kind of grace that stopped her in her tracks. She stared in abject awe of him, as if he were a supernatural being.
Ari tried to stop her flights of fancy about this man, but it was impossible. As she stood there, weighted down like a mule, feeling disheveled and shamed because she felt so wretched compared to him, Ari could only watch him come closer, her heart pulsing powerfully.
As he glided effortlessly through the crowd, she watched as he lifted his hand and removed his sunglasses, placing them in the sweat-stained left pocket of his khaki shirt. When he looked up, she gasped again. His eyes were a cinnamon color—large, wide with intelligence and…something else. Aggravation? The sense of kindness about this man that had bowled Ari over at first seemed as if it was being replaced by the different emotions she saw in his narrowing eyes. She wasn’t used to being so in tune with a man, and it shook her deeply to be able to tell so much of his emotions. To Ari, it was as if she were somehow invisibly connected to him, as if she were a seismograph registering every vibration she felt around him. It was a shocking sensation. And he was so incredibly handsome! She noticed a slight sheen of perspiration across his golden-colored skin and a smear of grease beneath the left side of his hard jawline. As his gaze met hers, Ari tried to pull away from his mesmerizing look. It was impossible. She felt drawn to him, to his soul, and the wildly exciting and powerful connection was overwhelming.
Dizzied and feeling terribly inept in his towering presence, Ari felt her purse sliding off her shoulder. Oh, no! It was a huge, oversize purse, one that she had packed with overnight accessories in case there was an emergency. As the heavy bag clunked to the floor, she tripped over it. With a cry, she went down on her hands and knees.
Rafe saw her fall, but he was too far away to catch her or break her tumble to the floor. The crowds parted quickly when people realized what had happened, so it was easy to sweep into the widening circle, slide his fingers around her arms and lift her back to her feet. She felt firm, yet soft beneath his hands. As he leaned over, he could smell the lingering scent of an exotic perfume. Perhaps a hint of jasmine. She was so close, so helpless in that moment.
“Oh…” Ari moaned as she looked up to see Rafe leaning over her, felt his strong hands grip her arms. She felt so embarrassed!
“Allow me, Señorita Worthington….” All of his anger and trepidation ebbed away. She was helpless and sweet, Rafe realized. Not a teenager, either. A young woman. That was good.
His voice was deep, dark honey melting right through to her wildly pounding heart. Ari felt his hands slip around her upper arms to first steady her, and then lift her as if she weighed nothing at all. Humiliated by her fall, she tried not to look at the people moving slowly around them. A number murmured to her in Portuguese and reached out and gently patted her shoulder or arm, as if to help her. Their kindness rattled Ari. She expected people to ignore her and move around her, irritated and giving her disdainful glances.
When Ari lifted her chin and looked up, up into the warm brown eyes of the man who had rescued her, she felt her knees going weak again. Instinctively, she grabbed at his forearms and felt the muscles there tighten. As she gripped him for support, heat rolled up her neck and into her face. Now she was blushing.
“I’m so sorry,” she murmured apologetically. “I—I’m such a klutz! I’m always stumbling and falling. What a mess I’ve made—again….”
Rafe gave her a tight smile. “Señorita, I’m Rafe Antonio. Please, don’t be apologizing. As you can see, no one takes offense at what has happened. You mustn’t, either….” The look in her eyes was like that of a wounded animal, or a child who had done something terribly wrong. Why? Rafe wondered. Her lovely oval face was flushed a deep pink color. Her mouth… He quickly tore his attention from that mouth, which reminded him of a beautiful rose opening in the morning sunlight. She was incredibly beautiful in her own way, even if she was a spoiled, rich norteamericana brat. He liked her broad forehead, her slightly angled blond eyebrows and those flawless blue topaz eyes. Her nose was small, her nostrils flared with chagrin. Though her chin was weak, it completed the oval perfection of her face. As she tried to get her balance, her thick, blond hair moved like ripples on the surface of the Amazon River he loved so much.
Ari couldn’t stand Rafe’s intense inspection and she tore her gaze from his. Once she was upright, she took a step away from him. He released one arm, but carefully monitored his firm hold on the other.
“I’m okay…really, I am….” Then she realized her lapse in manners. “I’m so sorry. I’m Arianna Worthington, Mr. Antonio….” She thrust out her hand. “Oh, and I speak some Spanish, if that’s easier for you.”
Rafe took her proffered hand in his, leaned down and placed a kiss upon the back of it. “Rafe Antonio at your service, Señorita Worthington. And thank you, but I prefer to use my English, as I don’t often get to speak it.”
Ari was thrilled. His hand was huge compared to hers and yet he held her fingers carefully, as if she were delicate porcelain that might shatter with too much pressure applied to it. As his strong mouth grazed her flesh, a series of wild shocks leaped up her arm. Her heart pounded violently in response. No one had ever kissed her hand before! She had to remember she was in a foreign country and that customs were different here. As Rafe raised his head, his brown eyes were hard and merciless looking. Was he unhappy with her? Most likely, Ari thought, her heart failing with pain. So was her father. She could do nothing to please him, either. Was Rafe like her father? The thought made her stomach knot.
“Oh…well, thank you, Señor Antonio….” She quickly pulled her hand away, her flesh tingling deliciously where his mouth had brushed it. Completely off balance due to his impeccable manners, his confidence and power as a man in charge, she felt like a blithering dolt in comparison.
“Call me Rafe,” he murmured in response, picking up her luggage and handing her the purse. He didn’t want to like her. She was artless. Or was it a ploy, like the one Justine, his ex-fiancée, had used on him? She’d been a careful manipulator of his heart and head, and had pretended a helplessness and innocence similar to what Arianna Worthington was now displaying. Was it an act? Was it real? Justine had played him like a harp, so much so that he had agreed to leave his jungle home, move to Manaus and continue his career as a paper pusher instead. One night Justine’s mask had fallen off and he’d seen the real woman beneath—nothing like the one he’d fallen in love with. Rafe was wary of women since that experience. He knew they could play games, could be coy, manipulative and yes, pretend to be a bird with a broken wing. He gave Arianna a hard look. Was she a Justine in disguise? The thought was distasteful to him. He couldn’t think of spending up to six months with such a woman.
Ari moved forward with Rafe leading the way. The crowd seemed to part miraculously for this man who stood head and shoulders above everyone else. Despite how he was dressed, Ari saw other people looking up at Rafe, admiring him, respecting his space. It was an unspoken thing and yet it was palpable and thrilling to her. What was it about him? His chin lifted at a proud angle, and his shoulders were so broad they took her breath away. The way he walked was wonderful to Ari. She wished she could have that same proud, aristocratic carriage.
“You can call me Ari,” she said a little breathlessly as she hurried to catch up to him.
Rafe instantly reduced his stride. He realized that Ari was shorter and therefore had to take more steps to keep up with him. He looked down at her and found her face ablaze with a pink hue. She looked ill at ease. Twice she stumbled over her own feet and twice he reached out and gently took her arm to steady her.
“Thanks,” Ari whispered, feeling shame. “I’m such a klutz….”
“There are a lot of people packed into a very small area,” he told her as they
