The Purest of Diamonds?

by Susan Stephens

Raffa knocked that idea on its head the moment he turned back to her. No headmaster on earth looked like this—such compelling dark eyes with that touch of humour, and a wickedly curving mouth.

  ‘I’m looking forward to a refreshing drink, without having it knocked out of our hands,’ he said, turning up the voltage on his smile.

  It took her a moment to speak, she was so captivated, and then she experienced a moment of panic. What could she possibly say to him? How did you launch into a conversation with a notorious billionaire? How’s your yacht? Would that do?

  ‘What are you smiling at, Leila?’ he enquired, raising one sweeping ebony brow in a way that made her heart stop.

  ‘Am I smiling?’ She stopped smiling immediately. ‘I was just thinking, this is a great place, isn’t it? Such a good idea of yours.’ She made a point of staring round. Anything was safer than looking at Raffa.

  ‘It’s good to see you relax,’ he said, his eyes dark like the night and just as full of danger.

  Relaxed? Was that what he thought? She doubted any woman could relax around Raffa Leon. He had this way of staring directly into your eyes that made it hard to look away. Impossible to look away, she amended.

  So come out of your shell. Live boldly for once.

  ‘Here’s your juice,’ he said. ‘With a splash of lemonade as requested.’

  As he handed it to her he was doing that eye thing—the curving smile, the crinkle at the corner of his eyes. It was all too easy to fool herself into thinking he was interested in her, when this was just his way. Raffa Leon was a charming and accomplished seducer, both in business and with women, and she had to get it into her head that this was just an innocent encounter and a refreshing drink. She had never been the type of girl men took up to their room. She was the kid sister they brought into the very public hotel lounge to share an orange juice with before the party.

  And she should be pleased about that.

  She was pleased. But she would be lying if she tried to pretend it wouldn’t be thrilling to have Raffa look at her with something other than humour in his eyes.

  When she leaned forward to pick up her glass, her senses filled with the faint scent of his cologne. It was one of those intoxicating scents, hard to identify, but undoubtedly exclusive. She sat back again, wondering. What now? Raffa seemed content to let the silence hang between them, so maybe it was up to her to break the silence. Live boldly, for once! Pointing through one of the tall arched windows, she drew his attention to the park, picked out in lights at this time of night. ‘My mother used to take me over there to the park when I was a little girl so I could terrorise people on my three-wheeler.’

  ‘I never saw you as a hoodlum, Leila.’

  So how did he see her? Raffa laughed as he set down his drink. A soft drink too, she noted.

  Raffa felt his heart stir as he thought about a little girl taking every day with her mother for granted, and a young mother enjoying special time with her youngest child. Those days must have felt as if they would go on for ever. Neither of them could have anticipated Leila’s father’s descent into drunken violence, or the tragic plane crash and loss of life.

  ‘What are you thinking about now?’ he prompted, though he guessed Leila had inadvertently uncovered memories she didn’t normally share with strangers, and was probably regretting being so open with him. Insanely, he wanted to hug her and tell her it would be all right, but they didn’t know each other well enough for that. They had a party to go to, where Leila would have to be bright and cheerful, or her sisters would want to know why. He didn’t want to leave her shakier than when she’d fallen into his arms outside the hotel. What had begun as basic attraction and curiosity had gained an edge of care. Not that he felt responsible for Leila, and she wouldn’t want that. She’d been doing pretty well on her own up to now.

  ‘More juice?’

  ‘Please. Sorry, Raffa, I was miles away.’

  Thinking about her mother’s letter, Leila realised as Raffa turned away to order more drinks. She’d been doing a lot of that recently, and she’d had plenty of time to memorise every word over the years.

  My darling Leila,

  I love you more than life itself, and want you to promise me that you will live your life to the full. You’re only a little girl now, but one day you’ll be a woman with choices to make and I want you to make the right choices.

