by Fiona Murphy
“Are you okay?” Concern was clear, her eyes went from sparkling to dark.
“Nothing, for you to worry about. Business and family don’t really mix, mi dulce.” Studying her, the clothes she was wearing were practically hanging off her. He knew he should let it go but he couldn’t. “Carrie, how much weight have you lost?”
Walking toward her, he could see her pants folded over. Her eyes went down and she folded her arms in protection. “Rafael, it’s not a big deal.”
Unbuttoning the blazer, he tugged and her arms opened, the garment nearly swum around her. “Carrie, answer the damn question. You didn’t lose the weight on purpose, did you?”
She backed away from him and closed the jacket. “A little over twenty pounds, I wasn’t trying but I should have been. I was fat, I’m still bigger than a woman should be. I’m hoping to continue losing weight only more controlled. Please drop it. I’ll buy new clothes soon, I promise, I won’t embarrass you.”
“How a woman should look is what feels good for her. Not every woman should be a size two. You are extremely attractive as you are. I don’t give a shit about you embarrassing me. It was the stress wasn’t it?” She nodded and kept her eyes down. Those little fuckers had to have seen how the stress was affecting her and they hadn’t done anything to alleviate it. Turning away before she saw just how angry he was, he walked out the front door. The twins were lucky he hadn’t known about this yesterday.
When she came to the car he opened her door, once she was in closed it, barely able to keep from slamming it. His fists clenched as he walked around to the driver’s seat. His cell rang as he started the car, it was Javier. He pulled out the Bluetooth from his pocket and settled it on his ear and answered the phone.
“Javier, I don’t want to hear it. I talked with Grandpa about it before I did it and he gave me the okay.” The Bluetooth was loud and he knew Carrie could hear the discussion.
“I’m not calling to complain, hermano, I’m calling to say thank god. What the hell took so long?”
“He’s family, you don’t fire family without just cause. Yeah, he’s had problems, Grandpa kept saying to give another chance. Grandpa thought as long as I was there to clean up the mess and it wasn’t so bad it couldn’t be fixed then let Benny stay. This Celeste thing was one too many for me. I told Grandpa I don’t have the time to be responsible for everything I’m already responsible for and running behind Benny to clean up after him.”
“Rafe, I told you three years ago, he was more trouble than he was worth. So what he graduated at the top of his class at Harvard? I knew the minute he pitched a fit at starting out at a work site because he thought it was beneath him that he wasn’t going to work out.”
“You told me, I remember, I don’t remember you telling Grandpa. Maybe if you had done you could have saved me a few gray hairs.”
“No way, hermano, the ladies like you with the gray hair, makes you look distinguished and shit. The conference call got pushed back to ten, will you be able to make it?”
“No, I’ve got something else to handle.”
“Okay, let me know when you come in. I’ll head up to your office and we’ll talk about it. Rafe, if you need me to step up, let me know. I know you got a lot on your shoulders, you already spend eighteen hours in the office as it is. I don’t want firing Benny to turn into you never leaving the office.”
“Thanks, but don’t worry about it. Benny was the reason I spent so much time there. Without him, I might be able to cut back to twelve hours a day.” He laughed and so did Javier and he was glad. It felt good to hear his little brother laugh. He didn’t want Javier worrying about him or thinking he needed to move out of place as lead council for the company. Javier liked law and was good at it, Rafael wanted his brother to stay where he was happy.
Disconnecting, he took out the Bluetooth and jammed it in his pocket, he hated the damn thing. He saw what he wanted, switched lanes and then turned into the parking lot. Hearing her intake of breath he steeled himself for the fight he knew was coming. Without saying a word he got out of the car and went around to her door. He opened it but she sat there, not even removing her seatbelt. Gritting his teeth, he went down to her level. “Carrie, look at me. It will just be a few things, a few suits and blouses you can change out with them.”
“I don’t have the money. I’m not letting you pay for me to get new clothes. It’s not happening.” Her voice was tight and small. He could see she was fighting back tears.
At the sight of her bright eyes filling with tears his whole body clenched with the need to touch her and reassure her. If she cried, it would be the end for them. “Carrie, you don’t have a choice. You can pay me back when you get paid. You’ll get a full check in a week, you’ll be paid on the last day of the month and the fifteenth. I don’t want or need the money however if it will make you feel better, I’ll take the money.” Undoing her seatbelt, he stood and stepped back. “Don’t push me, Carrie, you aren’t ready for what will happen if you do.”
The statement got her attention. When she looked up at him the tears were gone, confusion and hope replaced them. If they hadn’t been a public place he would have kissed her. She went willingly when he took her hand and pulled her from the car. He opened the door to the small, very exclusive boutique. A saleswoman met them before the door closed behind them. Pulling Carrie close to his side, he nodded toward her.
“We need a few suits for her.”
Finally, Carrie found her tongue. “Two suits, black and silver and two blouses, white and black please.”
Biting back the urge to smile, Rafael shook his head. “Four suits the black and silver she mentioned another in blue and the other in tan. Four blouses to change out with the suits as well.”
