Page 57 of Surrender to the Ruthless Billionaire

He’d felt calmer then, and lighter, as though something had been eased from his shoulders. And it was all thanks to Cristina. If she hadn’t been there—

His heart had contracted and he had known he needed to find her and thank her.

Only she hadn’t been in the house, and Pilar hadn’t seen her either. He’d tried calling her, but her phone had been engaged. It was only by chance that he’d caught

sight of her as he was striding past the folly.

But as she’d turned to face him his anticipation of talking to her had given way to a mix of doubt and disquiet, for even if he hadn’t heard the urgency and panic in her voice, her cheeks were flushed with guilt.

‘Who were you talking to?’ He spoke calmly, but watching her trying to compose that beautiful face—that beautiful, disingenuous face—into a mask of innocence, he felt as though a hurricane was raging through his body. He remembered all the times her phone had rung and she’d ignored it.

She gave him an awkward shrug. ‘Oh, it was just Grace. I sent over some of the shots.’

‘What did she think?’

It was difficult to say what was more impressive, he thought savagely. Her ability to lie so efficaciously or the detachment in his own voice.

The flags of colour on her cheekbones grew darker as she smiled. ‘She hasn’t looked at them yet.’

Cristina thought her lips might crack with the effort of smiling. It felt wrong, lying to Luis, but what was she supposed to tell him? The truth?

Her stomach lurched. No, anything was better than that. Particularly as his mood seemed to have shifted.

Glancing at his face, she let her brain loop back to earlier that morning, and her heart thumped as she realised why he was acting so oddly.

‘So how did it go with your parents? Was it okay?’

He held her gaze. ‘Is that what this is about? My family secrets? If so, I hope they’re paying you well, because by the time you step off this island I’ll have made certain you never work again.’

The stone floor seemed to ripple beneath her feet and she took a step backwards. ‘What are you talking about? I don’t understand—’

‘Then let me enlighten you.’

He stepped forward and, taking the phone from her hand, swiped the screen. Then, eyes narrowing, he thrust it in front of her face.

‘According to your contacts list you were talking to Laura, not Grace, and that makes you a liar.’

Watching the shock and then resignation on her face, Luis thought he might throw up. He had believed her. Not just believed her but confided in her.

‘It—It’s not what you think,’ she stammered.

‘No,’ he said coldly. ‘It probably never is with you, Cristina.’ His mouth curled with contempt. ‘Now, I could make some accusations and you could deny them—but, frankly, I don’t want to waste that much time on you. So I think I’ll just call this Laura and find out which grubby little rag she’s working for—’

‘No. You can’t call her!’ Cristina lunged for the phone but he held it out of her reach.

‘But I can.’

His eyes were blazing with anger, and to her horror she realised that he was serious.

‘Please—she’s not a reporter. She works at a museum.’

He glanced over at her but didn’t lower his arm. ‘And she’s ringing you because…?’

She stared at him dumbly, pain swelling in her chest. ‘She’s my half-sister.’

Luis stared at her. No one except maybe a professional actress could fake the shock and pain in her eyes. She was telling the truth, but…

‘But why didn’t you answer her calls?’ He glanced down at the screen. ‘She must have rung you a hundred times.’

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