Luis Osorio wants two things:
Cristina’s truth—and her body!
Life has taught billionaire Luis that everyone has an ulterior motive. When the beautiful stranger he spent one scorching night with reveals herself as his famous family’s new photographer, alarm bells start ringing! He whisks Cristina away to his island fortress, determined to isolate her and uncover the truth—only to realize he’s rekindled a desire from which there is no escape!
LOUISE FULLER was a tomboy who hated pink and always wanted to be the Prince—not the Princess! Now she enjoys creating heroines who aren’t pretty pushovers but are strong, believable women. Before writing for Mills & Boon she studied literature and philosophy at university, and then worked as a reporter on her local newspaper. She lives in Tunbridge Wells with her impossibly handsome husband, Patrick, and their six children.
Also by Louise Fuller
Vows Made in Secret
A Deal Sealed by Passion
Claiming His Wedding Night
Blackmailed Down the Aisle
Kidnapped for the Tycoon’s Baby
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk.
Surrender to the Ruthless Billionaire
Louise Fuller
www.millsandboon.co.uk
ISBN: 978-1-474-07208-3
SURRENDER TO THE RUTHLESS BILLIONAIRE
© 2018 Louise Fuller
Published in Great Britain 2018
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.
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www.millsandboon.co.uk
To Millie. For always smiling. Even when I’m really annoying. And for making me laugh. Love you lots.
And to Nic. For reading, rereading, reassuring me and generally being the best editor. Thank you.
Contents
Cover
Back Cover Text
About the Author
Booklist
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
Extract
About the Publisher
CHAPTER ONE
DOWNSHIFTING THROUGH THE GEARS, Luis Osorio slowed his vintage Ducati motorbike to a standstill and let the engine idle in neutral. As he gazed down the hill at the city illuminated in the late afternoon sunlight his heart did a paso doble inside his chest.
Segovia. Finally he was home.
He had deliberately left the motorway some twenty minutes earlier in order to enjoy this moment—a moment of private communion with the city of his childhood.
A city he loved.
A city he’d shunned for five years.
Five years that had felt like a life sentence.
Although really he’d got off lightly…
His breath caught in his chest and he felt a twisting rush of guilt that made his hands tighten painfully around the handlebar grips.
It was the same guilt that had almost stopped him from coming home. But this time he’d had no choice. His mother’s sixtieth birthday was a celebration he couldn’t miss, whatever the consequences to himself, and so he’d reluctantly agreed to fly in the morning before her party then catch a flight back to California at the weekend.
Her actual birthday was just over a week later, and he knew that his parents had been hoping he would stay. He’d wanted to, and he would have done so only—
Only that would mean forgetting the past and trying to celebrate a present none of them had ever imagined, much less wanted. There was no way he could face that. Nor could he imagine being able to keep his emotions locked down for longer than a couple of days.
It would be better—easier and less painful—to go to the party, so that was what he’d agreed with his parents.
His jaw tightened. He knew they were disappointed but he could live with that. His mouth thinned. In fact he welcomed their disappointment, for he deserved it more than they knew.
But then without telling them he’d changed his mind and instead he’d flown to Athens a month earlier than planned, bought this bike and taken the road trip across Europe that he and his brother, Bas, had promised to do together.
It was the best, the only way he could think to honour Bas’s memory.
His head swam and he felt the same surge of guilt and loneliness that came whenever he thought about his brother. Bas—Baltasar—his best friend as well as his brother. And now he was gone.
On the flight over he’d told himself that it was the right time to come back, that five years of self-imposed exile would be long enough. Only now that he was here he knew that he’d been kidding himself. That nothing—no words, no gestures—could atone for what he’d done.
But he couldn’t just sit there, trapped in the endless maze of his thoughts. Soon enough he was going to have to face his past—but not yet. First he wanted just one last night—not of freedom but of fantasy. A chance to cheat time…to forget who he was and what he’d done.
He breathed out slowly, listening to his heartbeat, and then, twisting the throttle, he leaned forward, feeling the bike move beneath him as he accelerated down the road.
After the wide emptiness of the motorway the city streets seemed narrow and busy. Braking gently to avoid an elderly couple crossing the road, Luis glanced up at the five-star Palacio Alfonso VI hotel. It was tempting to book a room there. Despite his dishevelled appearance, he had no doubt that the roll of banknotes in his back pocket would ensure a warm welcome.
