Alejandro's Revenge (19 page)

Before she could say anything, however, Alejandro spoke again. ‘I do not blame you for being wary of me,' he observed bitterly. ‘What did you think I was doing two years ago, I wonder? You must have believed I had only been amusing myself at your expense. Did you think I seduced you for fun? That I took you to my father's house and made love to you to satisfy some perverted need to prove I could?' His expression mirrored his disgust. ‘It was not like that, Abigail. I am not like that, whatever you may have heard.'

‘I know that now,' she murmured helplessly. ‘And Ross is the first man I have been engaged to. There was no one else.'

‘Cristo!'
Alejandro swore violently. ‘No wonder you hated me,
cara
.' His lips twisted. ‘Perhaps you hate me still.'

‘No.' Abby pushed herself up from the chair, unable to sit still under the accusation burning in his eyes. ‘And I don't think you really believe that.'

He arched his dark brows. ‘Why not?'

‘Well…' Abby struggled to find the right words. ‘That night on the yacht—'

‘Ah,
sí
.' Alejandro's eyes darkened. ‘Let us talk about that night on the yacht. Let us get all the—what do you call it?—the baggage out of the way first. Then we can talk about what is really important, hmm?'

Abby swallowed. ‘If you like.' She glanced towards the kitchen once more. ‘But, if you don't mind, I think I will make another pot of tea. I—I—'
Need it!
‘I'm thirsty.'

‘Bien.'

He rose to his feet then, and she was taken aback to find him towering over her again. ‘No—I mean, you can stay here,' she said hurriedly. ‘Rest. Relax. I won't be long.'

‘Do not ask me to wait here like a spurned lover,' he ex
claimed huskily. ‘Let me come with you. I promise I will not get in the way.'

Abby quivered. His entreating words stirred every nerve in her body, and it was all she could do not to ask him to explain himself there and then. But she had to keep her head, she reminded herself. Just because Alejandro was here that did not mean all her troubles were over.

He was waiting for her answer, and with a little shrug she said, ‘Well, all right. But, I warn you, it's nothing like the kitchens you're used to.'

‘Do you think I care?' His voice was suddenly thick with emotion, and he put out his hand to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. Then he trailed his fingers across her cheek with evident concern. ‘You are not going to cry again, are you? I know that man—Ross—must have hurt you, but in his defence I have to say I think he does care about you very much.'

Abby found it difficult to speak, but, steeling herself against the tears that were still pressing, she said, ‘I hurt him, too. He's not a bad person. He just—well, I'd rather not talk about it right now.'

‘I understand.'

But Alejandro's mouth had tightened a little and his hand dropped to his side. Abby told herself she was glad. She couldn't bear for there to be any more mistakes. And if he had come to England to see her, what had taken him so long?

He stood at the entrance to the tiny kitchen as she plugged in the kettle and prepared a tray. At his nod she added an extra cup, and then waited nervously for the kettle to boil.

‘You have lived here long?' he asked politely after a moment, and she explained that she had moved here when Edward went to live in the United States. She didn't add that it had always been her bolthole when the world had seemed an unfriendly place—like when she'd come back from Edward's wedding, for example—or that she would never be able to stand in her kitchen again without seeing him propped against the counter as he was now.

‘And Ross?' he probed. ‘Did he live here, too?'

‘No!' Abby was very definite about that. ‘Ross has his own place. A house not far from here.'

Alejandro absorbed this, the lines at either side of his mouth deepening as he continued, ‘And do you still care about him? Despite the fact that you are no longer together—?'

‘We're no longer together because I don't love Ross,' said Abby tensely, glad that the kettle boiled at that moment, giving her something to do to avoid his eyes. She hesitated. ‘Do you—do you take sugar in your tea?'

‘I will take it however you want to give it to me,' replied Alejandro roughly. Then, as if he couldn't stand to wait any longer, he said, ‘You do know why I was so—so angry that night. The night on the yacht,' he elaborated shortly. ‘I really thought you were only there because Edward had asked you to intercede on his behalf.'

