Rebecca slipped her robe off and tossed it onto a chaise. A second later, her camisole and panties followed and she hurried down the steps before she could change her mind. She needed a distraction from her chaotic thoughts. Cool water on her naked body would definitely take her mind off Alejandro. Goosebumps rose on her skin the lower she sank into the water. Though the air was warm, the pool was slightly cooler than she’d expected after dipping her toe in. She almost turned around and went back, but she forged on until she could sink onto the lowest step.
Water lapped at her nipples and she sucked in her breath as they budded tight. It’d been so long since anyone had touched them. She ran her hands up her torso, her heart thudding, and softly pinched the peaks of her nipples between her thumbs and forefingers. Muted lightning streaked through her body at the contact. Perhaps she should go back to bed and take care of her own needs. A good orgasm would definitely help her face Alejandro again. Maybe then his dark good looks wouldn’t affect her as much.
A sound from the direction of the arbor sent her heart into her throat. She craned her neck, her heart shooting into overdrive. Did Madrid have wild animals inside the city limits? Did burglars dare to rob someone as wealthy and powerful as Alejandro?
Had someone seen her touching herself?
She should run into the house, but she was frozen in place. Besides, what if it was nothing? She strained to hear any odd noises against the backdrop of ordinary night sounds, but the blood was so loud in her ears she couldn’t separate any single sound from the others.
Until something scraped.
“Who’s there?” she asked, and immediately felt ridiculous. An animal wouldn’t answer and neither would an intruder.
She stared hard at the arbor, her heart skipping a beat as a shape unfolded itself from the darkness, growing bigger as the light caressed its shadow. A lifetime later it resolved into the shape of a man.
A tall man with dark hair and the body of a god, dressed in jeans and a dark T-shirt. Her heart went out to him, and her body flamed with embarrassment at the knowledge of what she’d been doing. Had he seen?
“You are enjoying yourself, no?”
Rebecca pulled her knees to her chin, trying to make herself smaller. “You scared me half to death, Alejandro. How long have you been there?”
“Long enough.”
“You could have announced yourself.”
And maybe saved her the embarrassment sizzling through her since she’d have never disrobed if she’d known he was there. It didn’t matter he’d seen her naked in the past, that he’d probably kissed every inch of her skin and shown her things no man ever had. He’d no doubt watched her the whole time she’d stripped. Then he’d watched her fondling her breasts. If she could melt into the tiles and disappear, she would.
“I’d like you to go,” she said with as much dignity as she could muster. Please, please go.
His smirk told her he would do nothing of the sort. He settled into a chair, crossing one leg casually. An arm draped over the side, fingers rubbing back and forth against the chair’s edge. “Why would I want to leave, Señorita Layton? It is my house, is it not? And I was here first.”
Oh, God. He had seen.
“Then I’ll leave. Would you hand me my robe, please?”
“No.”
Frustration hummed inside her. “Alejandro, please. What is the point in this?”
His eyes narrowed. “Are you uncomfortable?”
“I think you know the answer.”
“Then perhaps that is the point.”
Rebecca swallowed. “I’m sorry I looked at the photos. I didn’t know it would upset you.”
He made a rough noise. “You may apologize, but this does not explain why you thought it acceptable to go through my things in the first place. Looking for information you could use against me, Rebecca? Something you could sell to the press, perhaps? I assure you that you will not find anything.”
“What? No!” She hugged herself tighter. It was disconcerting to argue with him while she sat on the pool steps without a stitch of clothing. He lounged in the chair so casually, like there weren’t oceans of pain between them. She had a sudden urge to be completely truthful with him, to try and bridge the gap somehow. “I want a chance to redeem Layton International. If you would let me repurchase the stock, I’d be grateful. I’m not trying to hurt your business. I only want my company back.”
He didn’t say anything for a long moment. “How grateful?”
She couldn’t tell by his tone how he meant the question. Was he baiting her? Making fun of her? Heat prickled her nerve endings. “Um, well, I think we could work out some profit sharing. Perhaps even a partnership or two?”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he got to his feet, tugged at the waist of his T-shirt with one hand. A moment later, it fell to the tile deck. Rebecca’s pulse skipped. “What are you doing?”
“Considering your proposal.” He unsnapped his jeans, shrugged them down his lean hips in a graceful movement that had her blood pounding in her ears. When he stood at the edge of the pool in nothing but his briefs, Rebecca had to remind herself to breathe. Her mouth went dry at the sight of all that hard muscle and tan skin.
Dear heaven, she’d often remembered, at the most inopportune moments, what his body felt like pressed to hers, how his cock moved inside her. The sensual drag of his erection as he slid out and in, faster and faster, making her moan.
She’d called her ex-boyfriend Alejandro once during sex. No wonder she’d been alone for the past year and a half. What man wanted to be compared to a ghost from the past?
“Wh-what proposal? What are you talking about?” And why did her head feel as if it were stuffed with cotton?
“How grateful would you be, querida?”
She cast her mind back over the conversation, tried to piece together what, exactly, he meant. And then her brain shut down and her jaw slipped open as the last of Alejandro’s clothing fell away.
