Desert Jewels & Rising Stars

by Sharon Kendrick

  “Senhora?” Laura repeated, confused at how she’d just gotten promoted to a married woman.

  The plump-cheeked, white-haired woman blushed. “You’re a mother. You deserve respect,” she said, then held out her hands to the baby. Robby gave a gleeful cackle, and Maria took him happily in her arms.

  Frowning, Laura slowly looked around her. The penthouse seemed the same, but it had changed somehow. She saw to her surprise that all the electric plugs and sharp edges had been covered. Peeking into the dining room, she saw it was entirely filled with toys.

  Laura turned to Gabriel in wonder. “All this?” she said. “For one night?”

  He shrugged. “Don’t thank me. Maria did it.”

  Laura’s heart, which had been rising, fell back to her shoes.

  “We’ll have a wonderful time this afternoon, won’t we?” Maria said to Robby, whirling the baby around to make him giggle. “If you need us, Mrs. Laura, we’ll be making lunch.”

  Laura turned to follow them into the kitchen, but Gabriel stopped her. “They’ll be fine. Go freshen up.”

  She scowled at him. “Stop barking orders at me. You weren’t this bad when I worked for you.”

  “Do you want a shower or not?”

  From the kitchen, Laura dimly heard Maria getting out pots and pans as she sang a song to the baby in Portuguese. Robby started banging the pans with a wooden spoon, keeping the beat. They seemed fine. Laura set her jaw, then grudgingly admitted, “I do want a shower.”

  “You have ten minutes.” When she didn’t move, he lifted a sardonic eyebrow. “Need help?”

  She saw his lips curve as he turned away, walking down the hallway. Pulling off his shirt, he dropped it to the floor as he stopped in the doorway of his bedroom. He looked back at her with heavy-lidded eyes. “Go. Right now. Or I will assist you.”

  “I’m going!” With a gulp, Laura ran for the safety of her old bedroom.

  Her room had changed, as well. All the old furniture she’d had as his live-in secretary was gone, of course. The space had been turned into a bland guest room. Except.

  She saw the brand-new elliptical wooden crib beside the bed, the changing table with diapers and baby clothes and everything else Robby might need. She exclaimed with delight as she touched the smooth wood. In the closet, she saw new clothes for her, as well. Gabriel had truly thought of everything. Going to the closet, she touched a black dress with a soft, satisfied sigh.

  Then she saw the size on the tag.

  Well, she thought with dismay, he hadn’t thought of everything.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  TEN MINUTES LATER, Gabriel paced beneath the hot sun across his rooftop terrace. He stopped, staring down at Ipanema Beach across the Avenida Vieira Souto. He could hear the loud music from the crowds celebrating below. Lifting his eyes, he looked past the throngs of people, past the yellow umbrellas and food vendors to the shining waves of the surf, trying to calm his pounding heart.

  Now Laura was here, everything would soon be sorted out. Oliveira and Adriana would both believe that they were in love. They had to believe. Otherwise….

  No, he wouldn’t let himself think about failure, not even for an instant. He couldn’t lose his father’s company, not now that it was finally within his grasp. He gripped the railing, glaring at the bright horizon of blue ocean. All along the coastline, tall buildings vied with the sharp green mountains for domination of the sky.

  He’d changed into khaki shorts and an open, button-down shirt over a tank top, with flip-flops on his feet, Carioca-style. He paced his private rooftop. Bright sunlight reflected prisms from the water of his swimming pool. Turning back, he stared down blindly at the scantily clad women on Ipanema Beach, to Leblon to the west, ending in the stark, sharp green mountain of Dois Irmãos.

  Gabriel had been only nineteen when he’d lost everything. His parents. His brother. His home. His hands tightened on the rail. When he’d had the chance to sell his family’s business the day after the funeral, Gabriel had taken it. He’d fled to New York, leaving his grief behind.

  Except grief had followed him. Consumed him. Even as he created an international company far larger than his father’s had ever been, the guilt of what he’d done—causing the accident, but being the only survivor; inheriting his father’s company, only to carelessly sell it—never left him. Never.

