by Day Leclaire
It was as though the fall wash of colors had grown more vibrant, filled with the promise and joy of the season. Sensation grew more acute. She became attuned to the quickened sounds of his breath and the sharp, crisp fragrance that clung to him, a combination of leather and sawdust and some incredible masculine scent she’d always associated with him. Her lips parted beneath his and she sank inward with the softest of sighs.
She’d exchanged kisses with other men. Passionate kisses. But no one had ever stirred her the way Alex did. Nor did any other man have the ability to arouse her to such heights with just a single brush of his mouth. And his hands…With typical assurance he unbuttoned her blouse. An errant breeze caught at the edges, flipping them backward and exposing the lacy bit of nothing covering her breasts.
He dragged his mouth from hers and his breath escaped in a gusty sigh. “Ivory.”
She stared at him in bewilderment. “Ivory?”
His fingers drifted across her silk-covered breasts. “The color. It’s been driving me crazy wondering.” Before she could respond, he lowered his head and feathered a string of kisses along the edge of her bra. Her head fell back and he groaned. “I’ve never seen skin like yours. Like velvet cream.”
His mouth drifted upward along the line of her neck until he once again delved between her parted lips. As his mouth took hers, his hands swept blouse and bra straps from her shoulders. Before the chilly air had time to bite, he cupped her breasts, the combination of cold and warmth causing them to peak against his palms. She moaned, the helpless sound a half plea. He responded by dragging his calloused fingers across the aching tips until all she wanted was to slip to the ground and complete what he’d started.
He must have felt the same because he surged against her, everything about him growing more demanding. His determined touch. The aching tenderness of his kiss. The growing need that communicated itself in every taut line of his body. No matter how much he tried to deny the fact, he wanted her. Just as she wanted him.
But almost as soon as the thought slipped into her head, he was adjusting her clothing. “There’s not enough privacy,” he said in response to her questioning look. “Some other time and place.”
She wanted to protest his assumption, but didn’t dare. If he’d taken their embrace one step further, she’d have followed. Willingly. Joyfully. Instead, she asked the first question to pop into her head, anything that would give her time to recover from what had just happened.
“What about my father?” she inquired. “Will you help me?”
It was the wrong question at the worst possible moment. All expression vanished from his face. “No.” The word escaped, blunt and uncompromising and unadulterated.
She could tell he wouldn’t be swayed. Couldn’t be. Still, she had to try. “Alex—”
He cut her off without remorse. “Enough, Rebecca. Let me make this clear. The money is due tomorrow. If your father can’t pay, he’s going to jail. And I will be all too happy to put him there.”
By going in person to Huntington Manor to attempt to collect the money due the TCC, he was rubbing salt in the wound, Alex decided—both his and Rebecca’s. Not that his tiny epiphany stopped him.
As he turned toward the manor, a sleek black McLaren shot around the corner toward him and disappeared almost as fast as it had appeared. But even those few seconds was more than enough time for him to identify the driver.
Paulo Rodriquez.
An ice-cold fear raced through him. Rebecca had warned that she’d find someone to help them out of their predicament. Had she settled on Rodriquez, despite Alex’s warning? And why wouldn’t she? Since he’d turned her down, she’d have moved on to other, more fertile possibilities. And the minute she asked those other possibilities for help and received the inevitable doors slammed in her face, she’d have realized her choices were limited. Rodriquez might have seemed like the perfect solution, despite his warning.
His knock on the door was once again answered by the housekeeper, Louise. This time he was shown directly to the library where he caught the fragments of a heated argument between Rebecca and her father.
Sebastian broke off the instant Louise knocked. “What is it?” he asked, ripe impatience implicit in the question.
The housekeeper opened the door a crack. “Mr. Montoya wishes to speak with you, sir.”
Sebastian swore. “Of course he does. Come on in, Montoya. Why shouldn’t you put the cap on the end of a perfect day.”
