Sinfully Summer: HarperImpulse Contemporary Romance

by Aimee Duffy

  Alexa wasn’t the kind of woman he’d want a short liaison with—her personal life was too messy and far too public for his liking—but he couldn’t deny his attraction to her. Any more than she could deny hers.

  She planted a hand on his chest and pushed him back. Ric could see her cheeks tint with arousal and her chest rose and fell with heavy breaths.

  ‘My friends will be wondering where I am. They’ll end up phoning security to hunt me down.’

  Ric guessed it was time for a cold shower. Alexa headed for the lift. He reached out and clasped her by the arm; his palm tingled at the contact. ‘Wait.’

  She turned to face him, her eyebrows raised. ‘I’m not going to sleep with you, Ric. Forget it.’

  If her gaze hadn’t dipped to his chest at the same time as she licked her lips, he might have believed her. But that’s not what he wanted. This time. ‘You owe me a date.’

  ‘Excuse me?’ Pulling out of his grasp, she glared at him.

  His gaze dipped to her rosy pout, slightly damp from her tongue. Another bolt of heat headed south. ‘I have a party to go to tomorrow night.’ Actually, he had networking to do and having a beauty like Alexa on his arm might convince some of the old men with too much money and wives long since gone to attend his charity ball in a few weeks. ‘And you’re coming with me.’

  Taking her would be risky, but he’d never let that stop him before. She was unpredictable and if the media suspected he was having a fling with her, they’d dig deep into his past. Then again, her father’s status was well known even here and he could work that to his advantage. He had no doubt she could be charming, he just had to keep her in check.

  She laughed. ‘I don’t think so.’

  Ric shrugged. ‘Then I’ll be happy to call security and have them hold you until the police arrive.’ Her brows drew together and Ric continued. ‘If you really are press worthy, I’m sure I can arrange for one of the reporters to shoot the story.’

  Fear flashed in her eyes, but it was gone in a heartbeat. She smirked at him. ‘I’m going back to my room.’

  Irritation warred with amusement, but in two steps he was in front of the elevator doors.

  She glared at him, then turned back to his apartment. ‘Fine, I’ll take the stairs.’

  ‘Good luck with that, the door is locked.’ He smirked at her and slid his phone from his pocket. ‘Last chance.’

  Her eyes widened, but she straightened her shoulders. ‘You wouldn’t.’

  He lifted an eyebrow and hit speed dial, then the speaker. The ringing sounded in the room.

  ‘Hola, Señor Castillo,’ a voice answered. Alexa paled.

  Ric lifted the handset closer to his mouth.

  ‘Fine, I’ll go with you.’ She glared at him.

  He smiled. After telling security they weren’t required, he disconnected the call. ‘Good choice. It won’t be so bad. Fine dining, champagne and I’ll even buy you a new dress.’

  She crossed her arms and his gaze dropped to her cleavage. ‘I have my own party clothes.’

  An image of her in her usual style, a barely-there concoction of silk, flooded his mind and his whole body heated up. His gaze snapped to hers and he glared right back. ‘It’s formal, Alexa.’

  Puffing out a breath, she stepped closer. ‘I can do formal. Do you know how many corporate affairs my straight-laced father, Robert Green, has dragged me to over the years?’ She poked a white tipped finger nail into his chest. ‘Far too many. And it better not be as boring as those.’

  He grabbed the offending finger, used it to haul her body against his, lowered his head and whispered in her ear, ‘the night will be as fun as we make it.’

  He released her trembling frame, took a step back and hit the button for the elevator. After a lingering glance at her almost-naked body he pulled his t-shirt over his head and handed it to her with a shred of regret. Alexa’s mouth fell open as she fixed her attention on his chest. Ric smirked as she accepted the shirt with a shaking hand.

  ‘Put this on.’

  Alexa obeyed slowly, as if the sight of his naked skin cast a dreamlike spell over her. Ric couldn’t believe it, but in his shirt she looked even sexier than she had in her underwear. Legs that went on forever held his gaze and, even though he knew what was under the white cotton, he wanted to rip it off and find out all over again.

  He cleared his throat. ‘A limo will pick you up out front at seven. I’ll meet you at the event.’

  Alexa startled out of her trance. ‘But where are we going? How long will it take?’

