by Rachel Lyndhurst; Carmen Falcone; Ros Clarke; Annie Seaton; Christine Bell
Restless, Bruno rose to his feet as though his father’s words had struck him. “Where are you going with this?”
“I didn’t mean to offend.”
Bruno shook his head. The years of blame, pain, and regret lumped in his throat. How could he say everything to a man whose life was coming to an end? “I’ve moved on in my professional life. It was time I addressed my personal life.”
Satisfaction pursed Sergio’s mouth. “I like her. Does she know you well?”
“I’m not discussing my misspent youth with you, Pai.” What was the point?
“I don’t want to, either, son. In fact, if anything, this disease has taught me we can’t cling to what once was. The past is buried. Your mother is buried, and soon I’ll join her.”
Buried. The word punched Bruno in the gut. He’d missed his mother’s funeral. “Why did you want to talk?”
“You should sell Toca do Tigre.”
“I am. I just had to postpone it to relocate the Kwanis.”
“Don’t postpone happiness, Bruno. If you want to be happy with Addie, you shouldn’t allow the past to have such a part in your life anymore. You bought that land to take it from someone who threatened to ruin you. You’re obviously not ruined. However, keeping it will always remind you of why you bought it.”
Bruno paced in a small circle. “I wanted to give it to you.”
“I never wanted anything to do with that land.”
“Why does it matter that I sell it now?”
“I’ve seen your mother.” His father’s voice lost energy. Bruno stopped pacing and checked his father’s monitor to make sure he was okay. “The nurses tell me hallucinations are part of the cancer. They don’t believe me. Your mother comes to me, and we talk. She’s told me the only way for you to move forward is to let go of the past. Therefore, you must sell it. Bury it forever,” he whispered before he dozed off to sleep.
Bury it? Bruno strode out of the room. Tereza smiled at him as she walked in, but her mumbled words were muffled by the pounding of his heart. Bury it. All those years, Sergio had never asked him for anything. They didn’t speak much, true, but ever since he’d acquired wealth and recognition, his father had thanked him in a rather reserved fashion.
This was the time. He wanted to sell the damned land, and his father would be glad, too. That, along with his wedding, would make things right at the end. What if Sergio only had less than a month to live? He’d make it a month in which he’d both prove his father wrong and yank some approval out of him.
Bruno stopped in his tracks. The wedding. He couldn’t deceive Addie. He owed her the truth, at least. He sprinted upstairs and knocked on her door, resolved to talk to her and come up with a new agreement. Maybe even draw up a new contract.
“We need to talk,” he said, panting by the time she opened the door.
“About?” she said and tilted her head to the side. She was dressed in a white peasant-style shirt and faded jeans. Her damp curls hinted at a recent shower.
He caught a whiff of her strawberry shampoo, which stirred his libido as she leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed and chin lifted. Her neck was soft, delicate. His eyes followed the main vein, observed it pulsating. “What’s wrong?” she demanded.
Bruno stretched to his full height. “I don’t recognize the shirt you’re wearing from our shopping trip.”
“You wanted to buy me a wardrobe I won’t need after this trip. Fine. That doesn’t mean I’ll stop wearing what makes me me.”
A sudden urge to stroke her cheeks hit him. Would she lean into his touch, or jerk back as if she’d been burned? He curled and uncurled his fingers into a fist. Musing on how she’d react was a recipe for disaster. “I bought you those clothes because they’d be suitable for my wife. I’m sure you can wear them for a few weeks?”
“I’m not comfortable with this whole thing. Your sister is very sweet, and I’m deceiving her.”
“All for the greater good.”
The voices from his brothers down the hall prompted him to move inside the room. His arm brushed against hers by accident, and she took a few steps back, frowning, then cleared her throat and turned away.
Was he crazy? Didn’t she share that zingy sexual energy flooding the room? Was this one-sided?
“What is it?” she snapped and faced him again.