Alejandro swam toward her, idly wondering if she would shoot up the steps and into the house. If she did, then perhaps she wasn’t as calculating as he thought. Perhaps she hadn’t really known he was beneath the arbor, watching her.
He half hoped she would run. It’d be nice to think she wasn’t trying to use him this once, especially when his memories were so raw. After she’d left him in his office, he went for a walk on the grounds. Then he sat under the arbor and hoped his mind would quiet. It hadn’t.
When she’d appeared, stealing through the night like a wraith, he’d watched her curiously. And then she’d dropped her clothes like the calculating female she was.
Like it or not, her strip tease had made him harder than the stone beneath his feet. Which was no doubt her intention. She’d played at asking him to leave, but he hadn’t bought her act. The truth emerged when she said she’d be grateful if he would sell her Layton International.
It was all a game to her. A chessboard where she would do whatever she had to do to regain her precious company.
She didn’t move as he stopped in front of her. He was both disappointed and pleased. He hadn’t intended to touch her ever again, but that was before he’d watched her strip down and caress herself.
Madre de Dios, he wanted to bury himself inside her right this moment. Would she be as hot and tight as he remembered? As perfectly fitted to him?
He gritted his teeth. He would not give in to his body’s demands. He would, however, prove to them both that she was nothing more than a mercenary bitch who would do anything to get what she wanted.
“What are you doing?” she asked, still clasping her knees, her eyes wide. He didn’t miss how her gaze dropped and then shot back to his face. Little Miss Innocent.
The water caressed his hipbones, the evidence of her effect on him hidden beneath the surface of the pool. If she stood, she would see he was more than ready for her.
“I am giving you a chance to show your gratitude.”
“You haven’t given
me anything to be grateful for,” she shot back, her façade cracking.
“What would you like, Rebecca? La Belle Amelie?”
Her head dipped as she turned her gaze from him. Calculating, no doubt. “I won’t sleep with you for a hotel.”
“What if that is my price?” He knew she would break. She was simply trying to get more out of him first.
Blue eyes gleamed as she met his cool stare. He’d wanted to drown in those eyes once.
“You’re saying you will give me my hotel if I let you make love to me?”
Alejandro chuckled. So predictable. “What I wish to do to you right now has nothing to do with love.”
She blinked, her jaw tightening. “How do I know you mean it, Alejandro? How do I know this isn’t part of your game?”
“So you will accept if I’m serious?”
She looked away again. “I didn’t say that.”
He reached for her hand. The contact of skin on skin sizzled into his brain, made his dick leap in anticipation. She did not resist when he twined his fingers with hers and pulled her toward him.
Of course she didn’t. It disappointed him and excited him at the same time.
He took her into deeper water, never looking back at her. When he stopped and turned, the crests of her nipples were just below the surface.
She chewed her bottom lip, watching him warily.
“I will give you your hotel, Rebecca. You need only give me your body. Surely this is a fair trade?”
A moment later, her chin tilted up. Ah, so the imperious heiress had arrived at last.
“I want it all. I want a chance to buy back my stock.”
Anger simmered deep inside though he smiled to cover it. He’d known she was playing him, hadn’t he? Rebecca Layton was as deceitful as she was beautiful. It annoyed him that he wanted her anyway. “I will consider it,” he said coolly.
She took a deep breath. He had her now. She would not pass up the opportunity. If he’d said yes, promised to give her what she wanted in exchange for fucking her, she would know he was lying. But if he offered to consider it, she would believe he could still be persuaded. And she would turn all her considerable charms toward convincing him.
He waited almost eagerly for her next move. Would she pout? Or would she turn sensual and pliable, melting into his arms and wrapping her pretty body around his? And if she did that, would he let her?
His dick twitched in response. Sí, he would allow it. He wasn’t an idiot, after all.
“I’m leaving,” she said suddenly, pushing his hand away and launching herself toward the closest ladder.
He watched her go, surprised at her reaction. This was not at all what he’d expected. Then he laughed to himself.
That was the point, was it not? Rebecca wasn’t done playing games. Well, neither was he.
9
Rebecca swam for the ladder. What was she thinking, telling him she wanted everything if she gave in to his demands? She had absolutely no intention of screwing him for a hotel, or company stock, or anything else. She would not be brought down to his level. He believed her to be mercenary. Though a rebellious part of her wanted very much to be in his arms again, she would not give in to the temptation. Every nasty thing he’d ever thought about her would be justified in his mind if she did.
She reached for the ladder, put her foot on the first rung. Strong arms twined around her torso. She squeaked as he pulled her against his body.
His aroused body.
The hard length of his cock was hot against her backside. In fact, every last inch of his skin seared her as he held her close. His fingers snaked across her belly, sensual and smooth. His other hand slid up to cup her breast, testing the weight of it in his palm.
She should push him away and yet she shivered with longing.
“I will give you the hotel, Rebecca. I will consider the rest, though perhaps we will need a repeat performance or two to persuade me.”
His breath was hot in her ear, teasing her, tempting her with remembered bliss. It wasn’t fair to want this man so much in spite of all he’d done. It wasn’t fair that he made her turn to mush the instant he touched her.