Alex gave Louise a sympathetic smile before entering the room. He waited for the door to close behind him before speaking. “That bad?” he asked his nemesis. He didn’t wait for a response. There wasn’t any point. “Allow me to put you out of your misery and make this short and not so sweet. Do you have the money to reimburse the Texas Cattleman’s Club or not?”
“That depends,” Rebecca responded before her father had the chance.
To Alex’s private amusement, both he and Sebastian swore in unison. “How many times do we need to have this discussion, dulzura?” he asked. “This conversation is between me and your father.”
It came as no surprise to either of them that she didn’t listen. Despite the fact that she looked unbearably exhausted and stressed, she regarded them both with a strength and determination that won his reluctant admiration. Now that he considered the matter, everything about her roused a grudging admiration.
She wore a dress in the exact same shade of ivory as the undergarments from the day before and he couldn’t help but wonder if it were more than mere coincidence. Her dress was elegant and deceptively simple, almost bridal in its feminine chastity, yet wickedly flirtatious in the manner in which it caressed her curves. It made his hands itch. Worse, it roused a fierce protectiveness when he realized Rodriquez had seen her looking like this.
“Will you loan us the money, Alex, and use Sweet Nothings for collateral?” she asked.
He was so preoccupied with her appearance that it took a moment for her question to sink in.
“I forbid it,” Sebastian said at the same time that Alex offered a terse “No.”
She lifted an eyebrow and waited a beat before filling the thundering silence that followed their outburst. “I didn’t discover that El Gato came to call until after he left. I’m sorry I missed meeting him. But maybe I should get in touch with him and see if he won’t loan me the money we need,” she retorted calmly.
This time the two men reacted and spoke as one. “No!”
She simply lifted an eyebrow and folded her arms across her chest, waiting them out.
Alex swore again, this time in Spanish. When he’d managed to regain most of his composure, he glanced at Sebastian before returning his attention to Rebecca. “Would you mind fixing some coffee so we can discuss the situation?” he asked with formal politeness.
“I’ll ask Louise to bring a tray.”
“You will wait for the tray,” Alex instructed. “I wish to have a private moment with your father.”
He could tell she wanted to argue. Clearly, her exhaustion worked to his advantage. The fight drained out of her, leaving her pale and drawn, her only color the intense glitter of her dark green eyes and the fiery sweep of hair surrounding her ghost-white face. She gave an abrupt nod and without another word, exited the room.
Alex didn’t waste any time. He turned on Sebastian. “I saw Rodriquez leaving as I drove up. What did he want?”
“That’s none of your business,” the older man retorted, reverting to type.
There wasn’t time for this. Alex cut through the other man’s bluster without hesitation. “Either make it my business or I’ll leave you to deal with this mess on your own.” His tone underscored his determination. He’d had all he intended to take from the Huntingtons. “You either give me the information I’m requesting or I walk out of here and leave the pair of you to learn just how ruthless Paulo can be.” He shot Sebastian a hard look. “Well?”
The antagonism escaped Sebastian like air from a leaky
balloon. “He wants it all,” he whispered. “The manor, as well as Sweet Nothings. In exchange he’ll pay off what I owe the TCC and wipe our debt clean.”
“I’m not surprised.”
“Because you’re in on it, aren’t you?” Huntington accused, working himself up into a new rage. “Because you put him up to it.”
Alex stared in disbelief. “Have you lost your mind? Why would I do that?”
Huntington replied without a moment’s hesitation. “You want revenge for my having fired your mother.”
“An interesting theory. And though I won’t deny that I’m capable of it, that isn’t what happened. Rodriquez doesn’t have any interest in turning Huntington Manor over to me.” He paused a beat. “Any more than he’s interested in owning Sweet Nothings. You do realize what he’s really after, don’t you?”
Sebastian turned gray. “That won’t happen.”
Alex merely cocked a skeptical eyebrow. “Won’t it? How much are you in to him for, Huntington? I’m guessing it’s a hell of a lot more than three hundred grand.”
