Page 10 of Consequence of One Reckless Night

What if Alexandre didn’t believe her? What would she do then?

Her head spun and she leaned against the wall, taking in huge gulps of air. She couldn’t faint now, she thought as black dots danced maniacally in front of her eyes. She had to share her news with Alexandre, and she had to do it before she fainted at his feet.

Suddenly, the door swung open, and a harried woman stepped out.

“What a bastard he is!” she spat, glaring at Raquel.

Raquel scowled at the animosity radiating from the tall woman.

“He fired me! Me!” she huffed with indignation. “For taking some money that he surely doesn’t need. What’s a few thousand to him?”

Raquel didn’t know how to respond to the agitated woman who clearly thought stealing was alright.

“I didn’t believe it when people told me he is a hard man to please. Nothing and no one can please the great Alexandre. A mouse like you—” She looked derisively at Raquel. “—he will chew you up and spit you out before you can say boo!”

Raquel bristled with anger, offended at the assumption that she was dull and displeasing as a mouse, but before she could say anything, the awful woman stalked away.

Scowling, she turned back to the door, took a deep breath, and knocked.

****

Alexandre stood lookingat the sole palm tree in the employee parking lot. It was just noon and already he was tired.

Today started off badly with a phone call from his half-brother reminding him about the dinner party that evening.

Pre-engagement dinner.

He couldn’t believe his brother agreed to an arranged marriage with a woman he literally knew nothing about.

Alexandre had nothing against arranged marriages.

In India, it was still the most popular way to get married. It was a time-tested method where people often met others who were socially, economically, and religiously compatible. But Alexandre was certain that his brother had agreed to such an insipid arrangement to please their grandfather. He wanted better for his brother, but once Leandro made up his mind, nothing could sway his decision.

What bothered him equally was meeting Carlos and his brother’s soon-to-be-in laws.

Big family gatherings distressed him.

Though he carried the Monteiro surname, he didn’t feel like one. Carlos had adopted him many years ago when his mother—Liza—threatened to go to the press with the news that Carlos’s golden son, Rico, had fathered a bastard child. Relations between him and the Monteiros were strained on the best of days, but he was certain Carlos would be incensed if he turned up at dinner that evening.

Family meant everything to Carlos and Leandro, and while Carlos didn’t consider Alexandre a part of his family, Leandro most certainly did. Hence the invitation to the shindig tonight and he knew he would go to the blasted dinner party, if only to please his brother.

Only, he wasn’t in a mood to meet anyone. And hadn’t been since the day he left Raquel sleeping in his bed.

That morning when he’d reached for her a second time, he hadn’t been fully awake. His hands had reached for her, drawing her closer so he could tease her awake. And she had responded immediately, her eyes fluttering open, hazy from sleep and reaching for his turgid flesh with her small hands.

It had been bliss, sliding into her from behind, slipping into the warm clutch of her core which had her moaning unashamedly. Their coupling had been slow but deliciously erotic as he came inside her with her leg draped over his thigh and her breast in his palm.

The strong climax had jolted him awake, and he’d almost immediately regretted taking her again. But nothing could tear him away from the moist embrace of her muscles, milking him dry even as he began to distance himself mentally.

He never slept with the same woman twice—but Raquel was the exception. He’d walked away from her, but he feared he’d lost a piece of himself to her.

She was constantly in his thoughts and in his dreams. He remembered every detail about her—her beautiful brown eyes, her lovely lips, and her sexy body.

He toyed with the idea of looking her up, not understanding why he wanted to connect with her again or why he felt the intense compulsion to recreate the magic of that one night. It was beyond sexual gratification, he realized. Physical attraction he understood, but emotional intimacy was something he steered clear of.

He’d been a woman’s pawn once—his mother had used him like a bargaining chip, promising him things which never materialized. A home, a father—and love. He’d believed that Liza had loved him, but she had merely used him to feather her paltry nest.

Never again, he thought, forcing himself to concentrate on his present. Never again would he become a woman’s pawn. He wouldn’t give his love again. His own mother had betrayed his trust, and if the woman who gave him birth could treat him so abysmally, could he expect anything better from another woman?

---