Proof Of Their One Hot Night by Emmy Grayson
CHAPTER SEVEN
CALANDRAKEPTHERgaze focused on the scorched yet still proud towers of Notre Dame, standing resolute against the blue morning sky, as she processed Alejandro’s words.
The first emotion to reveal itself in the tangled mess inside her chest: anger. Anger that he was only proposing this as a way of giving her money because he knew she wouldn’t just accept a check.
Embarrassment was next, that hot, uncomfortable emotion that burned her cheeks. Before her epic fall from grace, she’d courted offers every year from industries around the world wanting to steal her away from Cabrera Wines. But she’d liked her job.
A job she’d thrown away. A blood test her doctor had ordered after she reported trouble sleeping had revealed her pregnancy. Hours later, Alejandro’s name had jumped out at her on the proposed guest list for the party celebrating the joining of Cabrera Wines with Fox Vineyards. Images had cascaded through her mind, ranging from her blurting out her secret in the middle of the party to rushing to the nearest trash can with morning sickness as he paraded around the room with an actress or model or heiress, whatever flavor of the week he was indulging in.
Uncertainty and panic had driven her to do something impulsive—she’d quit. Better that than make a fool of herself. Her job hadn’t been worth her pride, her self-respect. A week later, those pictures of Alejandro walking into a hotel in London with a famous actress had confirmed that she’d made the right decision.
Until a few weeks after that when she started receiving rejections and had faced the reality that, rather than make a smart decision, she’d once again done something uncharacteristic—she’d made a huge decision based on emotion, not practicality. She’d given up a job she enjoyed and a sizable paycheck that allowed her to pay for Johanna’s nursing school as well as the rest of Aunt Norine’s mortgage on her beachside cottage, on the possibility that she might see her one and only former lover.
A paycheck that had fueled a lovely savings account that was dwindling under the constant onslaught of bills and expenses.
Which brought her to her third and final emotion: hope. Hope that maybe this job, whatever it was, would not only provide her with a financial foundation before the baby was born, but might lead to her hearing You’re hired instead of the copy-and-paste Thanks for your time, but we’ve decided to go with another candidate email she’d received too many of lately.
Her pride didn’t like it. Actually, her pride hated it. Accepting any type of help made her skin prickle.
But it wasn’t just about her anymore. Johanna, bless her, had taken on a part-time job at a nearby hospital and secured two scholarships that would see her through to graduation.
“Something I should have been doing all along,” she’d chirped cheerfully when she’d shared the scholarship letter with Calandra. “Don’t worry about me, sis.” She’d rubbed Calandra’s belly excitedly. “It’s my turn to take care of you.”
And that’s what Calandra needed to focus on. Much as she preferred to do this alone, and as much as she didn’t want to be around the man who put her into such a state of confusion, the baby was now the most important thing in her life. If that meant making some sacrifices, like accepting a little help from the devil himself, then so be it.
“Doing what?” she finally asked.
“Overseeing final preparations for a party.”
She turned to look at him, then wished she hadn’t. When she looked out over the buildings of Paris, she could admire the history, the architecture, map out the arrondissementsand neighborhoods in her head if she needed something to focus on.
But when she looked at Alejandro, dressed to the nines in chestnut-brown shoes, tan slacks that clung to his muscular legs and a sky-blue shirt molded to his tall, burly frame, all rational thought fled. She envied the relaxation she’d spied on his face as they walked to the Tower. She’d been both tempted and terrified of the passion in his eyes when he’d held her close. It made her remember what it was like to have a man look at her with desire. With passion. To hold her like she was the most treasured thing he’d ever encountered.
Dangerous. Men like him were so dangerous. Her father had been like that, flashing his winning smile and showering her mother with compliments that would make any woman swoon...or he had until he’d turned his attentions elsewhere.
His eyes pinned her in place. A smile lurked about his lips, but now she knew better. After seeing how quickly he’d flipped this morning, taking charge of a situation and letting his facade slip to reveal the strength that ran beneath the surface, she kept her guard up. She’d always treated him like a puppy—silly, at times humorous and more often annoying.
Now she wondered how much of that was Alejandro and how much of it was a mask.
“I don’t see cargo ships hosting the kind of parties I usually plan.”
“I’m diversifying.”
“To what?”
He joined her at the railing. A summer breeze teased his dark curls.
“We’re in the process of completing construction on two new ships. Two more will join them over the next three years. Instead of scrapping one of the ships being replaced, I’m having it retrofitted into a floating hotel off the coast of Marseille.”
Admiration rose in her chest. “An interesting concept.”
He smiled. When he smiled like that, a real smile where his eyes crinkled at the corners and warmth brightened those dark blue depths, he was even more frustratingly handsome.