“Closer to a million,” Sebastian confessed.
“A million.” Alex fought to tamp down his fury at the man’s stupidity. “Where are you going to get that sort of money? How are you going to stop him from taking this house?” He drove his point home with the cruelest question of all. “What if he goes after Rebecca?”
“He wouldn’t.”
Alex stared at him in disbelief. “You can’t possibly be that ignorant. Paulo Rodriquez is ruthless. He will stop at nothing to get what he wants. And what he wants is Huntington Manor, and now Sweet Nothings. What’s next on his list? Or should I say…who? What if he adds to his demands? As far as I can see, the only question that remains is whether you’re going to give him what he wants.”
“Never,” Sebastian said fiercely. “Not him. And not you. The manor is mine and it stays mine. It’s off-limits to both of you. As is my daughter.”
Alex looked at him skeptically. “I assume that means you have the money to pay off your debts?”
The answer was written in every crevice of the older man’s face. “I’ll find it,” he bluffed, his spine as ramrod stiff as ever. “I’ll take out a mortgage. People in this town owe me. They’ll help tide me over.”
Alex released a short laugh. There was no point in wasting his breath. Sebastian Huntington lived in a fool’s paradise and only time and those people who “owed him” would be in a position to change that. “Good luck with that. It’s clear you don’t need my help. Let me know when you have the money. We’ll expect you at the TCC first thing in the morning.”
He started for the door, only to have Huntington stop him at the last second. “Wait.” And then Alex caught a word he never thought he’d hear from Sebastian Huntington’s lips. “Please, Alejandro. Please, wait.”
It was the name his mother used whenever she’d addressed him. Hearing it come from Huntington filled him with a deep grief, chased by an even deeper anger. If not for this man, his mother might still be alive. “Last chance, Sebastian.”
“Can you keep Rodriquez away from Rebecca?”
Alex turned. “I can try.”
“Will you take Sweet Nothings from her?”
“I have no interest in your daughter’s boutique.”
“And…and the manor?”
“You would have to turn it over to me. In exchange, I’ll pay off Rodriquez.”
Huntington struggled with his pride before asking his final question. “Would you…would you consider allowing me to remain here? You said you have no interest in living here yourself. But this is the only home Rebecca has ever known.”
“She’ll get over it.”
Desperation took hold. “I…I could rent it from you.”
“You can’t afford to rent it from me.” Alex shook his head, adamant. “I want you gone, Huntington.”
Huntington’s hands collapsed into fists. “At least give me time.”
“Time for what?”
“Allow me to remain here. Give me a year to raise the necessary funds to pay you back.” Alex’s expression must have been answer enough, because he waved that aside. “Fine. Six months. In the meantime, accept Rebecca’s offer. Let her believe that she convinced you to loan us the money using Sweet Nothings as collateral. If I can’t raise what I owe you for paying off the debt to the TCC and Rodriquez—plus interest—in those six months, the sale becomes final. You hand the deed to Sweet Nothings back to Rebecca, I’ll sign the final papers giving you ownership of Huntington Manor, and I’ll leave Maverick County for good. But if I manage to raise the money, you return both the manor and Sweet Nothings to us and then stay out of our lives.”
Alex’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Why involve Rebecca and her shop?”
“I don’t want her to know about our deal.” Huntington’s mouth twisted. “She won’t believe me if I tell her you simply handed over the money out of the goodness of your heart.”
Alex couldn’t help smiling at that. “True. She knows me too well to buy that particular fairy tale.”
“Which means I need to come up with something plausible that she will believe. Her pride demands that we give you some sort of collateral in exchange for the money. And she won’t give up this crazy crusade of hers if it’s Huntington Manor. She’ll continue to try and find another option rather than see me thrown out of my home. I can’t risk her going to Rodriquez. But if she thinks you’re willing to take Sweet Nothings, and that it’s enough to pay off both debts, she’ll back off.”
