CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FOUR
E LODIE HAD LITTLE choice but to accompany Ramon Fernandez down the corridor, given he didn’t release her hand. Her pulse lifted, her breathing quickened and amazingly the pain in her head receded. She told herself it wasn’t from his touch but rather the rush of adrenaline that his appearance had induced.
Okay, it was his touch, and she was completely out of her depth. But if he knew how much he affected her that would give him power, and Elodie never wanted anyone to have power over her again. Not emotional. Not physical. Not financial. She’d worked too hard for too long to gain her independence and her confidence. So she’d pull on her cool.
Once more she regretted coming here alone, but she’d never imagined that he’d be so attractive. She had to shake off this sense of intimacy that had deepened by virtue of him catching her resting. Physical distance would help but the house made that difficult. The dark colour scheme flowed into the dining room where the silverware gleamed in flickering candlelight. It was atmospheric and something smelled so good her mouth watered.
He released her hand and held a chair for her. ‘Eat.’
Right now she was too hungry to think of a comeback to savage his tendency to command. Desperate to haul her scattered wits together, she did as he’d suggested and focused on the food. She would refuel her brain and then get it together.
Piotr presented the plates and then left. Salmon fillet, baby potatoes, a pretty salad—Elodie felt healthier just by looking at it. At the first mouthful she suppressed a moan. Exceptionally cooked, it wasn’t rich and decadent but light and refreshing and everything she needed. She basically inhaled it. Maybe she ought to make polite conversation, but it was too hard to keep her emotions contained. Fortunately, he too seemed intently focused on stabbing the food with jerky movements. They both drank water, steering clear of the wine. Slowly she felt fortified, and by the time they moved to the elegant and refined fruit and cheese platter with an exquisite assortment of petit fours that she simply couldn’t resist, she thought she might be able to handle anything.
‘Better?’ he asked quietly.
‘Yes.’ She finally dared to look at him directly and breathed in deep because it was a mistake.
He was appallingly handsome, but it was that combination of alert amusement and awareness in his eyes that minced her brain again.
‘When did you find out about Ashleigh’s engagement?’ he asked.
‘Last night.’
‘You’ve been kept out of the loop as much as I have,’ he noted softly. ‘Save your sister. Marry me.’
‘That’s crazy,’ she muttered.
The crazy thing was that she was tempted —purely because of her physical response to him. Her whole body was on high alert. Sex had never been a big part of her life before, so this desire was shocking and diabolical and extremely difficult to control.
‘Isn’t accosting someone in their own home also crazy?’ he said. ‘Especially when you got the wrong guy. Perhaps impulsive is a better word. Perhaps we could impulsively marry.’
‘Absolutely not.’
His smile flashed. ‘Are you not attracted to my brilliance? My billions? Not even my body?’
She squirmed like a fish on a hook. ‘None of the above.’
‘You lie a lot.’
‘Your ego is astronomical.’ She sipped more water. ‘I don’t need to create more problems for myself by entering a foolish and unnecessary marriage. Two wrongs do not make a right. And frankly, I don’t believe that you really feel forced into doing something so drastic.’
‘Unfortunately my aunt’s duplicity forces me into action of some kind,’ he said mildly. ‘Cristina wants assets. I imagine she wants Jose Ramon to produce the Fernandez heir for the next generation. As I’m pushing thirty and don’t have three offspring already, she hopes that I’m a lost cause and so—’
‘I’m never having your baby.’ This talk of heirs and offspring shocked her into interrupting him.
He just laughed. ‘Indeed you are not. I have zero intention or desire to procreate.’
‘Right. Good.’
‘As we agree so easily on this, I’m confident we’ll find more common ground.’ He smiled, all smug confidence. ‘Our marriage may well be an oasis of emotional calm.’
She stared at him incredulously.
‘I will retain control of the Fernandez empire,’ he said.
That’s when she saw the glint of steel and realised he was lethally serious.
‘But if you’re without an heir—what happens then?’ she asked.
‘I’ll ensure the succession plan is in the best interests of the company but I need to buy a little time first. Getting married is the most expedient way of achieving that.’
‘But you don’t need to marry me at all. You could marry anyone.’
‘Of course I could,’ he agreed.
Elodie stilled, shocked as a hot spear of jealousy stabbed deep inside her.