  “Well, I did it,” Laura gasped suddenly behind him. “Ten minutes.”

  “Very efficient,” he said, turning to face her. “You should know that—”

  His words froze in his throat.

  Gabriel’s eyes traced over her in shock as he watched her towel off her long wet hair. He took in the erotic vision of her obscenely full breasts overflowing the neckline of her black dress. He couldn’t look away from the fabric outlining her full buttocks and hips.

  “Where,” he choked out, “did you get that dress?”

  She stopped toweling her hair to look at him, tilting her head with a frown. “It was in the closet. Wasn’t it for me?”

  “Yes.” He couldn’t stop his gaze from devouring her curvaceous body. He became instantly hard, filled with the memory of how it felt to have her in his arms, for the most explosive sexual night of his life. He wanted her. Here in Rio, beneath the Brazilian sunshine, suddenly he could think of nothing but taking her, right here and now. He licked his lips and said hoarsely, “But I didn’t expect it to look like that.”

  An embarrassed blush rose to her cheeks as she pushed up her black-framed glasses in a self-conscious gesture. “I gained a little weight with my pregnancy,” she mumbled. “I’m not so thin as I used to be.”

  “No.” Gabriel stared at her, feeling his body tighten with lust. “No, you’re not.”

  Willing himself to stay in control, he pulled out a chair at the table next to the pool. “Maria made breakfast. Come and eat.”

  Laura scowled. “Is that an order?”

  “Sim.”

  Carefully folding her towel and setting it on a nearby table—instead of just dropping it to the floor, as he would have done—she sat down.

  “I probably shouldn’t eat anything. Not if I’m supposed to wear a bikini,” she said in a low voice. “I’ve tried to diet, but…”

  “Never diet again,” he said tersely. “You are perfect.”

  He pushed her chair back under the table. He paused, allowing his hands to remain on the back of the chair, next to her shoulders. He could almost feel the warmth of her soft skin.

  She looked up at him over her shoulder with a scowl. “You’re just being nice.”

  He stared down at her. “When have you ever known me to be nice?”

  Her full pink lips suddenly curved into a smile as her blue eyes twinkled. “Good point.” She tilted her head, considering. “So you really think I look…all right?”

  “Hmm.” His eyes lingered on her spectacular figure. She’d been beautiful before, but now, it was almost like torture to see her perfect female shape. Those hips. Her curvaceous bottom. Those breasts—!

  She was almost too attractive, he thought. He wanted to convince Oliveira and Adriana he was in love with Laura, not have every other man on the Avenida Vieira Souta enjoy the luscious spectacle of her body. “You’re fine,” he said, irritated. “But that dress is unacceptable. We’ll buy you something else when we go shopping today.”

  “Shopping. Right.” Pouring milk and sugar into her cup, she stirred her coffee with a silver spoon. “I can hardly wait.”

  He sat down across the table. “You have nothing to worry about.” He pushed the bread basket toward her. “It’ll be fine.”

  She took a roll and sipped her coffee, and as they ate, Gabriel couldn’t stop staring at her. Once, their relationship had been easy. A friendship. A trust. Now, he couldn’t quite read her.

  Strange.

  For five years, Laura Parker had been the perfect employee. She’d had no life or interests of her own. She’d always been ready and waiting to offer her competent assista
nce for his latest emergency, whether it was a billion-dollar drop on a foreign stock exchange or a broken thread on his tuxedo.

  Now…there was something different about her. Something had changed in her over the last year. He felt as if he didn’t know her.

  “How is your meal?” he said gruffly.

  “Delicious.”

  “Try this.” He handed her a bowl of pastries. Their fingers brushed and she jerked away as if he’d burned her.

  He scowled at her. “We’re attending Oliveira’s party in three hours. No one will believe we are a couple if you jump every time I touch you.”

  Putting down her fork with a clang, she looked at him. “You’re right.”

  He held out his hand across the table, palm up.

  With an intake of breath, she placed her hand in his. He felt her tremble. Felt the warmth of her skin. A rush of desire went through him as his fingers tightened over hers. Coming to her side of the table, he pulled her to her feet.

