He cupped her hips. She leaned back; her thighs parted.
“That’s it,” he said thickly. “Open for me. Let me see if you need to be kissed here. And here. And—”
He put his mouth to her and she came instantly, her taste honeyed against his tongue, her cry filling him with her sweetness.
Lucas rose to his feet. Trembling, she fell against him. He held her close, kissed her mouth, shuddered when he felt her hands pulling at his shirt, his belt…
Together, they stripped off his clothes. They moved quickly but when he lifted her and put her into the tub, his hands were gentle.
By the time he joined her in the steamy water, sanity was returning.
She’d been injured. And he, Dios, he’d forgotten everything but how beautiful she was, how much he wanted her…
“Lyssa. Forgive me, amada. I shouldn’t have—”
She moved into his embrace. Her mouth met his and clung. She lifted her hips, wrapped her legs around him and impaled herself on his rigid length.
Lucas groaned. Kissed her. Told her that he loved her kisses, her taste, her scent but most of all, most of all he loved this. Being inside her. Being part of her. Being one with her.
No. Most of all, he loved—he loved—
Alyssa convulsed around him and he stopped thinking.
After, he wrapped her in an enormous white towel. Then he brought her to his bed. She raised her arms to him, just as she had done the prior night. He came down beside her, gathered her close and feathered kisses on her eyelids.
Moments later, the sound of her breathing told him she was asleep. He was close to sleep, too. Dios, how incredible this was. Sleeping with her, making love with her…
His body stiffened.
Making love without a condom.
What had become of his brain? Last night and again today, no protection. He had never been so careless in his life.
Thank God he had a box of condoms in the night table drawer to use next time.
He wanted children but unlike some of his contemporaries, he wanted them after he was married. Wanted them born to a woman who was his wife.
His wife…
He lay there for a long time before he fell asleep.
“Rise and shine, sleepyhead.”
Alyssa dug deeper into the blankets.
“Whoever you are, go away.”
“Whoever I am?” the voice said indignantly.
“You want me to think you’re Lucas Reyes. But the real Lucas would never be so cruel as to wake me.” Alyssa stretched luxuriously, loving the feel of the Egyptian cotton sheets against her naked body. “How do I know you’re him?”
Just as she’d hoped, a warm hand cupped her face. A coffee-flavored mouth claimed hers.
“Are you convinced?” a husky voice murmured.
“Mmm. Is that coffee?”
“Uh-huh. A whole pot of it’s waiting for you on the balcony. Sound good?”
“One more kiss and I’ll let you know.”
“Behave yourself,” Lucas said sternly. “Or I’ll be back in that bed with you.”
Alyssa laughed softly and reached for him. He caught her hands, kissed them and brought them to her sides.
“If I get into in that bed, I’ll just have to send all this stuff back. I mean, I’ll have to assume you don’t want any of it.”
“The coffee?”
“Not the coffee, sleepyhead. The other things.”
Alyssa sat up, clutching the duvet and blinking the sleep from her eyes.
“What other things?”
Lucas grinned. “Ta da,” he said, and stepped aside.
Her mouth dropped open. Boxes were stacked like building blocks behind him. Big ones. Small ones. Some were wrapped in glossy paper, others were tied with gold ribbon, silver ribbon, white satin ribbon…
“Lucas?”
His grin widened. “Open one, chica.”
“But…What is all this?”
He picked up a flat white box and tossed it to her. “Why not find out?”
Alyssa pulled at the silver ribbon and gasped. The box was filled to overflowing with sexy silk panties and equally sexy matching bras.
“I didn’t know what colors you’d like,” he said modestly, “so I ordered them all.”
“Lucas. Honestly—”
“One of your favorite words, amada. Honestly, you needed something to wear.”
“But not all this! Lucas, really—”
Another box landed next to her. “At least take a look and tell me if you hate my taste, chica. As a favor, si?”