‘But that wouldn’t solve the problem within your family,’ he added with a charming smile. ‘Won’t your father simply find your sister another husband she doesn’t want?’
That was a horrible possibility.
‘You need a more permanent solution for your own family drama,’ Ramon said. ‘I can be that solution.’
He made it sound so simple. So easy to say yes to something so insane. But Ramon Fernandez was more powerful than both her father and her ex put together, and she should be running far, far away.
‘I’ve been married before,’ she said flatly. ‘I have zero intention of doing it again.’
He leaned back and studied her. ‘You were nineteen.’
She glared at him. He knew ?
‘Why did it end?’
The atmosphere sharpened. When did he learn that about her—had he pried into her personal life while she’d been resting?
‘You were unfaithful?’ he asked harshly.
‘Repeatedly,’ she lied furiously.
His expression pinched. He believed her. It was important that he did. It was another layer of armour for her. She needed him to think she was trouble—that she was tough. That he couldn’t control her.
‘Which I assume is the source of your supposed danger,’ he said. ‘Your flightiness. Your high needs . Perhaps our marriage could restore your reputation?’
‘I don’t want to restore my reputation,’ she snapped. ‘I like my life. It took a lot to get my freedom and I’ll fight to keep it however I have to—’
‘You do realise that I’m not talking about forever?’ he interrupted with a low drawl.
‘You do realise that I could make your married life the worst thing ever?’
‘I was rather hoping you’d suggest that.’ His smile widened to full crocodile threat. ‘You’re everything they’d hate. My marrying you would be their worst nightmare.’
Great. Good to know her efforts to be repellent had been so successful. She breathed through the hit and pulled on a ruthless smile—drawing on the persona she’d cultivated after walking out on her marriage after only five months. The one that had finally given her ex the impetus to agree to the divorce he’d tried to delay. He’d begged her to come back but never listened to why she didn’t want to. He’d wanted the obedient Elodie he’d first met, not the free Elodie she’d desperately needed to be.
‘Because I’m a troublemaker?’
She’d played ‘unfaithful wife’. Repeatedly. She’d posted ‘incriminating’ pictures all over social media until finally neither Callum nor her father could stand the continued public humiliation. The divorce had been expedited at last, and Elodie had been wiped from her own family’s photos.
And Ramon Fernandez clearly thought he knew all about her now—knew her fickleness, flippancy, infidelity. Of course he wasn’t afraid of it. Maybe the only thing that mattered to him was money.
‘Because you’re an independent woman who’s not afraid to say what she thinks or to ask for what she wants,’ he corrected.
Elodie’s breath stalled as a lick of pleasure curled inside her. Independent? Not afraid? Maybe he was just being smooth but that was how she wanted him to see her. Strength mattered. And she would remain strong in front of him now.
‘Unfortunately that’s not going to work on my side.’ She coolly denied him. ‘Because you’re not my family’s worst nightmare.’
‘No?’
Hell, no. Her father, so impressed by grandeur, by supposed social standing, would be a drooling sycophant should he ever meet this Ramon Fernandez.
‘You supposedly have billions,’ she said. ‘If I were to marry you they’d be over the moon, basking in the glory of such a connection. They wouldn’t care if you treated me badly. In fact they’d probably cheer you on.’
His mouth thinned. ‘Which is why—when the time is right—you’ll give me hell and walk out. You’ll destroy me like you no doubt destroyed that other guy.’
She masked her flinch. ‘As if you would ever allow yourself to be destroyed.’
‘You see?’ The crocodile smile returned. ‘It’s perfect. Because you do not care about marriage. You do not care about me. Neither of us will mistake this for anything more than a temporary deal to resolve family drama.’ He leaned close. ‘You’re as bulletproof as I am.’
He was so wrong. But she couldn’t ever admit that to him.
‘As appealing as you’ve made it sound,’ she said with a bored expression, ‘there’s not enough in it for me. ’
‘No?’ His gaze sharpened. ‘Then tell me, Elodie Wallace, what is it that I can do for you?’
She fought to keep her brain together and not let the new sensual ache in her body derail her completely. ‘Are you really trying to offer me anything I want in return for my hand in marriage?’ She shook her head and went full bluff. ‘Sorry, but I already have everything I want.’
