Stand-In Bride's Seduction

by Yvonne Lindsay

  “Sure, whatever time you need me.”

  “Eight-thirty will be early enough.” He stepped off the stairs and onto the narrow path, giving her the advantage of being taller than him for a change. “Are you sure you’ll be able to navigate your way back tomorrow morning? The roads will be chaotic.”

  She nodded. “I’m sure I’ll be fine, but if I get lost I’ll call you.”

  “Make sure you do. I don’t want to lose you, querida.”

  He couldn’t bring himself to call her Sara, not now he knew the truth about who she was.

  “You won’t,” she replied, her earlier strain audible in her voice once more. “Good night.”

  He lifted one finger to stroke her cheek before answering, “Sweet dreams.”

  He waited on the path until he heard the ancient door lock tumble closed, then returned to his car. Once safely buckled in, he opened up the engine and roared back toward the city. As the car ate up each kilometer back to Puerto Seguro, he acknowledged that the thrill of racing down the road was a poor substitute for the physical satisfaction his body still craved, and lowered his speed accordingly. But no matter how he controlled the power under the hood of the car, controlling his feelings for the woman he’d left behind was another matter. Lust, he told himself. It’s only lust. He wouldn’t, couldn’t, allow it to be anything more.

  Rina walked out of the elevator and toward the doors to Rey’s offices fighting the urge to turn tail and run all the way home. Last night had been one stupid decision after another and the lack of sleep she’d endured as she’d painstakingly pulled apart each minute of their time together had left her headachy and irritable today. Certainly not the best frame of mind to be beginning a new employment position, however temporary it would prove to be.

  As she entered the main office, the receptionist looked up from her desk and fixed her with a beaming smile. “Buenos dias, Miss Woodville. How are you this morning?”

  “I—I’m well, thank you. Should I go straight to Mr. del Castillo’s office?”

  “Yes, go through. Can I get you a coffee?”

  “Tea, actually. If it’s not too much bother. Just weak and black would be great.”

  “I’ll bring it shortly.”

  Rina smiled her thanks and carried on down the corridor that led to Rey’s office. She hesitated in his waiting area before lifting her hand to his office door and rapping softly before entering.

  He was standing by the window. Of all the places he could have been as she entered the room it had to be there. That exact spot. Fire flamed through her body as he turned and smiled in welcome. A slow smile that lifted one corner of his lips before the other, as if they shared something intimate and private between them and only them. And they did, she told herself. Just not what it could have been—and certainly not what her body, even now, demanded.

  “From the look of you, I’d say you had about as much sleep as I did,” he commented before crossing the room and kissing her cheek.

  “I had a lot on my mind last night,” she responded.

  He gave her a look that said, “I bet you did,” as clearly as if he enunciated the words aloud.

  “Have you heard how your PA is this morning?” Rina asked, mindful of why she was here in the first place.

  “Resting as comfortably as possible, and struggling with the loss of her baby. It will be some time before she is well enough to return to work.”

  “I’m so sorry to hear that. Losing a child must be devastating.”

  “Yes, I told her husband she is not to rush her recovery on our account. He is equally upset, of course.”

  Rey shrugged out of the jacket of the silver gray suit he wore and flung it across the back of the couch nearest him. The pale color of the suit agreed with his coloring, Rina decided, throwing the golden color of his skin into relief against the crisp white shirt he wore teamed with an even paler silver self-patterned tie. She dragged her gaze from him, from the faint hint of the expanse of his chest beneath the fine cotton of his shirt, and sank down into the other couch. Her legs felt weak and unsteady. She had to get this attraction under control.

  “So, your first day at work with us,” Rey continued. “I thought that rather than pin you down here in the office, we should head out to the vineyard this morning and let you get a feel for the whole setup, then we can lunch and tour the resort in the afternoon.”

  Tours, great, that meant other people. Someone to act as a buffer against the shimmer of sensual tension that continued to hang between them. She could barely contain her relief.

