Page 15 of His Unexpected Heir

Antonio’s mind stopped thinking about herd maintenance when he spotted Astra sleeping on the bench in the rose garden. She was curled up awkwardly on the wooden bench, her silky, brown hair draped over the edge, nearly touching the pebbled ground. She looked…soft. Seeing her like this, he realized how he could have been fooled into thinking that she was the kind, generous woman he’d assumed she was almost five months ago.

He'd definitely been fooled. Astra had been soft and passionate in his arms, snuggling against him for what had remained of the night. Yes, she’d been exhausted after the wedding. But she’d come alive in his arms, matching his passion with an equal dose of her own. He’d been enthralled by her desire, wanting to make love to her all over again the next day.

But she’d vanished. And after calling her repeatedly in the following weeks, only to have his phone calls returned at times when she had to know he couldn’t answer the calls – such as when he was sound asleep – he’d finally accepted that she was purposely trying to avoid speaking with him.

So, why was she here now? And why was his body trying to convince his brain that they could pick up exactly where they’d left off?

That was impossible, he told his body. She wasn’t the woman he’d thought her to be. She’d wanted just one night with him. No commitments. While Antonio…he wanted forever with Astra. He’d wanted a family and all the joy that his friends were enjoying. He wanted what he’d never experienced as a child.

That wasn’t to be. At least, it wouldn’t happen with Astra. She was a selfish woman who didn’t want a man in her life. She was a career woman, who was more than ready to head off to the next party. Literally, since she organized parties for a living.

Sighing, he rubbed the back of his neck. For a brief moment, he considered waking her and suggesting that she’d be more comfortable in a bed. But that meant touching her. And touching her would only interfere with his need to avoid the bitch.

No, that wasn’t fair. Astra wasn’t a bitch. He thought back to that woman in the village. What was her name? Maria something or other …now she was a truly horrible human being. Every damn time he walked into the village, she seemed to appear out of nowhere. How the hell the woman knew when he was coming, he couldn’t figure out. But as soon as he found the person who was warning Maria that he was around, he was going to…Antonio wasn’t sure what he’d do.

But surely there was some way to find a happy medium between his sire’s evil aggression and being harangued by the woman. He knew that Maria was trying to get him to ask her out on a date, but her efforts were becoming more obvious. And embarrassing.

His eyes sharpened on Astra as she shifted on the bench.

“Maldito sea!” he snarled, striding over to the sleeping woman. She was going to fall and hurt herself! “Are you purposely trying to hurt yourself?” he softly demanded of the sleeping woman.

Still, he bent down and lifted Astra into his arms. “What are you doing?” she demanded, her words slurred from sleep.

“Putting you into a bed,” he replied, his voice gruff. The words sounded more salacious than he’d intended and Antonio looked down to see if she would get angry. Instead, she simply smiled and leaned her head against his shoulder.

“Sounds lovely,” she whispered. A moment later, her breathing was even and he knew that Astra was asleep again.

Shaking his head, Antonio headed into the castle. He had no idea which room his housekeeper had set up for her, but instead of searching out Eldora to ask, he headed up the stairs. It was just easier to put her into a bed and be done with her. The sooner he got her out of his arms, the better.

And that was a damn lie, he thought as he pushed his way into the room next to his own. This had been his mother’s room. Thankfully, Eldora had continued to maintain the room, so it was clean and dusted. There weren’t sheets on the bed, but he set Astra onto the soft mattress, then pulled the cashmere blanket up over her. Her eyes fluttered for a moment, then she fell back into a deep sleep.

Angry that Astra had exhausted herself to this point, he watched her for a long moment. She really was a stunningly beautiful woman. With her eyes closed like this, he could see her long, dark lashes against the pale skin. She was softer, but was there a paleness to her skin that might hint at a health problem? Her lips were white as well. He remembered them being more colored, but that had probably been lipstick.

