flicking through the pages, ‘it hasn’t made any of the gossip rags in the UK. The Spanish must be short on scandal.’
‘Let’s just forget about it, okay?’ Alexa was sick of being the wild-child. ‘We still have to plan Jenna’s dare.’
Jenna groaned. ‘I’d rather talk about your date with the hunk.’
Sarah dropped the magazine and turned on her side to face Alexa. ‘What’s his story, anyway? Didn’t he used to be reckless, a bit of an adrenaline-junkie?’
‘He was as far as I know.’ Alexa thought maybe the git would have cut her some slack, since he had hardly been a good little boy growing up.
Jenna pulled out her iPhone and swept her fingers across the screen. A few minutes later, she grinned. ‘It’s so sexy to see a man jump out of a plane, and all these woman must think so too.’
Alexa ground her teeth. She wasn’t going to ask, she wasn’t.
Sarah piped in. ‘What women?’
Jenna turned the phone around to show Google Image results for a search on Enrique Castillo. She didn’t want to look, really. But she couldn’t not. In all the tiny pictures, he was with a different woman, rarely pictured with one twice. She tried to tell herself the twisty feeling in her stomach was disgust. After all, it definitely couldn’t be jealousy.
She polished off the rest of her cocktail then lay down on the lounger, her hands covering up her sensitive bits from the rays of the sun. The twisting sensation in her tummy turned to an almost low burn, and her already warm skin flared hotter. Puffing out a breath, she tried to wipe the images Jenna showed her from her mind. She really didn’t care if Ric had dated, or even slept with all those women. After tonight, she’d never see him again if she could help it.
Ric glanced at his watch again. Seven thirty. She should be here by now. He grabbed another glass from a passing waiter, then made his way through the throng of Spanish socialites to the exit.
The car park was empty. Party already in full swing, all the guests had parked up or their chauffeurs had left. He glanced toward the road leading off the beach. Frustration set in as he saw the empty strip of tarmac before him.
Running his free hand through his hair, he cursed under his breath. Today was a hell of a day for people letting him down. First his events organiser, Lydia, who had a family emergency, and now the unpredictable heiress.
He turned back to the boathouse and took a long gulp of champagne. Boathouse was an understatement. The Castillo holiday home covered at least a quarter of an acre and had its own private stretch of beach. The house itself consisted of four levels, the ground floor specially kitted out as a ballroom to host parties for those who were somebody in the Costa Del Sol—or those, like himself, with a connection to the owners, a fat wallet and deep pockets.
The sound of wheels crunching against the tarmac made him turn. His driver nodded at him from the front seat and Ric exhaled. She was here.
Manuel exited the vehicle, rounded it and then pulled open the rear door. Ric heard every one of his heartbeats pounding in his ears as he visualised what Alexa would look like in a glamorous gown. He’d couldn’t help but notice her around his hotel. Scandal was something he wished to avoid if he could help it—even in his adrenaline-junkie days—and scandal seemed to follow her wherever she went. He’d worked hard to gain some respect in this society, and whether he deserved it or not, it wasn’t something he wanted to lose.
He’d seen her in non-existent shorts, a tiny cocktail dress which made his blood heat and now he could add undies to the list.
But none of it could have prepared him for what he saw now.
Taking Manuel’s hand, she stepped out of the limo. First he only noticed the plunging neckline and his gaze followed the cut of the material to the curve of her breasts and then further, down to the flash of toned, tanned stomach above her navel.
Fire ripped through his veins. Ric gulped down the last of the champagne. It didn’t help.
She turned to him, a smile of triumph curved her hot-red lips, flashing bright, white teeth. He opened his mouth—to say what, he had no idea—but then she stepped out from behind the car door and his mind blanked.
His gaze was drawn down over the clingy fabric which hugged every delectable curve of her body. The bronze silk flowed down to her ankles, but it by no means covered her legs. A slit cut through the material, up past her bare hipbone. The pulse in his groin grew more prominent as he prayed she wore high legged knickers and hadn’t gone without.
A long, supple leg poked all the way out of the slit as she strode toward him. He was frozen to the spot and his mind seemed to have crashed south.
Pausing in front of him, Alexa tilted her head to the side and looked up. ‘You like?’
Too much.
He remembered his promise to himself. Straightening and dragging in a breath through his teeth, Ric forced himself to concentrate. ‘I said formal, Alexa.’ He frowned to drive home his point.
‘This—’ She spun around, exhibiting golden skin he ached to drag his teeth over. ‘—is as formal as you’ll get from me.’
Her smile, filled with mischief, tipped his libido over the edge. He grabbed her hips and pulled her flush against him. Humour fled her expression as her head tilted back and her eyes sparkled shiny platinum. Ric didn’t know what she’d see, but he could guess. His hunger pulsed in his groin in time with his rapid heartbeats. Her pupils dilated, and he knew then he wasn’t the only one feeling this crazed pull between them.
‘This—’ He drew a finger down the silky skin on her naked back, pausing when it met the material over the curve of her buttocks ‘—is not formal.’ Her tremble vibrated through him.
Alexa planted her palms on his chest and her breathing sped. Her tongue poked out and moistened her lips. Irritation forgotten, he lowered his head. As he drew closer he could taste her sweet breath. Every cell inside him screamed to plunder her mouth and take all she had to offer, and he knew from her pliant body and come-to-bed eyes that she would definitely offer, whether she was still angry at him or not. His hands, now settled on hips that were exactly as firm as he’d imagined, itched to slip through the split and find out whether she did wear anything beneath the scrap.
Alexa’s eyes closed and her lips parted. His hands were an inch away and his body hummed in anticipation.
‘Ric, darling. There you are!’
Ric snapped out of the spell Alexa held over him and turned his attention to his mother, Maria Castillo, who was walking toward them from the boathouse. His whole body ran cold. Alexa tried to pull out of his hold, but he tightened his grip reflexively.
Ric hated being indebted to anyone and the fact he owed Maria and Antonio more than he could ever repay made him uncomfortable. They’d adopted him to protect his past with their name and help him start a new life. He’d thrown it back in their faces, using their money to fund his obsession to find a new high jumping out of planes, speedboat racing and whatever else caught his interest.
Now he wanted to prove he could change, be trusted enough to pay them back by making their hotel and new resort in Marbella flourish. Maybe even go into the new resort as a partner, not just an employee.