A crease in the middle of the otherwise flawless bedspread caught his attention. Had she napped or laid down to relax? The image of Addie sprawled on the bed, with her hair damp and legs parted, turned his veins into lava. “There’s been a change to our agreement.”
“What change?” she asked and stepped toward him.
“My father has asked me to sell Toca do Tigre right away.”
Her eyes widened. “Well? Did you tell him that’s not possible?”
“And explain about our deal? That’d go against what I want to do, wouldn’t it?”
“No.” She licked her lips. “Tell him about why you need to keep it, and give the Kwanis more time.”
Bruno rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. “That’s not the point, Addie. All those years, my father never asked me for anything. Even when he could have. Even with me having all this money and power. He always downplayed everything. I never made it right by him. For things that happened in the past. Now it’s my chance.”
“You’re saying you’re going back on your word just because you have daddy issues? And all of a sudden you want to be a better son, after being MIA for fourteen years?”
His nerves tensed. “How do you know?”
She inhaled. “That’s not the point.”
“What else do you know?”
“I don’t tolerate lies.” She raised her voice.
Afraid they would be heard, he shushed her.
She rolled her eyes and continued in a lower but not less threatening tone, “If you sell that land before we’ve agreed on, I’ll walk out on the wedding. Hell, I can walk on you today.”
“Don’t blackmail me, Addie,” he hissed.
A mocking sound escaped her mouth. “When you change the game on me, it’s all right, but when I do it, it’s blackmail?”
“Addie…” Why did he think this would be easy? “I wasn’t screwing you over. I would suggest you try to find another way to help the Kwanis.”
“That’s the thing with liars—they always change their strategy. Trust me, I know what I’m talking about. I’m a master in reading a liar, courtesy of my mom. Here’s some food for thought: do you want me to walk down the aisle or not?”
…
When the Lincoln town car came to a stop, Bruno got out and gestured to the driver he would open the door for Addie. The beach that had seduced him earlier was now just a place for him to talk with Addie without worrying about anyone hearing them. He’d told his family he wanted to take her on a romantic stroll before the wedding tomorrow.
There will be a wedding.
“We’ll need a few minutes.” He told the driver, and offered an outstretched hand to Addie as she slid out of the car.
“You’re optimistic if you think you can change my mind in a few minutes.” She curled her lips. Her pink, sexy lips. He cleared his throat.
Ever since her threat in her bedroom a couple of hours ago, he’d analyzed his situation. The odds weren’t in his favor. What was the point of coming back and arranging a marriage if she was to walk out? How embarrassing and humiliating would it be for him and his family to be jilted? Pai had been surprised by Addie; a down-to-earth, no-frills woman was willing to marry him. Did he want to give his father that last embarrassment?
Addie cocked her head in the direction of the ocean. “Or maybe you hoped the blinding sun would fry my brains and I’d just agree with whatever you said?”
Bruno studied his surroundings. Locals enjoyed coconut water and seafood pastries and occupied the kiosks lining the crowded beach. How he envied the simplicity. “Addie, I need you to marry me.”
“Why?”
�
��Pai told me once I’d never get married and be happy like he was with my mother,” he offered, a touch of bitterness in his voice. His father had been right, hadn’t he? Plenty of women chose him for his sexual skills or to enjoy the perks of dating a billionaire. Throughout all those years, when had a kindhearted person ever shown interest?
“You’re doing this for spite? To show him there was a woman out there crazy enough to put up with you?”
“I wanted to show him I could, yes, but more because I knew that was what he wanted. We’ve always had a different relationship.”
She drummed her fingers on her neck. “Then let’s get hitched. But you don’t sell Toca do Tigre.”
“He’s asked me to.”
A frown wrinkled her forehead. “Bruno, we had an agreement. Bound by a contract. You can’t go back on your word.”
“I won’t. I can’t tell him about not selling Toca do Tigre for months. There’s no need to upset him during his final weeks, or days.
Frustration crossed her face. “You’d deceive your dying father?”
