by Reeni Austin
Cara’s mouth gaped in astonishment. “I don’t know what to say. Or what to think.”
“Listen to me.” He cupped her chin. “Now I understand why you’re so protective of yourself. Maybe we moved a little too fast and that’s why you were so eager to leave me today.”
She averted his gaze for a moment, biting her lip.
“It’s okay. I’m not upset about it now.” His fingers moved to her hair, combing through her soft tendrils until her eyes met his again. “In fact, I think it works out best for everyone. You won’t be my employee anymore, technically. You’ll be paid by an outside agency. Hopefully you won’t feel like you have to sleep with me to keep your job anymore.”
Cara’s cheeks turned beet red. She tried to suppress her smile, thinking about how exciting it was to sneak around with her boss. Then she breathed deeply to clear her thoughts. “So, you said it works out best for everyone this way?”
He returned her smile and gave her lips a quick peck. “Yes. It lets Patty split her time between getting to know her new boyfriend and watching her grandson.”
“Yeah. I hadn’t thought about that.”
“Also, by the time Isaac’s ready to start school, you’ll hopefully be finished with your project here and you can move home permanently. I know some excellent private schools.” Victor nodded. “And this will force us to take our relationship a little slower. That should make you more comfortable, I hope. But, let me warn you.” His eyes narrowed as his voice took on a slightly sinister tone. “On those days when I get you all to myself, I will be very greedy.”
Cara giggled into Victor’s mouth as it descended on hers.
His warm hand cupped her full breast as his lips moved to her chin, then her throat. His hand was moving down her stomach to part her thighs when he heard her groan. He stopped. “What’s wrong?”
She winced, painfully. “I’m sorry. There’s this nagging thought running through my mind. Alexis. Will she bother me here? What if—”
“Shh.” He pressed two fingers against her lips. “I have something very special planned for her. She’ll get what she deserves. Let’s not speak of her again.” His lips went to her ear as his fingers trailed down her neck, her chest, her stomach, stopping between her thighs. “I have something much more special planned for you, mi amor.”
Cara closed her eyes, pleasure coursing through her body from his wet, warm lips nibbling her ear, and the words he had just spoken. She knew amor meant love, and that was a word they hadn’t yet used with each other.
As if he could read her thoughts, he moaned in her ear as the tips of his fingers traced circles around her tiny, swollen nub. “I’m falling in love with you, Cara. Please don’t run from me again.”
Before she could say, “I won’t,” his mouth possessed hers again with a fiery kiss that resonated throughout every part of her body, increasing the pleasure he was building in her pelvis. She bucked against his hand, needing more.
He continued to kiss and fondle her, enjoying her cries of joy that were quieted by his mouth until they were so loud and frequent, he was forced to break the kiss. He watched as her mouth fell open and her face made the most gorgeous expressions of pleasure he had ever seen. I hope to see this beautiful sight a million more times…
A minute later, as Cara lay there recovering, Victor yawned and let his head fall to the same pillow where she rested. His arm went gently across her stomach, holding her close.
She opened her eyes, startled. “You’re going to sleep already?”
With a satisfied smile, he whispered, “We need to rest. We have a long day ahead of us but I plan to wake you very early. And very happily.”
“Okay.” Cara giggled quietly as his lips gently touched her forehead.
Chapter Seventeen
Alexis clutched the note in her hand, reading it for perhaps the hundredth time since it was delivered to her house with a bouquet of roses the day before.
I’ve missed you, mi amor. My body endlessly longs for yours. Put me out of my misery. Pack your bags and come with me to my secret island paradise. We will spend a week alone and put the past far, far behind us.
Kisses,
Your Latin Lover
Also attached were instructions to board the Monarch Enterprises private jet at promptly six-thirty the next morning. And Alexis did so, without question.
The three hour flight passed quickly. Alexis was alone in the plane’s cabin with champagne, magazines, and movies to keep her busy. Most of her time was spent re-reading the note and fantasizing about Victor. She was determined not to make him feel badly about the past few months. He had finally come to his senses, just like she knew he would all along. He had to find a lover to rebound after their break-up. But Cara Green was now living in Chicago, and today’s trip was obvious proof that the relationship was over. All it took was a little distance… Alexis smiled proudly at how well her hard work had paid off.
It must have been when I jumped in his arms…he couldn’t stop thinking about me, holding me and loving me again. The thought made her giddy.
But a chill of concern crawled up her spine when the plane landed and she took notice of the tiny airport. Something wasn’t right. The dusty old building was small and unkempt, practically rural. It looked so desolate beside the beautiful blue ocean.
The pilot smiled and helped load her bags into the back of an old Jeep and said something in Spanish to the driver before turning back to the jet.
“Wait!” Alexis stood outside the vehicle, afraid to get in.
“Yes?” The pilot turned around.
“Is this safe?” With a hand over her eyes to block out the sun, Alexis nodded toward the long dirt road where the vehicle was set to drive. The road was narrow and winding, running parallel to the ocean and disappearing a short way off in the distance.
