He was so distracted as he made his way down to the private saloon that separated the guest cabins that he almost missed the subtle clearing of a throat. Nora sat cross-legged on a sofa, her hair once again loose and flowing over one shoulder. She wore her ridiculous pyjama pants and tiny tank top, and one of her giant architecture books was splayed across her lap.
She looked like heaven...
He would be content to just lie down alongside her and sink into her warmth while she continued to read and ignored him.
He shook his head to clear the ridiculous thought. If she evoked such intense feelings in him it was just because he was stressed and irritated after his first evening of being ‘on’ as CEO of Velamar for the first time in months.
‘You’re still awake,’ he said, trying to mask his inner turmoil with a light tone.
‘I was waiting for you.’ She stood up, folding her arms across her chest. ‘I assume you got the message from Angelus Fiero?’
Duarte shook his head. ‘I haven’t received anything.’
She frowned, picking up an unsealed brown envelope from the coffee table and extending it towards him. ‘It arrived an hour ago by courier. It was addressed to both of us. I assumed he must have already spoken with you.’
Duarte shook out the contents and read through the police reports quickly. Angelus had worked quickly, and a warrant for Cabo’s arrest had been issued within hours of his leaving Duarte’s study. The police had hauled the crime boss out of his Rio mansion in broad daylight and questioned him for hours until he cracked.
He’d confessed to everything, including the false
imprisonment of his own daughter and his coercion of her to blackmail and work on his behalf. Nora would be given immunity for supplying evidence.
He looked up at the woman before him, her eyes tight with strain.
‘He’s going away for this, Nora,’ Duarte said gruffly. ‘The trial may not happen for a few months, but thanks to your evidence he won’t get bail.’
‘He’s confessed to what he did to me...’ She pressed her lips firmly together. ‘He didn’t have to...there was never any hard evidence.’
Duarte took a step towards her, seeing the way her lips trembled as she shook her head in disbelief. ‘It’s over, querida. He has no power over you any more.’
Nora had dreamt of the day that her father would get the punishment he deserved for all his wrongdoings, but a part of her had always believed him when he said he was untouchable. Now, seeing the cold, hard evidence of his sorry end in black and white, she came undone.
She let herself break, unable to stop the tears falling or the messy sobs racking her chest. She sobbed with relief for herself and the terror she’d endured under his tyranny, but she also sobbed for Duarte’s mother and father, who had never got to see their children’s wonderful achievements or to meet their grandson.
Eventually she closed her eyes and felt warm arms envelop her. She didn’t pull away and stiffen, even though she knew she should. She accepted his comfort and sank into his chest until she could breathe again, which wasn’t for a long while.
He didn’t complain. He simply held her, his face on the top of her head so she could feel his breath against her hair. When she had finally quietened down, he pulled back just enough to look down at her.
‘You are more than just his daughter, Nora,’ he said gruffly. ‘I was wrong to say that to you...to compare you to him. I’m sorry.’
She nodded, taking a step backwards out of his arms. ‘It’s okay.’
He seemed almost to extend an arm towards her, as though he wished to pull her back, before thinking better of the movement. ‘It’s not okay. I know I can be harsh and judgemental. I’ve done it before to my sister and my best friend and now to you.’
Nora looked down as his index finger and thumb circled her wrist and his hand slid down to entwine with hers. She shivered at the contact, tightening her hold on him and feeling her body sway towards his.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
‘I’VE WANTED TO kiss you all day,’ he said quietly.
His golden eyes were filled with such sombre sincerity that she felt her throat catch as his lips gently brushed hers.
‘I’ve thought of nothing else...’
She felt herself fight against the intimacy of the moment, taking into account her own vulnerable state and the memory of his earlier proposal. But she wanted to kiss him too. She wanted to sink into the comfort of his heat and his strength and harness it, to chase away the shadows that haunted her.
A small part of her cried out to stop, to keep talking about the deep, dark cavern of mistrust that still lay between them. But she shook it off, losing herself in the glorious sensation of his lips devouring hers and his arms holding her so tightly.
When he lifted her up and walked them over to one of the plush sofas, she lay back and offered herself to him. His eyes darkened with arousal and he wasted no time in removing her pyjama bottoms and running soft kisses along the bare skin of her thighs.