Abby's hand shook a little as she placed the teapot on the tray. ‘That was why I accepted your invitation,' she admitted unsteadily. ‘But then, you know that. That was why you decided to—to teach me a lesson.'

Alejandro uttered an exclamation. ‘Is that what you think?'

‘I don't blame you,' said Abby hurriedly. ‘Until then I'd only had a suspicion that Eddie wasn't telling me the truth. But I got it out of him later. Too late, sadly, to tell you.'

Alejandro's brows drew together. ‘But you left the next day,' he exclaimed in protest. ‘I had a business meeting in Tallahassee that I couldn't avoid, and by the time I got back you had gone. Your brother took great pleasure in telling me that, whatever I had told you, he didn't need me any more. Luis—proud fool that he is—had agreed to cover your brother's debts. For Lauren's sake, you understand? She still loves him—and the child which is even now growing inside her.'

Abby caught her breath. ‘Lauren's pregnant?'

‘With God and the IVF clinic's help,' agreed Alejandro drily. ‘She is so happy that I do not think my friend could
have forbidden her anything. Including his help for that ungrateful son-in-law of his.'

Abby trembled. ‘I'm so happy for her,' she said. ‘For them both.' She paused. ‘When did they find out?'

Alejandro shrugged. ‘Lauren had suspected for some time, I think, but she wanted to wait until she was sure before breaking the news to her husband and her parents.'

‘I see.'

‘In any case, that is not why I came,' he said shortly. Then, moving forward, ‘I will take the tray.'

‘No.' Abby put herself between him and the counter. ‘I can manage. Please. Just go and sit down.'

‘And if I do not?' His eyes were on her deliberately averted face.
‘Cara.'
His voice deepened. ‘This is not going to work. How long do you think you can keep me at arm's length? I came to see you. Only you. To see if there was any chance that you might give me another chance.'

‘Another chance?' The tray forgotten, Abby turned to him. She shook her head. ‘But why did you wait so long?'

Alejandro shook his head. ‘Why do you think?'

Abby blinked. ‘Edward?' Though she couldn't see how her brother could have had anything to do with it.

‘Of course Edward,' said Alejandro heavily. ‘You have to know that I assumed you were still engaged to this man Ross.
Por Dios,
you were wearing his ring. I had no doubt this time that he did exist.'

Abby stared at him. ‘So how did you—?'

‘Find out your engagement was ended?' he finished harshly. His lips twisted. ‘For reasons best known to himself, but I suspect because Lauren asked him to, Edward admitted that you had broken up with your boyfriend. But that was not until yesterday, you understand? Until then I believed what you had told me.
En realidad
, I thought you probably hated me.'

‘I never hated you,' she said huskily. ‘Oh, Alejandro, I don't know what to say.'

‘Me, either,' he said, straightening and running the knuckles
of one hand down her flushed cheek. ‘Can you ever forgive me?'

‘Forgive you?'

‘For not being there when you needed me,' he said, and she expelled a sigh.

‘But you didn't know.'

‘And you think that is a good enough excuse? You do not think I should have tried to see you again?'

‘In the circumstances, probably not,' she conceded tremulously. ‘You have to remember, I had just learned that you were married.'

‘Dios!'
Alejandro's eyes were dark with emotion. ‘Such a tangled web!'

‘And mostly of Eddie's making,' said Abby unhappily. ‘He was so desperate to make it on his own. Since our parents died I've been more like a mother than a sister to him, and he resents it.'

‘You know him too well,
cara
,' said Alejandro softly. ‘You know his faults and his weaknesses whereas I do not. And because of that I assumed you were just like him. When you returned to Florida, all I could think about was finding some way of hurting you as you had hurt me.' He groaned. ‘What a stupid, arrogant fool I was.'

‘Alejandro—'

‘No, listen to me,
cara
. You have to know how it was.' He blew out a breath. ‘You see, this was not the first time your brother had found himself in financial difficulties since he came to the States. A year ago—the details are not important now—I agreed to help him, mainly because Lauren asked me to. But on this occasion—' He made a negative gesture. ‘I refused.'

