HE WASN’T GOING to demand to know what was going on in her head. Nor was he going to demand conversation. And the need to reach out and free her thick caramel-blonde hair from the ponytail was certainly one he wouldn’t be indulging.
He had achieved his purpose where Suki was concerned. Or as near enough to it without having performed the act itself.
She’d subsided into near silence after their conversation on the plane, only acknowledging him when he deposited her in his private suite at Acosta Hotel Miami and left for his meeting. By then he’d concluded that talking was no longer necessary, or even a pleasurable experience with her. Half the time she argued with him. The other half she offered sympathy or touched on subjects that he found difficult. All the time his attention was absorbed by her animation, the little gestures with her hand she probably wasn’t aware she was making.
All distracting and frankly irritating.
So for now, he would enjoy the peace of mind afforded to him as he sat in the VIP dressing area of the top Miami stylist his assistant had scheduled Suki to visit.
A visit he’d accompanied her on simply because his mid-afternoon meeting had wrapped up early. Grabbing a copy of the financial paper he hadn’t been able to finish at breakfast this morning, he tuned out the three attendants’ hushed debate about which signature style to create for Suki.
The woman in question was seated on a chaise longue at the opposite end of the room, her shapely legs neatly crossed at the ankles. She was choosing not to participate in the conversation. Even looked borderline bored, a shrug very much in her expression each time she was asked a question.
Ramon’s irritation grew. Every woman he’d dated previously, without exception, had been an utter slave to shopping, the more exclusive, the more fervent the rhapsody. And the more adoring gratitude had come his way.
Suki looked as if she would have more fun watching paint dry.
Her gaze met his. Her lips pursed and her eyes stayed wide and unblinking. The distinct notion that she was fighting the urge to roll her eyes startled, then amused him.
Fighting the sudden twitch of his own lips, he returned his attention to his paper.
Eventually, the whole ensemble headed for an inner sanctum.
For five minutes he read and re-read the same article on the price of soya. The door opened. He tossed the paper aside.
The dress was a bold blood-red, the material a floor-length affair that clung to her body from chest to knees, leaving her shoulders bare and outlining her hourglass figure to perfection. Absently he heard one stylist refer to it as a Bardot-style evening dress.
With her hair caught back, her elegant neck and delicate shoulders gave off a fragile look he knew was false. Suki Langston had a backbone of steel. And as much as the reason for her presence in his life disturbed him, he couldn’t deny the fact that her beauty was enthralling. That the hot tug in his groin that had perturbed and then shamelessly dogged him with each subsequent time they’d met wasn’t going to go away.
He caught her full reflection in the mirror as one attendant stepped out of the way. She was smoothing her hand down her midriff. When it paused at her stomach, the place where his child had briefly been cradled, something hard and agonising pierced his chest.
The need to see his seed grow there, watch her belly expand with his child, filled every cell in his body.
The hell he’d lived in since finding out about his child, and the further agony of losing the family he’d never thought would be taken from him so suddenly, reared up and knocked him sideways.
He didn’t realise he’d made a sound until all four women froze and glanced his way. Suki’s gaze met his in the mirror and he caught the faintest tremble in her lips and sympathy in her vivid blue eyes.
He wanted to reject it, wanted to snarl that he didn’t need it. But his eyes stayed on hers, silently and secretly absorbing the sentiment.
‘She’ll take that one,’ he rasped into the silence.
The innocuous words altered the mood. A flurry of activity ensued. Having achieved success with the first dress, the stylist decided his opinion was needed for every subsequent ensemble.
He approved another half a dozen evening dresses, growled his dislike of a metallic gold cocktail dress that clung a little too tightly and showed off a little too much skin. At some point it was decided she would take her hair down to better judge the true style of one dress. The sight of her free-flowing hair sent another burst of heat through his bloodstream.
He was nodding at her selection of swimsuits and daywear when his phone rang. The doctors’ news sent a bolt of satisfaction through him. Followed closely by ramped-up anticipation.
The next call was to his American pilot to ready his plane.
Suki caught the tail end of the conversation. Enquiring blue eyes met his. He infused purpose in his gaze and watched her swallow.
Rising, he quickly brought the spree to a conclusion and led her out of the boutique with more than a little haste.
‘Any reason why we’re hotfooting it out of here like we’re fleeing the scene of a crime?’ she asked, but the hitch in her voice and the furtive glance his way suggested she already guessed the answer.
‘Our preliminary tests have returned with a green light,’ he answered as they settled into the car.
‘So...?’
‘So we’re returning home, Suki. I’ve waited long enough.’ Once he’d dragged himself from the depths of grief and accepted that only the promise of an heir would assuage him, he’d been planning for this event. He felt zero qualms about the swiftness with which he was moving now success was in his sights. The yearning stamped in his blood needed to be answered. Right now.