The saleswoman smiled at him, she knew who was in charge and who would be paying. She wasn’t going to let it stop at two. “Of course, sir. We do have a few several suits that will fit your request. A size fourteen, I believe. We have a nice selection, are you looking for skirt suits as well as a pant suit?”
“The skirt would need to go to her knees, nothing shorter than that.” Rafael didn’t like the idea of her in a short skirt with men looking at her all day. What the fuck was the matter with him? How a woman had dressed had never bothered him in the past, although he found deep cleavage and extremely short skirts distasteful. Yet the idea of Carrie’s body on display in the slightest way made him want to put her in a caftan.
“This way, miss, let’s get you settled into a dressing room. I’ll bring them through to you to try on.”
Rafael checked the time, he was behind schedule he, hated running late. His schedule was important to him and his day was planned well in advance. Running late or a change in his schedule usually made him extremely cranky, now he simply shrugged. Carrie needed new clothes, what she needed she would get. Pulling out his phone he called his secretary to let her know he was now likely going to be an hour behind his schedule. She might as well cancel every meeting he had on his calendar for the day. He’d been practically worthless yesterday, only his anger at Benny kept him focused. That was after only spending a few hours with Carrie, she would be taking up half of his day today. He was almost positive he wouldn’t get a damn thing done once he left her.
The clicking of her heels had him turning to look at her. She had a hand on her hip and she was taunting him. The skirt was so tight he wondered how she walked in it. It only went to mid-thigh, if she bent over it would be indecent. The cock-swelling curve of her ass already made the skirt a threat to a man’s good sense. How did a woman as short as her have legs so perfect they made a man want them wrapped around his waist? Her expression was one of boredom. She really didn’t seem to know she was playing with fire. His eyes went to the saleswoman, she took the hint and went into the back.
“Carrie, you heard me say the skirt would have to go the knee. Yet you chose to flaunt a very short skirt at me.” Walking toward her slowly, he kept his voice low. His hand went around the w
rist she had at her hip and pulled her until she was only inches from him. He could hear her breath catch. “You know you are a beautiful woman, you could wear a nun’s habit and a man would dream of tearing it from you to find out what was beneath it. Wearing a skirt so short shows a man exactly what is available to him and entices him to touch the skin on show. Are you offering yourself up to my touch, mi dulce? Hmm, do you want my hands to stroke the lovely skin you are showing me? Will that be all I am allowed to touch, or will you allow me to go higher? Do you want me to go higher, is that what you are telling me? The skirt is tight enough your gorgeous ass begs for attention. If attention is what you are wanting, mi dulce, I will give you all my attention until you beg me to stop. Is that what you want?” He whispered the words in her ear, she shivered and swayed toward him. An all too brief brush of her soft breasts against his chest had him hard as a fucking rock.
Still holding onto a small part of sanity he dropped her wrist, her beautiful eyes were hungry and scared. Saving them both, she turned and fled. Rafael fought the urge to follow her. Fuck, she was a virgin. Swallowing hard, his chest fought to take in air. Closing his eyes, his jaw locked. That was it then, if she was a virgin she was off limits. He couldn’t have her, end of the story.
The buzzing of his phone tore his thoughts away from Carrie and for once he was grateful for the demands of work. Only it wasn’t work, his bitter chuckle ended in a sigh as he read the display, his mother. It was as if she could hear his thoughts. Carrie was a beautiful woman inside and out and she deserved a ring for the gift she gave of herself. The only problem was Carrie wasn’t the kind of woman a Castillo would marry. She had no education, family connections or her own money. His grandmother had come from the second wealthiest family in Mexico City, his mother’s family was oil rich and bluest of blood. While his aunt didn’t have the family connections, she was an Ivy League graduate of Harvard who after marrying his uncle and giving him one child, Benito, had gone back into her law firm and not taken her eyes off the brass ring of partner until she obtained it. Benito had gone against family expectation marrying a sweet and beautiful woman and the marriage had failed in less than three years. Benito admitted he hadn’t thought it was that big of a deal. Except it had been, without the same knowledge of expectation the woman hadn’t been able to carry herself easily in the social circles they attended to make the business connections that kept their company going. Her dress sense had been off the mark again and again. Without another woman to take her cues from she had found it difficult to even understand what she did wrong. Dallas society was as cut-throat and vicious as a jail yard, slights had flown along with bitter gossip. She had been embarrassed, Benito had been embarrassed and then both had gone to anger. Rafael had not thought it possible for something so petty to end a marriage yet it had. The idea of putting Carrie through such an experience seemed as cruel as the knowledge he couldn’t have her.
Hearing her heels again he turned to see her in wide leg trousers in black with a simple white shell beneath the jacket. He stayed where he was and nodded, her eyes were expectant and glittering. Fuck, was his last thought as she turned and walked away. He’d fucked up badly.