  Don’t be afraid of life, Leila, as I have been. Be bold in all you do—

  It still haunted her to think her mother must have known she was in danger—maybe even that Leila’s father would go too far and kill them both. Leila had been too young to understand what had happened at the time of the crash, and it was only later when she was older that her sisters had explained that their father was most likely drunk at the controls of the plane. She’d done some investigating of her own at the local newspaper office and had got the picture of a violent alcoholic and a woman who had been the helpless victim of his rages.

  ‘Ice in your juice?’ Raffa broke into her thoughts.

  ‘No. It’s delicious as it is, thank you.’

  ‘Spanish oranges,’ he said, his dark face brightening with a smile. ‘The best.’

  ‘You’re partial.’

  ‘Yes, I am,’ he agreed, holding her gaze a beat too long.

  It was long enough for her heart to pound out of control. Raffa was so worldly, and it was almost funny, the two of them being here together, when Skavanga was just one stop on Raffa’s round-the-world tour of his international business interests, and she had never been outside the town except for university, and even then she’d only gone a few miles down the road to the local college. As soon as she had qualified, she’d scuttled back to the place she knew best, the place she felt safest, where she could hide away in the archive department of a mining museum where it was quiet, and where there was no chance of meeting a wife beater, or an alcoholic. Or anyone for that matter.

  ‘So you’ve stayed in Skavanga all your life, Leila? Leila?’ Raffa prompted, his voice shaking her round.

  She’d been trapped in the past, sitting on the stairs, listening to her parents arguing and hearing the inevitable thump when her mother hit the floor. And now, judging by the concerned look on Raffa’s face, he was joining her on this trip down memory lane too.

  ‘Yes, I’ve been here all my life,’ she confirmed brightly to make up for her lapse in concentration.

  She was actually quite good at being jolly. She’d had plenty of practice over the years. Having been totally eclipsed by her beautiful sisters, she’d had the choice of being the mouse in the background, or the jolly sister. She’d perfected both. ‘I’ve always been close to my brother and sisters.’ At least, she had been, until her brother, Tyr, had gone missing.

  ‘It’s great to have siblings,’ Raffa agreed, ‘even if you don’t always get along.’

  ‘We get along. I just miss my brother, and I wish I knew where he was.’ Her stare met Raffa’s, but, if he knew where Tyr was, he wasn’t telling. ‘I know it must look to you as if my sisters run roughshod over me, but believe me, Raffa, I can hold my own.’

  ‘I never doubted it,’ he agreed, to her surprise.

  But as Raffa’s smile faded, and a shadow crossed his face, she wondered about his family. She also realised they had relaxed into the last thing she had imagined sharing with Raffa Leon, which was a meaningful conversation.

  ‘What about you?’ she prompted gently. ‘What about your family, Raffa?’

  The look he shot her made her regret asking. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to probe.’

  ‘That’s all right,’ he said, sitting back. He shrugged. ‘Apart from the three brothers and two sisters I do know about, I’m told I have countless half brothers and sisters across the globe, thanks to the untiring efforts of my father.’

  ‘And your mother�
��?’ That was one question she definitely shouldn’t have asked, Leila realised, breaking off when she saw the expression on Raffa’s face. ‘I’m sorry. I—’

  ‘Don’t be,’ he interrupted. ‘I was lucky enough to spend most of my youth with my grandmother. As soon as my elder brothers and sisters went off to college, my father made it quite clear that he was done with children.’

  ‘So there was no place at home for you?’

  He didn’t answer that. He didn’t need to. What Raffa had told her explained so much about him. He was the lone wolf, dangerous, hidden and unknowable.

  ‘I’d like to meet your grandmother,’ she said, trying to bring him back to the present. ‘She must be an amazing woman.’

  ‘To take me on?’ Raffa queried, relaxing into a laugh. ‘She is. And maybe you will meet her one day, Leila.’

  He was just being polite, but it was a relief to see him smiling again.

  ‘And you grew up with your sisters and brother,’ he prompted.

  ‘Who always teased me unmercifully,’ she confirmed.

  ‘And you don’t mind that?’

