‘We have thought about nothing but sex since the first moment we met, cariño, and you know it.’
Faith wished there was a switch she could flick to turn off the responses of her body. She didn’t want to feel like this. ‘And that’s our problem, isn’t it?’
‘Problem?’ One dark eyebrow swooped upwards in sardonic appraisal. ‘The fact that you are capable of satisfying me in the bedroom is the one thing that is absolutely right about our relationship. I certainly don’t see it as a problem.’
His oblique reference to her abandoned response to him sent the colour flooding into her cheeks. ‘You can’t base a relationship on sex!’
‘Never underestimate the importance of sex.’
Her heart rate doubled. ‘I know it’s important, but if sex is the only thing that is right about our relationship then we’re doomed, Raul. A marriage is about trust and caring. We need to talk.’
Casting her a glance laden with hot-blooded volatility, Raul stepped back from her. ‘If you want to talk, phone a girlfriend.’ Simmering with unfulfilled passion and male hormones, he strode into the bedroom, leaving her staring after him in disbelief.
Stunned by the suppressed violence she sensed in him, Faith followed. ‘You can’t just walk out in the middle of a conversation just because you don’t happen to like the subject matter—’
‘Dios mío, not now!’ With a low growl of impatience he turned, his hand on the bathroom door, his eyes burning into hers. ‘You’re a highly intelligent woman. Surely you’re not so naïve that you can’t see what is happening here? Either get dressed or get out.’
‘But—’
‘Faith—’ The word was a deadly warning, as if he were holding on to control by a thread. ‘I’m telling you now that if you stand there naked, I will finish what we started, contraception or no contraception. You will be back against that wall and this time I will not be stopping!’
Stunned by the appalling frankness of his words and the barely subdued violence of his reaction, she gave a little gasp. ‘But there are so many issues between us—’
‘At the moment I’m not interested in the issues, I’m just interested in sex.’ Interpreting her shocked expression, he ran his hand over his face and swore long and fluently in Spanish. ‘Does that make me shallow? Yes, probably, but I warned you before that I wasn’t anyone’s idea of a good catch. Remember that before you start trying to change me.’
‘I don’t want to change you,’ Faith said honestly. ‘I just want to understand what you’re thinking.’
‘No, I don’t think you do, because what I’m thinking right now this moment,’ he said in a silky tone, ‘is that it is either a long, cold shower or you on that bed, naked with your legs wrapped around my waist. Your choice, cariño.’
‘You’re being shocking on purpose.’
‘I’m being honest,’ he said harshly. ‘Because I thought that was what you wanted. Maybe now you’d like to rethink that particular demand, given that the truth of what is on a man’s mind is so rarely what a woman wants to hear.’
Shaken to the core by the savagery in his voice, Faith backed towards the door. ‘I’ll—I’d better leave you alone. I’ll see you later.’
‘You certainly will and by then I will have addressed the issue of contraception so you can knock that particular excuse off your list.’ He gave a humourless laugh and opened the bathroom door. ‘In the meantime, we have guests for dinner. They arrive in two hours, and in order to concentrate on business I have to not be thinking about sex all the time. So this is what you’re going to do. You’re going to delve into that expensive wardrobe of yours and find something that covers you from head to toe. I want nothing showing.’
‘Raul—’
‘If necessary, sew two things together. Wear a coat! But I don’t want to see cleavage or leg or so help me, Faith, I’ll show you in public just how important sex is to me.’ And with that rejoinder he strode into the sanctuary of the enormous bathroom and slammed the door firmly shut behind him.
Dios, she was driving him wild.
In the fierce grip of dark, primitive sexual need, Raul slammed the palm of his hand against the shower controls and sent fierce jets of freezing water cascading over his tense, throbbing body.
He closed his eyes, his jaw clenched, his teeth locked as he tried to let go of the tension. Every muscle in his body was pumped up and hard, the hormones coursing round his blood like a dangerous drug.
Litres of cold water sluiced over his heated, throbbing flesh and he stood there with grim determination until he finally acknowledged that he would develop pneumonia long before the desperate need in him died.
Unaccustomed to feeling sexual frustration, Raul leaned both hands against the wall and breathed deeply, trying to use his brain to calm the overwhelming need that tortured his body.
He hadn’t intended to touch her like that; not then. What had happened to him? He, who prided himself on his control. He had more finesse than to indulge in mindless, animal sex and yet the facts spoke for themselves. The moment they’d been alone he’d had her up against the wall, his hand on her flesh …
He was behaving like a man possessed and he didn’t know what had angered him most: the fact that she’d stopped him or the fact that he’d been so crazy for her that he hadn’t given a single thought to anything except the immediate satisfaction of being inside her.
Not even the subject of contraception.
Never, with any other woman, would he have forgotten contraception. It had been his mission, the single overriding fact that had governed the way he lived his life.
But with Faith …
Resigning himself to the fact that cold water was not going to cure his current affliction, he turned off the shower with another forceful punch of his hand and reached for a towel from the pile.
It didn’t matter what she did, how she behaved, he wanted her more than any woman he’d ever met.