‘No,’ he scoffed. ‘There’s something you need. There’s always something.’
‘You’re saying anyone can be bought?’ she asked.
He was so cynical.
‘You know it.’ He suddenly leaned close, his blue eyes glinting and jaw angular as he sucked in a sharp breath. ‘Why not take everything that you can get from this?’
‘“This”?’
‘Don’t pretend to be so naive,’ he muttered harshly. ‘Don’t avoid the obvious.’
She couldn’t believe the fire now in his gaze and couldn’t stand the energy coursing through her. She had to move. She pushed back from the table at the exact moment he did. He moved with such rapid force the chair toppled behind him but he didn’t care—he grabbed her hand instead.
People shook hands in all kinds of settings so the smallest of strokes of his thumb on her wrist shouldn’t have had the effect on her that it did. But it was such a gentle caress. One he repeated—almost as if he were unconscious of the action. Except he was as aware of it as she. Hyper aware. Heat flooded her face and the answering splash of colour on his upper cheekbones melted her.
‘ This is the obvious?’ Her voice was high and thin because she was breathless and yearning and hotter than she’d ever felt in her life.
‘Has been from the moment you stormed my house.’ He kept those mesmerising blue eyes on her. ‘The fact is you want me as much as I want you.’
He crowded closer but she craved closer still. With a hitch of her breath, with an unconscious sway towards him she admitted it. Invited . His other hand landed on the small of her back—beneath her blazer. Her breasts tightened against her bodice. She gazed up at him, her lips parting as he lowered his head to hers. One kiss. Just one. Just to see.
He caught her mouth with his and in seconds it was the most sexually explicit kiss she’d ever experienced. His tongue teased then plundered, full of intent and carnal temptation. With a moan she sank against him, and his hold tightened. She gasped as his lips trailed lower, teasing the sensitive skin of her neck. Her knees weakened at the caress—such was the cliché she’d become. But in an instant she was his plaything. Somehow her blazer slipped from her shoulders to the floor. She swayed, so supple for him, so eager for his touch, and he lowered her back against the table. Their empty plates were at one end but now she was the dish on offer. And he feasted. His body was like rock and the intensity of his arousal turned her on even more. She was breathless with awareness of it— ached for it. She wanted him. Completely.
In moments they were hurtling towards a foregone conclusion. She would sleep with him. She would do anything with him. Frankly, he’d seduced her before even touching her and now that he had, she’d gone up in flames. Eviscerated. Inevitable. He tugged her bodice down. She sucked in a shocked breath because he was strong and bold. Her breasts were exposed to his gaze, touch, tongue, and he took quick advantage in that order.
‘You are stunning, my flame-haired vixen,’ he groaned huskily. ‘You know how to make an impression and I so appreciate it.’
‘It wasn’t for you,’ she moaned.
‘I know,’ he laughed exultantly. ‘But I’m not my cousin. I’m not a weak man. I know what I want and I’m not afraid to reach for it.’
He wanted her and he made no effort to hide it. No effort to restrain his intense kisses, caressing her with mouth and hands and closeness—rousing her to an equally wild hunger.
This boiled down to sex . From the moment she’d set eyes on him the awareness had kicked in. It had been a swift, unstoppable reaction she’d never experienced before and incited a shocking greed that she couldn’t control. She wrapped her leg around his hips so she could feel his hardness right where she was aching and wet. Even through the layers of clothes, the feel of him against her was shudderingly good. He moved against her again and again in the most delicious erotic tease and suddenly she was about to lose control. She was about to—
‘Oh, no,’ she muttered to herself, a shocked gasping whisper. ‘No!’
‘But you’re so close,’ he muttered hotly. ‘Let me finish you—’ He broke off on a growl and stepped back.
Elodie almost wept as a wave of frustration smacked into the empty space he’d left. She’d be shaking in bliss if she’d just bit her lip! For a split second longer she remained leaning back on the dining table, staring up at him. The fire in his eyes, the flush on his cheeks, the satyr-like smile on his lips...he gazed down at her so hungrily and she was stunned at how sexy she felt. She’d been more turned on in the last minutes than she’d ever been in her life—a breath from an orgasm she’d never experienced with another.
And it had taken him mere moments. A chill ran through her body, dousing the flame of desire. That had been too intense. Too quick. She scrambled to cover up. She’d never been as close to losing complete control of herself.
