When Da Silva Breaks the Rules

by Abby Green

  The tenderness swelled. ‘Are you still friends?’

  Cesar smiled. Another rare, proper smile. Lexie had to stop herself from gripping his hand tighter.

  ‘Yes, but only because we nearly killed each other when we were ten.’

  Lexie asked impulsively, ‘What happened?’

  He looked rueful. ‘I had issues with someone being smarter than me.’ And then he said, ‘I’m a hustler, Lexie. I go to these forums and meetings because I have inherited and manage a vast legacy. For a long time I thought I wanted to do what my father had done and turn my back on it, but then I realised that if I did and the fortune got carved up I’d be cutting off my nose to spite my face. I realised that I enjoyed being an entrepreneur—I was good at it. And once my grandparents died I could finally put the family’s vast wealth to some good use.’

  ‘How old were you when they died?’

  Cesar’s easiness vanished. ‘Fifteen when my grandfather died and then eighteen when my grandmother died.’

  Lexie squeezed his hand but said nothing. She could see the lack of grief for them in his eyes—it was almost defiant. Her own silly heart ached to think of him taking on all that responsibility at such a young age. And as a boy growing up with no love. The thing was, she knew what that felt like—albeit on a different level.

  The lack of affection in her own family had come after shattering events and had never been repaired.

  The steward appeared then, to offer them some refreshments, and Cesar let her hand go. To Lexie’s relief the conversation turned to more neutral topics after that.

  It felt like no time at all before they were descending into Madrid, and Lexie looked out of the window eagerly to catch her first glimpse of the capital city.

  When they emerged from the plane after landing it was pleasantly warm with a hint of autumnal freshness. A car was waiting for them.

  Cesar said in the back of the car, ‘We’ll go to the apartment and then I’m taking you out on a tour.’

  ‘Okay,’ Lexie answered. An incredibly light feeling was bubbling up inside her, and she was determined not to analyse it too carefully.

  When Cesar put out his hand for her to come closer she didn’t hesitate, sliding along the back seat until she was right beside him. His arm went around her, his fingers splaying provocatively just under Lexie’s breast, making her toes curl in her shoes.

  His apartment building was on a very grand, wide, tree-lined street. It was an old building, and his apartment was at the top. When he opened the door to let her in Lexie wasn’t surprised to see that the same kind of modern design as was in his castillo apartment ran through this space too. The old building was the shell, but classic furniture and abstract paintings gave it a very contemporary and slightly eclectic Art Deco aesthetic. It oozed class and luxury. Good taste.

  Lexie asked, as he led her down a corridor, ‘Did you design this and your other apartment at the castillo?’

  ‘Yes. A friend who is an architect helped me. Luc Sanchis. He oversaw the structural work and his team did the interiors.’

  ‘Wow,’ Lexie said, awed. Even she’d heard of the famous constructive architect.

  Cesar stopped at a door. ‘We’ve also come up with a plan to completely remodel the interior of the castillo but it’s undergoing a lengthy planning permission process. As you can imagine it’s protected because it’s so old, and we have to incorporate that integrity with the new design.’

  Lexie wrinkled her nose. ‘I think it would be great... It’s an amazing building, but...’

  ‘Completely stuck in the Middle Ages and not in a good way?’

  She smiled. ‘If you say so. I couldn’t possibly be so rude.’

  He reached out and rubbed his thumb along her lower lip. Lexie’s blood sizzled. And then, as if he had to make a physical effort to stop touching her, he gritted his jaw and let his hand drop.

  He pushed open the door and let her precede him. It was a bedroom, with a massive en-suite bathroom and dressing room. The same Art Deco stamp on the furnishings. She loved it.

  ‘This is your bedroom.’

  She turned around, her heart speeding up. He was putting her bags at the bottom of the bed and turning around.

  ‘I’m not even going to say it, Lexie... You know I want you. But this is your space.’

  Beyond touched, and reassured in a very deep place that needed reassurance, Lexie got out a husky ‘Thank you...’

  * * *

  A few hours later Cesar stood at the window in the reception room. He was waiting for Lexie, his hands stuck deep in the pockets of his black trousers. His hands had never itched so much in his life. The previous few hours had been both heaven and hell. Torture.

  When he’d asked her how she’d like to see the city and she’d professed an interest in an open-top bus tour that was what they’d done.

  He’d never done one of these tours in his life—it was completely alien to anything he’d normally do—but he had noticed them in various cities and always envied the kind of people who went on them.

  Lexie had been like a child, her face lighting up to see the beautiful city. And Cesar had ended up inadvertently doing a better job of being tour guide than the actual tour guide. A small crowd had gathered around them on the top of the bus so they could hear his take on the various sites. It had helped that he spoke multiple languages.

  Lexie had been laughing when they disembarked, because some of the American tourists had insisted on tipping him—one of the wealthiest men in the world!

  In that moment, when Lexie had been laughing, Cesar had felt a dizzying rush of something that was also completely alien to him...it was only now that he could recognise it with a sort of incredulity. Happiness.

  For a moment he’d felt pure, unadulterated ease. Joy. The blackness that seemed to be his constant companion had dissipated. And it had lasted even as Lexie had asked if they could walk back to the apartment because it wasn’t far.