Abby turned horrified eyes towards him. ‘Did he return the money?'

Alejandro sighed. ‘That is not important, as I have said.'

‘But did he?'

Alejandro hesitated. ‘Some,' he admitted at last. ‘The
money was not an issue,
cara
. Edward needed to realise he was living beyond his means.'

Abby shivered. ‘You knew about those men at the track, didn't you? The ones who broke into their apartment?'

‘When you told me what had happened, I suspected,' he agreed. ‘And your arrival had been so convenient.'

‘I thought Eddie had been badly hurt,' protested Abby weakly. ‘I had no idea—'

‘No.' Alejandro had moved a little nearer as she was speaking, and now his fingers linked caressingly around her wrist. ‘You were worried about him. I know that now. At a guess, I'd say he let you think he was badly injured because he knew how you would feel. If I did not know for a fact that the other driver had been drinking, I would have to wonder if Edward had not caused the accident himself.'

Abby looked down at his fingers, brown against her paler flesh. ‘If only I had told you about the baby,' she said huskily, unable to think of anything else when he was touching her. Besides he deserved to hear the story from her lips, not the garbled version Ross had vented on him. ‘I wanted to tell you, but—well, you know what I thought. And then, when I miscarried—' She broke off, her voice wobbling revealingly. ‘It was as if it was never meant to be.'

‘And I knew nothing about it,' said Alejandro grimly. ‘Edward should have told me.'

‘He didn't know.' Abby was glad she could tell him that, at least. ‘No one knew. That is, I thought they didn't. If what Ross said is true, I've been fooling myself for almost two years.'

‘But you told him?' Alejandro ventured, his breath warm against her temple.

Abby shook her head. ‘Not about you, no.' She paused. ‘Just that I couldn't have children. I had no idea he suspected the truth.'

‘Sî.'
Alejandro said the word heavily. ‘I knew you were upset when you ran away.' He waited a beat and then went
on, ‘But I should not have taken my frustration out on him. He was the catalyst, but not the offender. That was my role.'

‘No!' Abby lifted her head to stare up at him with tear-washed green eyes. ‘It wasn't your fault. It wasn't anybody's fault. Not even Edward's. If I'd been honest with him perhaps he'd have been honest with you. Who knows?'

‘You are a very forgiving woman,' said Alejandro, gazing down at her. He lifted his hands to rub them almost possessively up and down her arms. ‘Do I dare to hope that you might forgive me also?'

‘There's nothing to forgive.' Abby was intensely conscious that there were only inches between them now, and her heart was beating faster every minute. ‘Besides,' she added softly, ‘Now that you know the truth, you must also realise that there is no future for us.'

‘Que?'
His reaction was violent. His hands gripped her upper arms with unwarranted strength and there was no mistaking the angry confusion in his eyes. ‘What do you mean?' he demanded, practically shaking her in his desire to make her see sense. ‘I thought— Surely I cannot have been wrong all along? I thought you cared for me—at least half as much as I care for you.'

‘I do—'

‘Then—'

‘Wait.' Abby's lungs felt as if they were labouring. ‘Alejandro, my feelings are not the most important thing here.'

‘No?' He looked both puzzled and frustrated now. ‘You cannot doubt that I care about you. I love you, Abigail. I have loved you ever since that morning you scrambled out of the Esquivals' swimming pool at my feet.'

Abby closed her eyes against his dark enchantment. It would be so easy to give in, so easy to delude herself that love would be enough. It wasn't. He had proved that by waiting over an hour before coming to see her tonight. He had been stunned by Ross's revelations. He had needed time to come to terms with what the other man had said.

‘You forget,' she said with difficulty, ‘I can't have another
baby. I love you, but I know you want children of your own. For heaven's sake, you're your father's eldest son. When Ross told you—what he told you—you were shattered. I was there, Alejandro. I saw it in your face.'

‘What did you see?' Alejandro wouldn't let her go when she tried to pull away from him. ‘Did you see distress? Disappointment? Or did you see my pain at your devastation? Can you honestly say what you saw in my eyes?'