  “I’d love that. Thank you.”

  A knock at the door heralded the arrival of Rey’s receptionist, armed with a tray bearing Rina’s tea and a steaming mug of coffee for Rey.

  “Thank you, Vivienne,” Rey said as she placed the tray on the low table between the leather couches by the window.

  “No problem, Mr. del Castillo, and I’ve rescheduled your appointments for today and let the vineyard manager know you’ll be there by ten-thirty. I’ve also booked your lunch at the resort for two o’clock. I hope that’s not too late?”

  “No, that will be fine. By the time we’ve toured the vineyard and discussed matters there, that’ll work out. Thank you.”

  “Is there anything else you need?”

  “No, thank you, Vivienne.”

  Vivienne closed the door behind her, leaving them cocooned in Rey’s office. Rina busied herself, reaching for her tea and taking a sip. The cup clattered as she set it back on the saucer, betraying her nerves.

  Rey gave her a sharp look. “Still scared of me?” he asked, raising one dark brow.

  “More scared of how I feel around you, to tell you the truth.”

  “Well,” he said, an expression of surprise flashing across his features. “Thank you for your honesty, I think.”

  He reached for his coffee mug and took a long swallow of the fragrant brew. Rina was mesmerized, watching the grace of the muscles working in his throat, the faint trace of moisture left on his lips, even the ripple of strength as he leaned forward and put down the mug.

  “I meant what I said last night. I overstepped our boundaries and I shouldn’t have.”

  Rina decided since she’d already been honest about how she felt, she may as well continue. “You didn’t do anything to me that I didn’t want at the time. But just so we’re clear, I’m not ready to explore this any further right now. I know we’re—” she hesitated a second “—engaged and for most couples it would be normal for our relationship to be…” She waved her hand, not willing to verbalize the images that filled her mind when she let her guard down. “Anyway, I think we should just keep taking it one day at a time. Yes?”

  Rey held her gaze as he slowly inclined his head. “I do not wish to do anything to jeopardize our engagement. One day at a time sounds sensible.”

  “Good.” She smiled, relief breaking through her. “So tell me a bit about the vineyard. How old is it, what level of production, do you export, hold tastings?”

  He laughed and raised a hand. “One question at a time, please. I thought you said you were good for ideas and typing, but you’re sounding like a professional.”

  Ice trickled down Rina’s spine. She’d overplayed her hand. Just like that, she’d gone and done again the very thing she was trying so hard to avoid. She had to be more careful.

  “Maybe a bit more of my sister rubbed off on me than I thought,” she replied ruefully, hoping he’d accept her response.

  “Okay, it’s probably better if I give you the rundown on the way. Finish your tea and we can be off.”

  By the time Rina drove herself home to the cottage that night she was both physically exhausted and mentally exhilarated. It had been difficult holding back the knowledge and thought processes that were second nature to her, but she’d done it. Now her mind was bursting at the seams with ideas and concepts to help lift the del Castillo resort profile and to promote the vineyard, and the very fine wines they had begun to
produce overseas.

  Once inside the cottage bedroom, she switched the tones back on for her phone, and dropped it into her bag before quickly changing out of the clothes she’d worn to the office and into a pair of shorts and a tank top. While traveling in the air-conditioned splendor of Rey’s car, or during the time at the resort, the temperatures had been bearable but entering the sunbathed cottage after it had been closed up all day was like stepping into a sauna.

  She pushed open as many windows as she could, to let the air flow through, and made her way out the back of the cottage where a deep shaded porch looked toward the cliffs. From here, she could hear the sea. Its sound was soothing after the busy day she’d had. On her way through the cottage she’d stopped to pour herself a glass of the Tempranillo wine the vineyard manager had pressed upon her. It was the wine that had stood out the most for her during the tasting session she’d enjoyed and she was anxious to start making notes on the ideas that swam about in her head for raising the vineyard’s profile.