  They’d stopped and had coffee and cakes on the way. Cesar had never, ever spent such an enjoyable couple of hours with anyone.

  The threads of that happiness lingered now, like a seductive caress. But Cesar was aware of something very strong inside him that refused to believe it. It was urging him to be vigilant, not to trust in this ephemeral feeling.

  Anything that had felt vaguely like this had been ripped away from him at such an early age that now it seemed too...easy.

  He heard a sound then, and turned around, and when he saw Lexie it was like a punch to his gut—it was that physical.

  He couldn’t have analysed what she was wearing in any kind of detail. All he knew was that it was black and seemed to cling to every curve she had with a precariousness that made Cesar’s body stiffen in wanton reaction. Her shoulders were bare. Her hair was pulled back, revealing her long delicate neck.

  She was a goddess.

  Cesar walked over to her before he could melt into a pool of unrestrained lust and lock them both in this apartment until she finally gave in to him. He was actually afraid to touch her—afraid that if he did he’d turn into some feral being.

  ‘My car is waiting outside.’

  Lexie smiled, but Cesar could see a slight nervousness in her eyes. The thought of dinner? Was she feeling insecure? It made unwelcome protectiveness rise up, but lust was also rising, too high and fast for him to be able to focus on it or let it bother him.

  He let her precede him, her scent light and fresh. Floral. Her long dress swung around her hips and legs, and Cesar all but closed his eyes and sent a prayer up to the God he hadn’t consulted in a long time for the ability to show some restraint.

  * * *

  Lexie was finally relaxing. Although she knew it probably had as much to do with the second glass of wine she was on as the fact that the dinner was provi
ng to be far less scary than she’d thought.

  But the location was beyond intimidating in its grandeur. It was a very old palace in the centre of Madrid that had been turned into the Ambassador’s residence. If everyone hadn’t been in modern clothes it would have been hard to ascertain where the past ended and the present began under the soft, seductive lighting of hundreds of candles.

  She’d imagined that people would be talking about complicated fiscal policies and the merits of a single currency, but they were actually far more interested in talking to her about the famous people she’d met and what they were really like.

  She felt a large hand on her thigh and her lower body spasmed in pure need. She put her hand over his to remove it, but instead her fingers wound their way through his. Holding him there. Her body and her mind were in two different places...

  She smiled brightly at the man beside her and took advantage of the lull in the conversation to turn and face Cesar on her other side.

  He looked at her. ‘Okay?’

  She smiled wryly. ‘I’ve been telling the esteemed Secretary to the Greek Ambassador exactly which celebrity tour he should take his kids on when they go to LA next month.’

  Cesar smiled and leant forward to kiss her on the mouth. Lexie found herself wanting to cling to him, her fingers tightening on his on her thigh. She was ready. Her heart sped up at the thought even as old tendrils of fear made her trepidatious.

  He drew back and his eyes were glowing dark green. ‘There’s a dance showpiece after dinner. We don’t have to stay if you don’t want to.’

  Lexie shook her head, giving in to that fear like a coward, delaying the moment of inevitability. ‘No, it’s fine. I’d like to see it.’

  As the dinner ended and they moved into the room where the showpiece was taking place Lexie seemed to be existing in a haze of shimmering heat. She was acutely aware of Cesar’s every move.

  Their afternoon on the bus had been delicious torture. Cesar had been dressed down, in jeans and a casual top and jacket. He’d pressed so close against her that she had barely taken in a word he’d said about any of the stunning monuments and squares they’d seen, all too aware of him.

  He’d been so gracious and patient when the other tourists had wanted to listen to his explanations and she’d seen another side of him completely. He wasn’t as misanthropic as first impressions would have led Lexie to believe—far from it. But she wondered if he even realised that himself.

  They had front row seats for the dance performance—by a flamenco dancer. When the lights went down a hush went around the crowd and then a lone guitar started playing the most hauntingly beautiful Spanish music.

  Lexie glanced at Cesar to find him staring at her with an intensity that made her insides liquefy. Only with extreme effort could she look away.

  A spotlight lit up the small stage and a beautiful dark-haired woman with the lithe body of a dancer walked into the middle. She wore a long red dress, very plain and simple, red shoes, and a red flower in her hair.

  She made the most exquisite shapes with her hands and body—typical flamenco postures. Then the hard soles and heels of her shoes started hitting the boards of the stage as the rhythm of the guitar picked up pace. Tiny hairs stood up on the back of Lexie’s neck.

  It was mesmerising. There was something so elemental and beautiful about this woman and the power in her body. It made a ball of emotion lodge in Lexie’s chest and throat. She was acutely aware of the man beside her, of his sheer overwhelming masculinity. Something seemed to be flowing between them through the beat of the music, even though their thighs and arms were barely touching. It was carnal and earthy. Sexual.

  The beat and power of the dancer’s feet seemed to resonate with Lexie’s heartbeat. Cesar had unlocked something powerful within her—something that she was finally connecting with herself after such a long time.

  The beat of her own sexuality.

