Page 66 of Virgin's Stolen Nights with the Boss

‘Gollum,’ he said quietly, and gave a low laugh. ‘But to her face we call her Pixie.’

Carmen laughed, but soon it faded away. There was something about seeing his home—the trees and the plants and the Misfits—that reminded Carmen of her own.

‘I miss home,’ Carmen said as she stroked Homer, wondering what on earth she was doing here when her family was on the other side of the world. Why was she fighting her mother when in truth she had only ever wanted to get closer to her? ‘I might head back...’

‘To Spain?’

She could tell she had taken him by surprise.

‘No! To the lodge.’ She laughed. ‘But, yes, eventually to Spain.’

‘Come in.’

She shook her head, too nervous to glimpse more of his private world. She knew where that would lead.

‘No, I have to be up early tomorrow,’ Carmen said. ‘Today has been lovely, but it’s not going to be repeated and I don’t want people talking...’

His eyes narrowed just a little. Perhaps he had not been expecting that. She doubted Elias got turned down often.

‘I liveandwork with my new friends. We share a house and everything is good—I don’t want all that to change.’

‘I’m not suggesting you move in!’

‘I know,’ Carmen said. ‘I just don’t want to be treated differently by them. And I don’t want you to treat me differently at work.’

‘I’m barely going to be there this week,’ Elias said. ‘And why would I treat you differently?’

‘Because I’dexpectyou to,’ Carmen stated tartly. ‘If I was in your bed at night I would not appreciate being ignored the next day. I’d want flowers and dinners and more than you want to give. And how could Blake tell me off if I overslept when I was in your bed? That wouldn’t be fair to him. Or to me.’

He looked at her assessingly. Admiringly.

‘I’m here in America to make my own way...to work things out... I don’t need the distraction of you.’

‘Touché,’ he said. ‘You’re okay, though? I mean, after last night, this morning, the pier...’

‘I feel better,’ she said with a smile. ‘I think I overreacted this morning because I felt overwhelmed. I accused you of terrible things...’

‘I wish you’d—’

‘I know. You wish I’d told you. Thank you for a wonderful day,’ Carmen said, ‘and a wonderful time last night.’ She meant that. ‘I don’t regret a thing.’

She soon might, though, Carmen knew. If she started to develop real feelings for him.

Hadn’t she sworn off even the notion of love? Even dating?

‘Night,’ she said, and instead of heading to his ranch, where it felt as if her heart was pulling her, she walked across the grounds.

But when she got to the lodge, instead of heading up to her attic room she sat outside in the quiet summer kitchen, thinking about home.

She didn’t want to be cynical and mistrusting, like Elias.

Whatever he might say, Carmen believed in second chances, and she desperately, fervently, wanted to believe in love.

Though perhaps not with a playboy...

Decision made, she took out her cell phone and tapped on Maria’s name.

‘Hola, Mamá,’Carmen said, for the first time since she was a child—not that Maria seemed to notice.

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