And now I know why you want to marry me, Regina countered silently. It had nothing to do with possession or ownership, but revenge. Oscar Spencer had married the woman Aaron loved above all others, and now he wanted to marry the woman Oscar had claimed as wife.
Her delicate jaw hardened with determination. “What we’ve shared today will stay between us. I don’t want our child’s life influenced by the heinous behavior of its decadent ancestors. It’s time we begin anew.”
“You’re right,” he agreed, leaning closer. His mouth covered hers, sealing their oath with a passionate kiss.
Regina surveyed her face in the mirror for the last time, her fingers smoothing back a gel-covered curl from her forehead. She walked out of the bathroom at the same time Aaron made his way through the connecting dressing room into their bedroom. He stopped short, his eyes widening appreciably when she stood in front of him.
Successfully concealing a smile, she watched him as he walked slowly around her while staring at her over his shoulder. His body language called to mind a matador challenging a motionless bull.
Tilting her chin, she smiled down the length of her nose at him. “Do I pass inspection, Senhor Spencer?”
Aaron found breathing difficult as he surveyed her tall, ripening body in a sheer, gunmetal-gray sheath dress lined in black silk, with shimmering, floral beaded designs from neckline to hem. His gaze was fixed on an expanse of one pale-gray-covered leg from a thigh-grazing slit. The garment fit loosely at the waist, artfully disguising the slight swell of her belly. Her narrow feet were encased in a pair of gun-metal-gray, silk-covered, sling-strap heels with narrow ties encircling her slender ankles. The high heels put her within three inches of his own towering height.
He moved closer and stood behind her. She shivered slightly as his warm breath swept over the back of her neck. “You are perfect,” he murmured.
Closing her eyes, Regina leaned back against his solid chest, savoring the warmth and the haunting scent of his aftershave. Even with her eyes closed she still could see the smoothness of his shaven jaw, the shimmer of hairdressing clinging to the shortened strands of his close-cropped graying hair, and the contrast of the whiteness of the wing collar of his dress shirt against the rich darkness of his strong throat.
“I suppose that means you approve?” she whispered.
“I more than approve,” he confirmed, his hands moving up and covering the fullness of her breasts over the sheer fabric. A jolt of white-hot heat swept through his groin when he appraised the weight and size of the flesh filling his large hands.
His fingers tightened slightly, squeezing gently. “You are the most enchanting woman I’ve ever seen in my life.” Lowering his head, he pressed his mouth to the side of her neck. “And you’re going to become even more stunning in the coming months.”
Breathing heavily through parted lips, Regina felt the heat of his body course down the entire length of hers. One of Aaron’s hands moved over her belly, and a moan of ecstasy slipped through her lips. “I’m going to be fat in the coming months,” she slurred.
“You’re going to become the most beautiful mother-to-be in existence.” His hand inched lower, lingering over the warm area between her thighs.
“No, Sweetheart. Please,” she pleaded. “We have to go out.”
The passion clouding Aaron’s mind lifted, and his hands went to her bare shoulders, turning her around to face him. For what seemed like the hundredth time he found it hard to believe he had fallen in love with a woman so exquisitely beautiful and passionate. It was as if fate had rewarded him for his patience.
“You’re right,” he replied reluctantly.
He released her, and Regina moved over to the bed. She picked up a small, sequined bag and the jacket matching her dress, while Aaron retreated to the dressing room to retrieve his white dinner jacket.
He returned, grasped her left hand firmly, and removed the diamond ring his father had slipped onto her finger eight years ago, replacing it with a wider band designed with alternating white and yellow round diamonds set in platinum.
Her temper flared, fingers curling into fists, but Aaron was ready for her quick temper. “My mother would’ve been honored for her daughter to wear her ring,” he explained in a deep, soothing tone.
Lowering her gaze, she nodded in acquiescence. The virulent words poised on the tip of her tongue died quickly. She knew Aaron resented the fact that she hadn’t taken off his father’s ring. She would humor him and wear his mother’s ring. But only for the one night.