  A light sea breeze teased the pages of her notebook as she scrawled her thoughts onto the paper. Eventually, her mind ran dry and she put down her pen, reached for her wine and sat back in the wicker armchair to enjoy the moment. Bit by bit, she could feel herself relax.

  The vista from this back porch was amazing. Not too far away, she could see the beautiful castillo where Rey and his brothers had been raised. She’d yet to see inside it but if the exterior was any example, she was sure the interior was a masterpiece of old meets new. Had the governess walked the distance between the small castle and her humble cottage that fateful day that she cast the curse? Rina wondered. Had it been a glorious sunshiny day like this one, filled with light and hope and promise? Or had it been dreary and dismal, the castillo the only golden beacon on what must be a forlorn landscape in the depths of winter?

  Thinking about the governess and the legend spurred off another string of ideas and Rina put down her glass and lifted her pen, losing herself in the moment. A sound in the distance stirred her from her activities. With a sense of shock she realized it was her BlackBerry—the ringtone the one she’d allocated to Sara. She’d gotten so absorbed in her day and her ideas that she completely lost track of the whole reason why she was here.

  She dashed from the chair and ran inside to the bedroom, shaking her handbag upside down until the phone fell onto the bed. Quickly, she hit the talk button.

  “Hello? Sara? Please tell me it’s you.”

  Laughter, so like her own, filled her ear.

  “Hey, Reeny-bean. How’s it going? Are you keeping everything under control?”

  It was so good to hear her voice, but Rina couldn’t stop to think about that. Instead her mind flooded with questions that demanded to be answered.

  “When are you coming back?”

  Silence greeted her.

  “Sara?” she prompted, and was rewarded with the sound of her sister’s sigh.

  “It’s difficult, Rina. Things aren’t going quite like I thought they would. I can’t come back yet. Everything’s still up in the air.”

  “What’s up in the air?” Rina’s disappointment at her sister’s words, and the sense of helplessness that engendered, pierced her voice. “You have to tell me something. I’m going crazy here. What you’ve asked me to do—it isn’t fair to me and it certainly isn’t fair to Rey.”

  “Oh, Rey, he’ll be fine. He’s a player, he knows the score.”

  “That’s not the point, Sara. I’m living a lie, for you. I don’t know how much longer I can do this.”

  “Please don’t say anything yet. Promise me, Rina? I will owe you forever for this, and I’ll tell you everything as soon as I can. You know me. I don’t want to say something too soon to jinx this and have it all blow up in my face.”

  Blow up in Sara’s face? Rina thought, with an exasperated sigh. What about the very real possibility of it blowing up in Rina’s?

  “And when do you plan on telling me? I mean it, Sara, I can’t keep this up. I’m terrified I’m going to let something slip, especially now I’m working with him.”

  “You’re what?” Sara’s disbelief echoed down the phone line.

  “You heard me.” She explained about Rey’s PA and the pressure he was under with his brother still recuperating in hospital, as well. “I offered to help. I had to. You know me.”

  Sara whistled, long and low. “Wow, so how am I doing in an office environment?” she asked.

  “That’s not funny, and you know it. When are you coming back?”

  “I…I don’t know. Maybe a week?” Sara hedged.

  “Are you okay? You’re not in any trouble or anything, are you? Maybe I should come to you.”

  “No! You can’t do that. There’s nothing you can do for me here. I need you right where you are. I’ll make it up to you, Reeny-bean. Truly, I will,” her twin implored.

  Rina gripped her phone tightly in her hand and counted slowly to ten. “That’s it, then. A week. After that, I’m telling him the truth.”

  “I’ll tell him the truth myself—I promise, I will—as soon as I get back.”

  “A week, Sara. That’s my absolute limit.”

  “I know. I gotta go. Love you, Rina, and thank you. You’re saving my life.”

  “That’s what I’m worried about. Is it really that serious?”

  “I’m just kidding. Everything’s fine. Like I said, I’ll tell you all when I come back. Now I gotta go.”

