then waited while she pulled on a jacket and caught up her bag.
She didn’t particularly want him to accompany her out into the cool night air.
He … affected her, and she wasn’t comfortable with it. Any more than she felt at ease witnessing John’s silent reticence in Marcello’s presence.
There shouldn’t be this faintly breathless sense of sexual energy attacking the fragile tenure of her control.
It made her feel slightly off-balance, aware of him at some tenuous level that threatened to shift the foundations she’d fought so hard to cement during the past few years.
Crazy, she dismissed. She was tired, that was all, and tense. Worse, she was allowing her imagination to run riot.
She shot him a cursory look as they reached the front of the pharmacy. ‘I have my own car.’
‘You object to me ensuring you reach it safely?’
His mild query elicited a faintly derisive dismissal. ‘You’re being ridiculous.’
They walked out into darkness where illumination was provided by distant streetlights and a sickle moon.
He was too close. Within touching distance, and the faint aroma of his cologne teased her senses, together with the male scent that was his alone.
Her car was parked in full view, and she deactivated the alarm, paused as Marcello opened the door, then she quickly slid in behind the wheel.
He held the door and leaned down towards her. ‘I’ll be in touch.’
Shannay inclined her head, fired the engine and sent the sedan out onto the road in the direction of home.
CHAPTER FIVE
THE LUXURIOUSLY FITTED Gulf Stream jet cruised at a diminishing altitude as it began its descent to Barajas Airport.
A long flight, during which Shannay had plenty of time to reflect … and wonder for the umpteenth time why she’d agreed to leave the relative security of her own territory for a city in a country which held so many conflicting memories for her, not all of them good.
Carlo’s presence helped ease the intimacy of so few passengers sharing the cabin, and he was a pleasant man in his early forties, tall, whipcord-lean and alert in a way that behoved his position.
It will be fine, she silently reassured.
She was in control, she’d covered every contingency, and this was only a very temporary visit to Madrid.
Nicki travelled well, in awe of her surroundings, the flight, and was almost heartbreakingly willing to please.
Marcello had become Nicki’s new best friend during the week it had taken to confirm his paternity and complete travel documentation.
There had been only one awkward moment when Nicki had asked Marcello in childish innocence, ‘Are you my uncle?’
‘I’m related to the Spanish side of your family,’ he’d responded gently, and solemn young eyes viewed him with unblinking regard.
‘Do you know my daddy?’
‘Yes, I do.’
‘Will I meet him?’
Oh, dear heaven, don’t. Not now, not yet, Shannay silently beseeched.
‘I can promise you will.’
The undisguised rapport they shared had to be a good thing, Shannay constantly reminded herself as she bit down her reaction to the gentle patience he displayed with their daughter.
It made her think of other times when she had delighted in the touch of his hand, his warm smile … and his love.
For it had been love in all its various facets, when she’d believed nothing could rend it asunder.
Yet it had, and being in his company, returning to Madrid, brought everything back into vivid focus.
She could deal with it. She had to, for Nicki’s sake.
Her daughter’s happiness, contentment and security were paramount.
So … get over it.
The jet touched down smoothly, completed the allotted runway, then slid into a designated bay where they disembarked, Marcello dealt with their baggage and formalities before directing them to a waiting limousine bearing the discreet but influential Martinez emblem.
Madrid temperatures in October were not too dissimilar to the early-summer temperatures in Perth. A pleasant time of year in both cities, neither too hot nor too cold.
Shannay saw Nicki seated in the centre of the rear seat, then slid in beside her, aware Marcello gained access on Nicki’s right.
He’d showered, shaved and changed clothes during the flight, so too had she, and, while she’d lain down with Nicki in the bedroom compartment, sleep had come only in brief snatches.
The drive into the city’s heart would take slightly less than half an hour. She had little concern about Marcello’s choice of hotel accommodation … only an impending sense of relief that their arrival would provide escape from his company at least until the next day.
He might be accustomed to changing time zones on a regular basis, but both she and Nicki were not.
Madrid, a city of splendid architecture, combining a fascinating mix of the old and modern, the cacophony of sounds, traffic, voices in a language she hadn’t heard spoken in almost four years.
Shannay felt the light press of Nicki’s fingers curled within her own, and examined her daughter’s features as she took intent interest in the passing scene beyond the lightly tinted windows.
‘It’s different,’ Nicki said tentatively.
‘The traffic travels in the opposite way from where you live. Soon it will become familiar,’ he assured, and met Shannay’s faintly lifted eyebrow.
In a three-week time-frame? I don’t think so.
A faint smile tugged the edges of his mouth as he transferred his attention to Nicki. ‘Not much longer, pequena, and we will be there.’
Nicki regarded him solemnly. ‘What did you call me?’
‘Pequena,’ he said gently. ‘It’s an affectionate name for a little girl.’
She tried it out, copying his intonation, and his smile broadened with gentle warmth as he complimented her, resulting in a beam of childish delight.
They were bonding well … and that had to be a good thing, Shannay accepted. So why did it hurt so much?
She met his gaze, attempted to read his expression, failed miserably, and transferred her attention to the scene beyond the limousine window.
Marcello
