Romantic Getaways Collection. Liz Fielding

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breath, he picked up one of the glasses and handed it to her, then grabbed his own and took a long drink from it.

      He really needed to keep his cool here if he was going to get on top of this problem. Especially as he was still having a bit of trouble thinking straight after the accident.

      ‘The fact that I don’t have a partner, let alone a wife, is troubling to him,’ he said, running a hand over his face, trying to wake himself up a bit. ‘But if I can convince him I’m a good bet it could be a hugely lucrative deal that would give us a strong foothold in the American market.’

      ‘How are you going to do that? Convince him, I mean,’ Elena asked, looking at him from over the rim of her glass.

      ‘I’m going to offer to take him and his wife out for dinner tonight and show them I’m not the ogre they seem to think I am,’ he said decisively.

      ‘You’re going to meet them on your own?’

      He hesitated, thinking about this. ‘It’s better if I don’t make it too business-formal, so I don’t think I should take anyone else from the office,’ he said slowly. ‘It needs to be a more laid-back affair.’

      ‘But you’re concerned it might confirm his suspicions about you if you turn up on your own.’

      His gaze snapped to hers. How did she seem to know what he was thinking? It was as if she could read his addled mind.

      She shrugged a shoulder. ‘I know you don’t remember, but I run my own manufacturing engineering company in England and I’ve been in a similar situation before. In my experience it’s better to have someone else to make up a four, especially if he’s bringing his wife.’

      He ran a hand across his jaw, frustration needling him. ‘I don’t have a girlfriend at the moment and I haven’t worked with Benita long enough to build up a convincing rapport with her.’

      ‘No,’ Elena said, making it sound as if taking Benita would be the last thing she’d suggest.

      ‘And it would be helpful to have someone who knows something about the industry and how to behave in business meetings already,’ he said as an idea began to form in his head.

      ‘That’s true, especially as your memory isn’t exactly at its best right now.’

      ‘So that only leaves one person,’ he said, folding his arms and giving her a pointed stare.

      ‘Who?’ she asked, frowning at first, then widening her eyes as she caught on to just what he was suggesting.

      ‘That’s right, Elena. You.’

       CHAPTER FIVE

      ‘ME?’ ELENA’S HEART leapt into her throat.

      Caleb gave her a firm smile, as if the matter had already been decided.

      Though, to be fair, she guessed it had.

      There was no way she could refuse to help him, of course. For one thing, she couldn’t let him go out on his own when his head injury was still an issue, and for another she was keenly aware that this could be the perfect opportunity to atone for the way she’d treated him in their younger years. She could really help him here—do something of substance.

      ‘It’s the ideal solution,’ he said, nodding sagely.

      ‘How are we going to convince them we’re a couple when you don’t remember a thing about me though?’ she asked, her nerves biting a little.

      He waved a hand, dismissing her concern. ‘We’ll do a cramming session before the meeting.’

      She swallowed, feeling tension building in her throat. She was going to have to be careful what she told him if she was going to avoid the small matter of her being his number one enemy.

      ‘Okay, well, I’ll need to dash over to the hotel where I’m staying first and fetch my bag so I can change. I’ll need something more appropriate to wear to dinner,’ she said, gesturing to her now rather crumpled suit.

      And she could do with a few minutes on her own to get her head together.

      ‘Which hotel are you staying in?’ he asked.

      ‘The Barcelona Gran Mar, near the beach.’

      He looked at her long and hard for a moment. ‘Okay, I’ll come with you. We can walk from here; it’s not far.’

      Her stomach sank. ‘No, you should stay here and rest.’

      ‘I’m fine,’ he said in that no-nonsense manner she knew so well. ‘Anyway, how are you going to keep your beady eye on me otherwise?’

      She sighed and shook her head at his droll expression. The man had an answer for everything. It had been the same when they were younger too.

      ‘Okay, fine, come with me then. Perhaps you can point out some of the famous landmarks on the way. I’ve not had a chance to see any of them since I arrived.’

      She waited while Caleb put in a call to Benita, asking her to get hold of Carter’s PA and arrange a dinner meeting for that evening. Once he’d hung up, they shrugged on their jackets and left the apartment, Elena’s heart beating at twice its usual speed as she contemplated the idea of spending the whole day with Caleb by her side.

      Gaudi’s mesmerising art nouveau Casa Milà building was only a couple of streets away from Caleb’s apartment, fortuitously in the right direction for her hotel near the Nova Icaria beach, so they strolled past it, Elena admiring the strange, cave-like curves and outlandish quirks of the architecture. The whole building looked as though it had been hand-carved out of an enormous piece of rock by prehistoric man, looking truly anachronistic next to its more modern neighbours.

      ‘He really was a genius,’ she said in wonder, gazing up at the breathtaking façade. ‘Such a visionary.’

      ‘Unparalleled,’ Caleb agreed, using his hand to shield his eyes against the bright glare of the sun as he squinted up at it. ‘You know, I’m a little embarrassed to admit this, but I barely notice it’s there any more. It’s become part of the street furniture to me after all my years living here.’

      ‘That’s terrible,’ Elena said, frowning up at the building.

      ‘I’m so busy getting from one place to another I forget to look up,’ he murmured.

      She glanced at him. ‘I do the same thing in London,’ she said, feeling a little rush of poignancy that their lives had followed such a parallel path, despite the distance between them. ‘It’s very easy to take beauty for granted,’ she added.

      ‘Yes.’ He paused then said, ‘It’s funny, but losing big chunks of my past seems to have brought the present into sharper focus.’

      When she looked round at him she experienced a little frisson at the intense way he was looking at her.

      ‘Are you happy with your life?’ she blurted, her nerves getting the better of her.

      His

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