  For a moment, they stood facing each other beneath the warm, bright sun. A soft sea breeze ruffled her damp hair. She wouldn’t meet his eyes. Her gaze seemed fixated on his mouth.

  She licked her lips, and he nearly groaned.

  “I passed your test,” she whispered. “I’m touching you without flinching.”

  “Holding my hand is not enough.”

  She visibly swallowed, looking up. “What—what else?”

  He put his arms around her, pulling her close. He felt the softness of her body, felt her curves pressed against him as he rested his hands on her hips. Her tight black dress squeezed her breasts still higher in the force of his embrace, plump and firm and begging for his touch. He stroked her cheek, tilting back her head. “Now I need you to look at me,” he said in a low voice, “as if you love me.”

  Beneath her glasses, her wide-set blue eyes glimmered in the sunlight, shining like the sea.

  “And I,” he continued roughly, “am utterly, completely and insanely in love with you.”

  She trembled. Then she fiercely shook her head.

  “This isn’t going to work. No one will believe you’d choose me over her.”

  “You’re wrong,” he said. “Adriana is beautiful, yes. But that’s all she is. While you…”

  Laura stiffened in his arms, lifting her chin.

  He cupped her head with his hands. “You are more than just a pretty face.” He stroked her bare neck. “More than just a luscious body.” He rubbed his thumb against her full, sensitive lower lip. “You are smart. And too kindhearted for your own good. You sacrifice yourself to take care of others, even when you shouldn’t.” He pressed a finger against her lips to stop her protest. “And you have something else Adriana does not.”

  “What?”

  He looked down at her. “You have me,” he whispered.

  Gabriel felt her hands tighten around him.

  “Can you do it?” he asked in a low voice. “Can you pretend you’re in love with me? Can you make everyone believe that all you’ve ever wanted is for me to hold you like this?”

  Her face was pale as she looked at him, trembling like a flower in his arms. When she spoke, her voice was almost too quiet for him to hear above the noise of the music and street party below. “Yes.”

  “Then prove it.” He felt her soft curves pressing against his body, felt how delicate and petite she was in his arms. Laura was so beautiful in every way. He felt the press of her full breasts against his chest. Felt the tendrils of her long damp hair brush against his hands as he gripped her back. He breathed in the scent of her, lavender and soap, wholesome and clean.

  He was hard for her. Rock hard. And yet she seemed to think she was inferior to Adriana da Costa, who aside from her beauty was nothing but a shallow, spoiled brat.

  Suddenly Gabriel knew he had to tell Laura the truth.

  “I want you, Laura,” he said in a low voice. “More than any woman. I’ve always wanted you.”

  She gasped, her eyes wide. “You…”

  Then her expression grew dull as the light in her eyes abruptly faded. “You’re practicing again.”

  “No.” He cupped her face roughly. “This has nothing to do with our business deal. I want you. I’ve spent the last year wanting you. And now you’re in my arms, I intend to have you.”

  He saw her eyes widen beneath her glasses, heard her harsh intake of breath.

  “But for now,” he murmured, “I will start with a kiss.”

  Then he lowered his head to hers.

  He felt her soft, warm lips tremble against his own. For a single instant, her body stiffened in his arms. He felt her hands against his chest as she tried to push him away. He just wrapped his arms around her waist more firmly and held her tight, refusing to let go.

  Kissing her was even better than Gabriel had imagined.

  It was heaven.

  It was hell.

  With a shudder and a sigh she suddenly melted against him. He ruthlessly pushed her lips apart, teasing her with his tongue, plundering the warm heat of her mouth.

  His kiss became harder, more demanding, their embrace tighter beneath the white heat of the sun. Slowly, she responded. Her hands stopped pushing against his chest, and moved up to his neck, pulling him down to her. When she finally kissed him back, with a hunger that matched his own, a low growl rose in the back of his throat.

  He forgot their affair wasn’t real. He forgot the deal entirely. He felt only his masculine, animal need to have her, the need he’d denied himself for too long. Lust swarmed in his blood, pounding through his brain, demanding he take total possession of Laura in his bed.