  A ping announced the arrival of the elevator and Ric gestured for Alexa to enter. She did, then held her finger on the open button, her eyebrow raised in question.

  He tried not to smile. He’d given her an ultimatum she couldn’t refuse, yet she wouldn’t admit defeat.

  ‘Do you like surprises?’ he asked.

  Alexa pressed her lips together as if considering his question. ‘Not the kind that lead to a party with the atmosphere of a wake.’

  He chuckled again, wondering whether she had a brain-to-mouth filter at all. ‘You’ll just have to hope it’s something better.’

  She folded her arms and pouted at him. He smiled as the doors began to slide shut.

  ‘Don’t be late, Alexa. And remember, it’s formal.’

  The clink of metal slamming together halted her not-so-innocent reply.

  After the lift had disappeared, Ric headed for the bathroom, intent on taking the cold shower for as long as he could. Alexa fired his blood like no woman had in a long time and she would no doubt look spectacular all glammed up by his side.

  But he’d need to make sure he kept a stranglehold on his libido. Falling into bed with Alexa—as tempting as it had been tonight—wouldn’t be a smart choice. The girl was wild, unpredictable and far too irresponsible. He knew he was walking a fine line using her status to tempt guests to the ball, but dating her crossed it completely. That would draw the kind of attention he didn’t need. Especially if the media dug too deep into his past…

  Chapter Two

  Wild. Daring. Completely bonkers.

  Alexa had been accused of all these things, but it didn’t bother her. Ric’s accusation that she was childish hit a nerve. She twisted the knob and threw the door open. Jenna yelped into the hotel phone, while Sarah paced the living room. They both turned to her with wild, worried eyes.

  Alexa shut the door behind her. The gymnasts in her tummy felt more like heavy weight champs. ‘What’s wrong?’

  ‘Where have you been, Alexa?’ Sarah stomped towards her, a frown marred her brow.

  ‘It’s okay, she’s back now,’ Jenna spoke into the receiver then hung up. She glared at Alexa. ‘We’ve been worried sick.’

  Hugging her stomach, she swallowed. ‘The dare didn’t go as planned. I ended up in Enrique Castillo’s penthouse.’

  She was rewarded with wide eyes and gaping mouths. Jenna recovered first. ‘His t-shirt?’

  Alexa nodded, her eyebrows pulled together. ‘He blackmailed a date out of me too.’ The arrogant, pushy, git. She shook her head in exasperation, who’d have thought he’d actually back up his threat? If it was her father, he wouldn’t want bad press for his hotel. Not Castillo. ‘Tomorrow night. Some mortuary gig.’

  Well, not quite. But it didn’t sound promising. Formal, in her opinion, meant boring and there was nothing she loathed more than boring. Except having to call her father to ask him to bail her out of a Spanish prison. She shuddered at the thought.

  ‘A date?’ Sarah perked up, skipping over the fact Alexa had said blackmailed, and clapped her hands like a loon. The shiny diamond on her ring finger sparkled in the light.

  Alexa quelled a grimace as a chill ran through her. Why her friends felt the need to settle down so young was beyond her. Then again, they hadn’t been brought up by her father.

  ‘And he’s gorgeous,’ Jenna added, already on her way to the mini bar. Did neither of her friends hear the word blackmail? Jenn
a pulled a bottle of Cristal from the fridge. ‘This calls for a celebration.’

  ‘I don’t think so.’ Alexa accepted the champagne flute though—how could she not? The sip she took was heavenly and exactly what she needed right now. They settled down onto the sofas. ‘I’m not looking for the one.’ And even if she was, Alexa knew it wouldn’t be Ric. Lush as that chest may be…

  ‘Just imagine. We could all end up getting married this year!’ Sarah bounced up and down in her seat, her short blonde bob swished around her shoulders.

  The blood drained from Alexa’s face and the weight in her stomach felt heavier than lead. ‘No.’ Her protest was barely a whisper. Bunnies would rule the earth before she married a man even remotely like her father. From her experience, successful men, even aspiring ones, were all the same. God knows her father had tried to set her up with enough of them. He’d even staged a proposal from one. She had pulled on her running shoes and bolted in the opposite direction.

  Jenna saved her. ‘Sarah, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. They’ve not been on the date yet.’