He couldn’t bring his brother or parents back, but he could ensure their memories lived on through his child.
The journey back was swift and uneventful. Not so much the palpable tension that rose between them the moment they stepped off the plane and onto his helicopter.
Ramon told himself that the anticipation firing through his veins was born of the primal need to ensure his family and legacy survived the tragic circumstances that had befallen him.
But as the rotors beat relentlessly towards his villa, he realised the woman too counted. For whatever reason nature saw fit, the chemistry between Suki and him transcended all logical explanation. Svetlana might have committed the physical act of cheating on him with other men, but in the handful of times he’d interacted with Suki when Luis had attended a function with her, the evidence of the unmistakable chemistry between them had caused Ramon more than a hint of discomfort.
Perhaps that had been the reason he’d acted so deplorably on the night of her birthday. Entering the pub and seeing Luis holding her hand had unexpectedly jarred. Recognising the emotion as dark rancid jealousy hadn’t improved a mood that had already been in a black pit after discovering the true extent of Svetlana’s infidelity. Perhaps taking Suki to bed that night had been his own way of salving the indignity to his manhood and pride.
For sure, he’d woken up in the early hours more than a little unimpressed with his behaviour. Not enough that he’d regretted the hours he’d spent in Suki’s bed. But enough to know that retreat was best for everyone in that moment.
He glanced at her now, completely certain there would be no retreat now.
She was his.
At least until she bore him a child. What came after that would be decided when the time was right.
He took her hand the moment the helicopter landed in Cienfuegos. He noted the slight lag in her steps and suppressed the apprehension that rose within him. She’d barely touched her food on the plane and her eyes had grown steadily darker and her face pinched.
Dios. Anyone would think she was a virgin headed for the slaughter. Wasn’t she though, to all intents and purposes? She’d only had one previous lover bar him. One sexual encounter. The primitive part of the alpha male in him had been more than thrilled at that admission, but he hadn’t failed to notice her lack of experience on their first night together.
His racing libido throttled down a notch. Entering the main salon, he pulled her to a stop before him. Despite her heeled sandals, she needed to tilt her head to meet his gaze.
So small.
Yet so strong.
His gaze drifted over her, fresh hunger clawing through him, but he couldn’t ignore the obvious.
‘You’re nervous,’ he observed.
She laughed self-deprecatingly. ‘Give the man a prize.’
‘Have you forgotten that we’ve done this before?’
If anything, her tension increased. ‘After which you left my bedroom without so much as an adios, if I recall.’ Her voice was hushed, but there was a strained note in it that was more than the hurt he sensed.
Ramon got the distinct impression he’d been judged and found wanting, which shouldn’t have surprised him considering his own admission of his less than stellar conduct. But still, a thousand tiny pinpricks dragged over his skin. ‘A lot of what happened that night was...unfortunate.’
Her face tightened. Her eyelashes dropped to fan her cheeks. ‘I see.’
He caught and lifted her chin with his finger. ‘But not what happened in the car, or in your bed,’ he clarified firmly.
Her face remained closed. ‘I don’t really see the point in dissecting it any more. What happened...happened.’
Ramon should’ve been pleased. He wasn’t.
Letting go of her, he walked to the drinks cabinet. About to pour them both a drink, he hesitated. Alcohol was a hard no for her considering what they were trying to achieve. And he would do well to keep his wits about him.
About to suggest an alternative, he stopped when she glanced at the door. ‘I’m going upstairs to...um...take a shower.’
Great idea, he wanted to say, but one look at her face told him she intended it to be a solo mission.
Suppressing the torrid images, for now, he nodded. ‘I’ll be up shortly.’
She opened her mouth, as if to contradict him, but, face still set in unhappy lines, she walked out of the room.
He shoved a hand through his hair.
Dios. Maybe he would have that drink after all.
The shot of cognac did nothing to bring clarity or calm his raging need.
He’d spent the months after Svetlana’s betrayal burying himself in work and avoiding any and all liaisons. Not because he’d been heartbroken, but because he’d realised how jaded the idea of relationships had grown for him.
He and Luis had been lucky enough to grow up in a stable and happy home. Although not wealthy, their parents had ensured they got the best education, his half-American mother smoothing the way for them to attend top universities in the States.
It was this solid foundation he’d foolishly thought to emulate with Svetlana, despite the clear evidence that successful marriages, especially among wealthy men like him, were rare. How many of his silver-spoon college buddies had come from broken homes and were themselves intent on living duplicitous lives even before they’d entered the real world?
After Svetlana, he’d even been a little disconcerted to realise sex had grown boring for him and the idea of pursuing a woman had dropped to an all-time low on his list.
All that apathy was nowhere in sight right now. He paced the salon, nursing a second drink while keeping an eye on the clock.