‘Games, Elodie?’ he growled softly. ‘Of course you like to play them. But you really don’t need to feign shyness.’
She wasn’t playing anything, but she would let him think it while she got her head together. She needed the protection of his disapproval. If he knew how shaky and vulnerable she actually was right now, she’d be completely at his mercy.
‘I’ll happily play whatever games you want once we’re married.’ Ramon curled his hands into fists, striving to regain control of himself.
She’d surprised him by slamming on the brakes, but he’d seen the keening ache still in her expression as she’d turned away to tug the bustier back in place. He picked up her little blazer. She snatched it off him with trembling hands.
‘This has been a waste of time.’ She flipped her hair free and it settled in wild disarray across her shoulders.
‘It has not,’ he retorted, folding his arms across his chest to stop himself grabbing her back against him. ‘But unlike you, I’m not one for making dramatic declarations, I’ll actually do whatever is necessary to resolve this. The question is, will you? Or are you all talk and no action?’
‘I’m taking action. By leaving. Now.’
He didn’t want that, but he clamped down on his urge to restrain her with brute force. ‘Running away because you can’t handle the temptation?’
Twin spots of colour flooded her cheeks. She almost looked prim. ‘You really think you’re that irresistible?’
‘I really think this chemistry is,’ he threw back at her.
She stilled, stared at him with wide, wild blue eyes.
‘I’m not afraid to be honest,’ he growled. ‘Seems you need a little more practice.’
But doubt sliced—was this just strong chemistry or was it those more unfortunate genetic tendencies unleashed? Ramon had vowed never to come unhinged by lust. Yet here was his very personal challenge to that. So he would show restraint. Just to prove to himself that he could—that he wasn’t like his father in everything.
‘Piotr will drive you home,’ he said roughly. ‘I’ll be in touch tomorrow. We’ll solidify the plan.’
‘Make an actual proper plan, you mean.’
He watched her worry her lip—that’s all it took to reignite the need to pull her close. He definitely wasn’t alone in feeling this, but he’d slow them down and ensure this would be a controlled explosion geared to extract maximum benefit for them both.
‘I guarantee that if you marry me, your sister will be released from that engagement immediately,’ he said. ‘And you need this to be immediately, no?’
She didn’t reply, which was better than an outright refusal. He sensed she was unsettled from something more profound than the insanity of this rash proposal. He got to her. It pleased him. It made them even.
‘Thank you for dinner.’ She ground out the most reluctant polite goodbye ever.
He laughed. She looked angry.
‘My pleasure.’ He should step back. Instead, he couldn’t resist temptation again. Not when she stood there so defiantly—wordlessly daring him.
One kiss. Just one more. He bent and brushed his mouth gently against hers and felt the instinctive cling of her lips to his. No denial. She couldn’t. Suppressing a guttural groan, he allowed himself another taste of her exquisite softness. He cupped her face to stop himself from searching out her curves but then he couldn’t resist pressing her against the wall with his body. She melted like wax against him, and damned if that wasn’t every bit as good as earlier. If not even better than the raging inferno of the straight-to-orgasm encounter they’d almost had on his dining table. She was so warm. So tender. So sweet. And with another swipe of his tongue the inferno was back. He growled and ground against her—torn between keeping his head and indulging his rampant appetite. He should just take her to bed. Slake this hunger. If he asked now she would say yes. But he wanted her acceptance of something so much more.
He tore his lips from hers, leaning back to study her. Her eyes were still closed as if she was lost in the moment. As if she’d never been kissed like that in her life. And maybe it made him a fool, but he was willing to go with it because he hadn’t had a kiss like that either.
‘I can hardly wait till we’re married,’ he muttered.
Her eyes opened and looked huge—dazed. Her bold, sexy clothes and her trembling, flushed response were a study in contrasts and he decided then that he would truly take his time because her surrender would be all the more satisfying.
‘We’re not getting married.’
‘Sure we are. That’s the only way I’ll give you what you want.’ He would convince her properly tomorrow. He would find her weak spot, apply pressure and win.
‘Sleep on it. If you can,’ he challenged softly. ‘I’m not going to. I’m going to lie awake all night thinking about you. Specifically what I’m going to do with you the second I have that band on your finger.’