Chapter 4
Four
Piper. Piper, Piper, Piper. With his hand in Piper’s silky hair, and her luscious mouth all over his, Emilio pushed her against the kitchen counter,
grinding his crotch against her center. “Emilio,” she gasped, then hitched her leg up over his hip, pulling him closer. She
needed him. Just like he needed her. Every inch of him ached for her. His hips and thighs were desperate for release. But first, he needed to tear off her clothes . . .
“Mr. Baquero, we’ve landed.”
Emilio’s brain registered the words in an instant, but his subconscious was still waist-deep in that dream. Fuck. Why had his mind decided to go there? Piper was his employee. And he’d known her for twenty-four hours? He was so disappointed in his own brain. Even though it
had concocted quite a steamy scenario. It was memorable. He might not ever shake it.
“Mr. Baquero?”
Emilio nodded. “Yes. Sorry. I heard you. I’m up.” He forced himself to open his eyes, then glanced across the aisle only to
be confronted by the sight of the woman he was not supposed to be thinking or dreaming about. Piper was dead asleep. Mouth slack. Eyelids twitching. Was she dreaming? If so,
he hoped it was not about him.
“Would you like me to wake Ms. Murphy?” the flight attendant asked.
Emilio unbuckled his seat belt and waved at the final passengers, Xander and Mia, as they headed off the plane. Gus, sprawled
out next to Piper, looked up at Emilio, then settled his head back down in her lap. “No. It’s okay. I’ll do it.” He scooted
forward in his seat, a bit concerned about how his body might react to touching her. “Piper?”
She snorted, then sighed, still deep in slumber and blissfully oblivious to everything around her.
He fought so hard against the smile that wanted to cross his lips. She was adorable. And completely off-limits. “Piper,” he
said more forcefully.
No response. Gus nudged her arm with his nose and whimpered.
Against his better judgment, Emilio reached across the aisle and grasped Piper’s shoulder, lightly shaking. “Piper. We’re
here.”
“Wha?” She popped open one eye, reared back her head, then squinted at the cabin lights overhead. Outside, rain streaked the
airplane windows. Another beautiful day in England. “Oh. God. We landed. We’re here.” She wiped the corner of her mouth with
the back of her hand, then struggled with her seat belt.
Gus, seeming relieved that she was indeed alive, began licking her face.
“Gus . . . No . . .” Piper giggled, pushing him off.
“Gus. Stop,” Emilio snapped. The dog jumped down off the seat.
“I’m so embarrassed. I crashed hard.”
“Don’t be embarrassed. But we need to go.” He didn’t want to sound too gruff, but he was eager to get everyone settled at
his place so he could get in a solid workout. It might help him shake the memory of that dream. Today was the first day of
getting back on track with racing. No more weekends like Miami.
“Yep. Yep. Sorry about that, but I’m up now.” Piper collected her backpack, then started down the aisle with Gus trailing.
Emilio waited for a moment, sucking in a deep breath while wrestling with the mental images still playing in his head. Grabbing
Piper’s ass . . . her tugging on his earlobe with her teeth and whispering yes with hot breath against his skin . . .
They made their way through the private terminal, then out to the parking garage where Emilio’s bespoke black McLaren waited
for him. He clicked the fob, then loaded his luggage and Piper’s into the trunk. “It’s often just Gus and I in the car, but
don’t worry. We’ll fit.”
“Two-seater. Not exactly a family car.”
Victoria had made a similar comment—one of the times she’d hinted at marriage. He’d never taken the bait. “No family for me.
Just Gus.”
“A dog is family.” Piper climbed inside and Gus had no issue hopping up onto her lap. “I don’t know that I’ve ever been in
a car without a backseat. It’s weird if you think about it. I’m guessing this car was super expensive.”
“Why is it weird?”
Piper cast him a look. “Because it costs more, but fewer people can ride in it.”
“The real value is under the hood.” He started the engine then revved it to demonstrate his point. A shot of adrenaline surged
inside him. It always did when he was behind the wheel. He quickly backed out of the space, jerked the car into Drive and
took off down the ramp of the parking garage.
Piper grabbed at the dashboard. “Oh, wow. Okay. This thing has some serious get-up-and-go.”
He couldn’t help but be amused. “You aren’t nervous, are you?” He took a corner a little too fast. God, he loved the purr
of the engine. “I’m an excellent driver.”
She shook her head. “Obviously. And no, I’m not nervous. In fact, I’m pretty excited for you to show me what this car can
do.”