  ‘I tease them back. Families,’ she added with a smile and a shrug.

  Raffa huffed softly and smiled back at her.

  His eyes were so incredibly expressive they warmed her right through. The fact that Raffa was as hot as hell should have been warning enough for her to back off, but he was like a magnet drawing her closer, against her will. ‘My sisters tease me because they love me as much as I love them,’ she said to break the sudden electric tension between them. ‘I guess they’re always trying to make up for—’

  ‘Your mother dying when you were so very young,’ Raffa cut in.

  The concern on his face surprised her. ‘I suppose... Anyway, they’ve been great.’ Massive understatement. ‘Tyr too—’ She stopped as the familiar ache washed over her.

  ‘Your brother will come home one day soon, Leila.’

  ‘You say that with such certainty. Have you heard from Tyr?’ There was excitement in her voice, but Raffa disappointed her by saying nothing. And why was she surprised? Leila and her sisters had always suspected that the three men in the consortium knew exactly where Tyr was, but none of them would reveal his whereabouts. The four men had been at school together, and then again in Special Forces, so their loyalties cut deep. But still, she had to try. ‘All I care about is that he’s safe, Raffa.’

  Her heart lurched as she stared deep into eyes that held her gaze steadily.

  ‘Please don’t ask me questions about your brother, Leila, because I can’t tell you the answers you want to hear.’

  ‘You won’t tell me,’ she argued.

  ‘That’s right,’ Raffa agreed levelly. ‘I won’t.’

  ‘But perhaps you could tell me he’s safe?’

  There was a long pause, and then Raffa said, ‘He’s safe.’

  ‘Thank you.’ Relief flooded through her as she sat back. Tyr was safe. That was all she needed to hear, and the thought that Raffa knew her brother so well made everything she’d heard about him pale into insignificance.

  ‘Tell me about your job at the museum, Leila.’

  She relaxed. There was nothing she loved more than talking about her job. She enjoyed working at the museum so much she could talk about it endlessly. ‘It’s my passion—’ She didn’t need to try now. The words just came pouring out. ‘I’d love to show you round. It’s amazing. I wish you could see all the things we’ve found. To think my ancestors used them. And every day there’s a new discovery...’ She stopped in case she was boring him, but Raffa encouraged her to go on. And so it all came pouring out—her plans for the museum, her hopes and dreams for the future of the work she loved, her classes, her workshops, her tours, the exhibitions she had planned.

  ‘I am so sorry,’ she said at last. ‘I must have bored the socks off you. No one can stop me once I get talking about the museum.’

  ‘On the contrary, I don’t want to stop you,’ he insisted, ‘though it is a revelation to discover you’re not the quiet sister after all.’

  ‘I’m not quiet at all,’ she assured him.

  No. Leila just needed the chance to be heard, he thought.

  ‘What are you doing?’ she said when he took the glass from her hand.

  ‘I think we should go to the party. Have you seen the time?’

  ‘No. Goodness me!’ she exclaimed, springing up. ‘I have been boring you!’

  ‘Not at all,’ he insisted. ‘Far from it. This evening has turned out far better than I anticipated, and we haven’t even reached the party yet.’

  We?

  She laughed as Raffa smiled back at her. Even if he was just being polite, she was having a great time. Raffa Leon was so much more than she had expected in every way. It was hard not to be attracted to him—impossible. Which was in itself crazy. Who invited trouble, unless they were completely mad?

  She did, apparently.

  ‘So, are you completely recovered after your tumble?’ he said as he escorted her across the crowded lobby.

  ‘Completely,’ she confirmed. ‘And thank you for the drink. I feel ready for anything now.’

  When Raffa laughed at this, she realised he must think her quaint and old-fashioned; sheltered, certainly.

  ‘If I were as honest as you, Leila, I would never have succeeded in business,’ he confided to her obvious alarm. ‘Meaning everything shows on your face,’ he was quick to explain when she frowned. ‘I’m not quite the big bad wolf I’m reported to be.’