Holding out her hand, she stared up at him, and wasn’t disappointed when he dropped the circle of diamonds into her outstretched palm. She dropped it in the bottom of the small evening purse.
Aaron hadn’t asked that she marry him since the night of their passionate bathtub encounter, and she hoped he would not broach the subject again until after she delivered. She did not doubt that he loved her, but she could not ignore the notion that his wanting to marry her was motivated more by revenge than that love.
Aaron offered Regina his arm, and she placed her hand over the pristine sleeve of his white jacket. He led her out of the bedroom, down the staircase, and out to the courtyard, where he had parked a low-slung, silver-gray sports car. Opening the passenger side door, he helped her in and waited until she was comfortably seated on the black leather before closing it. Removing his jacket, he placed it in the space behind the front seats, then slipped into the car beside Regina.
A liberal sprinkling of stars littered the navy-blue Bahian summer nighttime sky as he drove quickly and expertly along the unlit roads. He felt the heat of Regina’s gaze on his right hand each time he shifted gears.
A glint of determination filled his eyes as he concentrated on navigating the dark road. A feeling of satisfaction filled his chest after he had gotten Regina to accept his mother’s ring. It wasn’t the ring he had purchased for their wedding, but that no longer mattered because she wasn’t wearing the one his father had given her.
“I am thinking about buying you a car so that you can get around without waiting for me to take you into the city,” he said after a while, breaking the comfortable silence.
Turning her head, she stared at his strong profile. “Save your money, Aaron. I don’t need a car.”
He gave her a quick glance. “My last name may not be Cole, but I’m a long way from being labeled a pauper, Princesa.”
“It’s not about money,” she retorted. “I go into the city only twice a month. You take me in to see Nicolas, and I usually spend the rest of the day at the beauty spa. The only other time I go in is to have an occasional manicure and pedicure. Having a car is a waste for me.”
Shrugging a shoulder, Aaron smiled at her. “I thought you were bored hanging around the house and wanted a change of scene.”
She laughed softly. “I spend more time in the garden than in the house. I’ve completely identified every plant in your aunt’s garden from fern to herb, flower to lichen. Next week I’m going to create a blueprint design to lay out what I want to move.”
“How is your assistant?” He had recruited a young man who usually worked in the coffee fields to help Regina in her garden.
“Christôvão is wonderful. He’s teaching me Portuguese.”
“He’s supposed to be helping you with your work.”
“He is.”
“He can’t be, if he spends the day flirting with you.”
Her mouth dropped open as she stared at Aaron, her eyes widening in surprise. “Don’t tell me you’re jealous of a boy, Aaron.”
“He’s not a boy. In case you haven’t noticed, he’s very much a man.”
“He’s only twenty-two.”
“He’s a man, Regina.”
“And he believes I’m the wife of the man who pays him his salary. I don’t think he would do anything that would jeopardize his employment.”
“He’d better not,” Aaron countered in a dangerously soft voice. “Losing his job will be nothing
compared to what I’d do to him if—”
“Stop it, Aaron!” she admonished, cutting him off. “What’s with your unfounded jealousy? And why would any man be interested in carrying on with a pregnant woman? In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve lost my waistline.”
“What I’ve noticed is that you’re more beautiful now than when I first met you.”
Glancing away, she stared out the window. “That’s because it’s your child I’m carrying.”
“I’m not quite that vain, Senhora Spencer.”
“But you do admit to being vain,” she teased.
He shrugged his shoulder in the elegant gesture she loved to see. “A little.”
“Mentiroso,” she said accusingly.
“I’m not a liar.”
“Yes, you are, Aaron Laurence Spencer. Aren’t we living a lie?”
His fingers tightened on the leather steering wheel before he shifted into a higher gear. The racy car picked up speed as it seemed to fly over the uneven surface of the unpaved back road.
“Only temporarily,” he ground out between clenched teeth.