Ten minutes later, he set the crystal tumbler down and strode from the room. The knock on her door produced no response. That unsettling irritation that was never far off dogged him again. Turning the handle, he tried the door, exhaling when it yielded to his push.
He was getting somewhere if she hadn’t locked him out. Except she wasn’t in the bedroom and there was no sound from the bathroom.
The absurd idea that she’d made a run for it had him charging for the French doors that led to her private terrace. His hand was on the doorknob when he heard a faint sound behind him.
‘Ramon?’
He turned.
She was framed in the doorway of her dressing room, clad in only a towel. Her face glowed a light pink from her shower and her damp hair tumbled around her naked shoulders. With no make-up, no sexy lingerie or perfumed skin to entice, Ramon wondered how she could still be the most captivating woman he’d ever encountered.
Because, Madre de Dios, she was.
Blood and lust thrumming wildly through his veins, he slowly moved towards her, watched her fingers twist in a death grip on the knot of the towel.
Her gaze flitted from his to the French doors before rushing back to his, as if, like him, she couldn’t look away for long enough. ‘Did you just break into my bedroom?’
He gave a low laugh. ‘I was checking to make sure you hadn’t decided to make a run for it.’
He stopped before her, breathing in the intoxicating scent of woman.
His woman.
‘And if I had?’
‘I would’ve chased you down,’ he vowed.
A shiver trembled through her. He wanted to trace his fingers over her satin-smooth skin, elicit another delicious shiver. But if he touched her that way, here in this room, he wouldn’t be able to stop.
Closing the gap between them, he caught her around the waist. Lifting her high, he banded one arm around her and started to walk.
One hand landed on his shoulder to steady herself as her eyes widened. ‘Where...where are we going?’
He passed through the open door and took a right towards the end of the corridor. ‘I’ve had you in my car and in your bed. This time I’m taking you in my bed.’
Her breath hitched in a sexy little rush that went straight to his groin. Striding through his private living room into his bedroom, he kicked the door shut with his foot and set her down.
‘Let go of the towel,’ he rasped in a voice he barely recognised as his own.
She blinked, then looked around wildly before her gaze returned to his. Whatever she saw in his face made her draw her lower lip between her teeth and worry it mercilessly.
Ramon barely managed to stop the torturous groan that rumbled up from his chest.
‘Drop the towel, Suki. Or I’ll do it for you,’ he growled.
Despite the alarming widening of her eyes, she shook her head. ‘You take something off first.’
He sighed. ‘Are we going to argue about every single thing?’
The hand gripping the towel tightened defiantly. ‘Equality is a very big thing for women these days.’
His mouth attempted to lift without his permission but the severity of his need killed his mirth. His jacket came off and hit the floor, followed by his tie and shirt.
When his hand went to his belt, she froze, her gaze following the movement. He slowed the slide of the belt through the loops. Something about having her eyes on him turned him on even harder.
He hadn’t forgotten his paramount objective but, Dios, he was also going to take a little bit of pleasure in his task.
‘Do it, Suki. I won’t tell you again.’
Slowly, she let go of the towel.
Everything locked inside him, save for the electric zap of lust that powered his every cell. Maybe he was going to take more than a little pleasure in bringing his child into the world.
Discarding the belt, he pulled her into his arms, fisted one hand in her thick hair, angled her face up to his. The wave of anxiety that crossed her face pulled him short for a moment.
‘This can be the clinical exercise you accused it of being. Or we can attempt to enjoy it. Which would you prefer?’
Her mouth fell open in shock, then she blushed fiercely. ‘I...how can I answer that without...without...?’
He glided his thumb over her lips. ‘It’s fine, you don’t need to incriminate yourself. I would prefer the latter. And I will proceed accordingly unless you indicate otherwise.’
‘Or we can stop dissecting it and just get on with it?’ she muttered, her colour heightening as her gaze dropped from his.
Ramon wanted to bring it back to his. But he couldn’t resist the prompt to just get on with it. Not when his hands were gliding over her glorious skin and her breathing was altering in that heady way again. Not when the sight of the tip of her tongue caressing her inner lip was threatening to drive him insane.
The distance to his bed was mercifully short. Laying her down, he quickly disposed of his remaining clothes. When her wide-eyed gaze took in his erection, he swallowed a groan and brought himself under fierce control.
Stretching out next to her, he pressed her body to his, caressed his hand down the delicate line of her spine.
She arched against him, bringing the tips of her sweet breasts against his chest. When the sensitised tips brushed him, she whimpered. The sound, like every single one she made, drove blood straight between his legs.
Unable to resist, he bent his head and took one pink peak into his mouth. Her whimper turned into a cry as her fingers spiked through his hair.
Sí, there was absolutely no reason why they couldn’t enjoy making this baby that would ensure the continuation of his family’s legacy.
In pathetically few minutes, the insane hunger threatened to annihilate him.
Pressing her onto her back, he braced himself over her.