Still, he turned and walked out of the room, heading into the kitchen to speak with Eldora. Astra needed nutrients, he told himself. She’d worked herself into a state of exhaustion and that wasn’t healthy.

“What the hell do you mean?”

Maria stared at the old woman, trying to hide her fury. She knew that the other villagers loved to gossip and Maria didn’t want them to whisper anything bad about her to her future husband. So she lowered her voice and tried to smile. “Explain yourself!” she demanded, but softening her tone. It was an effort to be more polite, but Maria mentally patted herself for her control. Then she gritted her teeth as she waited.

“A woman arrived earlier today. She’s a guest of the castle.” Eldora huffed, shaking her head. “She fell asleep in the garden, so the master put her into the mistress’ suite.” The housekeeper crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the younger woman. “What are you going to do about this development?”

Maria stood up and paced the small patch of grass. At one point, the village park had been a beautiful place to sit and read. But that had been decades ago, long before Maria had been born. She’d seen pictures, of course. But years of neglect had left the park with only thin patches of grass surrounded by weeds and brown patches of mud and gravel. Now, it was mostly a place for teenagers to hang out and drink after the sun went down. The streetlights surrounding the park had long ago been shattered or the bulbs burned out and never replaced.

However, at the moment, the sun was still shining, which meant that the teens and other criminal elements residing in the village hadn’t bothered to come to the park. So it was a relatively safe place for Maria and Eldora to talk.

“You have to get rid of her!” Maria snapped.

Eldora let out a harsh bark of laughter. “How am I supposed to accomplish that? The man you want to marry hired her.” The older woman shook her head. “You should have gotten close enough to him by now to know what he’s up to. If anyone should get rid of her, it would be you.”

Maria bit the end of her thumb, wishing she could nibble on her fingernail. It was a nasty habit, which was why she’d taught herself not to do it anymore. Plus, she’d just come back from Madrid where she’d gotten a manicure and pedicure. Her nails looked lovely at the moment. The pink shade she’d chosen this time wasn’t too brash, like the red she’d chosen last time. Red wasn’t a good color for a bride, she’d determined. Pink was softer and more “innocent”. Since brides were “innocent”, she almost scoffed at that lie, Maria wanted to do everything possible to come across as innocent. Everything Maria did these days was to prove to Antonio that she would be his perfect bride.

Maria flipped her hair and sighed heavily, as if she were impatient. “I’ll just go up to the castle and explain that Antonio needs to get rid of the bitch.” She paused, tilting her head slightly. “You said that this woman is a party planner?” When Eldora nodded grimly, Maria shrugged dismissively. “I can organize parties for the villagers myself. If he wants to throw a party, then it should be me, since I know the residents here better than anyone.” She grinned and spun around, enjoying the way her silk skirts swished against her legs. Soon, she would only wear silk clothing! As soon as she convinced Antonio to marry her, she’d fly out to Paris and demand that all of the most sought after designers drape her in the most luxurious silks!

Eldora stood up, self-consciously smoothing her drab cotton skirt over her legs, hiding her jealousy of the younger woman’s clothing. “Well, if that’s your plan, then hurry up about it. I don’t like the American woman.” She tilted her head, staring up at the castle. “There’s something about her that makes me nervous. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but she’s trouble.” She turned her head, eyeing Maria. “I’ll help you get rid of the woman if you promise to hire more help at the castle.” She grunted and grabbed her faux leather purse. “I’m sick of cleaning the entire place by myself.” Eldora slung her purse over her shoulder. “The marquesso had an entire staff for me to delegate the chores to. But when he was arrested, the son let go of everyone.”

Maria flipped her hair over her shoulder, unconcerned about household chores. “As soon as I marry Antonio, I’ll hire back every person who used to help you at the castle. I will need servants because life is going to be wonderful!”

Eldora snorted. “You won’t get those lazy slogs back. The people Antonio laid off were sent away with a pension. They’re living the good life. I was the only one not offered a pension! It really pisses me off that I’m left to do all the work while the others are lazing about, fishing and traveling.”

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