“I wish I could take credit for it. The Cunard Line did something similar with the Queen Mary. The ship we’re retiring, La Reina, is in good condition. She’s just old. Once a ship hits the thirty-year mark, clients and stakeholders get nervous.”
The change in tone caught her attention, the serious, businesslike tone he’d occasionally let slip into their past conversations.
“Still, it must cost a lot to remake a cargo ship into a hotel.”
“Yes and no. We’re not doing the whole ship. Just the upper portions where guests will be staying and eating. The lower portion will be left as is.”
Pride ran deep in his voice. His eyes usually glimmered with amusement or teasing, but it was excitement that lit them now. It lit a similar fire in her, all the possibility that La Reina offered. Crafting events from scratch and seeing her ideas come to life had been her favorite part of working for Cabrera Wines. “You could offer tours. Make use of the space.”
His smile deepened. She fought the pleasant sensation that spread through her veins upon realizing that his smile was directed entirely at her.
“This is why I’d like to hire you. The board must approve my proposal. At the end of every fiscal year, we have a final meeting, vote on any major issues and then celebrate with a small party at my villa in Marseille. This year, a week from now, I’m hosting it on La Reina.”
“So where do I fit into this?”
His face darkened as his eyes hardened. “My father is the majority stakeholder of Cabrera Shipping. He thinks I’m throwing money away on this idea. If the board votes against my proposal, let’s just say my life will look very different.”
She wanted to ask how, but his expression offered zero room for inquiries.
“I’m still not sure why you need me.”
“One of the things that will make La Reina a success is if I give a glimpse into the luxury experience we’ll offer. You specialize in such events. Help me sway them.”
Her thoughts turned to the young man she’d seen on the balcony with Adrian and Everleigh the night before. “What about Antonio? He already runs successful resorts.”
“He’s helped me with the renovations, suite designs, that sort of thing. But he’s busy with his own upcoming launch in Italy. And you,” he said with a seductive smile, “have all the experience I need.”
“Planning a party of that magnitude will take more than a week.”
“Most of it has already been planned. But I need someone to bring all the pieces together, to supervise. Still a lot, which is why I’m prepared to pay you half a million dollars.”
Her hands tightened on the railing.
“That’s too much.”
“No, it’s not.” He held up a hand as she started to object. “Whatever plans you put together have the potential to make my company, and therefore me, a lot of money.”
“What if the board votes no?”
“They’ll vote yes.”
She envied his assurance, the complete and total confidence she’d had before she’d had sex. Was sex always so complicated?
“Two bonuses from this arrangement,” he continued, oblivious to her questioning herself. “One—once completed, you’ll have my personal reference that will secure you any job you want. And two, we get to know each other better so you’re comfortable with me being involved as a father and we avoid the nasty legal battles.”
Oh, it was a neat solution, all tied up with a pretty bow. Never mind it scared the hell out of her—a week alone with a man she could barely control herself around.
“I’ll also help beyond the job. Financially.”
She pinched the bridge of her nose. “Alejandro, you’re already offering an outrageous salary—”
He grasped her hand and gave it a gentle but firm squeeze. “That part is nonnegotiable, Calandra.”
She stalled for a moment, trying to think of something, anything else that might change his mind.
Nothing. Finally, grudgingly, she murmured, “All right.”
The lock slammed on the door to the private hell she’d just created for herself. She’d spent her whole life avoiding becoming trapped by her circumstances the way her mother had. Wooed by a Swiss millionaire on a spring break trip in college and whisked from her modest home in the Carolinas to a mansion tucked between the Alps and Lake Geneva, her mother had been helpless when the dream had turned into a nightmare.
And now here she was, accepting a job offer, money, allowing herself to become a kept woman.
You’re not your mother.Much as she’d loved her mom, what Lila Smythe lacked in strength and determination, Calandra had more than made up for over the years. Yes, she had to hand over a little bit of power now. But she would prevail.
“Scared, Calandra?”
His voice, so deep and yet so silky, so dangerous, wrapped around her, tantalizing, tempting, seducing.
She didn’t immediately answer, because yes, she was scared, terrified even, that after only one night together he still stirred such longing in her. Time and experience had taught her that men like Alejandro were fun, until they weren’t. Her child would grow up without the pain that had been her constant companions through childhood.
Which meant keeping men like Alejandro at arm’s length.
Or an ocean’s length, she thought as Alejandro took another step, the heat from his body kissing her skin.
What had she just done?
He leaned in. She stayed still, hand clutched around the railing of the Eiffel Tower like it was the only thing keeping her tethered to reason. She would not back down, would not succumb.
“Don’t be scared.” His smile deepened. “What’s the worst that could happen?”