Page 51 of A Diamond for My Forbidden Bride

In fact, there were a few things about the board that were suspect. Things that might have had something to do with Dad’s financial mismanagement, and that was just downright unacceptable.

Perhaps it was time for a new broom to sweep away the remains of a past that clearly wasn’t working. And perhaps it was time for me to be that broom. For too long I’d been trying to do things Dad’s way simply so I could prove I could do them better. But maybe I needed to change my approach. Maybe I needed to do thingsmyway, not his, and not worry about whether it was too female.

Concern for all employees of Wintergreen and those that supplied us with our precious resources wasn’t merely a female thing. It was a human thing. And, just because a few old men didn’t like the idea of spending a bit extra to make sure no one was exploited, that didn’t mean I couldn’t change things.

I was passionate about the business and I’d been reining in that passion for far too long because I hadn’t wanted to seem too feminine and upset the board. But Val was right. There was a place for passion in business, and I was going to show them that once and for all. Women were dangerous and those old men had better watch out.

I couldn’t wait to share my ideas with him.

I was sitting in the living area, the big glass doors pushed back to let in the cool breeze from the sea, when the sound of the seaplane leaving caught my attention.

I’d idly watched a procession of people carrying all sorts of items, moving along the jetty to the villa and back again, supervised by Val.

I wasn’t sure what they were—probably more food, since our supplies were on the low side—but I soon lost interest as my attention caught on Val’s tall figure, striding along the jetty as the plane took off behind him, every line of him radiating fury.

I saved the document I was working on and pushed my laptop shut, getting to my feet as Val strode from the jetty to the deck, coming towards the big glass doors. He wore a casual white shirt today instead of a T-shirt, the sleeves rolled up to reveal tanned, powerful forearms. I particularly liked that look on him. It was sexy.

He came through the glass doors and into the room, his anger swirling around him like a hurricane, his eyes full of black fire.

I frowned, concern tightening inside me, and I went over to him, placing my hands on his chest to calm him. ‘What’s wrong?’

He looked down at me, his expression hard, his jaw tight. ‘Apparently, Constantine hasn’t dropped off the surface of the earth. I just had a call from him.’

Everything in me went taut. ‘Oh? What did he say?’

Val’s hands dropped to my hips and he gripped me hard all of a sudden. ‘Take off your clothes.’ His voice was rough, his eyes glittering. ‘I need to let off some steam.’

He was an intensely physical man, I’d discovered, and he’d use either sex or physical exertion to get rid of excess emotion, but I had a feeling that sex wouldn’t calm him down this time. Not if it involved his brother.

And this wasn’t just anger. This was more.

‘Not yet.’ I kept my voice cool to counter his heat. ‘Tell me what he said, Val. You’re upset.’

A muscle leapt in his jaw, his shoulders taut. His expression twisted and I could tell that he wanted to deny it, but he didn’t. Instead, his hands dropped and he took a couple of steps back then turned sharply away. He strode over to the big glass doors then stopped, shoving a hand through his black hair.

‘He told me I can have you,’ he said after a moment. ‘But he’ll fight me for the company.’

I didn’t care if Constantine wanted to let me go. After all, I didn’t want him. But I wasn’t sure why Val was so angry about it. Was it really just about the company?

‘Well, okay,’ I said, trying to sound measured. ‘You must have known he wouldn’t give up the company. And as for me—’

‘You don’t understand.’ Val turned around sharply, the expression on his face blazing with fury. ‘He blames me for it. He blames me foreverything.’

I stared at him, bewildered. ‘Blames you for what?’

He dropped his hand from his hair, then turned away again, pacing the length of the room before turning and pacing back again. Anger and frustration poured off him, making my chest ache.

I didn’t like seeing him like this. No, I didn’t just not like it. I hated it. I wanted to help him, but I didn’t know what to do.

‘Talk to me, Val.’

‘What is there to say?’ His black eyes burned, the ghost of his long-lost Spanish accent beginning to colour his words. ‘All my life I protected him. He was the one most at risk from Domingo. He had a soft heart, he felt things deeply and that made him an easy target. I was the oldest. I was the strongest. Everything I did was to keep him safe.’

His voice deepened, became rougher, and there was something bleak in his expression. ‘It wasn’t the beatings that were the worst part, even though they hurt. The worst part was the isolation. He took...everything away. As soon as it looked to him as if you were taking pleasure out of something, he would take it. We couldn’t run and play outside, no swimming in the pool or climbing trees. We weren’t allowed friends. No dogs, no cats. Constantine had a plastic soldier that one of the housekeepers had given him and he loved it. He played with it a lot and I told him...I told him that it was a bad idea to get attached to it. But he didn’t listen. Then one day Domingo caught him with it and told him to melt it down in the fire.’

He bared his teeth in a facsimile of a smile. ‘Constantine was inconsolable and I couldn’t stand it. So, I grabbed the solider and ran outside with it, and I threw I it on the roof where Domingo couldn’t get it. He beat me half to death that night, but he forgot about that soldier. And that’s when I knew what I had to do. I had to keep disobeying him so he’d leave Constantine alone.’

He’d told me some of this over the course of the past week, but not the details. Not about the soldier. Not about Constantine and his soft heart. And I’d been right to think that the scars inside him ran deep. I could see them right now in his eyes.

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