  CHAPTER SIX

  THIS couldn’t be happening.

  Gabriel couldn’t be kissing her.

  But the part of Laura’s brain that was telling her to push away, push away now, was lost in the scorching fire of his embrace. As his lips moved against hers, mastering and guiding her, heat seared down her body like a hot jungle wind.

  Pleasure whipped through her, pleasure she’d felt only once in her life before. But this was even better than her memory. As they stood on the penthouse terrace, she grasped his open shirt, clinging for dear life. She felt the warmth of his body, the hardness of his muscled chest beneath his cotton tank top. His strong thighs in khaki shorts brushed like tree trunks against her legs. He towered over her, making her feel womanly and petite as he folded himself around her.

  The hot, hard feel of his lips seared hers, causing sparks to shoot down the length of her body. Her breasts felt suddenly heavy, her nipples taut. A fire of ache raced to her deepest core as tension coiled inside her. She felt the rough sandpaper of his chin against hers and breathed in his intoxicating scent of musk and spice. Her knees shook beneath her. Her world was spinning. Everything she’d wanted, everything she’d dreamed about for the past lonely year, and five years before that, was suddenly in her grasp.

  His hands stroked her back through her black dress.

  “Come to bed with me,” he whispered against her skin. Bed.

  She sucked in her breath as reason returned. He was seducing her. And so easily. She’d made the mistake of giving in to her desire for him once, and it had changed the course of her life. She couldn’t let it happen again. Never again.

  With a ragged gasp, she pulled away from his grasp. Breathing hard, she glared up at him. “You don’t seriously expect me to fall into bed with you after one practice kiss?”

  His half-lidded eyes were sultry with confidence—arrogance—and his sensual lips curved into a smile. “Yes. I had rather hoped you would.”

  “Forget it.”

  “It would make our pretend affair more believable.”

  “By turning it into a real one?” she whispered.

  He shrugged, even as the intensity of his gaze belied that casual gesture. “Why not?”

  The early afternoon was growing hot, the sun and humidity alleviated only by the cooling trade winds off the Atlantic and the Janeiro River, for which the cit
y had been named. Laura took a deep breath of the fragrant, fresh air redolent of spices and tropical fruits. How many times had she prayed that by some miracle, Gabriel would come for her?

  I want you, Laura, more than any woman. I’ve always wanted you.

  She pushed aside her own longing. She couldn’t let herself want him. She couldn’t. She lifted her chin. “Thanks, but I’m not interested in a one-night stand.”

  His black eyes glowed like embers. “I don’t want a one-night stand.”

  She licked her suddenly dry lips. “You—you don’t?”

  He shook his head. “I want you to stay.”

  “You do?”

  “I’ve missed having you as my secretary. And,” he added, as she folded her arms furiously, “as my lover.” “Oh.” Her arms fell back to her sides. She whispered, “And Robby?”

  His jaw hardened as he looked away. “The two of you can live in the apartment below mine,” he said. “Your child need not inconvenience me at all.”

  Your child. Hot pride and anger rushed back to her, stiffening her spine. “You mean you will kindly overlook my baby in order to have me in Rio as your 24/7 employee and late-night booty call.”

  He stared at her, wide-eyed. Then he gave a sudden laugh. “I’ve missed you, Laura,” he said softly. “No one stands up to me like you do. You’re not afraid of me at all. You see right through me. I like that.”

  She jerked away from him, near tears and furious with herself. She couldn’t believe she’d let herself get seduced by his sweet kisses, not even for an instant. Absolutely nothing had changed. Gabriel didn’t want a wife or child. And for her, only a real family would do.

  “Sorry,” she said coldly. “But my days of being your work slave and casual late-night lover are over. Don’t you dare kiss me again.”

  But his hands only tightened on her. “I can and I will.”

  She exhaled in fury. “You have some arrogance to think—”

  Seizing her in his arms, he kissed her at once, roughly, hard enough to bruise. Showing mastery. Showing possession. And to her eternal shame, when his hot lips were against hers, she could not resist. She sagged in his arms—and kissed him back.