  ‘But close.’ She laughed.

  He laughed too. It was good to see Leila relaxed. And he wanted her to know he did have principles. He didn’t want her fretting about some rogue buying into her family business. Leila had certainly brought out the best in him. And that was a first.

  ‘And now to find your sisters,’ he said, realising that with any other attractive woman, finding her sisters would be the last thing on his mind.

  ‘Must we?’

  * * *

  Leila had spoken without thinking, he realised as her cheeks flushed red. She was enjoying being relaxed. She’d never been keen to join the pre-party scrum in Britt’s suite.

  ‘We don’t have to go up to Britt’s suite,’ he reassured her. ‘We can meet your sisters in the ballroom at our table. I’m looking forward to seeing the three of you together. Life is never boring with a Skavanga sister, so they tell me.’

  ‘They’re right,’ Leila admitted wryly. ‘Just your bad luck you got landed with me.’

  ‘Am I complaining?’

  She flashed him a mischievous look, and as her mouth curved in a smile Leila’s eyes lit in a way that made him want to know more about this youngest Skavanga sister. It hit him out of nowhere that his grandmother would love her. His abuelita, as cute little grannies were known in Spain, was never off his case, always insisting he must find himself a good woman. He would do a lot of things for Abuelita, but not that, though his grandmother would put the bunting out if he brought a girl like Leila home.

  And hadn’t Leila said she wanted to meet his grandmother?

  He glanced at her, thinking the best thing about Leila was she had no idea how attractive she was, and in his world that was definitely a breath of fresh air.

  They were halfway across the ballroom when she got a call on her phone. ‘Britt,’ she mouthed. As she pressed the receiver to her ear her cheeks turned scarlet. He gathered she wasn’t having the easiest of conversations with her sister.

  ‘She wanted to know where I was,’ Leila explained when she ended the call.

  ‘I hope you told her, living dangerously?’

  ‘With the big bad wolf? Yes, I did, as it happens.’

  ‘And your sister hit the roof?’

  ‘Pretty much.’r />
  They shared an amused look.

  ‘Do you believe everything you’ve heard about me, Leila?’

  For a moment she didn’t speak, but then she said quite bluntly, ‘I don’t know you well enough to pass judgement yet.’

  He laughed at that. ‘When you do—you will let me know?’

  ‘I’ll make sure of it.’

  She hadn’t told Raffa the whole truth about her conversation with Britt, who was clearly worried about her, and who had yelled in alarm at the prospect of her baby sister spending even one minute alone in the company of the notorious Raffa Leon. Worse luck, Raffa had turned out to be the perfect gentleman, though it might be fun to tease her sisters. It wasn’t often Leila caused comment.

  ‘You did reassure Britt?’ Raffa commented as they approached the table.

  ‘Actually, no,’ she admitted. ‘For once in my life, I was enigmatic. I was only having a bit of fun, but I couldn’t resist it. My sisters tease me constantly, so this was my chance to get them back.’

  ‘Well, I’m happy to go along with however you want to play it,’ Raffa assured her, his dark eyes glinting in a way that filled her mind with all sorts of outrageous possibilities.

  ‘I might take you up on that.’

  ‘Please do.’

  His smile could travel to places she had forgotten about, in no time flat. ‘Then I will,’ she added with a smile and a shrug, thinking this evening was going to be fun.

  ‘Tonight will see Leila Skavanga come to the fore,’ Raffa promised as he held her chair.

  ‘But I don’t want to upset them,’ Leila was quick to add. ‘Britt has gone to a lot of trouble to arrange the party for Eva, and I don’t want anything to spoil Eva’s night.’

  ‘I promise you, it won’t,’ Raffa agreed, ‘not through anything I do, anyway, though there’s nothing to prevent us having a bit of fun. I just hope with all the Skavanga Diamonds glittering at once you don’t dazzle me into a stupor.’

  ‘No chance of that,’ Leila said, laughing at Raffa’s expression as she sat down.