Endless Summer Nights (23 page)

Six years ago Sidney had married the man she’d thought she’d spend the rest of her life with. But it wasn’t meant to be.

Her ex-husband had come from a large Southern family and had wanted a large family of his own. They’d married right out of college and tried to get pregnant immediately, but after almost a year of trying they’d gone to the doctor and learned the truth. Sidney was unable to have children; the cause was unknown. Telling them that this was typical of 20 percent of all infertility cases hadn’t helped at all. Their relationship had become strained and was only worsened by the pressure applied by his family.

She’d gone through hormone treatments and acupuncture. Every time someone else became pregnant—whether planned or unplanned—it had stung. But hearing about unwanted children abandoned at hospitals or tossed in the trash had hurt even more. She’d questioned the fairness of it. Why was it that she, who wanted a child so badly, couldn’t have one but others who didn’t could?

She and her husband hadn’t been able to afford the more expensive fertility treatments, and in the end, their marriage hadn’t survived the trials of infertility.

Over the years, jealousy, anger and other emotions friends wouldn’t typically associate with her personality consumed her. She had three beautiful godchildren and loved them all. She dutifully celebrated their birthdays and other milestones, but she wanted children of her own and sometimes felt as if her friends offered her the role of godmother out of pity.

Resting her head against the window glass, she closed her eyes. That’s why she couldn’t marry Rodrigo. When she’d fallen in love with him, she’d wanted to tell him but hadn’t been able to. In his culture family meant everything. Close family ties were prevalent in all areas of his life, and he had spoken openly of his desire to have a family.

Embarrassed, ashamed and feeling less than a woman, she’d turned down his proposal and made him think their feelings weren’t mutual. It had been the hardest thing she’d ever had to do. But she’d let him go and taken his anger, rather than have him look at her with pity—or even worse, disgust. She’d seen that look before, and she couldn’t bear to see it from him.

Chapter 6

J
ust like the day before, Javier met Sidney downstairs, but when she climbed into the back of the limo, she was not alone. Rodrigo waited for her in the interior. He smelled good and looked beyond handsome in a black three-piece suit. She cautiously slid across the seat and shyly greeted him.

“You shouldn’t be surprised to see me,” he said. “I tried to call you last night so we could talk, but I couldn’t reach you.”

“Did you?” she said instead of outright fibbing. She’d seen his calls but had wanted time to herself to think.

He didn’t respond to her remark, but she could tell he knew she wasn’t being totally honest by the lift at the corner of his mouth.

“We do need to talk about what happened.”

“No argument there, but now may not be the best time.” She glanced at the glass partition between them and Javier.

“He can’t hear us.” He sat back and extended his arm along the back of the seat, looking relaxed while she remained a bundle of nervous energy. “Making love to you in my office was completely unexpected, but clearly we have unfinished business between us.”

Sidney twisted the belt of her dress between her fingers. “What does that mean?” she asked, afraid of the answer.

“I won’t beat around the bush. When you finish in the meetings today, I want you to come home with me.”

Her fidgeting stopped.

“You weren’t expecting that.”

“No, I wasn’t.”

“It is the only thing that makes sense,” he said in a matter-of-fact voice. “We still have chemistry. Passion.” He ran a fingertip down the side of her face, the gentle movement evoking a torrent of sensation in the exact spot he touched.

She hadn’t expected him to suggest she come stay with him. In fact, she hadn’t been sure what to expect at all, but she’d been ready to beg him to keep the contract if that’s what it took to keep her job and ensure she wouldn’t lose her chance of getting her baby. Her little girl waited on her, and she couldn’t let pride get in the way of completing the adoption. She’d already invested a lot of time and thousands of dollars, and nothing in the world would prevent her from bringing home her sweet little angel.

“What about the contract?”

His eyes hardened. “Winning the contract is not contingent on sleeping with me, if that’s what you’re asking. I promise not to interfere.”

She breathed easier, but he turned away from her. She’d angered him.

“I’ll come by your room to pick you up with your luggage after I leave work.”

“Thank you,” Sidney said quietly.

“Thank you?” he scoffed. “For what? For being weak? For being unable to resist giving you whatever you want?”

The car pulled up in front of Moda headquarters, but he didn’t wait for Javier to open the door. He climbed out without a backward glance and left her alone in the car.

She’d angered him and she regretted it, but she had to be sure that he wouldn’t pull the contract from under her.

Javier then took her to Belo and she didn’t hear from Rodrigo for the rest of the day.

Before leaving late that afternoon, she said goodbye to Nelza and Gilberto. At the hotel she packed up her belongings to wait for Rodrigo. With fresh makeup and every hair in place, she was ready for when he arrived.