Understanding dawned. “She doesn’t know how much you owe Rodriquez, does she?”
“No. She believes that any money from selling Sweet Nothings—or obtaining a loan for its value—will be sufficient to pay off both debts. And I don’t intend to explain otherwise.”
Alex considered his options. “You realize that if Gentry implicates you in the arson fires, I won’t lift a finger to help you? In fact, I’ll make that a condition of the loan. If you have anything to do with those fires, the manor is mine. And nothing Rebecca says or does will change my mind.”
“Since I’m not guilty I have no problem with your making that a condition of the loan,” Huntington responded with impressive dignity. “Right now my main concern is paying off my debts. Are we in agreement on that score, if nothing else?”
Before they could complete the negotiations, Rebecca returned with a tray. The two men remained stoic beneath her searching gaze. While she poured coffee for the three of them, Alex gave Huntington the slightest of nods, signaling his agreement to the deal. Once the beverages had been poured and served, Rebecca stood with her saucer held in a white-knuckle grip.
“Well?” she asked.
The single word was uttered with a casual air, but Alex caught the strain welling beneath it. Carrying his coffee to the couch where they’d shared their passionate embrace just a few nights previously, he took a seat. “I’ve agreed to listen to your offer,” he said.
“And consider it,” Huntington added pointedly.
“Don’t push your luck,” he retorted. He didn’t want to make this appear too easy or Rebecca would never buy it. “I said listen, and that’s what I meant.”
“It’s a simple business proposition,” Rebecca jumped in before her father had an opportunity to reply. “And one I hope will be to your advantage in the long run. I put up Sweet Nothings as collateral in exchange for a loan that will pay off the Texas Cattleman’s Club—” She darted a swift, apprehensive glance in her father’s direction. “And I’m hoping the value is also sufficient to cover my father’s debt to Paulo Rodriquez, as well.”
“You’re asking a lot.”
“I realize that.” She hesitated. “Dad, would you mind if I talk privately to Alex now?”
Alex almost laughed at Huntington’s expression. He had to commend the man, though. He held himself in check. Refraining from allowing the spill of words to escape, he restricted himself to a warning look before exiting th
e room.
The minute her father disappeared, she turned on him. “Okay, Alex. What’s going on? Something’s up. I can see it in both your faces. What aren’t you two telling me?” she demanded.
Five
A lex offered a bland smile. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Rebecca set aside her coffee and joined him on the couch. “You’re sitting here, aren’t you? Why? Yesterday you were determined to see my father go to jail. What’s changed?”
Okay, he could give her that much information without her figuring out the rest. “Rodriquez.”
She pinned him with a searching look. “He’s that dangerous?”
Paulo might be his friend, but that didn’t make Alex blind to his faults. “Yes,” he replied simply. “He’s that dangerous.”
“This sudden willingness on your part, the fact that today you’re considering my offer, it isn’t about my father, is it?” she guessed with characteristic shrewdness.
“No,” he conceded. “Despite my constant warnings, you keep threatening to turn to Rodriquez without realizing what sort of risk you’re taking. If you go to him, you play right into his hands. Your father can’t protect you from Paulo. I can.”
“Why?” she whispered.
“Why am I willing to help you?”
“That and…” Her brows drew together. “Why is Rodriquez after us? What have we done to him?”
Alex chose his words with care. “Paulo’s gone to a lot of trouble to dip his fingers into your father’s pocket. Thanks to Sebastian’s arrogance, he can’t pay off both debts with what little cash he has on hand. Paulo would know that. In fact, he’s probably counting on that fact. He’s also not going to be happy if someone else steps in and pays off those debts after he’s set everything up so he can take Huntington Manor from your father.”
“You still haven’t answered my question.”
Fine. He’d give it to her straight. “Paulo wants status. Huntington Manor will give him that, or so he undoubtedly believes. He also wants Sweet Nothings in order to tie your hands and prevent you from using your business the way you intend to—as collateral to get your father out of debt.”