Those were the last two words they exchanged until Aaron maneuvered into the courtyard of the sprawling Spanish Colonial-style home belonging to Dr. Nicolas and Jeannette Benedetti.
Chapter 20
Regina noticed raised eyebrows and startled expressions, and she registered questioning whispers as to her identity, when she and Aaron were ushered into the expansive Benedetti living room by a young man hired by the party planner to greet the invited guests. Another, acting as a parking valet, had parked more than a dozen cars on a remote section of the property and out of sight of anyone approaching the house.
Aaron nodded, smiling at the people waiting silently in the room, then settled Regina on a straight-back chair. Her loose-fitting dress artfully designed her ripening body. He stood behind her, his right hand resting possessively on her bare, scented shoulder. She smiled over her shoulder at him, then crossed her legs gracefully, giving him and everyone in attendance a glimpse of her long, smooth, shapely legs encased in shimmering pale gray. There was an eerie silence as the gazes of all the invited guests were fixed on the tall couple trading mysterious smiles.
The front door opened and then closed behind an attractive couple who laughed softly, as if sharing a private joke. The woman’s dark red hair was swept up off her neck in an elaborate twist. The color was the perfect foil for her clear, hazel eyes and honey-gold complexion.
Regina’s eyes narrowed in concentration as she tried placing where she had seen the man before. Running various categories through her mind, she enumerated: actor, singer, athlete. Athlete! He was Fragancio Solis. As Brazil’s most popular futebol player, he had attained superstar status similar to Pele, who had retired more than twenty years ago yet was still revered by all Brazilians as a national hero.
Fragancio Solis glanced around the room, acknowledging his renown as if it were his due while his red-haired date glared at Aaron, her golden eyes hardening like cold jewels.
Regina held her breath when she felt Aaron’s fingers tightening on her bare shoulder. Reaching up, she covered his hand with her left one, and he eased his punishing grip on her tender flesh. She did not want to look up at him, but knew instinctively that things did not bode well with the man whose child she carried and the provocatively attired woman with the auburn hair.
Her obsidian gaze met and fused with one of gold, neither willing to concede, and Regina knew that during her tenure in Bahia she would never call the woman friend.
The parking attendant opened the door, slipped quietly into the room, then closed it quickly. “They’re coming,” he whispered excitedly.
Within minutes the front door opened again and a formally dressed Nicolas Benedetti walked into the living room. His dark gaze swept over the people sitting or standing quietly in his home, his solemn expression brightening.
“Come help me look for my wallet, Jeannette,” he called out in heavily accented English. “It will go quickly if we both look.”
Jeannette Jackson-Benedetti mumbled angrily under her breath as she stepped into the living room. Her scowl vanished, replaced by an expression of shock when she saw her husband’s friends and colleagues smiling at her. Turning, she walked out of the house, Nicolas a half-dozen steps behind her.
“Come back, Querida!”
“No. You didn’t!” Jeannette whispered harshly. “How could you, Nicky?”
Nicolas pulled his protesting wife back into the living room amid applause and hooting. “Are you surprised?”
Resting a hand over her heaving bosom, Jeannette smiled up at Nicolas. “Very.”
She permitted him to lead her to a chair festooned with streamers of pink, white, and red ribbon. Sitting down, she lowered her head, forcing a smile. Her dark eyes were shimmering with bright tears when she finally glanced up.
“I don’t know what to say,” she began slowly, searching for the equivalent words in Portuguese, “except thank you all for coming to help me celebrate my thirtieth birthday.” She shot her husband a lethal glare. “I’ll take care of you later,” she threatened in English.
Crossing his arms over his chest, Nicolas displayed a Cheshire cat grin. “How?”
“You’ll find out soon enough.” Jeannette stood up. “It looks as if everyone came to party,” she continued in Portuguese. “So, let’s have some fun!”
Two silent, efficient waiters escorted the dozen couples filing out of the living room and into a formal dining room to their assigned seats while another filled crystal goblets and glasses with wine and water.