The pilot gave the area a quick glance. “Yes, it’ll be fine. The driver’s taking you to a villa a few miles away.”
“Oh.” Alexis smiled. “So, this is Victor Barboza’s private island?”
“Something like that. I don’t know the details. I do know we have a trip scheduled to pick you up in a week unless otherwise notified. You can leave earlier if someone radios the mainland.” He started toward his plane, and over his shoulder nodded quickly at Alexis and said, “Good day, ma’am.”
Someone has to radio the mainland to get me out of here? Startled by this revelation, she hesitantly took a seat in the back of the Jeep. The driver stepped on the gas, kicking up dirt and gravel under their wheels just as she was pulling out her cell phone. No signal. She continued to stare at it, waiting for those lines to appear. Her eyes were often distracted by the beautiful deep blue ocean to her right. To her left, the landscape was dotted with rocks and sand and the occasional ramshackle hut.
Alexis tapped on the driver’s shoulder. “Where are you taking me? How much farther?”
The driver shook his head and pointed up the road, uttering a word that sounded like, “Cuanto.”
A few minutes later they rounded a corner and there was a building—the first structure that looked at least semi-habitable to Alexis. It resembled a giant sandcastle, but there were tropical trees in front of it, and it had walls that looked sturdy and well-built.
Alexis exhaled with great relief. When the vehicle stopped, she jumped out, leaving the driver to carry her bags to the door as she ran toward the building, her heart pounding furiously as she anticipated the opulence awaiting her with Victor inside.
As she reached the door, she heard a familiar voice from the side of the building.
“Alexis, mi amor!”
Oh no. She turned to the bare-chested man she saw running toward her out of the corner of her eye.
Esteban.
Her mind reeled as she attempted to process the situation with a gleeful Esteban rambling away in front of her. Their affair ended soon after Victor caught them together. Alexis hadn’t seen Esteban in several months.
“Mi princesa
, mi amor. He esperado mucho por ti. Vamos adentro. Quiero llenarte de besos placenteros…”
Alexis slowly began to cry as she watched the driver silently carry her bags inside the dwelling.
“What is wrong?” Esteban put his hands on her shoulders, a sweet look of concern on his tanned, chiseled face. “You don’t want to be here?”
“Um…I…um…”
“Oh, mi amor.” He took one of her hands and placed it against his smooth, bare chest. His voice was soft. “My heart wants you. Perdona…” He stopped and let out a grunt of frustration. “My English suffers, mi amor. The locals, they speak Spanish.”
“Locals?”
Alexis nodded along as Esteban switched between the two languages, telling her the story of this island. The best she could understand, there was a village on another island nearby, but Esteban stayed here where he had worked as Victor’s groundskeeper for the past two months.
“So sorry,” Esteban said. “You would not talk to me. I call you, you hang up. You change your number. I visit your house, they say ‘she not here.’ And next time, police take me away. I had to leave the city. So painful to me, losing you. I was desperate. I meet with Victor. He forgive me for my,” his eyes darted around as he searched for the correct word, “indiscretion with you. He give me job far, far away from the city.” His full lips formed a distinct frown; his hand went to her hair. “Away from you, like you want.”
Alexis felt the warmth of his fingers as they weaved into the tendrils around her ear. She swallowed, hard. “I see.”
He gently shook his head. “You want to go?” He glanced at the driver, who stood close by waiting for a signal to stay or leave. “You may go somewhere. He take you to boat. I know nice people on other island where you stay. I arrange. You leave tomorrow.”
Alexis was slightly dizzy, overwhelmed by the shock of the situation, and the decision before her. She remembered how painful it was to ignore Esteban, but she had convinced herself it would lead to a future with Victor. She forced herself to forget Esteban, and it was easy once he stopped pursuing her. But now, she knew why he stopped. She told herself at the time that it didn’t matter, that Esteban was crazy for stalking her for weeks after she told him it was over. After recent events, she felt a twinge of sympathy.
His gorgeous face and rock hard chest were framed by an endless blue sky. He was sexier than ever, but he was so sad. His eyes dropped to the sandy ground below them, only looking up when she finally spoke.
“Esteban.” Several large tears ran down Alexis’s face. “I will stay here, with you.”
His face lit up. “Yes? With me?” He quickly signaled at the driver to leave, then took both of her hands in his. “Oh, mi amor. You make me so happy.” He chatted on, extending his arm behind him, speaking in a frantic line of broken English that Alexis could barely follow. After a little while, he stopped and said, “Perdona. Too much talk. Few visitors. Lonely sometimes. But now,” he brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it, “you are here.”
Alexis wiped her tears away as Esteban hooked his arm around hers, escorting her into the house as he rambled on about the fish he caught this morning that he would later cook for dinner. If I can handle these rustic surroundings, maybe I’ll stay longer than a week.
* * *
Six Months Later
The music started. Tom took a deep breath and glanced down the wide aisle between the pews at the church, his trembling hands folded in front of him.
