NOTHING ABOUT HER disturbed him, Ramon assured himself as his driver pulled away from the cathedral and into traffic. Not the prolonged paleness of her frozen face, the ephemeral fragility of the fingers twisting in her lap, the intermittent shudders that racked her body.
She wasn’t cold. Or in pain.
No. Not at all.
It was all an act. Suki Langston was nothing but a stone-hearted liar. One he’d had the misfortune of tangling with for one single night. Long before that night, he’d wondered what Luis saw in her, why their so-called friendship had stretched into years.
He’d concluded that his brother had been fooled as concisely as he had. Not only that, Suki had lured Luis into keeping a secret that shouldn’t have been his to keep.
In his darker moments, Ramon wasn’t sure he would ever be thankful that his brother had finally gone against his vow and told him the truth. Because what use was it to be told that something you hadn’t even known you possessed had already been ripped from your life? What good did it do when it left you with a gaping wound further compounded by deeper losses?
At first he’d been stunned at the news, even doubting Luis. He’d used condoms the three times he’d taken her. Granted that last time in her bed had been a very close call but he hadn’t taken complete leave of his senses to forget protection. But he was aware that prophylactics weren’t one hundred per cent foolproof. And very quickly he’d accepted the consequences of that mishap.
What he hadn’t accepted then and couldn’t accept now were the decisions Suki had taken with regard to what belonged to him.
His fist balled, the rage and grief in his chest multiplying a thousandfold.
It was unfortunate that she chose that moment to flick those wide, duplicitous blue eyes at him.
‘How...how long have you known?’ Her voice was little above a murmur. As if the strength had been bled from her vocal cords. He believed no such thing. Unfortunately, he was well versed in such female tactics, was accustomed to women who often pretended emotional weakness to gain advantage. In his younger days it’d been a mere irritant if it meant the woman in question ended up in his bed. With the passage of time, he’d grown to abhor it. Svetlana had been a master at it. Little had she known that he’d been onto her games very early on in their relationship.
‘That’s what you’re concerned about? How long I was in the dark before I found out the truth?’ he demanded. ‘Not how I feel about you getting rid of my child?’
She paled even further, but he was in no mood to show mercy. She’d showed him none and dragged his brother into colluding with her lies. ‘I—’
‘Are you aware of what you robbed me of? Do you know that tying Luis into your web of lies put a strain between us and deprived me of time with my brother in the months before he died?’ The words ripped fresh wounds on top of barely healed ones.
A broken sob tore from her. ‘Oh, no! Please, please don’t say that.’
White-hot rage and shredding grief scorched him from the inside. ‘Why not? Because it’s too difficult to hear?’
She bunched a fist against her mouth, her eyes shining as she stared at him. ‘Yes! It is,’ she admitted brokenly.
The car drew to a stop at the private heliport. On the tarmac his aircraft waited to transport them to the easternmost point of the island that was his true home. The rotor blades were already turning, but he wasn’t quite done with her. Wouldn’t be for a very long time.
‘What right had you to ask that of Luis, hmm? What happened that night was between you and I and no one else. The consequences should have been borne by both of us.’
She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. ‘I know, and I didn’t want to...to tell Luis.’
‘Why not? Because it was a dirty little secret you wished to dispose of but couldn’t quite accomplish on your own?’
‘No! My God, no. Stop twisting my words. Ramon, please listen...’ Her mouth trembled as she opened her eyes and sucked in a deep breath.
He inhaled a breath that didn’t quite replenish his lungs. Right in that moment he felt as if nothing would ever be right again. He’d lost too much, too soon.
‘I have the medical bills from the private clinic, the ones you let my brother pay for. I know exactly how much it cost to get rid of my child.’
‘Oh, my God,’ she whispered.
‘No. You’re out of luck, cara. Not even a higher power is going to save you now.’
She stared at him with wide eyes before her gaze flicked past him, and out of the window at their surroundings. Seeing the readying aircraft, she turned back to him.
‘Where are we going?’
‘To my villa in Cienfuegos. My lawyers are waiting for us there.’
A wave of apprehension washed over her face. ‘I thought we were going back to the hotel. Do...do I need to come with you?’