  Sara blew kisses down the phone then disconnected the call, leaving Rina standing in the bedroom, phone still to her ear, and filled with a frustration that brought tears stinging into her eyes. She’d really thought talking to Sara would make her feel better about the decision she’d made to continue with the farcical sister swap. Instead, she felt even more confused.

  Did Sara even love Rey?

  How had she referred to him? A player who knew the score? What score? And who referred to the man they had promised to marry as a player, anyway?

  Rina threw her phone down onto the bed and went outside to retrieve her glass of wine and her notes. At least now, she had a finite time to look forward to—a date when all this would be over and she could go back to being Sarina Woodville again.

  But what of Reynard and her feelings for him? What of Sara and whatever decision she was about to make? Could Rina really stay here and watch her sister pick up where she left off with Rey? The answer resounding in her head was an emphatic no, so where would that leave her?

  And how could she tell Sara that she’d fallen in love with her fiancé?

  Even as the truth of her words echoed in her mind, Rina tried desperately to refute them. She couldn’t be in love. It didn’t happen that fast. She’d only been on the island just over two weeks. Granted, she’d spent a great deal of that time with Reynard, but she couldn’t love him, could she? She’d spent years with Jacob—slowly building a relationship, setting plans in place for their future. Even as she grasped at those straws, she knew that what she’d shared with her ex was nothing like the inferno that burned between her and Rey.

  She tried to call upon the logic that usually dictated her life, but reason had deserted her as effectively as her sister. All she could think about was the way she felt every time she saw him. Every time they touched.

  She knew she wanted more. She wanted it all. And she knew she could never sit back as an uncommitted bystander and watch her twin marry the man that set her on fire with only a glance.

  Rina slugged back a generous mouthful of wine, relished the sensation of it sliding over her tongue and down her throat, before pouring herself some more. She needed oblivion—something, anything, to erase Reynard del Castillo from her mind and from her heart. Even if it was only temporary, she needed the respite from a truth she didn’t dare acknowledge.

  Eleven

  Rey tried to ignore the scent of Sarina’s hair and the way it spiraled wildly over her shoulder, touching his shirt as he leaned forward to read what she was expla
ining. He couldn’t believe they’d been working together for an entire week now. An entire week without touching her beyond a light kiss on the cheek, morning and evening, as she arrived and left the office.

  It had proven more difficult than he’d anticipated, keeping his hands off her delectable body, especially now that he knew how responsive she could be. He’d spent the past several days in an uncomfortable state of semi-arousal which had left him irritable and short with all his staff. It was soon obvious they blamed Sarina for the change in his usually easygoing mood, and he’d noticed a certain coolness among some of the staff in the way she was treated by them.

  Under normal circumstances he’d have put a stop to it, without question, but these were anything but normal circumstances.

  She continued to carry off the pretense of being her sister quite well, he thought, even going so far as to say she’d discussed some aspects of the new campaign with her by phone before presenting them to him earlier in the week. He couldn’t mistake her acumen for Sara’s, however. Not that Sara was unintelligent—she was completely the opposite—but there was an attention to finer detail that was imminently apparent in Sarina’s observations and suggestions that her sister lacked.

  He forced himself to tune back into what she was saying.

  “So you see, if we introduce the tapas bar to the pool area of the resort, that will keep guests on the grounds, rather than seeing them travel out farther to find light meals, but it won’t affect the bistro and à la carte restaurants in any way. It’ll also appeal to your younger crowd and I think you need to look at pitching inclusive packages to the twenty-five to thirty-five age group. They have disposable income, they’re more likely to be involved in holidays for comfort and leisure’s sake than extended overseas trip like the, say, eighteen to twenty-fives. Plus, it’ll bring a younger dynamic to the resort and perhaps even encourage them to come back in future years on family packages.”

  “It sounds good in principle. Let’s see what the rest of the family says when we go to the castillo for dinner tonight. You can present your ideas for the vineyard and winery, too.”