  Alexa flashed her a grateful smile.

  Sarah just pouted. ‘Where’s he taking you? You said mortuary?’

  Shrugging, she sipped her wine then tucked her legs under her. ‘He said formal, which means black-tied, straight-laced, men dribbling on about their success. Might as well be a wake. Those kind of parties are always dull.’

  Rolling her eyes, Sarah said, ‘You never moan when we go to functions like that.’

  ‘That’s different. That’s networking for my business. This is a boring date with a boring guy whose sole idea of fun is a frisk between the sheets.’

  Hell, in other words. Shivers ran through her again and her body tingled, betraying her thoughts. It seemed her hormones liked the idea of a frisk with Castillo. Well, they’d just have to be disappointed.

  ‘Sounds like fun to me.’ Jenna giggled. ‘Seriously though, what are you going to wear? You’ve nothing formal with you.’

  Sarah clapped her hands together again. ‘We could go shopping tomorrow.’

  Alexa smirked. ‘No need. I have the perfect dress.’

  Jenna frowned at her, unconvinced.

  ‘The bronze silk Gucci.’ Her lips curved wider. She couldn’t wait to see Ric’s face. It would serve him right for blackmailing her into going.

  ‘Alexa, that scrap shows off more than it hides. He said formal.’

  Suppressing a giggle, she pulled her face into her best innocent expression. ‘It’s ankle length.’

  Still, Jenna was right. It was over-the-top and revealing. But, with her sun tan at its peak, the dress would be a killer, and she’d work on ridding herself of the bikini lines in the morning. Maybe it would teach Ric he couldn’t push her into doing what he wanted. Maybe he’d stare at her with that hungry-predator gleam in his dark eyes. Alexa’s stomach quivered. Either way, tomorrow promised to be interesting.

  Her phone beeped on the counter and she rose, crossed the room and opened her emails. Her eyes almost bugged out of the sockets when she saw the name of the American actress asking if Alexa’s business Together could set her up with a companion when she visited London for business next week.

  She brought her phone back to the sofa and showed Jenna and Sarah. ‘Look at the new client I got!’

  Sarah grabbed the phone out of her hands and gawked at the screen. ‘Can I be the one you set her up with?’

  Jenna and Alexa rolled their eyes.

  ‘She wants a tour guide and a dining companion, not a crazed stalkery fan,’ Alexa teased.

  ‘I can’t believe she heard about your business in the States,’ Jenna said. ‘But we agreed, Alexa. No work on this holiday.’

  ‘I can’t lose a client, Jenna. It will only take half an hour to set things up. I have the perfect woman in mind.’ She didn’t mind setting clients up with the opposite sex, she based the service Together provided on common interests, but she didn’t think an A-lister would want to be seen with a mystery man. The press in London would be all over that like a rash.

  Sarah nodded. ‘Alexa, reply before she changes her mind.’

  Jenna grumbled something under her breath and guilt broke through Alexa’s excitement. But holiday or not, Together was her livelihood and big named clients would mean better publicity. With her reputation still shot to pieces and her refusal to touch her trust fund, she couldn’t let a client like this slip through her fingers.

  She scrolled through her contacts and found the number she needed. It was great business and a brilliant distraction from the whirlwind of hormones and irritation Ric had brought to the surface. Hitting dial, she ignored Jenna’s pout and brought the phone to her ear.

  The midday sunshine heated her skin like she was in a just-too-warm jacuzzi, but Alexa didn’t care. She had tan lines to get rid of and lying topless was the only way to do it, even if that meant being more wary of low-lying paparazzi.

  ‘I can’t believe you made us pick a spot this far away from the bar,’ Jenna grumbled as she returned with a tray of cocktails. ‘There are plenty of topless women next to the pool; you don’t need to hide away here.’

  Alexa opened her eyes to squint at Jenna. ‘Last thing I need is to be back in the papers, especially with the new client I’ve just scored.’

  Jenna laid the tray of multi-coloured cocktails down on the table between Alexa and Sarah’s sun loungers. Jenna then pulled a Spanish magazine from her bag and threw it at Alexa. She caught it, exposing herself to the sun again, so rolled onto her stomach.

  ‘Page three,’ Jenna said.