Another emotion sliced through him. ‘You don’t wish to know what your so-called best friend bequeathed you?’
She hesitated. ‘I do, but...’
‘You suddenly fear for your safety?’ He couldn’t help but mock.
Her chest rose and fell in a steadying breath. ‘I fear for the mood you’re in. I prefer for us to continue this conversation when you’re more rational.’
‘The only thing that would make me irrational is you choosing to remain in this car one moment longer. Get out, Suki.’ He jerked his chin towards the door his driver was holding open for her and waited, teeth clenched, as she slowly stepped out.
Grabbing his own handle, he threw the door open, the space suddenly too small to contain the power and might of his volatile emotions.
Striding across the tarmac behind her, he wondered how he would bear to be in close proximity to her during the helicopter ride when everything in him wanted to shake answers out of her. No, not everything. A small, intensely illogical part of him wanted to curl his hand over that delicate nape of hers, stop her in her tracks and demand that she stop shaking. That she stopped being so damned pale and fragile. Demand to know why she was no longer as curvy as she’d once been.
Madre de Dios...
Ramon was half thankful when his driver helped her into the helicopter. The same part watched her scramble to the farthest seat and buckle herself in, her body throwing up keep off signs.
Climbing in beside her, he saw to his own belt, then nodded to his pilot.
Despite the state-of-the-art noise-cancelling interior and the headphones with microphones they donned, he chose silence over continuing their conversation. He needed time to collect himself.
Losing control now would be counterproductive. He’d set a specific plan in motion when he’d instructed his lawyers to bring her here. And he would carry those plans through.
They completed the twenty-five-minute air ride in silence but he noted that she continued to tremble, her fingers twisting one way then another in her lap.
They landed at the purpose-built heliport at the south end of his villa’s garden. Emerging to the small gathering of people at the edge of the tarmac, he caught the questions in her eyes although she refrained from speaking.
Ramon addressed them, shook hands, accepted hugs and fought debilitating emotions that bubbled up when heartfelt condolences were offered up. All through it, Suki stood by in silence, her hands clutching her purse in front of her.
Eventually, when the last of the visitors left, he continued towards the house.
‘Who were those people?’ she asked as she hurried to keep up with him.
His jaw clenched. ‘Our neighbours and Luis’s childhood friends.’
The shadow that crossed her face could’ve been real pain. Or a carefully crafted gesture meant to fool him into thinking she had genuine feelings. Dios, he’d had it with calculating women. He clawed his fingers through his hair.
He needed a drink. Badly.
But first there were the lawyers to deal with.
Striding across the terrace, he made a beeline for the hallway that led to his study.
Three of his trusted legal team waited, suits sharp and pens poised to carry out the plan he’d formulated. But first he had to sit through listening to his brother’s last words to the woman who had cheated him out of something he hadn’t even known he craved until it was gone.
He made quick introductions, ignored the curious stares his lawyers cast her way as he sat at his desk and indicated the chair opposite.
She strode forward, her slimmer hips swaying in the simple but stylish black dress.
Ramon found his gaze lingering over her neatly tied caramel-blonde hair, then lower, scrutinising other areas where her body had changed. Her jawline was more pronounced, her cheeks hollower. Her lightly glossed mouth was still full and attention-grabbing, but her waist was even trimmer, its slightness easily spanned by his hands...
Realising what he was doing, he ruthlessly reeled himself in, but not before he caught the lingering gaze of the youngest member of his legal team on her. A sharp look redirected the man’s focus to the papers he held.
‘We will conduct the meeting in English. Miss Langston doesn’t speak Spanish...’ Ramon paused, one eyebrow raised at her ‘...unless I’m mistaken?’
She shook her head as she sat down, summoned a whisper of a smile. ‘Nothing beyond hello and goodbye.’
Neither of which she would be using on him any time soon. They were light years beyond cordial greetings and he had no intention of letting her out of his sight for a very long time.
His chief legal representative opened the folder before him. ‘The reason you’re here, Miss Langston, is because of the late codicil attached to the personal will Luis had drafted earlier this year.’