She flashed him a look, told herself sternly she would not be drawn in…
And undid the ribbon.
“Oh,” she whispered. “Oh, Lucas!”
“Is that a good ‘oh’ or a bad ‘oh’?”
He sounded so innocent, but the self-satisfied gleam in his eyes gave him away.
“It’s a bad one,” she said primly. “Why would any woman want a dress like this? A dress made of—of gossamer and moonbeams and—and, oh God, it’s so beautiful…”
Lucas caught her up in his arms.
“You are what is beautiful,” he said. “And I hope you will do me the honor of wearing these things, amada, because it will do my heart so much good.”
Alyssa looped her arms around her lover’s neck.
“It will do your heart good, hmm?”
He grinned. “Si.”
“And if I said no, I want to wear my own clothes?”
“I would say, these are your own clothes now, chica—especially since I told Dolores to toss out the others.”
“You tossed out my clothes without asking me?”
“Of course. What was the point in asking when I knew you would insist on keeping them?”
He was laughing and it was impossible not to laugh with him. Alyssa ran through her mental list again. Her prince was arrogant and impossible, and why did she love him anyway?
Because she did. She loved him, loved him—
“Lyssa? What is it?”
“Nothing,” she said breathlessly. “Nothing. I just—I just felt a little dizzy, that’s all.”
His eyes darkened. “Shall I call the doctor? Is it your head? Your knee?”
It was her heart, but how did you say that to a man who wouldn’t want to hear it?
“I’m fine. Truly. I’m just—I’m thrilled that you thought of giving me such beautiful things.”
“Really?” he said softly. “You feel all right?”
“I feel wonderful.”
Lucas cleared his throat. “In that case…I told my grandfather we would be at the hospital by six.”
“Your grandfather? You spoke to him?”
“Si.”
“How is he?”
“Let’s put it this way. I said we would be there in a couple of hours. He said he would be watching a news show on CNN in a couple of hours and that he would expect us at six.”
“Then he’s better.”
“He is arrogant, demanding and dictatorial.”
Alyssa laughed.
“What is so amusing? Are you suggesting I am like that?” He grinned. “Okay. Maybe just a little. But yes, Felix is better. Much better, or so it would seem.” He caught her hands in his. “Will you come with me and meet him, amada? It is important to me.”
The bright day seemed to dim.
Of course it was important to him. Once they spoke with Felix Reyes, they could settle the contract issue once and for all. Lucas would be free of her and she would be free of him.
Free to go back to Texas, never to see her prince again…
“Lyssa. Damn it, something is wrong. Tell me what it is and I will fix it.”
Alyssa looked into her lover’s eyes. He was a good man. An honorable man. A powerful man. But not even Lucas Reyes, Prince of Andalusia, could fix a heart that was about to be broken.
“What’s wrong,” she said lightly, “is that you’ve only left me half an hour to dress. A woma
n needs more than that, Your Highness. If I’m not properly put together, whatever will you grandfather think?”
Lucas gathered her tightly against him and stroked his hand down her back.
Si, he thought, as he pressed his lips to the top of his Lyssa’s head, that was an excellent question.
What would Felix think?
The old man had poked his nose where it hadn’t belonged. He’d interfered in two lives…
And miraculously changed both of them, forever.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
THE last months of Aloysius’s life, Alyssa had spent a lot of time in hospitals. She was prepared for what she was certain would come next. The smell of disinfectant. Harsh lighting. The brisk efficiency of the staff that kept emotions at bay.
There was none of that in the hospital in which Felix Reyes was a patient.
The corridors were bright but pleasant; the smell clean, not antiseptic. Nurses and aides smiled and greeted Lucas cordially.
Even Felix’s room was homey if you ignored the machines and monitors beeping and humming on the wall beside his bed.