Wasn’t it too late for a guilt trip? “Isn’t that what we’re already doing with the marriage charade?”
“That’s different. He didn’t ask you to get married. He asked you to sell. You should just tell him you’re not going to.”
“There’s more to it. That land represents the first real estate I purchased after I made money. I bought it to get back at someone. For revenge. My father thinks if I’m to marry you, I should also get rid of lingering emotions. The remains of the person I used to be.”
She plopped down on a concrete bench. “What kind of person is that?”
He joined her on the bench but scooted away so their limbs didn’t rub. The last thing he needed was to add to the tension between them. “That’s not relevant to you. I’m doing what I’m doing for personal reasons. You’re doing it for the Kwanis.”
She lifted her eyes to him, and a coy smile formed on her lips. Time froze, and an unexpected ardor rushed through him—different from the familiar stir of libido.
“True. I just don’t react well when people change the rules on me. You’re making it hard for me to trust you, Bruno.”
“What will it take?”
“How can I trust you if I don’t know you?” She frowned. “You say you’ll give me what we’ve discussed, but what if you change your mind? You’re lying to your father, the man whose approval you seek. Therefore, the last person you should lie to. How can I believe you’re not doing the same right now?”
He cracked his knuckles. “You know enough about me.”
“No. You tell me you had a sketchy reason to buy that land, and you won’t tell me what it is.”
“Has it ever occurred to you that I don’t trust you?” And could never, ever trust her. The last woman he opened his heart to bolted when she unveiled his corrupted soul.
She shrugged.
“I gave you my word, and I’ll keep it. I won’t sell the land right away. But, Addie, you must marry me and play the part. And stop digging.” With all her questions and nosy attitude, Addie proved to be a bigger problem than planned. In fact, was she still the solution? Partially. Marrying her would grant him the closure he always sought, but keeping her away from his personal affairs was going to be a real feat. He’d worked hard to bury his past. Damn it, he had too much to lose.
“Okay,” she whispered.
A skinny mutt walked by, sniffing an empty soda can on the ground. Addie stretched her closed hand and the dog sniffed it, then licked it. With a giggle, she produced a granola bar from her bag and offered it to the dog, who chewed it with gusto.
“You’ve made a new friend.”
She ruffled the dog’s shaggy, uneven coat.
“Careful, you don’t know where he’s been.” His warning made her turn to him.
With a shrug, she offered him the straightforward smile of someone who had nothing to hide. That smile provoked a thrill of excitement to ripple within him. “It doesn’t matter where it’s been.”
He watched a homeless kid juggling balls as pedestrians tossed coins in the hat on the ground. “That’s what you think.”
“What do you mean?”
The dog now licked her hand, his tail wagging. “If you take it home, and you get a disease from it or it bites you…you’d think differently.” Nothing could change the fact that the dog had been homeless and tossed aside.
“Taking that dog home wouldn’t be fair when I can’t take care of it.” A pang of sadness welled in her voice.
His fingers tingled to caress her delicate skin. “Because you don’t want to or because it’s a stray?” Bruno stared at the dog and wondered how an animal that wandered the unpredictable streets of Rio could be so brave, so carefree, and accept food—and affection—from a stranger.
“Because my life is complicated. I don’t mind that he’s a mutt.”
Bruno jammed his hand in his pocket. “Well, isn’t that a shame.”
Chapter Five
“Has it ever occurred to you that I don’t trust you?” Addie chewed on her lower lip. Why would the question still ring in her ear even after an entire day? With a sigh, she caressed the same ivory dress she’d tried on in New York City. She could almost feel Bruno’s capable hands against her back, and the same emotions that had overwhelmed her in that tiny dressing room returned. Her breasts tightened, and an uncontrollable heat spread through her. Gaining his trust didn’t matter, did it? As long as he kept his word… Sure. Keep telling yourself that.
