The Unforgettable Spanish Tycoon

by Christy McKellen

  He snorted with laughter, clearly amused by this, though the expression on his face told her he was impressed by what she was telling him.

  ‘We spent a lot of time together after that,’ she continued, warming to her theme now, ‘and talked about a lot of personal stuff too, especially the things we found tough growing up. Like you being brought up in a single-parent household and being bullied at school, and me living with parents that constantly rowed or sniped at each other. I think we felt a certain kind of affinity with each other after that.’

  He continued to look at her with a frown pinching his brow now, but didn’t comment. Clearly he had no memory of any of that.

  ‘We liked the same kind of movies too—sci-fi and fantasy,’ she said, to fill the silence that had fallen between them.

  He nodded in agreement, a relieved sort of smile playing about his mouth as if this made total sense to him.

  ‘Most of our other friends weren’t interested in them so we often went to the cinema together to see them and stay up late dissecting them afterwards.’ She smiled, trying to hide how sad those memories made her feel now. ‘Good times.’

  ‘It sounds like we had fun together,’ he murmured, his eyes never leaving hers.

  She gazed back at him, remembering how happy they’d both been then, how full of vigour and positivity and excitement for the future—a future she’d hoped would have him in it in some way—and felt her spirits plummet. Would he have been a happier, less angry man today if they’d stayed together then?

  ‘We did,’ she said quietly, swallowing past the lump in her throat.

  He opened his mouth to ask her something else but, before he could get the words out, his mobile began to ring, mercifully diverting his attention away from her rapidly heating face.

  ‘That was Benita,’ he said once he’d concluded the call and put his mobile down on the table. ‘She managed to get hold of Carter. He’s agreed to meet for dinner tonight and, as we anticipated, he’s bringing his wife with him.’

  He raised both eyebrows. ‘Looks like we’re on, girlfriend.’

  She covered a resurgence of nerves with a smile. ‘Great.’

  Once they’d polished off their food, at Elena’s request they spent the walk back to his apartment going over any relevant points about Araya Industries that might come up in conversation with the Americans, making sure she was fully briefed—or at least as much as a girlfriend working in the same industry might be.

  It was fascinating to hear how he’d chosen to run his business, but Elena experienced a twinge of guilt at being trusted with detailed strategies and projections when Caleb had been so keen not to allow her anywhere near his business operation only the day before.

  This was all to help him though, she reminded herself firmly. She wasn’t going to take advantage of it at any point.

  ‘So tell me about your business,’ he said once they’d covered all the salient points about his.

  His question caught her off guard and she stumbled a little, feeling him grab her elbow to right her, and gave him a strained smile.

  ‘Er...well, I run a company in England called Zipabout. We make single-person electric vehicles to be used for short trips around towns and cities.’

  He raised his eyebrows with interest. ‘And what sort of battery are you using to power them?’

  She thought about telling him the truth, somehow bringing the conversation round to the fact she was hoping his company would be the one to supply it, but her conscience wouldn’t let her. It would be totally inappropriate to mention it when he didn’t remember the row they’d already had about it.

  With a sinking heart she said, ‘We’re looking into that at the moment. I have a few leads.’

  Darn, darn, darn! And it could have been such a good opportunity to find out whether he’d be interested in supplying his battery to her without the angst and anger from their past getting in the way. But it was too much of a morally ambiguous move for her to do that.

  Caleb was nodding slowly, looking as though he was going to ask something else, and she held her breath, poised to fudge an answer, but, as luck would have it, at that moment his attention was diverted as he looked round to fully take in their surroundings and said, ‘We need to take this turn for my apartment.’

  It was just the distraction she needed in order to redirect the topic of conversation without it seeming strange.

  ‘So how long have you lived on this street?’ she asked, waving her hands around expansively. ‘It’s a lovely area.’

  As they walked out onto his street, with him telling her he’d been here for the last four years and how he came to find it, it suddenly struck her how businesslike the area was. The apartments were large and expensive-looking, but didn’t give the impression of being held together by a cohesive community. It was a district for people who liked to live alone within a bustling major city.

  It made her spirits sink to think of Caleb like that. But then he’d always been fiercely independent and protective of his personal space and she guessed this was just a grown-up extension of that, she reminded herself.

  As soon as they walked into his apartment she excused herself, saying she needed a rest before they went out for dinner, in desperate need of some space away from him in order to regroup before their meeting tonight.

  Shutting her bedroom door firmly behind her, she took the opportunity to check her email. Her stomach lurched as she saw a message from her Sales Director asking her how it was going with Caleb and checking whether there was any news about being able to use his battery in their car yet.

  Closing the laptop with a snap, she resolved not to look at her messages again until after the meal this evening. She was going to need her wits about her tonight, not only for the sake of Caleb’s business but also in order to keep her cool whilst looking as though she was intimately acquainted with the man. He already turned her insides to goo every time he so much as looked at her and if he was going to be touching her all night too she was going to need every ounce of strength she had to remain unflustered and in control. The last thing she wanted was for Caleb to suspect she was enjoying his company as more than a friend.