Felix himself was sitting up, propped by a stack of pillows. His eyes were that combination of gold and green and brown, like Lucas’s. He had a neatly trimmed white mustache and beard. Dignity and authority clung to him like a royal cloak, though not enough to disguise his obvious frailty.
A smile lit his face when he saw Lucas.
“Mi hijo,” he said, opening his arms.
The men embraced. The affection between them made Alyssa’s throat constrict. Her mother had been reserved, and she and her father—her adoptive father—had so rarely showed warmth to each other that the times they had stood out in her memory.
The last had been the day she’d brought him home from the hospital after he’d pleaded to leave this earth under the wide sky of El Rancho Grande.
To her dismay, tears burned in the corners of her eyes. She blinked them back just as Lucas stepped away from the bed and Felix Reyes looked at her.
“And this, of course, is Alyssa.”
“Your Highness.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you, child.”
“I’m glad to see you’re feeling better.”
Felix chuckled. “Very polite. Hardly anyone would realize you had avoided saying it was a pleasure to meet me, too.”
Lucas’s arm curled around her waist. “Grandfather,” he said softly, “Alyssa’s been through a great deal.”
“I understand, mi hijo. If I were she, I would not feel kindly toward me, either.”
“I mean no disrespect, sir, but—”
“But, if I were not plugged into all these infernal devices, you would look me in the eye and tell me just what you think of an old man who had the audacity to meddle in your life. That’s the truth, girl, is it not?”
Alyssa took a deep breath. “I would tell you that you and Aloysius did some things you shouldn’t have done.”
Felix looked pointedly at how she stood, Lucas’s arm tightly around her, their bodies lightly brushing.
“And yet,” he said softly, “it all seems to be working out well.”
“That isn’t—”
“The point. I know.” He grinned at Lucas. “Aloysius told me his daughter had spirit and he was right.”
“Grandfather.” Lucas cleared his throat. “Are you well enough to discuss this? Because if you are—”
“Aloysius also said she was pretty. He was wrong. She is beautiful.”
Lucas felt Alyssa tense. He knew she couldn’t be happy to be talked about as if she were not in the room.
“Sturdy, too. Good conformation. Good hips. Excellent for childbearing.”
Alyssa’s face turned crimson. “Grandfather,” Lucas said sternly, “I will not permit you to—”
“My apologies. I simply meant it is good to see my old friend’s recommendations were valid.”
“Yes, grandfather, I’m sure it is, but—”
“He said the girl would make you a perfect wife, mi hijo, and he was correct.”
Alyssa looked up at Lucas. “I think,” she said carefully, “it’s best if I wait outside.”
“No!” His arm tightened around her. “Damn it, grandfather! What in hell are you trying to do?”
“Why, Lucas, mi hijo, you almost sound as if you care for the girl.”
“I do care for her.” Lucas’s tone softened. “I care for her very much. Too much to let you embarrass her.”
“Is that what I’m doing, child? What became of that spirit we just discussed?”
“We didn’t discuss anything, Your Highness. So far, you’ve done all the talking.”
“Ah. See? It’s there. The spirit. My old friend, Aloysius, described you with unerring accuracy.”
“Aloysius,” Alyssa said tightly, “didn’t know a damned thing about me!”
“He knew you were beautiful. And bright. And that you had a tendency to be stubborn.”
“I am not stubborn.”
Lucas coughed. “Uh, uh—I think this conversation should wait for another time.”
“He also knew,” Felix said, ignoring his grandson, “that you loved his land and you would do anything to restore it and keep it wild and free.”
Alyssa shook off Lucas’s encircling arm and moved nearer the bed. “It wasn’t his land, it was my mother’s!”
Felix’s smile faded. “No,” he said gently, “it was his.”
“It was hers! Hers and my real father’s. And when my real father died—”
“Alyssa. I assume you came here to learn why Aloysius did what he did. Why he sold the land to me—and why he added that stipulation. Am I correct?”
“Absolutely correct.”
“Then, you came here for the truth.”