The best man—his son, Gregory—patted his father on the back and whispered near his ear, “Don’t look so nervous. I got a guy waitin’ in the parking lot if she tries to run.”
Tom smiled. He was grateful to his son for easing the tension. He felt like such a fool for being so anxious. A few minutes earlier, he had looked at his reflection in the mirror and laughed at the old man staring back at him. White hair, white mustache, all very neatly groomed. Wearing a tuxedo that—in his mind—was meant for a fresh-faced man half his age. But today, Tom felt like a giddy young man as he waited not-so-patiently for his blushing bride.
It was a small wedding of exactly fifty-five guests, to be followed by a reception in a hotel ballroom a few blocks away. Originally, Patty only wanted to elope, but planning the wedding gave her something to do on the weeks when Isaac and Cara weren’t around. As of two weeks earlier, they were living with her again, and Patty was thrilled. But now that Tom would be moving in with Patty, Cara and Isaac were planning a move to Manhattan to live with Victor and give the newlyweds their privacy.
Patty stood in the back and watched Marcy walk down the aisle in her lime green chiffon dress—a dress that Marcy was skeptical of at first, but today she looked gorgeous. The color brought out Marcy’s hazel eyes and looked beautiful with the thick chocolate-colored curls that hung down her back. Patty was determined to find a man for Marcy, and soon.
Cara turned around and gave her mother one last kiss on the cheek, then stood back to make sure she had left no lipstick on her skin. “I love you, Mom.”
Patty’s eyes welled up. She could only smile and nod, afraid that speaking would cause a torrent of tears to flood her cheeks.
Cara looked down at Isaac, the ring bearer, and said, “Remember, count to ten before you walk out.”
Isaac nodded. He had already peeked inside the sanctuary at all the people sitting there, and he was nervous. What if I drop this pillow? But then he remembered what Victor said. The rings on the pillow are fake. Don’t let all the people scare you. Just walk down the aisle and find me on the front row. After this is over, we can eat cake.
Isaac felt a lot better when he thought about that cake. And he knew Grandma had made the cake herself, so it would be extra good. She even let Isaac pick the flavor: chocolate. He tensed a little when he felt Grandma patting his shoulder, urging him to enter the room full of people; he had forgotten to count to ten.
When Isaac entered the room, it felt so much bigger than it had when it was empty. The people inside were all dressed so nice, all of them smiling and pointing at him. Some of them waved. He smiled and waved back at a woman he recognized as Grandma’s neighbor, but the pillow almost fell to the floor. “No!” Isaac gasped and quickly shuffled the pillow back into place, safely resting it in his arms. He saw Mommy grinning at him from the front of the church, and he grinned back at her, then started to walk a little faster than before. When he got closer to the end of the aisle, he saw Victor waving from the front row.
Victor scooted over and patted the empty space on the pew, then patted Isaac’s back when he sat down. “Good job.”
Isaac gave him a big smile.
And then the music changed. Victor said, “Come on. Let’s stand up and watch Grandma walk down the aisle.”
Throughout the ceremony, Victor couldn’t take his eyes off Cara. She was stunning in her dress. A true vision to behold. Everything about her was lovely, both inside and out. He put a friendly arm around Isaac’s shoulders as he contemplated how lucky he was to have found this amazing woman and her amazing son, and how much better they had both made his life. Soon, Victor would tell Cara that he was going to stop putting in so much time at work. He had invested well, and he wanted to spend more time with the people he loved, not in stuffy board rooms in endless meetings.
Victor would take Cara home to Texas, show her the beauty of the landscape and introduce her to the friends and family he loved so well. The ring purchased five months earlier would finally come out of its hiding place, and they’d take the next step in their lifelong journey together.
He would take Isaac to the ranch where he grew up, and have Ramon show him around. Horses beat fast cars any day of the week. At least, that’s what Victor was counting on.
His gaze caught Cara’s for a moment. He saw the same look in Patty’s eyes during her vows. That look was something special. It would last. It would be Victor’s, for the remaining days of his life.
The End
Follow the continuing story of the Ba
rboza Brothers in Book Two: Armando Returns.
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Other Books by Reeni Austin
Author’s note: Victor and Cara will return in books two and three.
Book Two : Armando Returns – Expected release date: December 14, 2012.
Armando Barboza is a successful businessman in Los Angeles. One loss haunts him to this day, and the need to rectify the situation still hangs heavy on his mind.
One call from his brother, Victor, will turn his world upside down: Katie McCormack is getting married.
It could’ve been Armando. It should be Armando. It isn’t.
Join Armando, Victor, and Cara as they set out to right a wrong from years ago, and in the process learn more about their family than they ever expected in Armando Returns.
Book Three – Title To Be Announced. Expected release date: January 25, 2013.
This is Ramon and Marcy’s story, along with Victor and Cara’s Wedding. The full truth about the Barboza family is finally revealed.
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Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five