Acknowledging that fact with a growl of frustration, Raul wrapped the towel around his hips.
Marriage.
He’d avoided that institution all his life and yet somehow here he was, married.
And what had been a mutually satisfying relationship had been transformed into an emotional minefield that no sane man would attempt to negotiate.
He only had to think of her and the desire leapt inside him like a wild animal hunting its prey.
So now what? He mocked himself with the question. It was obvious that, like all women, she wanted him to talk. And given the look on her face when he’d given her a small taste of what was on his mind, he knew that if she really had access to his thoughts, their marriage would be over in a flash.
So perhaps now she’d learned her lesson and wouldn’t risk asking him for his thoughts again, he thought grimly.
And he probably ought to do his bit for the relationship and prove that it wasn’t all about sex. And that shouldn’t be too hard. He might not believe in love, but he did enjoy the sparky, intellectual side of their relationship. He appreciated the fact that she was intelligent enough to challenge him in conversation. He was quite prepared to discuss the stock market, polo or any other subject that interested her.
In fact he was quite prepared to be thoughtful and caring, just as long as thoughtful and caring didn’t involve an exchange of thoughts and feelings.
As long as they steered clear of that, their marriage should be fine.
CHAPTER EIGHT
FAITH stared at herself in the mirror, barely seeing her reflection.
What was she doing here? How had she reached this point?
She was an intelligent woman who could have been absorbed in her career, instead of which she was living at the whim of an extremely volatile billionaire, wondering whether she was wearing the right dress.
Impatient with herself, she turned sideways and took another look, wondering whether to go back and change into something different. Still on edge after their previous encounter, she had no idea h
ow to handle Raul in his current mood.
They had entirely different ideas about marriage, she thought helplessly. About life.
For him, blistering sex was apparently enough. Was that just his macho, South American genes coming into play?
Still shaken by the explosion of passion that had consumed both of them, Faith lifted a hand to her lips, still tasting the lick of his tongue and the heat of his kiss.
He’d been out of control. Seriously out of control.
And so had she.
What had happened to her brain? What had happened to her ability to think clearly and logically?
Stopping had been the hardest thing she’d ever done, even harder than walking away from him because at the time, that had seemed the right thing to do.
And now? Did it seem right now?
She didn’t know.
All she knew was that her body was buzzing and desire was racing round it like a dangerous drug.
With a groan of disbelief, she squeezed her eyes shut and tried to dispel the erotic images in her head. She had to stop him thinking about sex. And she had to stop thinking about sex. So, with that objective in mind, she’d been perfectly happy to comply with his command that she wear something discreet.
In the wardrobe he’d provided for her, she’d found a simple black dress that fell from a high neckline to the floor in a single sweep of soft fabric. She had no idea if it was too dressy for the evening ahead because he hadn’t elaborated on what was expected of her. All she knew was that when she looked in the mirror, not one single part of her was on display except her arms.
Satisfied that she’d fulfilled his request, she walked into the living room on shaking legs. She was standing by the door looking across the beach, her stomach knotted in a turmoil of anticipation when she heard him enter the room.
Making sure that her defences were firmly in place, she took a slow breath and turned.
As always he exuded effortless style, his trousers superbly tailored to make the most of his physique, his jacket moulded to his wide shoulders. Tall, athletic and impossibly handsome, he looked every inch the wealthy and successful tycoon and the hint of arrogance in his bearing made her smile.
‘I’m sure the other guy, whoever he is, will just give up on the spot when he sees you.’ Her eyes slid over him. ‘You look scary and intimidating when you dress for business, do you know that?’
‘Appearance matters.’
‘Spoken like a true Argentine male.’
His response to her light teasing was a careless shrug. ‘I am an Argentine male, cariño. I have never denied that.’
But although she knew he was capable of using his looks when it suited him, she also knew that his success was due to his drive, energy and phenomenal intellect. Raul Vásquez was super-bright. His brain worked at twice the speed of most people’s and he used his skills in that area to ruthless advantage, out-manoeuvering, out-negotiating.
He ran his eyes over her in silence and his eyes darkened. ‘I told you not to wear anything provocative.’
Having been sure that her dress was perfect, Faith raised her eyebrows. ‘This isn’t provocative.’
‘If you think that, then clearly you dressed without the aid of a mirror.’
Confused and exasperated, she glanced down at herself. ‘You said no legs and no cleavage.’
‘Your arms are showing.’
She lifted her head and looked at him. ‘My arms?’
‘Bare flesh, cariño,’ he said huskily, a cool challenge in his eyes. ‘If I see your arms, I can clearly imagine the rest of you. And if I’m imagining the rest of you, I’m not keeping my mind on business.’
Her heart had been behaving itself when he’d first walked into the room but suddenly it was bumping frantically against her chest. ‘You’re very basic.’
‘Yes.’
‘So don’t take me with you. If I’m a distraction, then leave me here.’
He gave a faint smile. ‘One of the benefits of having a wife,’ he drawled, ‘is being able to present her when the occasion demands it.’
‘And does it?’
‘This evening? Yes, it so happens that it does. Fetch a wrap,’ he commanded, dragging his burning gaze from her body. ‘And keep it on.’
