Page 29 of Brazilian Revenge

Chapter Nine

“Open your eyes, Satyanna,” Harry whispered.

She fumbled with the blindfold and pulled it down on her face. For the past couple hours Harry had been in mysterious mode, and she wasn’t sure that was good or bad.

When her gaze landed at the yacht anchored at Santa Monica pier, she frowned. Harry had explained beforehand he’d be doing some business in California, and she didn’t imagine he’d have much time for her, which was fine. Just knowing he’d helped her out of that dreadful youth house six months ago should have been enough. Life with him wasn’t perfect, but at least she’d be able to finish school and even think about college.

The breeze caressed her face, and she was glad her hair had been in a bun—a suggestion from Harry. Never in her life had anyone cared what she wore or how she looked. So why not give him the satisfaction of seeing her all prim and proper with a sleek do and long red dress? “What’s happening?”

“Remember how you told me once you never went to a father-daughter dance?”

Satyanna nodded. Did he even remember? She had mentioned on a day she had foolishly experimented with some of his liquor. Drinking wasn’t really her thing, and she was under the drinking age. Although Harry wasn’t a man who abhorred illegal activities, he had been mad at her for drinking. Like it was wrong and he…cared about her. “I remember.”

“Well, I had a meeting with a fellow who owns this yacht. And he told me I should take it for a ride before buying it. So we’re doing it in style, Satyanna,” he said, and gave her his arm.

She hesitated for a second, and then took his arm. They walked on the deck, and the closer she got to the beautiful boat, the more vivid details drew her in. There was a DJ in a small booth, a cold-cut buffet, and a few other people aboard. “Who are these people?”

“I thought it would be more fun to have company.”

He slipped his hand inside his tux and retrieved a pink rose.

Her throat clogged. “Why…why are you doing all this?”

A smile formed on his lips. “Because I never attended a father-daughter dance either.”

Satyanna shook her head, willing the memory away. Was it wrong to remember the good things Harry provided her in the past? Yes it was, because she’d learned later he never borrowed that yacht per se.

Don’t dwell on it. Focus on the good. She kissed the top of Lyanna’s head. They had been together for a few hours, but her heart squeezed with joy, and tears threatened to spill from her eyes every time she held her daughter. She’d checked the nursery room for items she needed, and found them all handy. Clothes, diapers, wipes, and cans of baby formula. She never got to breastfeed her baby. In the midst of all that happiness, Leonardo’s drawl rang in her ears. With or without your help.

Now that they had Lyanna with them, couldn’t they just move forward? Harry was far too smart to get caught, even by someone as determined as Leonardo.

Holding the baby, she walked into the room Leonardo had been searching for thirty minutes. Lyanna had already napped and woken up, and Satyanna had changed her diapers—twice—and given her the bottle. The moment could almost pass for domestic, if he weren’t about to flip over a mattress.

“No luck?” she asked.

“Nothing important yet,” he said, rolling up his sleeves. A sheen of sweat covered his forehead and cheeks, even though the air conditioner was on. Looking at him like that…disheveled hair, the top buttons from his shirt undone, and that glint of resolve in his eyes…

She bit back a smile. An annoying ripple surged through her, and she decided not to muse over what it meant. For crying out loud, they had sex the night before. She couldn’t want him again, could she?

He frowned. “What are you thinking?”

“Baths,” she said. Oh, great. “I may need to give Lyanna a bath tomorrow. Kinda nervous. My first one.”

A delicious smile played on his lips. “It’s not that hard. I’ll help.”

“Thanks.”

She carried the baby, who started to yawn again. She took her to the nursery and sang her a lullaby. She had stared at those dusty pink walls for several minutes, but the ground was still gone from underneath her feet. They were inside Harry’s home, in Brazil, and they’d found their daughter. What was next?

Before she knew Lyanna was alive, she had planned on returning to the States. Brazil was great, but she had no ties in the country, and, after a yearlong exile, she missed the little roots she had. “I’ll show it all to you, little one,” she said, putting the baby on the crib. She couldn’t wait to explore the streets of New York City with her daughter in a stroller. To take her to Central Park on a sunny Sunday morning. To show her, as she grew, all the fantastic museums and sites.

What about Leonardo?a voice inside her whispered.

What kind of relationship would they maintain for Lyanna’s sake? After her troubled childhood, she’d sworn once she created her own family she would give it the best shot she could. An intact family with no broken home. No possibility of third party entering the equation.

Taking a deep breath, she headed to the room where the nurse had been staying. Well, imprisoned. For the past couple hours Leonardo had walked the woman to the bathroom once and Satyanna had brought her a sandwich and water not that long ago. Before she went to try to get some sleep, maybe she should ask if the woman needed anything.

When she had been in the Brazilian prison, the guards ignored the prisoners for the most part. Why should she act the same way? Leonardo was right; Jacinta needed to pay. But, knowing the type of hardship she’d endure in a Brazilian prison, Satyanna decided to offer her some decent food. She fetched the key from the console and then knocked on the door. “Jacinta, do you need anything?”

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