But right now he needed more than a generous-sized bed and a power shower. He wanted anonymity. And he wouldn’t get that in a hotel like the Alfonso VI.
Scooting down the side streets, he found what he was looking for twenty minutes later. This hotel only had two stars, and it was not central. But it was clean and unobtrusive, and the dueño was a keen biker himself. Not only did he have a lock-up for the bike, he offered to pressure-wash it too.
; Two hours later, having showered and changed into his cleanest pair of jeans and a plain black T-shirt, Luis walked back out onto the street. The dueño had obviously kept his promise—aside from a couple of scratches to the metalwork, his bike looked just as it had when it had left the showroom and, climbing on, he set off towards the city centre.
It was warm enough for him not to need his battered leather jacket, but over the last few days he’d grown comfortable wearing it—he particularly liked the way it seemed to discourage anyone from trying to make conversation.
Although, remembering his reflection in the hotel bathroom’s small mirror, it seemed unlikely that would be a problem anyway. The dark, rough stubble shadowing his jaw and the coolness in his equally dark grey eyes would probably deter all but the most persistent or thick-skinned of people from talking to him.
Outside, the light was starting to fade as he made his way through the crowds spilling off the pavements. He had no real idea of where he was going, and yet for once he didn’t care. He was happy to drift through the streets for it felt so familiar—the warm night, the buzz of chatter and laughter, the smell of oranges and exhaust fumes.
It was as though the last five years had never happened. If he closed his eyes he could almost imagine that Bas was there beside him, that at any moment he would slap him round the shoulder and tell him to lighten up, because tonight was the night he would meet the woman of his dreams.
Lost in thought, he stared dazedly across the square.
As a child, the four years between them had felt vast. Then his big brother had been so much taller than him, handsome, sporty. The coolest person on the planet, in fact. Of course he’d got older and grown taller himself, until finally they were the same height. But in his head nothing had changed. Bas had always been his big brother, always at the centre of everything, his dark eyes pinballing across the room to whatever beautiful girl had caught his attention.
Whatever beautiful girl had caught his attention…
The words were still echoing inside his head as he sidestepped carefully through the groups of people pacing the pavements like glossy thoroughbreds in a paddock when from nowhere his gaze collided with a pair of soft brown eyes the colour of dulce de leche.
For a fraction of a second heat—unexpected and all-consuming—burned his skin. He registered traffic-stopping red hair, a husky laugh and long golden limbs. And then, just like that, she was gone, swallowed into the crowd funnelling through the doorway into a nightclub.
He stared after her, motionless, another ripple of heat that had nothing to do with the air temperature thrumming across his skin. And then moving swiftly, he did something he’d never done before. He followed her.
Inside, the club was exactly the kind of place he loathed and normally avoided. Hot, loud and crowded, with a dress code and a VIP area. The men were sleek and groomed, the women doubly so.
But he spotted her as soon as he stepped through the door.
How could he not?
Even without the warning beacons of that striking auburn hair and those matching crimson lips, the young men congregating around her like a pack of hungry coyotes made her impossible to miss.
He gritted his teeth. It was easy to see the attraction.
Her feminine curves promised the kind of pleasure that men would fight for with their fists, and she was beautiful and confident in her charms in a way that reminded him painfully of his brother. But that was where the similarity ended, for Bas had never sought the attention he’d received, whereas this woman was deliberately using her beauty and her body to seduce.
His groin tightened as his eyes swept over her.
Okay, maybe that wasn’t completely fair.
Her bright yellow top covered her arms and breasts, and her shorts were actually modest in comparison to those worn by most of the women in the club. But they still revealed an inordinate amount of long golden legs—legs that ended in some of the highest heels he’d even seen. And in fact, now that he was closer, he could see that her top was actually transparent!
His face hardened. Basically, she was sexy and she knew it.
So not his type at all—and yet he had followed her.
Still not entirely sure why he had done that, but somehow reluctant to leave, Luis shrugged off his jacket and pushed his way to the front of the bar.
‘Una sin.’
At least that was something that had changed for the better in the five years since he’d been away. Alcohol-free beer was widely available now, and an acceptable substitute for the real thing.
Not that it would have made any difference if it hadn’t been. He would drink dishwater rather than break his vow. Never again would he risk that loss of control that had ripped his world apart.