‘Perhaps you’d rather I wore a long coat?’ Faith suggested acidly, using direct challenge as a method of disguising how deeply his words had affected her. He wanted her with him. Surely that was a positive sign?
He surprised her with a smile that was achingly sexy. ‘Good idea. Coat and no dress. Just underwear.’ His voice was deep and impossibly male. ‘Later on I undo the coat and take you. And yes, this time you will have no excuse to stop.’
The vivid image his words created sent a burst of excitement through her stomach and it took her a moment to catch her breath. Trying desperately to conceal her reaction, Faith gritted her teeth. ‘You’re sex-mad, do you know that?’
‘Gracias.’
She looked at him in exasperation. ‘I didn’t intend it as a compliment.’ He was impossibly, arrogantly attractive and he shrugged his shoulders in a careless dismissal of her observation.
‘Liking sex is a healthy and natural drive for a man. What’s wrong with that?’
Wishing she’d never pursued this particular line of conversation, Faith drew in a long breath. ‘Nothing. It’s just—there are other things apart from sex. We could have a conversation.’
‘Sí.’ His eyes mocked her gently. ‘Talking can be very intimate, I agree. Before and after sex.’
Now he was teasing her and the fact that he could succeed in making her hot and bothered even though she knew what he was doing, really irritated her. ‘Talking isn’t part of sex.’
‘What do you think this is, if it isn’t foreplay?’ He murmured the words softly, his voice so sexy that she felt her limbs weaken. ‘We are talking, yes, but we are both thinking about sex—’
‘Raul, please don’t do this.’ She couldn’t think clearly, not with his dark eyes suddenly alight with dangerous promise and his powerful body so achingly close.
‘We both know what is coming later,’ he purred. ‘Each of us is thinking “how will it be?” and “can I wait that long?”’ His normally fluent English seemed considerably less fluent than usual but there was no mistaking his meaning and his words were such an accurate assessment of her thoughts that she stilled, a bloom of colour touching her pale cheeks.
‘That’s not what I’m thinking,’ she croaked and he gave a faint smile.
‘Liar.’
She dragged her eyes from his. Only when she wasn’t looking at him was there a chance that her brain would work. ‘For a man with legendary intelligence, your goals are very shallow.’
‘Would you be flattered if I climbed into bed with you and reached for a book?’ He curved his hand around her waist, and she felt the instant response of her body.
‘Do you ever think of anything other than sex?’
‘Sí—sometimes I think of business.’ He leaned forward and kissed her mouth, the hot slide of his tongue deliberately erotic. ‘And now you need to stop distracting me or I am never going to get through the evening.’
‘It isn’t me, it’s you—you started this.’ But she was starting to feel the strain and he must have noticed because he slid his fingers under her chin and lifted her face to his.
‘You’re pale.’
She gave a careless shrug, trying not to betray everything that he made her feel. ‘Jet lag. I’m tired.’
‘No, it isn’t that. I’ve seen you with more colour in your cheeks when you’ve been up all night with one of the horses.’ He studied her closely, his scrutiny more than a little disturbing. ‘Are you dizzy? Do you need a doctor?’
‘No.’ She didn’t confess that she was just as wound up as he was. Every nerve ending in her body was reminding her that he was close by.
He watched her for a moment, and then increased the pressure of his hand and urged her towards the d
oor. ‘If this evening is too much for you, tell me and you can go back to bed.’ He flashed her a confident, self-satisfied smile. ‘You see how thoughtful and caring I can be?’
‘Would that be an empty bed, or a bed with you in it?’
‘We both know you would be mortally offended if I wasn’t in it, cariño,’ he purred, amusement in his eyes as he pulled her against him and stole a swift kiss from her parted lips. ‘Then you would be accusing me of not finding you attractive, no?’
Tied into knots by his kiss, his smile and his words, she couldn’t even respond.
She was a hopeless case, Faith thought weakly as she followed his direction and walked through the door on shaking legs. Desperately she tried to think about something, anything, other than him.
‘These people we’re meeting tonight—’ she glanced at him briefly ‘—do I need to know anything about them? I don’t want to say the wrong thing. Who are they?’
‘They own land.’ Raul took her hand in his and drew her close to him as they walked up the path that led from the Beach House to the main courtyard of the estancia. ‘Land that I want.’
‘You already own ten-thousand acres. Why would you want their land?’
‘Why settle for less when you can have more?’ But something flickered in the depths of his dark eyes and she had a feeling that there was more to this business deal than he was revealing.
‘In other words, you have a good reason and you’re not planning to share it with me.’
He laughed. ‘I love the fact that you have a sharp brain.’
‘Just as long as I don’t use it,’ Faith said tartly and his answer to that was to bring his mouth down on hers again, his kiss so impossibly skilled that the rest of her sharp rejoinder died in her brain.
‘You taste good,’ he murmured against her lips and she groaned and dragged her mouth away from his.
‘You always do this to me.’ She put her hands on his chest to steady herself, and then looked up at him. ‘You’re infuriating, do you know that? You use sex to shut me up.’
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