  Alexa opened the magazine to the page Jenna had pointed to, and her breath caught. ‘You’re kidding me.’

  The sneaky paparazzi had the cheek to snap a picture of her at Sarah’s hen party. Alexa was tipsy and in the process of getting out of a limo, with her knickers in full view. ‘Can’t they just leave me alone, I wasn’t even doing anything shocking. Two seconds later and they wouldn’t have seen a thing.’

  She wished she could read Spanish to see what the article said, but she wasn’t an idiot and could guess. Exaggerated rubbish, since she wasn’t as crazy as she had been in her teenage years.

  ‘What is it?’ Sarah asked.

  Alexa handed the magazine to Sarah, her blood heating with irritation. Jenna lowered onto her lounger with a pink cocktail. Alexa went for the tray, picked up the glass with the red contents, and drained half. The fruity liquid was cool and relaxed her a little. If she didn’t have Together to worry about, she wouldn’t care. But being caught with a goofy expression on her face and her knickers on show wasn’t exactly sending images of the professional business woman she wanted to be.

  ‘It isn’t as bad as the one where you fell out of that club,’ Sarah said, flicking through the pages, ‘it hasn’t made any of the gossip rags in the UK. The Spanish must be short on scandal.’

  ‘Let’s just forget about it, okay?’ Alexa was sick of being the wild-child. ‘We still have to plan Jenna’s dare.’

  Jenna groaned. ‘I’d rather talk about your date with the hunk.’

  Sarah dropped the magazine and turned on her side to face Alexa. ‘What’s his story, anyway? Didn’t he used to be reckless, a bit of an adrenaline-junkie?’

  ‘He was as far as I know.’ Alexa thought maybe the git would have cut her some slack, since he had hardly been a good little boy growing up.

  Jenna pulled out her iPhone and swept her fingers across the screen. A few minutes later, she grinned. ‘It’s so sexy to see a man jump out of a plane, and all these woman must think so too.’

  Alexa ground her teeth. She wasn’t going to ask, she wasn’t.

  Sarah piped in. ‘What women?’

  Jenna turned the phone around to show Google Image results for a search on Enrique Castillo. She didn’t want to look, really. But she couldn’t not. In all the tiny pictures, he was with a different woman, rarely pictured with one twice. She tried to tell herself the twisty feeling in her
stomach was disgust. After all, it definitely couldn’t be jealousy.

  She polished off the rest of her cocktail then lay down on the lounger, her hands covering up her sensitive bits from the rays of the sun. The twisting sensation in her tummy turned to an almost low burn, and her already warm skin flared hotter. Puffing out a breath, she tried to wipe the images Jenna showed her from her mind. She really didn’t care if Ric had dated, or even slept with all those women. After tonight, she’d never see him again if she could help it.

  Ric glanced at his watch again. Seven thirty. She should be here by now. He grabbed another glass from a passing waiter, then made his way through the throng of Spanish socialites to the exit.

  The car park was empty. Party already in full swing, all the guests had parked up or their chauffeurs had left. He glanced toward the road leading off the beach. Frustration set in as he saw the empty strip of tarmac before him.

  Running his free hand through his hair, he cursed under his breath. Today was a hell of a day for people letting him down. First his events organiser, Lydia, who had a family emergency, and now the unpredictable heiress.

  He turned back to the boathouse and took a long gulp of champagne. Boathouse was an understatement. The Castillo holiday home covered at least a quarter of an acre and had its own private stretch of beach. The house itself consisted of four levels, the ground floor specially kitted out as a ballroom to host parties for those who were somebody in the Costa Del Sol—or those, like himself, with a connection to the owners, a fat wallet and deep pockets.

  The sound of wheels crunching against the tarmac made him turn. His driver nodded at him from the front seat and Ric exhaled. She was here.

  Manuel exited the vehicle, rounded it and then pulled open the rear door. Ric heard every one of his heartbeats pounding in his ears as he visualised what Alexa would look like in a glamorous gown. He’d couldn’t help but notice her around his hotel. Scandal was something he wished to avoid if he could help it—even in his adrenaline-junkie days—and scandal seemed to follow her wherever she went. He’d worked hard to gain some respect in this society, and whether he deserved it or not, it wasn’t something he wanted to lose.