Page 54 of Midnight Surrender to the Spaniard

‘Come through,’ she said, trying to breathe through her mouth and avoid the rich scent of the air whenever he was near. ‘Carmen and I had a great day, and I came back to find this.’ She pointed to several designer bags in her bedroom.

‘A bed?’

‘No!’

‘I can only see the bed,’ he said, and she tensed. Because he was so potent that the bags seemed to have faded and the bed was all she could see too.

‘You spent far too much. You didn’t need to do that.’

‘So?’ He shrugged and took a seat on the same chair she had been on.

‘That’s my seat,’ Anna said.

‘Come and sit here with me, then.’

He seemed lighter somehow. She didn’t know this Sebastián—this lighter, less intense version of him.

She tried to get back to the reason he was here...took a seat on the sofa. ‘We went shopping, and got our hair done, and—’

He closed his eyes, as if in frustration, and at her halting words took a breath and nodded for her to go on.

‘She’s okay,’ Anna said, not wanting to break Carmen’s confidence, and yet wanting to let Sebastián know it wasn’t that anything dark had taken place with her ex. ‘She didn’t want to talk at first. I mean, she doesn’t know me... But when we were getting our hair done I told her how I haven’t been on a date in years...’

‘To get her to talk?’

‘Yes,’ Anna said.

‘You didn’t have to exaggerate that much.’

He smiled his gorgeous, arrogant smile and Anna opened her mouth to correct him. He didn’t seem to quite get it that she’d told Carmen a painful truth in an attempt to get her to open up.

It was immaterial, Anna decided, choosing not to labour the point.

‘We spoke a lot. I told Carmen about some of the nastier things Willow’s father said when we broke up.’

‘Okay...’ The smile was wiped off his face and he was serious now. ‘Whatdidhe say to you?’

‘We’re talking about Carmen.’ Anna put up her hand, because she was not about to get into a discussion of her ex. ‘You’re right—what happened with her ex was nasty, but she’s okay. It’s only her feelings that are hurt...’

‘Okay...’

Sebastián looked both frustrated and concentrating hard. He was clearly concerned about his sister, but that didn’t seem to be the whole reason he was here.

‘I think she’s moving on from it.’

‘Thank you.’ He nodded. ‘I’m glad that she’s spoken to someone.’ He hesitated. ‘To you.’

‘It’s not just...’ Anna paused.

There was one other thing Anna wanted to share about her meeting with Carmen, because she honestly didn’t know if she’d handled it right.

‘It’s not just about the break-up. I do think she’s working through that...’

‘What then?’ He frowned. ‘Maria?’

‘Not just that either.’ Anna worried at her lip for a moment. ‘I don’t know if I should say anything...’

‘Anna, whatever your opinion of me, surely you can accept that I have my sister’s best interests at heart?’

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