Aaron helped Regina to her feet, guiding her toward the guest of honor. Jeannette’s expression softened as she offered Regina an infectious, friendly smile. Jeannette was average height and favored a fashionable, close-cropped natural hairstyle. Her flawless cinnamon-brown skin, perfectly round face, slanting eyes, and high cheekbones made her an exotically beautiful woman.
Jeannette extended her right hand, the overhead light from a chandelier catching the blue-white brilliance of the enormous square-cut diamond on her finger. “I suppose you know I’m the birthday girl,” she said in a laughing voice.
Regina took the proffered hand, flashing a dimpled smile. “Happy birthday, Jeannette. I’m Regina Spencer.”
Jeannette’s gaze widened, and she hugged Regina. “I don’t believe it. A sister girl!”
Regina returned the hug. “Florida.”
“I’m from North Carolina.” Her grin widened. “We have to get together and talk.”
Holding on to the sleeve of Aaron’s jacket, Jeannette smiled up at him. “While you and Nicky are busy healing mankind, your wife and I are going to hang out together.”
He returned her smile. “That sounds like a wonderful idea.” He’d hoped Regina and Jeannette would bond quickly. He didn’t like leaving her alone so much.
Nicolas curved an arm around his wife’s thickening waist. “Come sit down, Querida. You must eat or you’ll be sick.”
When Jeannette placed a hand over her slightly rounded belly, Regina realized she was pregnant. The exquisitely designed gunmetal-gray-and-back dress had artfully concealed her own condition from anyone who hadn’t been aware that she had just begun her second trimester.
Aaron saw the direction of Regina’s gaze. “You two have a lot more in common than just being sister girlfriends from the States.”
Satisfaction pursed her lush mouth as she looped her hand over the bend of his elbow. “Something tells me we’re going to have a lot of fun.”
Lifting his broad shoulders in an elegant shrug, Aaron nodded. “That’s what I was hoping.” Lowering his head, he pressed his mouth to her hair. “It’s time we go in and sit down.”
Regina sat on Aaron’s right and opposite the soccer player and his date, successfully avoiding her malevolent glare as she listened to the conversations in Portuguese floating around her.
Nicolas, sitting at the head of the table, rose t
o his feet and raised a glass of burgundy-red wine. His thick, black, wiry hair had been tamed with the efforts of a styling gel, and he managed to look very elegant in formal wear despite his bulk. Most people who met him for the first time thought he looked more like a professional wrestler than a doctor.
“I’d like to propose a toast to my lovely wife in celebration of her birthday. I want to thank you for the happiness you’ve given me these past two years. Happy birthday, Querida.”
Rising to her feet, Jeannette raised her goblet of water. “I’d like to thank Nicolas and everyone for helping me celebrate what will become a very special year for me. I extend my sincerest appreciation to all of my old friends, and the new ones to come.” She glanced at Regina, giving her a bright smile. “God bless you all.” A spattering of applause was followed by Nicky nodding to the caterer to begin serving.
Regina lost count of the number of dishes she had sampled as Aaron leaned toward her, quietly describing the contents and ingredients of each course. She found herself leaning against his solid shoulder or touching his hand when she least expected it, but the gestures were not lost on the other diners.
Nicolas waited for the end of the fourth course, then stood up again. “Most of us know one another, but there are a couple of people here for the first time. Aaron, would you like to make your introduction?”
Placing his damask napkin beside his plate, Aaron rose to his feet. His gaze was fixed on the short, black glossy hair Regina had brushed off her forehead. The sophisticated style displayed the perfection of her delicate features.
“The beautiful lady sitting beside me is Regina Spencer—my wife, soon to be the mother of my child.”
Flashing a shy smile, Regina accepted the congratulations and good wishes of everyone in the room as Aaron took his seat.
Nicolas took a sip of wine. “Jeannette and I thank the Spencers for gracing our table.” He turned his attention to Elena Carvalho. “Elena, will you please introduce your guest?”
Harvest Moon Page 20