He only wanted her because she was here, because she was female, and because he knew she was vulnerable to his charms. She’d proven that when she’d let him lead her into the pool. If she’d truly wanted to get away, she would have gone into the house the instant he entered the water.
She was an idiot, a lonely needy girl who still wanted to be loved by someone in her life. Was it asking too much to want what so many other people had?
What Alejandro had once had with his wife and baby girl?
But no, it was an illusion. Everything with him was an illusion, and she wouldn’t allow herself to believe it ever again.
But he’s hurting, Becca. He lost a precious child and he’s so very different because of it. He needs you.
She gritted her teeth against the onslaught. No.
“I can’t do it,” she said, as much to convince herself as him. “I don’t want to.”
It was a lie, though she prayed he wouldn’t hear it in her voice.
Alejandro turned her in his arms, pressed her against the side of the pool. The water was over her head and she had no choice but to cling to him. His dark head dipped down, his lips ghosting over her cheek, touching the shell of her ear.
“You want me, querida. You cannot deny this.”
“I don’t,” she said desperately.
“Not even for your precious hotel?”
She started to shake her head, realized her mistake when her mouth grazed his jaw. He turned, his lips capturing hers. She moaned—but was it protest or acquiescence? Her head fell back and her mouth opened beneath his. Whatever the reason, he took advantage of the lapse to tangle his tongue with hers. Wild, hot, sucking—their mouths devoured each other. Flame licked up her belly, blossomed between her thighs.
How could she possibly want this man after all he’d done?
But his loneliness called out to the loneliness inside her, tempted her in spite of her best intentions.
His hands slid down her buttocks, over her thighs, lifted them until she wrapped her legs around his waist, the hard length of him pressing against her center. Her body remembered all too well how wonderful sex had been between them. He’d left his impression on every nerve, every cell. Five years had not been enough to erase it.
Even as she shuddered, part of her brain remained lucid, sent the message to drop her legs, to end this before it went too far. He lifted them again, urging her to open to him. He gave her no chance to refuse as his thumb glided between her thighs, found the hot, wet center of her.
Rebecca gasped. It’d been so long…
Alejandro pulled back, gazed down at her with an expression that contained both surprise and confusion, as if he too were a little rattled by how quickly the situation was spiraling out of control.
“You are so hot for me. Like a flash fire. I want to burn myself in you.”
Something inside her was breaking. Breaking all her control and shattering her best intentions. She had to find her balance, had to resist the siren pull of him on her soul and her body before it was too late.
Panic set in, demanded she slow this thing between them before she was completely lost, before she gave in and did exactly what she knew she shouldn’t do.
Before she lost herself.
She blurted the first thing that came to mind. “La Belle Amelie.”
Alejandro’s expression froze. A second later, his smile turned cold. “Yes, of course. Ask me about your hotel.”
He didn’t stop touching her, didn’t give her a chance to react before he slipped a finger inside her, stroked her hot, wet walls. Sensation spun her higher, rocketed her toward the peak.
But Alejandro’s heart was no longer in it. She could see the disconnect in his expression. Icy anger had been replaced by cool neutrality. He was completely unaffected while she was close to a meltdown
.
Why had she mentioned the hotel? Stupid, stupid, stupid.
“Stop,” she said, fighting her body’s reaction. Fighting him.
“Are you certain?” His thumb moved faster against her sensitive flesh, sent pleasure spiking.
“Yes, stop,” she gasped.
Too late. A wave of sensation crashed over her neglected senses, hurtling her into forgotten pleasure. Her body left her brain behind as she quivered and moaned in his arms.
Alejandro didn’t stop touching her, kept the pleasure spiking and cresting. His mouth touched hers. Softly, sweetly, completely at odds with the look he’d given her when she’d mentioned the hotel.
“Alejandro,” she gasped when he nuzzled her ear, whispering something in Spanish. She had to explain, had to make him understand. “About the hotel—”
She felt him stiffen.
“Sí, the hotel,” he said, pushing away from her suddenly. Water dripped from his tanned skin, glistened over the molded perfection of his lips. Every line of his face was set in a hard angle as he glared at her. “Would you care to ask me for something else before you allow me into your body? Name your price, Rebecca, for surely I am desperate for you and will give you anything you wish.”
Ice dripped from his words, freezing the languid warmth swimming in her veins. “That’s not what I meant—”
“No, of course not. You meant to ask for more. How often have you lain on your back to get what you want from a man, I wonder?”
Rebecca shoved at his chest, forcing him to let her go. She gripped the ladder to keep from sliding beneath the surface. Her body still tingled from his touch, and yet she’d never felt colder and more alone in her life.
“How can you be so cruel?” she demanded. “I’m not a cheap whore—”
“No, you are actually quite expensive—”
“Stop interrupting me, dammit!” she shouted, uncaring who might hear or come running to see what was going on. “You push and push, Alejandro, and you have no idea what you’re talking about.” She sucked in a breath to stop her angry tears, and then rushed on. “You’re a cruel bitter man that no woman could ever love for very long! It’s no wonder your wife left you after Anya died—”
Filthy Rich Revenge: A Filthy Rich Billionaires Book Page 6