Chapter 22 #2
“Joder!” he muttered, grabbing another pillow and winging it across the room, where it hit the wall with a much-too-soft thud to be satisfying.
Neither hurling pillows nor downing Scotch would fix what ailed him. Even seeing Erica one more time today would have only briefly eased his longing. Or possibly made it worse, since he would have had to restrain his desire to yank her against his body and kiss her beautiful, soft mouth.
Even that wouldn’t have been enough. He wanted to see her every day. To talk to her. To laugh with her. To make love to her. To go rock climbing and flying and do nothing at all with her.
Because she was the most fascinating woman he had ever met. A woman who had declared her independence from her overbearing father to do what truly made her happy. That took tremendous strength. A pilot, responsible for the lives of everyone on the plane with her. That took confidence and guts.
More important, she was a person of honor and integrity who didn’t hesitate to speak to him frankly. He had trusted her with his darkest secrets, and she had helped him tear away the shadows.
And she was sexy as hell.
He groaned as memories of what they had done on this very couch reeled through his brain.
Why couldn’t he have this woman who brought him such happiness?
For a few moments, he wallowed in self-pity. Then he sucked in a deep breath and reminded himself of his duty to Caleva.
Now he really needed that Scotch, so he swung his legs off the couch just as his phone signaled that his father was on his way.
Carajo! He had forgotten to activate the keep-out setting.
He had just enough time to sit up and shove his feet back into his shoes before his apartment door swung open.
“Pater.” He stood as the king entered the room. His father had also shed his coat and tie. “I thought you were going to La Casa en las Nubes.”
His father came over to give him a hug. “Later. I wanted to see you first.”
Raul tensed, wondering how much his father knew about last night’s events. He gestured toward a chair. “Please be comfortable. I was about to get a Scotch. Would you like something?”
His father’s eyebrows rose, but he said, “Water, por favor .”
As Raul walked to the bar, his father said, “Your ankle seems to be bothering you.”
Raul winced. He had forgotten to control his limp. “I overused it yesterday. A little rest, and it will be fine.”
“I will hold you to the rest,” his father said. “Starting today.”
“In fact, I was lying on the couch with my foot up before you came in,” Raul said.
“My presence should not stop you from doing that.” Luis waved to the sofa as Raul returned with their drinks. “I want your injury to heal.”
Raul chose a chair across from his father. Lounging on the sofa was not conducive to matching wits with the king. “I’m good,” he said.
The king gave him a sharp look but raised his glass. “To Gabriel and Quinn’s happy marriage!”
“Salud!” Raul lifted his glass to his father before taking a large swallow of Scotch. The liquid washed away some of his misery. “They richly deserve their joy.”
Luis nodded. “We all owe you a debt of gratitude for silencing Odette. She kept her promise not to drag Gabriel through his ordeal in the media.”
“At least for now,” Raul said before he waved a hand in dismissal of his father’s appreciation. “You know that I would do anything to spare Gabriel pain. No thanks are necessary.”
His father put his glass on the coffee table and sat back, his hands resting on the upholstered arms of his chair.
“You have spared me pain as well. Every time Odette attacks someone in our family, I know that it is my fault because I am her real target. And having to face her…” Luis’s mouth twisted in a grimace of disgust and anguish. “It drives a dagger into my gut.”
He had never seen his father so naked in his emotions. Raul vaulted out of his chair to kneel beside him and lay his hand on Luis’s.
“Pater, you never have to see her again, I swear.” He couldn’t bear the pain on his father’s face. “I will handle that bruja from now on. She holds no terrors for me.”
Strangely, that was true. Erica had shown him how pathetic Odette was in her quest for attention. Although he hated the clinging miasma of the prison, he no longer feared his father’s nemesis.
“Gracias, hijo mío,” Luis said, placing his other hand on top of Raul’s. “Your courage surpasses mine.”
“Never,” Raul said, squeezing his father’s hand. “I have the advantage of a different relationship with Odette. I can barely remember that I used to call her tante .”
“Incredible to think that we considered her part of our family,” Luis said.
“Psychopaths are often charming.” Raul returned to his chair. “They have to be, or people would recognize what they are.”
Luis shook his head. “I will never forgive myself.”
“Pater—”
His father lifted his hand, palm outward. “No more talk of the bruja when we have just had such a brilliant celebration of two people’s love.” He picked up his water again. “You promised to tell me why you left Gabriel and Quinn’s party for so long.” There was a tiny note of censure in his tone.
