Lexie called goodnight and made her way back to the castillo. She didn’t like the frisson of loneliness that assailed her and scowled at herself.
She was still scowling when she entered the castillo and ran straight into a wall. Except this wall was warm and it had hands that came around her arms, steadying her.
The singing rush of warmth and excitement made her scowl even more as she looked up into the elusive Cesar Da Silva’s face. Damn him.
‘I was just coming to find you.’
‘Well, as you can see I’m here,’ Lexie said testily, irritated at being irritated.
Cesar whistled softly. ‘Bad day at the office, dear?’
His unexpected dry humour sparked something inside Lexie, but she pulled free of his hands before he could see it. She didn’t want him to be flirty or endearing.
‘I’m sorry,’ she blurted out, avoiding his eye. ‘It has been a long day.’ Liar, her conscience mocked her.
She felt self-conscious in comfy leggings and a loose shirt. Face clean, hair pulled back into a messy knot. For all she knew he might have been wining and dining some dark beauty last night...
Cesar cut through her feverish thoughts.
‘Those phone calls the other night...one of them resulted in me having to attend an urgent meeting in Paris early this morning, so I left yesterday.’
Lexie fought to repress the crazy lurch of relief. She shrugged a shoulder minutely and said airily, ‘Really? I didn’t notice.’
Cesar came close and tipped Lexie’s jaw up so she had to look at him. She hated being small right now. If she’d been taller she could have eyeballed Cesar.
‘Liar,’ he said softly. ‘Because I was aware of every minute I was away from this place.’
His words made air whoosh out of Lexie’s lungs. An instantaneous bubble of lightness infused her blood. She couldn’t help a rueful smile. ‘Well, your meeting can’t have been very exciting.’
Cesar shook his head. ‘It was deadly dull.’
The air sizzled between them. And just like that all of Lexie’s doubts and fears melted away again. His effect on her was ridiculous. But she couldn’t resist.
He took his hand away. ‘We hit the papers today...I thought you’d want to see.’
Lexie fought not to let him see how much he affected her. ‘Of course.’
He stepped back. ‘We can go to my apartment—it’s more private.’
Lexie looked at him as he started to walk away. ‘Your apartment?’
She walked quickly to keep up with him. He glanced at her and then took her hand, setting off a million butterflies.
‘I have my own apartment here within the castillo.’
Curious as to what it might be like, in such a mausoleum of a castle, Lexie followed him down a warren of corridors, passing the study where she’d had that first cataclysmic conversation with him.
He stopped outside a door that had a keypad lock and entered a code. The door swung open. As he walked in and Lexie followed, her hand still in his, her jaw dropped. It was like stepping into another world.
The apartment was huge, cavernous. Like stepping into Narnia from behind the coats in the wardrobe. One side was dominated by a massive wall of windows. On the other side was a modern state-of-the-art kitchen. Steel and chrome with industrial lights.
The floor was wooden—parquet, like his office—and strewn with huge oriental rugs, softening it. One corner of the room was filled with three old battered leather couches and a low coffee table. A TV and music system. Along that wall was nothing but shelves and books—rows and rows of books.
Lexie felt that pang again. She loved books and reading, but for her it was a torturous process. Remembering how Cesar had responded to her dyslexia made her melt a little more.
‘I have an office through here.’
As Lexie followed Cesar she saw another door, and glanced in as they passed to see a huge bedroom with a massive bed, sheets tangled on top. The image was incendiary and unbelievably intimate. She felt herself blushing. Would she be in that bed with him soon? Limbs entwined?