Ramon’s nape tightened. ‘When was this done?’
‘In May, four months ago. On the fifteenth to be exact.’
Suki’s breath caught, her throat working furiously.
‘What?’ he demanded, although he suspected he knew the answer.
‘It was the day after...’ She stopped, firmed her lips.
He didn’t need to hear more. He knew it was the day after she’d first checked into the private clinic. The time and dates Luis had told him were seared into his brain. And if for any reason he needed hard proof, the report from his private investigators was locked away in the top drawer of his desk.
He dragged his focus back to his lawyer. ‘Carry on.’
‘Miss Langston, I believe at the time the codicil was added you were pregnant?’ his lawyer asked.
Still tight-lipped, she nodded.
‘Well, Luis didn’t alter it so the original document stands. In it, your child was to receive a lump sum of money on his or her eighteenth birthday. But in the event of altered circumstances like what subsequently ensued, half of that sum was to go to you but only at his brother’s discretion.’
She shook her head, her eyes finding his. ‘You won’t need to decide whether I should have the money or not. I don’t want it.’
The lawyer’s eyebrows rose. ‘But you haven’t heard how much—’
‘I don’t care how much it is. I don’t want it. Feel free to give it away to Luis’s favourite charity.’
Fresh anger boiled in Ramon’s gut. ‘That’s how you’re choosing to honour his memory? By tossing away his gift so carelessly?’
The eyes that met his were darker than normal. Bruised. Perhaps she cared about his brother to whatever extent her stone heart was capable. But in the end, her caring hadn’t been enough. Luis had assured him he’d tried to talk her out of her decision to no avail.
‘That money was never meant for me, Ramon, and you know it. It isn’t right,’ she murmured, her voice husky.
‘Whatever my thoughts are on the matter, this was Luis’s wish. You will honour it.’
Her mouth firmed. ‘Okay, fine. If I choose to accept it, what then? Will you just hand it over?’
He shrugged. ‘That will be one of the subjects of our private discussion.’
A tiny flame lit through her eyes, a spark of anger lightening the dark blue depths that seemed even more vivid against the stark black she wore. ‘You just wanted me to say yes so you’d make me jump through hoops, didn’t you?’
‘I’m not in a habit of handing over a quarter of a million pounds on a fickle whim, Suki, so yes, there will be some hoop-jumping.’
She gasped, her gaze swinging from his to his lawyer’s. At the man’s nod of confirmation of the sum, she subsided back into her chair. ‘That’s...a lot of money. Why?’
‘You were carrying his niece, and Luis was big on family. As his friend, surely you knew that?’ he taunted.
The fire dimmed a little, but her chin elevated. ‘Yes, I knew.’ Her gaze swung to the lawyers. ‘If Mr Acosta decides to release the money to me, I would still like to donate it. Can I contact you if I need to?’
Temper rising, Ramon watched his lawyer nod, his expression softening.
‘Sí, of course, Miss Langston.’
Suki started to rise, throwing further fuel on Ramon’s mood. ‘Sit down, we’re not done,’ he snapped.
Her gaze reverted to him, then back to his lawyer. The older man cleared his throat. ‘Luis also left you two works of art to be handed over on whatever birthday followed his passing. I believe your twenty-sixth birthday is coming up.’
She nodded.
The lawyer continued, ‘They’re commissioned and paid for, but not yet completed. The artist will let us know when it is ready and you will be informed.’
A tiny frown marred her eyebrows. ‘I...who’s the artist?’
Ramon hid his sizeable bolt of shock. ‘I’m guessing that would be me,’ he supplied lazily, both irritated and saddened by Luis’s meddling. He looked at his lawyer. ‘Correct?’
Her head snapped in his direction, her breath stopping. ‘You...why?’ she asked for a second time in the space of three minutes.
‘Because according to my brother, you adore my work. I believe his paraphrased words after a visit to one of my galleries were, “She rhapsodised over your sculptures for a solid hour and needed to be dragged out of the gallery. I think the poor girl deserves a couple of her own.” I never thought he’d actually put the thought to deed in his will.’