  That was a complication neither of them needed at the moment.

  CHAPTER SIX

  CALEB TOOK A long shower, feeling energised by the time he’d spent getting to know a bit more about Elena today.

  The intense moment they’d shared in the hotel room, where the air had positively crackled between them, had convinced him that there had to have been more between them than just friendship during their time at university.

  Judging by her jumpiness around him afterwards, she’d definitely felt the same weight of possibility that had hummed between them as they stood gazing at each other with her hand pressed against his heart.

  Having the space to think about it now, he realised he’d been aware of an odd kind of tension between them all day, as if she was trying to suppress something—or hide something, maybe. Had they not taken their relationship further because she’d been seeing that Jimmy guy? Had he, Caleb, been the blip she’d mentioned?

  Perhaps this connection he felt had always been there, but even though they were both single now Elena didn’t think it appropriate to act on it when he was just out of hospital after the accident.

  Well, to hell with that. Why should a bang on the head stop them from exploring this thing between them? He wasn’t an invalid. He knew his own mind.

  Pulling on a smart shirt and trousers for dinner with a determination to find out whether he was right later, he walked out into the living area to discover Elena was also dressed for their meeting and was waiting for him.

  The pale pink dress she had on was beautifully understated but entirely beguiling at the same time. It had a halter top, which tied behind her long, elegant neck and sh
owcased her pale, slender shoulders. He couldn’t help but notice how the bodice of the dress dipped in under her full breasts then gently curved against her slender waist, perfectly emphasising her hourglass figure.

  Feeling her watching him, he dropped his gaze to look at the skirt instead, which was slim-fitting and narrowed at the knee, making her legs look as if they went on for miles.

  Forcing himself to snap his mouth shut and pull his gaze up to her face, he gave her a nod of hello and went into the kitchen to get himself a very cold drink of water.

  Right now wasn’t the time to explore his theory. He had more immediate things to deal with, in the shape of persuading Jonathan Carter to take his business.

  ‘Will you be ready to go in five minutes?’ he asked, placing the glass carefully into the sink with an unsteady hand.

  ‘I’m ready when you are,’ she replied, but he could have sworn he saw a flash of concern on her face. Perhaps she was nervous about the charade they were about to embark on. It suddenly occurred to him that every time Elena saw him after a break she seemed a little more tense, as if she was expecting him to do or say something she was afraid of. But why?

  He remembered with a jolt that she’d mentioned at the hospital that they’d had a row right before his accident, but in his befuddled state he’d not asked her what it had been about.

  ‘Elena?’

  She looked round at him as she went to grab her handbag from the table by the door.

  ‘What did we argue about before my accident?’

  Her face seemed to blanch a little.

  ‘Er...’ Wrapping her arms around her body, she fixed him with an awkward smile. ‘It was an old argument from when we were at university. I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to talk about it now though. We need to be totally focused on the meeting.’ She looked so stricken he decided not to push it any further. Especially when she was doing him such a favour by attending this meeting with him.

  But why was she so tense? Perhaps she was still feeling responsible for him being hit by that bike. He wished, not for the first time, that he could remember it.

  ‘Fair enough,’ he said, ‘but, whatever it was, stop worrying that I’m going to bite your head off every time I see you. We’re friends after all.’

  ‘Uh-huh,’ she mumbled, not looking at him now.

  Walking slowly over to where she stood, he put his hand on her bare arm and felt her quiver under his touch.

  She took a quick step away, breaking their contact and folding her arms across her chest.

  ‘We should go. We don’t want to be late.’

  ‘Of course,’ he said, forcing himself to remain where he was and not touch her again, just to see what she’d do. The urge to provoke more of a reaction was intoxicating.

  Grabbing his warm weather overcoat, he slid his arms carefully into the sleeves. He was going to have to be careful not to let Carter see he’d been in an accident or it might serve as another mark against him, especially if the man thought he was in any way mentally incapacitated as well at the moment.

  It was funny but refusing to show any physical weakness felt like something he was well acquainted with, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on why. It eluded him, like something flittering on the edge of his vision. He knew something important was there, but he couldn’t fully grasp what he was looking at.

  Damn memory—it was playing havoc with his self-assurance.

  But it would all be okay; he’d make sure it was.

  As for Elena, he’d get the full story from her eventually, but for now she was right—he needed to keep his head in the game.

  * * *

  The restaurant that Benita had booked them into was on a small, winding side street off the famous grand La Rambla, a tree-lined pedestrian mall in the oldest part of the city.

  On Elena’s request, the car that Caleb had ordered dropped them in the Plaça de Catalunya, next to the magnificent fountain and the looming Francesc Macià monument—that looked to Elena a bit like an upside-down staircase—so they could soak up the buzzy atmosphere on their way to the restaurant.