“I have to obey local traffic laws, but we’ll see.” As soon as the security gate arm was risen, he punched the gas and whizzed
onto the road. He might not be in control of much in his life, but being behind the wheel was where he truly belonged. Even
if he didn’t love driving in the rain.
“So this is England.” Piper peered out the window. “It’s a little gray.”
“You’ll get used to it. I have.” That was a complete lie. Emilio had grown up in Spain, moved to Monaco when he got his seat
in Formula One and had lived there until he was ousted at Vermillion and Mega Racing swooped in. At that point, his life had
blown up—no girlfriend, different team and parents at war—it made sense to move and start over. England did have its sunny
days, but it wasn’t what he was used to. He craved heat. Brightness and light. He longed to raise his face to the sky to feel
the warmth of the sun. Too little of that happened in London.
“It’s strange to realize that I’m on the other side of the ocean from my family now.” Piper’s voice was wistful. “I’m just
going to send a message to the family group text and let them know I’m okay.”
Emilio never thought about being away from his family. Not anymore. What had once felt rock-solid and full of love was now
splintered. It had become something else entirely, where he was starting to feel more like the parent than the kid. It was
as if his parents had become completely different people in the past year.
“You can call them if you need to. We’ll be in the car for a while longer,” Emilio said.
Piper’s phone rang and she laughed quietly. “My dad. A text wasn’t good enough, I guess.”
“Please. Go ahead.”
Piper tapped the screen and raised the phone to her ear. “Dad. Hi. I can only talk for a few minutes. We’re almost to Emilio’s
place.” She sat quiet for a moment as her dad spoke. “It’s definitely sudden, but I had to take the job.” She turned toward
the window, away from Emilio. “It pays too well. I couldn’t say no.”
Emilio pressed his lips together. He didn’t care about the money at all. He simply found it amusing that Piper was trying
to be so discreet.
“His name is Gus and he’s amazing.” She ruffled the fur around his neck. “He’s such a good boy. Very smart.”
Emilio tried not to smile. He did love hearing an accurate assessment of Gus’s personality and demeanor. He’d heard too little
of that from other dog sitters.
“Oh, the race was amazing.” Piper sucked in a breath and turned toward Emilio, then shied away. “I mean, you saw on TV, right?
It was a good race. And it was fun to be there. No, he, uh, didn’t have a great day. But you know . . .” Her voice trailed
off. “There’s always next time.”
Emilio cleared his throat and tried to work a kink out of his neck. He was certain she was discussing his race performance.
He had no idea about her knowledge of the sport, but it was an undisputed fact that he hadn’t done well yesterday.
“So, is Gabby mad that I left?” Piper asked. “She hasn’t said anything on the group chat. I can just sense it when she’s giving
me the silent treatment.” Piper sighed. “I knew she’d be like this.”
Emilio glanced over to see Piper gnawing on her nail and nodding in agreement.
“It would be nice if she’d simply acknowledge this wedding is difficult for me. It’s like she thought ignoring my broken engagement
would make it go away.”
Emilio’s ears perked up. Broken engagement?
“Okay, Dad. I’ll talk to you later. I love you, too.” Piper tapped at the phone again and tucked the device into her bag.
“Sorry about that.”
“You needed to check in with your family. I understand.”
“We’re all really close. Especially me and my dad.” Piper turned to him and gathered her hair, pulling it up into a ponytail
and securing it with a band she’d been wearing on her wrist. He turned his sights to the road, then dared to glance back at
her. How was she even prettier with her hair up? Better yet, how was she pretty at all after having been on a plane all night? “My dad says hi, by the way. I’m sure that sounds weird. He’s just excited I’m working
for you. He’s a big fan.”
Emilio wasn’t about to dig for more information. The less he knew about the personal details of her life, the simpler things
would be. Judging by that dream he’d had on the plane, he needed to create as much professional distance as possible. With
that in mind, this seemed as good a time as any to establish the ground rules. “We’re almost to the house. As soon as we get
there, we can go over your role and my expectations.”
Emilio exited the highway, and they entered a more residential area, while Piper wondered about what Emilio meant by expectations. Her short conversation with her dad left her feeling conflicted. He was excited about her having taken the job, and in particular,
he was intrigued by her new employer. But he was also worried because she was “so far away.” And he’d confirmed one of Piper’s
biggest fears. Gabby was pissed. No huge surprise.
As Emilio drove, on either side of the street were shops and brick row houses, churches and pubs. Double-decker buses rumbled
past from time to time. Everywhere she looked, there was a bustle of people in a hurry to get . . . somewhere. “Is this the