Her face reddened, her eyes sliding away from his. ‘I didn’t... Luis liked to exaggerate. I wasn’t that taken...’
‘Does that mean you’re about to refuse this gift, too?’ he enquired, the turbulence inside him curiously emerging in a soft whisper.
Her gaze returned to his. Her lips parted. Ramon found himself holding his breath, unsure whether he wished her to accept or refuse.
‘You would still do it? Despite...everything?’ Her voice was equally soft, but tinged with bewilderment, not the rage burning beneath his skin.
He allowed himself a twisted smile. ‘I loved my brother. I believe in honouring his wishes. The question is, do you?’
Her bewilderment intensified, her tongue sneaking out to lick her lower lip. ‘Of course, but, Ramon...’
He actively despised the hot little tug to his groin as he followed the action. ‘Is that all of it?’ he snapped at his lawyers.
They got the hint, straightened their ties and shuffled papers. ‘Yes, that’s Miss Langston’s part of the meeting concluded. When it’s decided what to do with the inheritance, we will be on hand to carry out your wishes.’ His chief lawyer switched to Spanish, handing over the papers Ramon had requested with a puzzled expression.
Ramon ignored his concerns. Almost overnight, he’d had everything that meant a damn taken from him. His parents and Luis’s loss was unavoidable. The steps Suki had taken were deliberate. He would not be swayed from the path he’d chosen.
The moment the lawyers left he returned his gaze to her.
Watched her gather herself with a deep breath, her eyes fixed on the painting on the far wall of his study. A little colour had returned to her cheeks and she seemed better composed. She was nowhere as vibrant as she’d been the last time they were together, but she didn’t look deathly pale any more.
Which he chose to see as an advantage. For what was to come she would need all her strength. Or perhaps she would acquiesce simply to get her hands on the money she purportedly didn’t want. He knew different. She was in severe dire straits financially.
Rising, he rounded his desk. Her head immediately swung to him, her expression growing wary as she tracked his slow stride. Hitching his thigh on the corner of his desk, he sat down.
Silently, he watched her. Waited.
Her tongue darted out to worry her lower lip again. ‘Ramon, I think I need to explain a few things—’
‘Explanation is necessary when there’s a misunderstanding, an omission of facts, or outright lying. There is no such misunderstanding or omission here. You got pregnant with my child and chose to keep that fact to yourself. Then took specific steps to get rid of it. Have I misunderstood or omitted anything?’
She flinched then slowly her gaze narrowed, the fire returning to her eyes. ‘No, you haven’t. But you’re also forgetting one thing.’
‘And what’s that?’ he asked.
‘That it was my body and ultimately my decision. Not yours.’
The truth in that statement was inescapable. And while the civilised part of him accepted it, the part steeped in deep mourning and inextinguishable anger couldn’t swallow it in that moment. ‘So I didn’t matter at all in this scenario?’ he breathed.
Her hand flew to her forehead, rubbing restively over her smooth skin. ‘I didn’t say that. The trouble is that you seem to think I took the decision lightly, when it was the last thing I did.’
‘How would I know? I wasn’t there.’
Her hand dropped, her delicate jaw clenching. ‘I know! And you can berate me about that all you want. But I can’t change the past. I’m... I’m trying to put it behind me.’
That terrible vice around his heart squeezed tighter. ‘Well, I’m not ready to put it behind me. And no, you can’t change the past. But you can change the future. And you will.’
Her breath expelled in a little rush of apprehension. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘It means it’s time to discuss the next item on the agenda.’
He reached for the bound papers his lawyers had drawn up and tossed them into her lap.
For long seconds, she looked down at them. Then, slowly, she picked them up, scrutinised the pages with a frown. ‘What is this?’
‘It’s an agreement between you and me.’
She leafed through a few more pages. ‘I can see that. But for what? It just says it’s an agreement for my services. I’m an interior designer and you’re a hotelier and artist. What service could you possibly want from me?’
‘I don’t need your professional services, cara. What I want is for you to provide me with what you took deliberate steps to deprive me of. My whole family was wiped out in a single night. I want a child, Suki. An heir. As soon as possible. Preferably in the next nine months. And you’re going to give me one.’