  It was something she’d feared lost for ever, stolen from her too long ago ever to claim it back. Lexie wanted to look at Cesar again, but she was afraid that if she did, and he was looking at her, he’d see how raw her desire for him was.

  She could see the sheen of exertion on the dancer’s skin. The music and the dance were building and building. Lexie fancied she must have a similar sheen to her skin...she felt so hot. The expression on the woman’s beautiful face was intense as her feet beat out the relentless passionate rhythm. Lexie felt it rise up through her body too.

  As the music and the dance reached a crescendo, and as if he could sense how affected she was, Cesar’s hand closed around Lexie’s, his fingers twining through hers with an unmistakably possessive touch.

  Her nipples pricked painfully. She was breathing harshly, every part of her body tingling with desire for the man beside her, as the music exploded and the woman came to a dead stop with her arms high in a proud and beautiful pose, her chest heaving with exertion. People started to clap rapturously. But still Lexie was almost afraid to look at Cesar.

  ‘Lexie?’

  She finally turned her head towards him and her world coalesced down to this moment and this man. She wanted him with a fierce drumbeat of need.

  Another performer was coming on and she said impulsively, ‘Would you mind if we left now?’

  Cesar shook his head, a frankly explicit look coming into his eyes as if he could read what was on her mind, feel her desire. ‘No—let’s go before the next act starts.’

  By the time they were walking out Lexie had taken deep breaths and regained some control. But she still trembled all over. Never had anything impacted her in such a deeply physical and visceral way as it had sitting beside this man and wanting him so badly that their very surroundings seemed to echo with it.

  They were at the front of the residence now and Cesar’s car was pulling up. The driver opened the door for her and Cesar got in on the other side. He reached for her almost immediately and Lexie went willingly.

  Their mouths met and their kiss was hungry and desperate. Lexie’s blood thundered and roared. She was still borne aloft on the sheer exhilaration of the dance. She drowned in the kiss, in the rough stroke of Cesar’s tongue against hers and the feel of his arms around her.

  By the time they reached the apartment she was half sitting on his lap, arms around his neck, mouth swollen, breathing fast.

  Gently he took her arms down and opened his door before stepping out. He reached in and Lexie had one crazy moment of thinking she could just shut the door, instruct the driver to drive all the way back to the castillo and shut out the clamours of her body.

  But she didn’t. She’d already proved to herself that she was strong enough to withstand the worst things that could happen to a woman. She was certainly strong enough to withstand reclaiming her body and her right to sensual pleasure.

  Lexie put her hand in Cesar’s and let him pull her out. Keeping a tight grip on her hand, as if he was aware that a rogue part of her still wanted to escape, he greeted the concierge and led her to the lift. Once inside they didn’t speak. But the air hummed with awareness and expectation. It was heavy.

  When they entered his apartment and the door closed behind them the silence swirled around them. Lexie’s heart was beating so hard she thought it had to be audible.

  Cesar shrugged off his jacket and threw it over a chair haphazardly. Looking at Lexie, he pulled at his bow tie, undoing it. She was clutching her bag tightly, her eyes glued to his mouth, wanting it on hers again.

  He reached down and took her bag, threw it aside to join his jacket. Then he put his hands on her arms.

  ‘You’re sure?’

  After a moment Lexie nodded and said, ‘I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life. Make love to me, Cesar.’

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  FOR A MOMENT Cesar did nothing, and a wave of cold cl
ammy horror gripped Lexie as she imagined being rejected. But then he dipped, and she let out a little squeal when he lifted her into his arms against his chest.

  He strode down the corridor, past her bedroom to another door on the opposite side. Lexie took in no details of the room he walked into beyond the fact that it was dark, palatial and had a massive bed.

  He walked right over to it and let Lexie down, before reaching for a light and switching it on to put out a pool of golden light.

  Light, Lexie thought. Light is good. The enormity of what she was doing was sinking in.

  Reverently Cesar put his hands on Lexie’s shoulders. She tried to calm her thundering pulse. Then he turned her around and it went haywire again.

  He pulled the pins from her hair until it fell down. Then he brushed it aside over one shoulder. Lexie shivered when she felt him come close behind her, wrapping an arm around her midriff and pressing a kiss to her bare shoulder.

  His fingers were on her zip at the back of her dress. Slowly, so slowly, he started to pull it down. The dress loosened around her chest and she curled her hands into fists to stop herself from impeding its progress as it fell forward and down.

  Now she was bare from the waist up except for a strapless lace bra.

  Cesar’s hand had drawn the zip all the way to the top of her buttocks, where it ended. Then with both hands he pushed it over her hips so that it fell to the floor. She was aware of a rough indrawn breath, and then his hand was cupping her bottom in her silk French knickers, smoothing over her hip.

  Her legs were losing their ability to hold her upright.

  When he put his hands on her shoulders again, to turn her around, Lexie looked down. She felt hot, excited and scared. All at once. Cesar’s hands were on her waist, pulling her into him.

  ‘Lexie...look at me.’

  She bit her lip, but looked up. His face was flushed, eyes glittering like dark jewels. His gaze dropped to her mouth, and then lower. Her skin went on fire.