“I know the truth, Prince Felix.”
“No. You do not.” His tone gentled. “I pleaded with Aloysius to tell you but he kept saying the time wasn’t right. I think it was the only thing about which he was not courageous.”
“Grandfather.” Lucas hesitated. “You’ve been very ill. Perhaps we should leave and let you rest. We can have this talk another time.”
“Who knows if there will be another time, Lucas? I have lived a long life. I am ready for whatever comes next but I don’t want to move on to that remaining adventure without telling this girl, and you, what you both need to know.”
Lucas moved beside Alyssa and put his arm around her again.
“Only if she wishes to hear it,” he said, tilting her face to his. “Amada? The choice is yours. Do you want to hear more?”
Alyssa looked into her lover’s eyes. Every instinct warned her that whatever came next would change her life but as long as she had Lucas with her, she was ready for anything.
“Yes. I want to hear the rest.”
Lucas bent his head and kissed her. Then he smiled, touched his thumb to her lip and turned to Felix.
“What is it we need to know, Grandfather?”
Felix hesitated. Then he cleared his throat.
“What did your mother tell you about your real father, Alyssa?”
“Only that he died when I was two.”
“And his name was?”
“I don’t see what this…” She sighed. “Montero. Eduardo Montero.”
“And yet,” Felix said softly, “you are named for the man you call your adoptive father. For Aloysius McDonough.”
“Named for him? Just because his name starts with the same letters as mine hardly means that I—”
“My dear child. Montero was your mother’s maiden name. Aloysius was your real father.”
“No! He adopted me when he married my mother.”
“He and your mother were lovers. Her family was rich and traced its lineage back to the conquistadores. His was poor.” Felix smiled. “He said he could trace his lineage back to the Irish potato famine, and the great-great-grandfather who boarded one of the coffin ships for New York.”
Alyssa shook her head wildly. �
�This is crazy! Why would my mother have lied? Why would Aloysius?”
“Your mother was very young. When her parents learned of the affair, they told her she could never see Aloysius again.” Felix paused. “Then she learned she was pregnant.”
Alyssa drew a shaky breath. “Pregnant? Do you mean…with me?”
“Yes, child. Her parents forbade her to see Aloysius or tell him of the pregnancy. They said she would have to give you up when you were born but when the time came, she could not do it.”
Alyssa sagged against Lucas, who drew her closer.
“She ran away with you and worked her way through the southwest as a waitress. Meanwhile, Aloysius had heard rumors of her pregnancy. He searched for her and searched for her and when he finally found her, he asked her to marry him.”
“Aloysius,” Alyssa whispered. “My real father?”
“By then, you were a precocious four-year-old. You’d asked about your father and your mother had told you he was dead.”
“But Aloysius found us! Why didn’t he tell me who he was?”
“Your mother wouldn’t permit it. She said it would be too much for a child to bear, though he always thought that perhaps, just perhaps, she felt he was not really good enough to be revealed as your true father. At any rate, she would only marry him if he agreed never to tell you the truth.”
“And he went along with that?”
Disbelief roughened Alyssa’s voice. Felix sighed and shook his head.
“What choice did he have, child? Abandon you both—or have you in his life, even if he had to live a lie.”
A sob caught in Alyssa’s throat. “And all the time,” she whispered, “all those years…”
“He treated you coolly because he was always afraid he would break down and tell you what he had vowed to keep secret. As for the land…he’d bought it piece by piece, worked it as best he could but there were droughts and fires, and then your mother’s illness took the last money that he had.”
“He should have told me,” Alyssa said. Tears ran down her cheeks. “He should have told me!”
“Si. I agree. But he was afraid you would hate him for living such a lie.”
“But why did he sell you the ranch? He knew I loved it. He knew what it meant to me.”
“He also knew you would not be able to keep it. And that pained him, that the bank would take the only legacy he could leave you, his flesh and blood daughter.”
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