Chapter Seven
C haos broke out as Erica screamed. “You bastard! You destroyed my marriage. I will never forgive you!”
Carlos tried to detain his daughter-in-law who all but flew at Alexandre—her hands clawed and her expression, one of pure malice.
Leandro quickly summoned a couple of maids who led a screaming Erica away, along with Carlos who gave Alexandre a loathing look before turning away.
Erica’s cries echoed in the hallway as she was led away, leaving behind a strained, uncomfortable silence.
“Another memorable welcome,” Alexandre drawled, unperturbed by the discomfiting welcome.
Very little bothered him nowadays, and Erica had said far worse things to him over the years. Calling him a bastard didn’t cut like before.
He hadn’t wanted to come to the Monteiro mansion in Pérola, but he couldn’t stay away either. His brother wanted him here tonight, so he’d donned a suit and driven to the island which had been his home for many years.
Carlos had brought him to this seaside mansion after adopting him, but little had he known that his father’s legitimate family too, resided here.
This house was filled with depressing memories, but he hadn’t wanted to return to his apartment either—not after the shocking news which Raquel delivered that morning.
The news of the baby had caught him by surprise and had shaken him to his core.
He had, at first, denied the possibility of a child because he always practiced safe sex.
But later in the day, an odd image teased his brain.
A blurry memory—of him spooning Raquel, taking her from behind, his shaft instantly hardening as more memories popped up.
Her throaty sighs. A small breast in his hand.
The hot clutch of moist muscles—clenching around him and milking him.
It became instantly clear to him that he’d had unprotected sex with Raquel sometime during that unforgettable night. She’d told him the truth while he had accused her of deliberately falling pregnant.
He had been at fault for not using protection. Hadn’t she mentioned that she was a virgin? Surely that meant she wouldn’t have been on any form of contraception!
The revelation shook him.
He’d been truculent, like his father, unwilling to accept his responsibility and it filled him with remorse. Alexandre had repeated history by having a child out of wedlock, but he wasn’t going to abandon his child like his father had abandoned him.
He wanted this child, he’d realized with a jolt.
But Raquel hadn’t given him a chance to talk about their future.
The life-changing news had plunged him into a mire of memories that had temporarily overpowered him. Memories of his miserable childhood filled with emotional abuse had paralyzed him, but when he fought his way back to the present, Raquel was gone. Gone without a trace.
“I’m sorry about that,” Leandro said, pulling himself back to the present.
Alexandre shook his head. “Don’t be. I know what to expect from Erica. It doesn’t bother me anymore.”
A pained expression came over his brother’s face. “I apologize on behalf of her.”
Clapping a hand on Leandro’s shoulder, he warned, “Don’t. I just came to offer my congratulations. But there’s something I need to take care of, so I will say goodnight.”
But Leandro wasn’t ready to let him go. “Not yet. Come meet my fiancée.” Turning, he gestured at the trio of women who stood by the French windows.
Alexandre lifted his head. A strange awareness pricked his spine as the hair on his nape stood up.
The older woman, clearly the bride-to-be’s mother, nodded at him. The purple haired woman beside her, didn’t even acknowledge him. In fact, she was busy whispering something at the third woman who had her back to him.
An uneasy feeling settled in his chest as he drew closer to the women.
“Ladies, this is my brother, Alexandre.”
Of the three women present, two smiled politely at him but the middle one kept her back turned. Something about her stance, the slight slouch, niggled him. The purple haired woman tugged her arm, forcing her to turn around.
Alexandre’s breath caught in his throat when he stared down at a very familiar face.
Leandro did the introductions, but he heard nothing after “this is Raquel, my fiancée.”
His brother’s fiancée was— his Raquel! He had slept with his brother’s fiancée!
Alexandre stumbled back as horror filled him. What had he done? He didn’t know who Raquel was when he took her to bed, but it didn’t change the fact that he’d slept with his brother’s fiancée!
Beside him, Leandro continued to speak but Alexandre heard nothing because he couldn’t take his eyes off the woman who had turned his world upside down.
