‘I imagine you’re busy with the horses.’
Another long silence followed, and he could imagine Holly wondering if she’d said the wrong thing again. ‘Yes, I’m busy with the horses,’ he confirmed, to put her out of her misery. His attention switched to the ponies in the paddock, and to the one in particular that had fallen on top of him during the match. Months had passed since then, and the horse looked well and was moving easily—which was more than could be said for his owner, Diego reflected grimly.
‘Is there something wrong?’ Holly asked, forcing him to refocus on the call.
‘Not really… There is one thing. The name of your wedding planner.’
‘Maxie Parrish?’ Holly supplied with her usual enthusiasm. ‘She’s great, isn’t she?’
‘Could you put my brother on the phone?’ he said, keeping his voice carefully neutral.
‘Of course…’
He could hear the strand of anxiety in Holly’s tone, and then she covered the handset and said something to his brother.
‘Diego?’ Ruiz drawled, in a voice that suggested there were plenty of things he would rather be doing than talking to his brother.
‘Parrish?’ Diego drove on. ‘Holly’s wedding planner is called Maxie Parrish.’
‘So?’ Ruiz queried.
‘Parrish,’ he repeated.
‘Dream Events is the name of the company, isn’t it?’ Ruiz remarked vaguely, clearly far more interested in his bride-to-be than anything else. ‘Her references checked out. Even I was impressed. There must be thousands of girls with the surname Parrish, Diego. And, anyway, you should be over that.’
Maybe he should be, but he wasn’t.
‘It can’t be the same family,’ Ruiz said confidently.
‘And you know this for a fact?’
But Holly had seized the phone again. ‘Have I done something wrong?’ she said. ‘Please tell me if I’ve done something wrong, Diego.’
‘You have done nothing wrong,’ he soothed.
Where could he begin? And why rake up the past and ruin Holly’s romantic moment? She wasn’t to blame for a tragedy Diego had set in motion all those years ago.
‘Would it be better if we rang you some other time?’ Holly was asking with growing concern.
‘No,’ he said, making a conscious effort to gentle his tone. ‘Tell me about the plans you’d like for your wedding, Holly.’
He felt bad when he realised all the fizz had left her voice, but she soon recovered, and as Holly started telling him her exciting news he drifted back to a black time in his life when he had taken one too many risks with tragic consequences. His time out now, with his injury from the polo field, could only be a relief for his opponents—for when Diego played he remembered what he’d done, and when he remembered he cared for nothing. Which made him a danger not only to himself but to everyone around him.
‘You should get back to the game,’ Holly told him softly, as if she could read some of these thoughts. ‘You’re needed, Diego. Your brothers need you. The team isn’t the same without you.’
He hummed. ‘I’m trying, Holly.’
‘I know you’re training every day. Things will get easier, Diego—trust me. And if it’s my wedding that’s bothering you—’
‘There are other places you could get married,’ he pointed out as Maxie’s face flashed into his mind.
‘But none as beautiful as Isla del Fuego,’ Holly argued.
He gazed in silence across the paddock towards the sea, seeing the view as if through Maxie’s camera lens. It was a scene of almost theatrical grandeur, he conceded. The pewter sea, in perfect accord with his mood, thundered against the black lava cliffs, casting diamond spray into the air. And when the sun shone…
‘Are you still there, Diego?’ his brother demanded, having taken the phone from Holly.
‘I’m still here,’ he confirmed. In body that was true, but his mind had strayed back to the past.
‘How many people in the world have the surname Parrish?’ his brother demanded. ‘I know that’s what’s worrying you. Come on, Diego,’ Ruiz insisted impatiently. ‘You’re the numbers guy in the family. You should know.’
This was true, and was thanks mainly to their elder brother Nacho, whose foresight and love had saved Diego from the blackest despair. Back in his arrogant youth Diego had lost money in a deal gone unimaginably bad, and it was Nacho who had told him that if Diego wanted to handle money he should learn how. Diego had gone on to train as an accountant, and now controlled all the family finances.
‘Are you still there, Diego?’ Ruiz pressed.
‘I’m still here,’ he confirmed.
‘You’re far too tense,’ Ruiz commented dryly. ‘And I think we both know the reason for that. According to Holly, Maxie Parrish is a good-looking woman, and you are on the island together—practically alone. Have you lost your edge, Diego?’
He stared down at the receiver as if this was news to him, and then said, ‘Maybe I’m not that interested?’
‘And maybe you’re kidding yourself!’
‘And maybe you’re in danger of sharing the same rose-tinted spectacles as your bride.’
‘Leave Holly out of this,’ Ruiz warned.
‘All I need is a sound leg, a good mount and a chance to get back to the game I love,’ he thundered.
‘We’ll talk again when you’ve come to your senses,’ Ruiz said, leaving him staring in frustration at the phone.
* * *
‘What a wonderful home!’ Maxie exclaimed, turning full circle to soak up the atmosphere in the elegant and welcoming hallway as Maria bustled round with pride.
‘This house has been in the Acosta family for generations,’ Maria explained.
‘What a marvellous heritage,’ Maxie said, thinking back to her own, very different family home. The father who had been so unkind to her mother when she was young had been broken by her mother’s illness. It had been a struggle for him to keep up with all the extras her mother had needed, so, understandably, home comforts had been low on his list. When a hole had appeared in the sofa Maxie had thrown a rug over it, and on one famous occasion she had deconstructed a carpet sample book to patch the stairs. ‘My mother would have loved this,’ she said wistfully, turning slowly to take everything in. She hardly realised she’d been speaking out loud until she felt Maria’s compassionate touch on her arm.
‘Come,’ Maria insisted, shepherding her towards a magnificent mahogany staircase.
There