  They walked together, close but not touching, along the busy street bustling with tourists and locals alike, then detoured down one of the small side streets and through a labyrinth of roads crowded on both sides with a mixture of brightly lit pavement cafés, designer clothes shops and trinket stalls, until they reached the Gothic Quarter, where their final destination was located.

  According to Caleb, El Gótico had served its famous fusion of Spanish and Mediterranean fare for the past ten years and was a favourite with Barcelonans, as well as the handful of tourists that occasionally stumbled across it.

  The décor was a mixture of warm, earthy colours with rustic wooden furniture and a tiled terracotta floor which contrasted sharply with the angular metal and glass of the staircase and bar. Bright splashes of primary colours were picked out on the back wall, which were also reflected in the small lamps and glass water carafes on each table, giving the place the impression of chic modernism. The whole effect was both comforting and uplifting.

  The delicious smell of the place wrapped around Elena’s senses, making her mouth water as they made their way to the bar, where the greeter stood waiting to welcome them.

  Caleb spoke to the woman in rapid Spanish and a moment later they were whisked towards the staircase leading to the upper mezzanine of the restaurant, which had a long glass balcony affording diners views of the lamplit tables below.

  Just as he was about to mount the stairs, Elena put her hand on Caleb’s arm to stop him. She wanted to make sure they made the most of this opportunity to charm the Americans and for that to happen Caleb was going to have to rein in his more dominating side for a while.

  ‘I’m sure I don’t need to say this, but go easy on the man tonight, okay? Just until everyone’s had a chance to find their feet here.’

  Caleb’s eyebrow shot up. ‘You think I’m going to dangle him from the balcony if he doesn’t agree to a partnership?’

  She batted a hand at him, suppressing a smile. ‘No, of course not. But I know you; you’ll want to go in all guns blazing. I recommend a lighter touch. If he’s here with his wife he’s not going to take too kindly to being bullied and harangued.’

  ‘I wouldn’t—’

  She put up a hand to pre-empt his angry rebuttal. ‘Not intentionally, I know, but you can come across as a little bit abrasive and intimidating until someone gets to know you. Show him a bit of your soft side too, that’s my advice.’

  Caleb blinked at her, his brows drawn into a tight frown as he appeared to consider what she’d said. After a moment he nodded slowly, his frustrated expression clearing and being replaced with a wolfish grin. There was something else in his eyes too that made her tummy flip and her blood begin to race. She stared at his mouth, wondering erratically how she would react if he leant forwards and kissed her right now.

  ‘Okay, I’ll be nice,’ he murmured.

  Shoving away her lustful urges, she nodded. ‘Good.’ She let out a gasp of surprise as he suddenly slipped his hand around her back and drew her closer to him.

  ‘Just relax, cariño. You seem tense and that’s going to look strange to our guests.’

  Swallowing hard, she gave him a jerky nod, her heart banging hard against her chest and her nerves jangling due to their intimate proximity.

  ‘Perhaps I should practice my soft side on you before they get here,’ he murmured, his dark eyes boring into hers.

  ‘How are you going to do that?’ she asked, but before she could draw breath he leant in towards her and brushed his mouth against hers.

  Fireworks seemed to go off deep inside her body and she wondered wildly for a second how the other diners would react if she suddenly burst into flames in front of them.

  C
aleb’s lips were warm and firm, his mouth fitting perfectly with hers. She stood frozen to the spot, too befuddled to react, as a crazy surge of desire unfolded deep inside her, spiralling out to the very ends of her fingers and toes.

  His hands slid into her hair and instinctively she sank against him, her body craving the hard press of his against it.

  A moment later she was left gasping for air when he drew away from her, giving her a strange knowing kind of smile and nodding towards the upper mezzanine, his arm pressing into her back as he encouraged her to mount the staircase with him.

  ‘Let’s go and find our seats, ready for the show,’ he murmured into her ear, his breath tickling the sensitive skin on her exposed neck and making her shiver with longing.

  Oh, goodness, it was going to be impossible to keep her cool if he was going to be this physically attentive all evening.

  Somehow she managed to make it up the stairs on rather wobbly legs and had just settled herself into a chair that Caleb held out for her when Carter and his wife arrived and she had to stand up again to greet them.

  In a fit of continued nerves at Caleb’s proximity, Elena managed to knock her knife onto the floor, which then skidded under the table, causing a flurry of amused response as they all tried to locate it so she could retrieve it, apologising profusely as she did so, which fortuitously broke what could have been an icy start to the meeting.

  There was something so healthy and vibrant about the couple, Elena thought dazedly as she smiled a more composed hello to them once she’d straightened up after her little mishap. She guessed that was what people who had incredible wealth and an inclination to take care of themselves looked like—polished and dauntingly self-assured. They put Elena in mind of a high-powered couple from the eighties’ American soap operas she used to watch for guilty pleasure late at night during her university days.