“I guess Mikel didn’t fill you in,” Raul said, taking a large gulp of the Scotch.
“You know that I never ask Mikel about you,” Luis said.
In this case, it might have been easier for Raul if Mikel had relayed the story.
“Since it involved the Guardia Maritima, I thought he might have felt obligated to report on that,” Raul said.
“The Guardia Maritima?” Luis’s eyebrows rose. “Now I am truly intrigued.”
Raul gave a barebones account of the night’s adventures. Although he tried to downplay the drama, his father’s expression told him that he wasn’t succeeding.
He concluded with, “The dragon is safely back in the mountains, and the eggs are being incubated at the Centro del Dragón.”
His father pinched the bridge of his nose, a gesture generally reserved for importunate ministers.
“You had a helicopter, a foreign dignitary’s yacht, and a Guardia Maritima cutter involved in this rescue effort, as well as dragging in Gabriel’s pilot.
All while you were supposed to be attending your cousin’s wedding reception. ”
“Yes, Pater.” Raul braced himself for the reprimand.
His father lowered his hand as the corners of his mouth began to twitch. He chuckled, and then he threw back his head and guffawed in a very unregal way.
Raul allowed himself to smile, and then he, too, chuckled as he realized how crazy it all sounded.
Soon, they were both laughing, although Raul knew that on his side, it was partly from relief that his father wasn’t pissed off.
“I shall call you Raul Bond from now on,” his father said, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. “I can’t believe your insane plan worked.” He sobered. “You’re lucky that al-Buya had the dragon and her eggs. You could have provoked an international incident.”
“I didn’t accuse him of anything until Dario and Pascal actually found the dragon,” Raul pointed out. “He thought I was showing off his yacht for my girlfriend.”
“Cabrón,” Luis muttered. “I’m tempted to prosecute him for trafficking endangered wildlife.”
“I promised him we wouldn’t,” Raul said. “That’s how I got all of us off the yacht.”
“It was a promise made under duress,” his father pointed out. “However, I will honor your word.”
“Gracias.” Telling the story had brought back the ache of Erica’s absence. Raul took another gulp of Scotch.
“It sounds as though Senorita Ortiz was a key player in your escapade. How exactly did she get involved?” his father asked.
He should have known his father would zero in on that.
“You recall that she was my guide for my expedition into the mountains,” Raul said.
“I learned that she flew not only jets but helicopters. Since she was at the reception when al-Buya left, I enlisted her aid for the sake of speed. As it turned out, she played two roles—pilot and girlfriend—so she was a good choice.”
“She seems to be a very capable young woman,” Luis said. “Wasn’t her father killed while saving the lives of some U.S. Navy sailors trapped in a sinking boat?”
“That’s correct.” Raul kept it short.
“Then she comes by her heroism naturally.” Luis sipped his drink. “Gabriel says she’s an excellent pilot.”
“She did an impressive job of landing on a moving yacht,” Raul agreed.
“Talk to me, hijo . I know she is more than just your camping guide,” his father said. “Or handy helicopter pilot.”
Hostia! His father was too observant by far. But he didn’t usually interfere in Raul’s personal life, other than to occasionally introduce him to an eligible young noblewoman.
“Erica and I have been enjoying each other’s company since the camping trip,” Raul said stiffly. “She is an extraordinary woman.”
“So it seems.” His father’s gaze rested on Raul’s face. “Now she has gone off to the Caribbean for almost two weeks.”
“Which has brought our relationship to a natural end.” Raul was unable to keep a touch of bitterness out of his voice. “You need not worry.”
“Worry?” His father’s voice held surprise.
“I know she’s not…appropriate for a serious relationship,” Raul said.
“What do you mean?” Luis asked. “Does she have a skeleton in her closet worse than Quinn’s?”
“ Dios, no! You know who her father was, a decorated hero. And Erica is the most trustworthy, straightforward person I’ve ever met,” Raul said. He wanted to tell his father about Erica’s insight into handling Odette but remembered Mikel’s advice. No need to add to his father’s concerns.
“Why then do you believe she is not appropriate ?” His father seemed puzzled.
“I know my duty as the crown prince,” Raul said, drawing himself up straight in his chair. “My wife will be the queen someday, so she must be of noble birth.”
His father frowned at him. “Why would you think that?”
Astonishment made Raul mute for a moment.
“Because you’ve made that clear,” he blurted.
Luis sat back in his chair, his expression troubled. “I don’t recall ever saying that you should marry a noblewoman.”