether it’s pressure of your business or whether you’re just avoiding this thing between us, but we have to talk. Not rows and accusations, but really talk. It isn’t going to go away and we can’t just pretend it never happened.’
He stilled. Then he turned slowly and their eyes locked.
And that one, powerful, sizzling look was all it took.
Her stomach knotted with almost unbearable tension and she felt every nerve ending in her body tingle and buzz with shocking awareness. Her breasts tightened and deep in her stomach something burned, hot and dangerous as desire engulfed her.
He felt it too, she knew he did because she saw the betraying glitter in his sexy, dark eyes and the sudden flare of colour on his high cheekbones.
The attraction enveloped them like an invisible force, burning everything in its path like a forest fire, drawing them relentlessly towards an outcome that both of them had been fiercely resisting.
He strode back towards her and pushed her back against the wall. His body trapped hers as he took her face in his hands, forcing her to meet his burning gaze.
‘I think we’re way past talking, Faith,’ he said huskily, all sexually confident male as his thumb traced a sensual path across her cheek. ‘All we’ve done for the past few days is talk and it’s been driving me crazy.’
‘But we haven’t solved anything,’ Faith gasped, turning her head to try and escape his agonisingly skilful touch. But they both knew it was a losing battle.
‘Frustrating, isn’t it?’ He gave a harsh laugh and then lowered his head and drew his mouth along the line of her jaw where his thumb had been, sending the heat between them soaring higher still. ‘You think it was easy to let you sleep alone, cariño? You think I found that easy? A man like me?’
It hadn’t been easy for him? ‘I didn’t think about it,’ she lied, her voice barely audible as it became harder and harder to speak. ‘You hurt me so badly, sex was the last thing on my mind.’
He gave a cynical laugh. ‘If only that were true, life would be a great deal less complicated. Unfortunately for you and I, chemistry seems to override common sense every time. You were thinking about it as much as I was. I could see it in your eyes every time you sat in that chair not reading that book on your lap.’
‘That’s not true,’ she moaned, but the smouldering glitter in his eyes told her that the lie had been a waste of breath.
‘You want honesty between us?’ he breathed. ‘Then let’s have honesty. I have wanted you for every second of the day and night since the first time I met you and nothing has changed that.’
His words affected her so deeply that there wasn’t a single part of her body that didn’t react. ‘So why did you let me sleep alone?’ She tried to remind herself that it wasn’t supposed to matter, that she wasn’t supposed to care any more, but it was as if her body was tuned to respond only to his. ‘I assume you were punishing me?’
‘Punishing myself,’ he said huskily, his hand curving over her bottom in an unmistakably possessive gesture that rocked her to the very core. ‘The doctor told me that you were to avoid all stress. From the disapproving look in his eyes, I assumed he considered me to be the cause of your stress. I stayed away from you and I can tell you that doing so has caused havoc with my stress levels.’
His body was hard against hers and it was impossible to think. ‘I wondered whether—You told me I was thin …’ Overwhelmed by his sexuality, she tried to catch a breath, hating herself for giving voice to her very female insecurities. ‘And you keep looking at my hair—you don’t find me attractive any more.’
‘No, you’re right.’ His voice was thickened as he hauled her closer still. ‘I don’t find you at all attractive.’ But his words were loaded with self-mockery and she gasped as her body encountered the unmistakable evidence of his shockingly powerful arousal.