* * *
Suki didn’t think she had any more air in her lungs to exhale with as Ramon parted her thighs. But apparently the sight of him, crouched so masterfully over her, could elicit another giddy rush of air.
She couldn’t...shouldn’t be enjoying this. Every particle in her body shouldn’t be craving what was coming so much. And yet wild, dizzy anticipation continued to ripple through her as his fingers slid between their bodies, located that needy place between her thighs and delivered wicked caresses.
Her head was rolling restlessly on his pillow as he started kissing his way down her body. Open-mouthed kisses that branded her skin and left a trail of fire she was sure would never be extinguished. She wasn’t aware her nails were digging into his shoulders until he hissed encouragement.
Dragging her head off the pillow, she looked down to find his ferocious gaze pinned on her, tracking her every response.
He got to her belly and he paused, his lips hovering over her womb. An enigmatic expression washed over his face. Then his head dropped one last fraction, anointing her belly with a kiss. Something heavy and indefinable moved through her, wrapped around her heart.
Suki shied away from it, her intuition pushing her towards emotional self-preservation. His mouth brushed lower and she stopped thinking altogether.
She resurfaced from her first climax long enough to feel him tug her resolutely beneath him.
‘Open your eyes, Suki,’ he rasped above her.
She dragged heavy lids open, her chest rising and falling rapidly. His eyes were a dark, primitive green. The turbulence surging through her was reflected perfectly in his gaze.
His hand barely slid beneath her to hold her steady before he thrust inside her. ‘Oh!’
His harsh exhalation reverberated in the room. Burying himself to the hilt, he held himself still, fine tremors shaking through his body as his teeth clenched. The sight of him fighting for control thrilled a shamelessly feminine part of her.
Enough for her to raise her hand and slide her fingers over his rigid stubbled jaw, through his hair, drag her nails along his scalp, sink them into his nape.
A guttural groan ripped free from his throat as he began to move. Powerfully. Relentlessly. His possession was masterful and thorough, commanding every single cell in her body by the time the glorious pressure threatened to stop her breathing.
Frantic for an anchor, her hands found his waist, dug in and stayed as he hurled her relentlessly to the edge.
‘Ramon...’
‘Sí, guapa. Give in,’ he encouraged throatily.
She didn’t need a second bidding. Shameless cries ripped from her own throat as bliss burst wild and free from deep within her.
Seconds later, Ramon gave an animalistic growl above her before he rammed deep...deeper than he’d ever been inside her. The sensation of his seed filling her, flooding her, shook new, alien feeling inside her long after their breaths had returned to normal. Long after he’d rolled to the side and tucked her against him.
That band around her heart, the one that held apprehension and a whole lot more sensation than she could fathom right now, tightened even further. She tried to will it away. But it loomed larger until she couldn’t stem the feeling morphing into naked fear in her chest.
When she pulled free, he let her go.
Her duty was done. At least for tonight. She moved to the edge of the bed, swung her legs down.
Before she could stand, a thick arm snagged her waist, dragged her back against the sheets.
‘Where do you think you’re going?’ he demanded. His sculpted cheekbones were still flushed and his hair was in total disarray. But he remained sinfully, impossibly gorgeous, his face threatening her equilibrium all over again. She fought it with every spare ounce of control she could summon.
‘I’m returning to my room.’
‘No, you’re not. Until we get a positive result you’re sleeping in this bed every night. I will have your things moved here tomorrow.’
She was shaking her head before he’d finished. ‘I... I would rather not.’
His face closed, his displeasure evident. ‘If you think I’m hunting you down every night, think again.’
‘Hunting me down? I’m right next door.’
‘Then save us both the trouble of maintaining separate rooms.’
She shook her head again, her instincts screaming that this was a terrible idea.
He exhaled impatiently. ‘If you insist on your feminine independence, you can shower and dress in your own suite. But when I’m in this room so will you. Agreed?’
This was his idea of a compromise. She could waste her breath arguing. Or she could take the offer. She took the offer. ‘Agreed.’
His expression changed into one of hard satisfaction. Leaning down, he delivered a firm, swift kiss on her lips before he raised his head a fraction. ‘One more thing.’
‘Yes?’ she replied shakily.
‘You attempting to leave my bed so soon leads me to think you believe I’ll be taking you just once a night.’ His lips brushed hers as he spoke, trailing little bursts of fire on her tingling mouth. ‘Am I right, cara?’ he enquired huskily.
Her face flamed. ‘I wasn’t... I didn’t give it that much thought.’
His tight-lipped smile mocked her. ‘Well, in case it crossed your mind, revise that impression, guapa. And also revise the notion that I will be restricting myself to only nights from now on.’
She was flailing under the torrent of his words when his hand slid down to boldly cup her hip. Before she could so much as take a breath, he had once again taken control of her body.