Chapter Five
Carrie walked back into the dressing room, nodding to Gloria the outfit she was wearing had been approved. The woman smiled with relief and Carrie felt guilty about the stupid move of wearing the short, tight skirt against Gloria’s advice. She knew the woman was relieved Rafael hadn’t called an end to the shopping. Even though embarrassment had flared bright because of Rafael feeling the need to buy her clothes because her own were so bad. Now she was ridiculously happy she had gotten out of the car. He wanted her. The knowledge filled her with happiness, Rafael wanted chubby, short her and he wanted her badly. His body had been quite impressive in telling her just how much he wanted her. If she were being completely honest with herself it was a little scary, Rafael seemed so intense and completely out of her league.
His intensity was more appealing than the obvious wealth he moved in. She wasn’t scared of Rafael’s intensity, there seemed to be a strictly moral center that ran through him. What scared her was he would overwhelm her and she would willingly give up to him completely without a demur. He was the most stunning man she had ever encountered in her life. It wasn’t just his looks, there was an aura of power that made it clear he was very much an Alpha male. Man or woman would bend to him and he would accept nothing less, after her mother’s macho boyfriend the idea of encountering and wanting someone like that made her shudder with revulsion.
Yet Rafael got close to her and she wanted to find out what he tasted like with her tongue, over every inch of his body. Once, years ago, the idea of getting close to a man, of letting him in and giving him power of her in any way at all would have sent her running home and rocking in a ball in the closet. Now after years of living life Carrie knew caring about someone would always give the person power over her, the question most important was would the person use their power for good or bad? Rafael had shown her that he was not just a good person but a good man. He’d been a man, a very normal man at first, uncomfortable with her tears. However, he didn’t turn away from her when he realized he’d broken a dam. He’d held her and let her cry it out, not flinching from dealing with what he felt he had caused. His touch had been gentle in his office and again when he’d held her and forced the drink on her to help with her migraine. He hadn’t left her until he was sure she was feeling better. If ever there was a man that she could trust, Rafael was that man.
The one thing that worried her was now she was going to be working for him. How did that affect how they went forward because they were, weren’t they? He wanted her and he didn’t seem like the type to allow his desire to go ignored. Stepping into the next suit, a skirt that went to her knee she shrugged. She would follow Rafael’s lead, she trusted him to know how best to proceed.
A half hour later they were at the register, it stung when he laid out his credit card. She was wearing the wide leg trousers and a black blazer out of the store. Her old suit was in one of the bags she carried. When Gloria went to hand Rafael the receipt, Carrie held out her hand. It annoyed her to see Gloria look to Rafael first, only handing it over at his slight nod. Following him out the store she bit her lip at the cost of the clothing and sighed. Tucking the receipt into her purse she was grateful he didn’t say anything about the clothing, simply stowing the bags in his trunk.
As the day went by in a blur she began to realize that Rafael didn’t say anything more than necessary. Once at his building he took her into human resources and left her with a nice gentleman who had her filling out forms for what felt like hours. Once that was done she was escorted up a few floors and left with another woman who talked her through the reports and software she would be using. The software was the same she had used with her last company and she felt confident with it.
Rafael came down about an hour into her training and was gone again only minutes later. By lunch time she was starving and trying to hide it, the woman going over the reports didn’t appear to want to stop anytime soon. Carrie was saved from her stomach growling aloud by a smiling man. He introduced himself as Javier, explaining he was Rafael’s brother but she would have known it without an introduction. He had Rafael’s complexion, nose and jaw only his lips were thinner and his eyes were a soft brown. His invitation for lunch was nonchalant and smiling she found herself nodding.
He might look like Rafael but his personality was very different. Javier kept a running light commentary on the city streets as he walked her a few blocks away into a cozy Italian restaurant. His chatter was light and sprinkled with laughter and she was comfortable enough to return his smiles and laughter. Waiting until she had ordered and suggesting several dishes he handed his menu back to the waiter and then turned very serious on her. “I’m going to be completely honest. I had to meet the woman who had Rafael coming into work late and doing crazy things like cancelling meetings two days in a row.
Do you own a magic wand?”
Laughing, she shook her head, “No, no magic wand. Something almost as good or bad, I cried all over your brother. It was very embarrassing for the both of us. He blames himself but really it could have been anyone on the street who sent me over the edge.”
“Ah, tears it tells me a lot. Rafael like most men is quite undone by them. Then again when they are in the eyes of a woman as beautiful as you are, I’m thinking they would be pretty lethal stuff.
Tell me everything about yourself Carrie Whitney, don’t leave out any gory details. I want them all.” He said the words in a joking manner but Carrie stopped smiling.
For a moment she considered not telling him, yet anyone with an internet connection could find out the story. At the sentencing, she had pled for her mother’s killer not get the death penalty, for her little brother’s sake. Her plea had ended up in the newspaper along with her picture and the whole story of her mother’s death. The newspaper also found out and made much of the fact Carrie hadn’t been living with her mother since she was fourteen. By the time she was done they had finished lunch and he wasn’t smiling as he had been when they first sat down.
