with colourful photos of his first hotel all the way through to his last, with Argentina featuring somewhere in the middle. She was peering at an album, recognising one or two places, when she heard a voice behind her.
‘Wondered when you would make an appearance, my dear stepsister... Is that what you are? Hmm...difficult with your being off the scene for such a long time. Hard to know what to call you. Somehow, sis feels all wrong.’
Sofia turned round to find that Freddy had stolen into the room and shut the door behind him without her having heard him.
He was impeccably dressed and groomed to within an inch of his blond locks, but there was a cruelty in his eyes that she had clocked the very first time she had set eyes on him.
‘Freddy.’ She offered a stiff smile and remained where she was. Her nerves had kicked in and they went into overdrive as he moved towards her before pausing and then circling her, eyes roving up and down in the process.
‘So.’ He completed the circle and then stood in front of her. ‘David’s long-lost daughter. Touching. Can’t tell you how surprised we all were.’
‘We?’
‘Of course!’ His eyebrows shot up. ‘You didn’t think that you could make a grand entrance—fille prodigue, no less—without raising a few questions, did you? And no sooner are you here than the big, bad wolf, your newly acquired husband, is rushing along playing trouble shooter. Hmm...now, let me think...perhaps we is an overstatement. You’re not visible enough to raise any eyebrows. I have to admit that you’ve given award-winning performances whenever you’ve been out in the public domain. But, my dear sis, you don’t fool me.’ He sighed elaborately. ‘That story of love at first sight...whirlwind romance with Mr Eligible Bachelor dispatched to bring you back to your dear papa... Call me sceptical, but it doesn’t wash with me...’
‘I think I’ve seen all there is to see in this room,’ Sofia countered politely. ‘Paula’s waiting for me to carry on with the tour.’
‘Sadly, Paula has had to deal with other business. It’s just the two of us and, before that nosy, over-zealous so-called husband of yours begins wondering where you are, I should tell you that it’s not going to work.’
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’
Nosy? Over-zealous? Because he was trying to get a grip on this man’s destructive management? Rage boiled inside her but diplomacy won out over emotion.
‘He’s been running around checking up on some of my decisions and meddling. Probably trying to dig up dirt on me as well, not that he’s going to find anything. I’m as pure as the driven snow. And, just putting it out there, I wonder what tongues would start wagging if the rumour somehow started that the loved-up couple was all a fake...? I could spice things up a bit. Shares have a nasty habit of responding to rumours...up one minute, down the next...’
Sofia’s lip curled and then, before she knew it, he was so much closer to her, standing right in front of her, and the atmosphere shifted. He reached out and stroked her bare arm. For a few shocking seconds she couldn’t react, was catapulted back to a time when the unwanted attention of men had made her heart beat faster with apprehension, then she drew back sharply.
‘Feel free to pass the message along, my dearest prodigal stepsister.’ He moved away, back towards the door. ‘He’s wasting his time. I’m here to stay and I intend to get fully involved in running this show, whatever Mr High-and-Mighty may think on the subject. Sooner or later, he’ll get bored trying to figure me out, and then he can ride off into the sunset, back to his own company. In the meantime, good luck to him!’ He half-saluted, pulled open the door and was gone.
Sofia only realised how tense the interchange had made her when she released one long, indrawn breath on a shudder. Sure enough, when she got her legs moving and peered out of the room, Paula was no longer around. Sofia had left her outside on a phone call and, yes, she had been dispatched while Freddy had done what he had wanted to do.
Which was what? Warned her to warn Rafael? She shivered, because there had been more to that twenty-minute exchange than a simple case of intimidation.
She sped through the rest of the company simply because she happened to be on a tour, even if it was a tour without a guide, and because she refused to be cowed by Freddy.
She’d met types like him before. Maybe without the power but he was definitely a type.
The thoughts clarified in her head but she had already joined Rafael, left the building and was sitting in a small restaurant with him with a menu in front of her before she said, hesitantly, ‘You’ll never guess who I bumped into...’
Rafael carefully dropped his menu and relaxed back in the chair to look at her with brooding intensity.
‘I must be psychic because I could sense something was wrong within five seconds of meeting you in the foyer.’ He beckoned the waitress across while keeping his eyes pinned to Sofia’s face. It was a talent she had noticed he possessed. There was never any need for him to beckon for anyone’s attention when they were in a restaurant or a bar. He just seemed to emanate some kind of invisible aura that did the talking for him. Or maybe serving staff had special antennae for guys like him. At any rate, the waitress had tripped over before Sofia had time to launch into what she wanted to say.
‘Will I need anything stronger than a glass of wine to deal with what’s bugging you?’
‘It’s no big deal.’
‘Tell me.’ He ordered a bottle of wine and waited until they had chosen what they wanted and the waitress had vanished. ‘Who did you bump into?’
‘Freddy.’
Rafael stilled and for a few seconds he didn’t say anything. ‘Interesting. I was hoping to do the same but he couldn’t be located for love nor money. The man has a peculiar talent for evasion when it comes to facing me down. What did that waste of space have to say for himself?’
‘Well...’ She sat back as a selection of tapas was placed in front of them, light and tasty and perfect for a late lunch. ‘For a start, I can tell you that he’s not your biggest fan.’
‘I think I came to that conclusion a long time ago.’
‘Aside from the business with work...and he’s very smug that you won’t be able to stop him from doing what he wants to do...he also told me that he didn’t believe in this, in us, and that he might just decide to share that with the rest of the world.’
Rafael regarded her narrowly. ‘Quite the conversation the pair of you had. How did this come about, bearing in mind you were supposed to have had a dedicated tour guide showing you the highlights and lowlights of the company?’
‘I went to the room where there’s a potted history of the company and its expansion. Paula had already shown me around various departments. I left her outside taking a call and the next thing I knew Freddy had entered the room and Paula had disappeared.’
‘And I’m thinking that the two things are somehow connected. Did he think that he could use scare tactics on you because he’s not man enough to face me himself?’
Sofia didn’t say anything. She realised, with some surprise, that she had nibbled away at most of the little dishes and drunk a glass of wine. Her