Staring straight ahead, he lifted the glass to his lips. He had deliberately chosen to sit with his back to the red-haired woman, and she should have been out of sight and out of mind. But, despite not actually being able to see her, he could still sense her every move. Could picture her hand reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ear, almost hear that soft, sexy laugh that hinted not just at fun and flirtation but at a fantasy come true.
Annoyed with the direction of his thoughts, but unable to stop himself, he looked up at the mirror above the bar, his eyes fixing on her reflection. Instantly he regretted his lack of self-control, for she was laughing at something one of the men was saying, her hand brushing against his arm as she leaned in closer to him.
Luis scowled. No doubt he was her boyfriend—for now. The rest were just watching and waiting. Or maybe she was watching and waiting to see which of the men in the room were prepared to make a move.
His eyes narrowed and he felt a swirling anger mingle with his desire as he realised that he himself was included in that demographic.
Why, then, did he find her so damn desirable?
It didn’t make any sense that someone like him would be attracted to someone like her—especially not now. Tonight of all nights he needed to stay detached. Yet, like a bull mesmerised by that flash of red, he could feel himself being drawn to her.
He ran his hand wearily over his face. It must be tiredness…or the heat.
Right, he mocked himself. Or maybe, like every other man within a five-mile radius, he wanted what she was offering.
Glancing over his shoulder at the group of men, he felt his chest tighten. Even from here he could feel their longing, spilling into the dark club.
Like it or not, he was no different.
His heartbeat slowed. Except that he was.
Sure, he’d had girlfriends. No one special, though. And nor was there likely to be any time soon, for more than anything he needed to be certain—and certainty was not a part of the dating equation. Chasing women was definitely not his thing either. It was Bas who had loved the thrill of the chase.
His hand tightened involuntarily around the glass.
The thrill of the chase—even just thinking the words made him feel slightly sick and, tilting his glass, he gazed down at the swirling contents and tried to distract himself from the guilt and remorse building inside his chest.
It didn’t work. And suddenly he knew that it was time to leave. That his little adventure was over.
Keeping his eyes low, he breathed out softly, then still clutching his glass, he turned and—
The glass slammed against his chest, beer slopping down his T-shirt.
He heard a soft cry of surprise, and then the reflexes honed by years of riding motorbikes kicked in. Reaching out, he grabbed the arm flailing in front of him just as his startled brain realised that it was her—the red-haired woman.
*
Cristina Shephard gasped.
One moment she’d been taking a selfie on her phone—the next she was falling forward. Her one conscious thought was, I knew I shouldn’t have worn these heels, and then suddenly, out of nowhere, she was being pulled upright, strong hands curving around her wrist and waist.
She breathed out in a rush a
s those same hands spun her round. ‘Sorry…’
Why was she apologising? she thought dazedly, almost forgetting to breathe. He’d walked into her. But she knew why, and as her fingers curled into warm, hard muscle she gazed up at the man in front of her.
All evening she’d been aware of him. How could she not be? He dominated the whole club—and not just because he was handsome in a way that made you look twice…actually, three times. First to check you weren’t seeing things. Then to marvel at such blatant perfection. And finally just to savour his extraordinary masculine beauty.
He was just so cool. With or without the leather jacket, he had an aura of calm assurance that suggested he was bigger than the sum of his problems. Or hers.
Although obviously not hers. She might never have shared them with anyone, but she knew her problems were too much for most people to handle. Or maybe it was her that was the problem. Her last boyfriend had more or less told her that—shortly after she’d found him in bed with her flatmate.
Her stomach clenched and, pushing aside that thought, she said quickly, ‘Thank you for catching me—and sorry about your beer.’
Luis stared at her. Up close, she was more than beautiful. She was devastatingly lovely. Her huge, melting turrón-coloured eyes with their fringe of probably fake eyelashes were perfectly offset by her flushed cheeks and the scarlet bow of her mouth. He wondered just how soft the skin was on her throat, and then instantly wished that he hadn’t as his brain began tugging him on an imaginary tour beneath her clothing.
Imposing an indifference he didn’t feel onto his features, he shrugged. ‘I was leaving anyway.’
Looking down into her beautiful, curious face, he couldn’t actually remember why that was the case. In fact he appeared to be having trouble remembering how to do a lot of things—like breathing and speaking. It was her fault, though, he thought irritably. Her beauty kept catching him off guard, so that each time he looked at her he forgot what he’d been planning to say.
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