She finally gathered enough courage to stare at her reflection in the mirror. The dress gave her lithe body a sultry hourglass shape. Her usually tight curls now fell in luscious, large waves across her back. With Camila’s help, light but enhancing makeup made her green eyes pop and her lips glossy. After being diligent and helpful to close all the tiny buttons, Camila had gone to fix herself.
Addie opted for not announcing her impending marriage to her parents. After all, how could she? They had been married for thirty years. She couldn’t just email them, “Hey, Mom, Pop, I’m marrying someone to secure a safe move for the Kwanis. It won’t last, so don’t tell your friends. Later, Addie.”
Telling Bruno’s family her parents couldn’t make it to Rio because they were doing missionary work in Africa hadn’t been her finest moment. At least she’d protect both parties from the truth, right?
The truth was, she would have married Michael for love. The kind of sweet, genuine love that promised lifelong security. Bruno, on the other hand…
She looked at her bed and the small bag that rested on it.
Tonight, she would sleep in his room.
She hadn’t even visited his room, though she hoped it had a loveseat or a big sofa. Or something. The exchange at the beach the day before kept popping in her mind. What sort of awful thing had he done prior to leaving Brazil? If he let everyone down—especially his father—did that mean he’d changed or gotten better at hiding his flaws?
Her mother’s gambling addiction had taught her people didn’t always evolve on their own. Depending on their issues, they needed a network of friends and family, counseling, and/or rehab. Without this kind of support, Addie doubted Bruno had experienced a real transformation.
Bottom line, Bruno wasn’t trustworthy. The years with her mother had taught her that deceit was a weapon. And she wouldn’t let herself get shot.
A bark made her turn around to find Camila, who had just slipped inside without her noticing. A dog was sitting at Camila’s feet. Camila giggled as the dog wagged his tail. “I’m sorry, he’s been following me everywhere.”
Addie recognized the black dog with the long, skinny white tail from yesterday. Could he be the same dog? “That dog.” Her voice was above a whisper.
“I’ve named him Torto. Isn’t he adorable? Bruno said he saw him at the beach yesterday and that he needed a home. Today he drove back to the same spot and walked a couple miles searching for him. The owner of a nearby ki
osk helped him find the dog. Torto won’t need to beg his patrons for crumbs anymore.”
Warmth flowed through Addie’s veins. “That’s…nice of him.”
“He had him checked out by a vet and sent him to the groomer’s before he gave him to me.” Camila scratched the dog’s ears. “We haven’t had a pet in a while, so I’m excited.” She put the dog in the corner and gave him a toy. “Wow. You’re beautiful.”
Addie turned to her soon-to-be sister-in-law. “Good, or I’d call the boutique and ask for my money back.”
Camila laughed. “I know why my brother picked you.”
“Why?”
“You’re not easily impressed. He needs to try harder.”
“You mean I’m a lot of work?” Addie chuckled. “I don’t think guys like a lot of work where women are concerned.”
“He can take it.”
“Watch it, I might use that as a mantra.”
“All joking aside, I’m happy for you two.” Camila picked the bottle of styling cream from the dresser and sprayed a generous amount on her hand. “Can you imagine? The beginning of your life together. Two merging as one.” Camila applied the cream to Addie’s hair, running her fingers through it and smoothing the ends. “Forever.”
Forever. The bright smile on Camila’s lips made Addie’s stomach curl.
She should have known pretending to marry for the right reasons would be difficult. An urge to come clean, to blurt out there was no forever for her and Bruno, tingled at the tip of her tongue. No. She clamped her lips shut. All he wanted from her was compliance.
Who cared how tough the compliance would get?
“Ready?”
Am I? She wondered as she made her way to the back garden, which had been turned into a whimsical oasis.
Chinese paper lanterns, scattered between the tall trees, lit the surroundings. Well-dressed guests occupied rows and rows of white cloth-covered chairs on both sides of the altar, which consisted of a small stage enhanced by a touch of pink lighting. Addie was sure that had been Camila’s idea. Everything, after all, was someone else’s idea. All they’d asked her since she’d arrived was if she had any food allergies.