When he did, she opened the door and noted how his eyes lit up. He had a way of making her feel like the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen.

He took her hand and brought it to his lips.
“Linda. Sempre.”
Beautiful. Always
.

The first time she’d heard the words in New York, she’d known what he said without a translation because they were so close to Spanish, which she had studied in college. Hearing them now brought back memories of their time together. He’d said them often, usually when they were on their way somewhere and she was dressed up. It had made her take extra care with her appearance. She would style her hair into neat curls and apply her makeup carefully, making sure her clothes were perfect so she could hear the same murmured words of appreciation.

“Thank you,” she said. Her cheeks flushed with warmth.

He’d mellowed since this morning and wore the relaxed clothes to match, looking more like the man she’d met and fallen in love with. Chinos covered his long legs and a shirt open at the collar revealed his strong throat.

How many times had they lain in bed together and she’d traced the line of his collarbone with the tip of her finger? With her lips, even? Laughing at her own power when he groaned and grabbed her hips to thrust into her with a helplessness that made her feel as if she were a femme fatale who held him ensnared. The memory made her heart seize for what could have been.

No wonder they hadn’t been able to help themselves yesterday. Almost from the moment they’d met, there had been a fire smoldering between them and it had only increased in heat during their time apart.

He took her luggage and placed a hand at the small of her back. He escorted her to a lead-colored late-model Jaguar XJ sedan and opened the passenger-side door.

“You drive?” she asked.

“You sound surprised.”

He smiled, which prompted her to smile in return. Her gaze dropped to his mouth, and she recalled their last kiss in his office.

“I am a little. I assumed you’d have a driver at all times.”

“Perhaps it’s the control freak in me,” he said. “I use a driver on very rare occasions.”

* * *

He watched her slide onto the white soft-grain-leather seat and took in every detail of her appearance. As always, she left him breathless. On the walk to the car her hips had swayed from side to side, a hypnotizing movement that could inspire appreciation in even the most detached man. This morning she’d worn her hair pulled back, but tonight she’d set it free and styled it into large, bouncy curls that fell onto her shoulders.

The hem of the skirt she wore swirled around her calves, and his eyes traveled upward, taking in the oversize gauzy blouse in rose. She was almost completely covered from head to toe, nothing inappropriate in her manner of dress, and yet he still thought of the treasures beneath the loose-fitting articles of clothing.

She settled in and crossed her legs, and he closed the door, flexing his fingers and reminding himself to be patient.

He’d had plenty of time to think about their situation, and with the digging he’d done, he knew the dire straits her firm faced because they’d lost a major account the year before.

If she married him, she’d never have to worry about money or losing her means of employment. She would be well taken care of. The thought of how she’d turned down his proposal still left a bad taste in his mouth, but he had a new purpose now and only a short time in which to accomplish it. He’d show her just how beautiful his city was, how rich the culture and friendly the people. At the end of it all, he’d ask her to marry him again, and this time he had no doubt she’d say yes.

Chapter 7

T
hey exited the car in front of Rodrigo’s apartment complex in Leblon, a small but upscale neighborhood and home to the priciest real estate in Rio de Janeiro. In this neighborhood, the rich and famous dined at high-end restaurants and tossed back overpriced drinks at stylish bars.

The valet came over and greeted them both. Rodrigo handed him a few bills before the young man hopped in to take the car to the garage.

The interior of the apartment complex was well lit and painted in bright colors that evoked the tropics. Two security guards sat at a U-shaped desk watching video screens. When they saw Rodrigo, they greeted him, to which he responded with a nod. Their curious eyes rested on Sidney for a moment before returning to the screens. She wondered if it was a common occurrence to see him bringing a woman home.

Inside the elevator he pushed a keycard into a panel in the wall. “My apartment is on the top floor. Only my family, the property manager and the security guards can access that level.”

“How’s your father?” Sidney asked.

He looked at her in surprise. “You know about his heart attack?”

“It was in the news.” She’d searched out news about him and his family, but she wouldn’t mention that tidbit.

“He’s much better. He takes his medicine and follows doctors’ orders.”

“Does he live nearby?”

“Not too far, in Copacabana in the house he lived in with my mother. It’s the house I grew up in and way too big for him alone, but he insists on keeping it. We think he holds on to it because of the memories. My sisters and their children often go over to visit, and he loves to have my nieces and nephews spend the weekend with him.”

They both came from large families. While she was the youngest of six, he was the oldest of five. Two of his siblings lived in Rio, one in Bahia and the other in Argentina, each of them involved in some aspect of the Moda retail empire.