He observed shock, confusion and trepidation chase across Raquel’s face, but when her eyes glazed over, his arm instinctively flew out and he grabbed her, just as she fell in a dead faint.
Someone shrieked as Alexandre swung her up into his arms before rushing out of the dining room and into his grandfather’s study, where he immediately laid her down on a plush sofa.
“Get some water,” he barked, clasping her cold hand in his.
Fear, like he had never experienced before, ripped through him. Why had she fainted? Was the shock of seeing him so great that her mind had shut down? Or was it—the baby?
“Move aside, let me look at her.”
Raquel’s mother’s authoritative tone grated on his nerves, but he forced himself to step away from the sofa. Feeling raw and exposed, he stormed out of the room, not caring that his hurried departure invited curious looks from both Leandro and Raquel’s sister.
He grappled with the feelings roiling inside him. Shock. Anger. Helplessness. Why did Raquel evoke such strong emotions in him?
Even when his mother had lain dying, he’d only felt contempt—never compassion, or love.
But Raquel managed to arouse protective instincts in him, and it wasn’t just because she was carrying his child.
He’d experienced the same feelings that night at the club when he had rescued her from her unwanted admirer.
He remembered wanting to keep her safe—make her happy. But it was he who had felt ridiculously happy in her company. So much that he had wanted to lose himself in her goodness.
And he had.
That one night, he’d experienced a myriad of emotions he had never experienced before.
Incendiary passion. Mind-blowing pleasure.
And soul cleansing peace. The climax itself had blown his mind, but along with it came a sense of tranquility that he’d never known before.
Perhaps that was why he had reached for her again?
Although he shouldn’t have, he admitted grimly, walking away from the mansion. He had decisions to make, but one thing was certain—he wasn’t going to abandon his child.
He would claim his child—and Raquel.
****
W hen Raquel opened her eyes, her vision was blurry. Her head hurt and stomach churned, her lips were dry, and her throat was parched.
“Water,” she croaked, and immediately a glass of deliciously cool water was put to her lips. Greedily she drank, not caring that some water spilled down onto her dress.
“Easy now,” someone muttered.
Whispering a thanks, she pushed away the glass, and sat up. Rubbing her eyes, she looked around the room which was obviously a study, complete with a writing desk and one entire wall lined with books.
“Feeling better? Do you need a doctor?”
Turning her head, she looked at Tahlia who sat in a chair next to the sofa she was on.
Sofa? She frowned. Why was she on a sofa, or in the study, she wondered, looking around. And why would she need a doctor?
Seeing her confusion, Tahlia whispered, “You fainted. I think you should see a doctor.”
“No!” she exclaimed, surprising both her sister and her mother, who sat beside her. She looked around for Leandro and found him standing by the window, a quizzical look on his face. “I’m fine...I just need some time alone.”
“How is that going to help?” Sylvia remarked, clearly unhappy with her reply but Tahlia came to her rescue.
“It’s the stress,” she said, and Raquel nodded.
“Y—yes... I just need a few minutes alone.”
Sylvia looked like she wanted to protest but Leandro was quick to come to her aid, ushering her mother and sister out of the study but not before sending a strange look her way. Tahlia too, looked puzzled as she followed Leandro.
Relieved, she slumped against a cushion. But the relief didn’t last long because her heart raced when she thought back to what had occurred in the dining room.
Alexandre was here ! And he was her fiancée’s brother!
What was she going to do now? How could she look him in the eye and pretend that they didn’t know each other when they had been as intimate as two people physically could be?
Perhaps if she stayed in this room, she won’t have to see him again?
But how long was she going to hide from him?
Sooner or later, she would have to leave this room and face both Alexandre and Leandro.
The thought filled her with dread.
Would Alexandre acknowledge her? Or would he pretend that he didn’t know her? Would he expose her secret before she could tell Leandro the truth herself?
The questions swirled around in her head, making her head spin.
When the door opened noisily, she looked up. Shock blasted through her when Alexandre stepped inside the room and locked the door behind him.