Rodrigo opened the door to the apartment using the same keycard, and her heels clicked on the hardwood floor as she entered ahead of him.

“What do you think?” he asked, setting her luggage on the floor.

She looked around. “It’s not what I expected.”

She’d expected a bachelor pad, but instead she’d arrived at a dwelling that was more like a home. All the usual types of electronics and gadgets were in place, such as the expensive stereo system and television mounted on the wall. But it was the furniture that didn’t conform to her expectations. She thought for sure he would have decorated in a minimalist style, but instead the apartment contained traditional furnishings. Heavy pieces covered in bold, solid colors filled the living room. The large windows with fine drapes probably allowed plenty of sunlight to come in during the day. Photos of his family neatly lined the walls in ornately designed gold frames.

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” he asked.

“A good thing,” she replied.

Sidney followed Rodrigo down the hall where more photos lined the walls. Most depicted children whom she assumed were his nieces and nephews. They were playing on the beach or piled on top of each other in grass. One in particular of a gorgeous little girl with a toothless grin holding her tooth between two fingers like a prize caught her eye.

The gourmet kitchen was more in line with what she’d expected. He’d obviously spared no expense, including Italian glass on the cabinet doors and restaurant-grade appliances. It was sleek and modern with a six-burner range that included a grill and a microwave and second oven built into the wall. Food simmered on the stove and covered dishes filled the air with a pleasant aroma.

“This is a lot of food. Are you expecting more people?” She lifted covers on pots and peeked under covered platters. All the delicious-looking food caused an uptick in her appetite. “You did all this?”

He stood back, watching her. “I had some help. My chef prepared the meal and left everything warming for us. Not that I couldn’t do it myself, of course.”

“Oh, of course. I never doubted that for a minute.”

They smiled at each other, a secret one of remembered times passed, such as when he’d fixed a traditional meal of
moqueca de peixe,
a delicious fish stew made with coconut milk.

“Boa noite.”
The greeting came from a man who’d just entered the kitchen. Even before the introduction, Sidney knew who he was.

“This is my father, Gualtiero Serrano, who was supposed to be gone already. Father, this is Sidney Altman.”

Seemingly unperturbed by his son’s not-so-subtle dismissal, Gualtiero came over and greeted her with two kisses on the cheek. An older version of Rodrigo, he had thick dirty-blond hair but the same dark eyes. He was a very good-looking man with few wrinkles, and she suspected he must have been quite the Casanova in his day.

“I left my phone and had to come back for it.” He held it up, but Sidney could tell it had been an excuse to check her out. “So you are Sidney Altman.”

“Father.”

Gualtiero brushed aside Rodrigo’s warning tone with a wave of his hand. “I only wish to say welcome to my country. How long will you be here?”

Sidney laced her fingers together in front of her. “Only a couple more days.”

“Why do you go back after only a short time?”

“I’m here on business and can only afford to take a couple of days off before I head back home.”

“Perhaps you should stay for pleasure.”

Her eyes sought out Rodrigo. She didn’t know what to say to that.

“Father, you’re embarrassing her.”

“It is only a suggestion. Maybe you will find a reason to stay.” He leaned closer. “My son is in need of a wife, and I am in need of more grandchildren,” he said in a stage whisper.

“Father
—
”

* * *

Rodrigo was surprised by his father’s comment. For years he’d made no secret of the fact that he wanted Rodrigo to marry someone from Brazil who understood the culture. But as he watched his father with Sidney, he wondered if something else was amiss. His father was a romantic, and clearly he’d softened his stance on the idea of who would make an acceptable bride for his eldest son.

The older man chuckled. He continued to speak to Sidney as if they were the only ones in the kitchen. “Ignore me. I go now, but I hope to see you again very soon. Enjoy your dinner.
Bom apetite.
” He took her hand and pulled her in for a kiss on the cheek.

“Goodbye, Father,” Rodrigo said dryly. His father patted him on the shoulder on the way out. “I’m sorry about that. He has no shame, as you can tell.”

Sidney smiled. “It’s okay.”

He walked over to the wine refrigerator. “Wine?” he asked.

“Yes, please.”

“Do you have a preference?”

“Whatever you decide is fine.”

He poured them both a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon. “I’m glad you decided to come.”

She looked at him with a faraway expression in her eyes. “I don’t think either of us had a choice in the matter, do you?”

Sadness filled her eyes, taking him by surprise. He felt a moment of guilt. Did she feel coerced into coming here? He wanted her here only if she wanted to be.

Then she smiled and he wondered if he’d imagined that look. He set aside the doubts and lifted his glass. “To...the future,” he said.

She hesitated but then followed suit. “To the future.”