Playing for Hearts (49 page)

“I want to meet her,” Crista said.

“Hell no. I'll be rid of her way before I see you again.” He wiped his forehead. “Speaking of which, are you flying in to watch me?”

“Duh. Bruce and I expect to have front fence spots.” She paused. “Listen, I gotta go. Someone's calling on the other line. I hope you figure out what to do, but you should give it some serious thought. There are worse things than being married, I've heard.”

“I like my playboy status, Crista. I'm not ready to settle down. Someday, I'll marry the woman of my dreams because I love her beyond thinking, but right now? It's all about saving my career. You know me better than most people do, sweetheart. Thanks for listening to me complain. I'll talk to you later.” He disconnected the call. A lot of help she was.

He turned and flinched.
Aw, hell.

Dana stood in the open doorway, her luggage hanging from each hand. Shock, anger, and, if he wasn't mistaken, sadness showed in the pursed lips, the narrowed eyes, and the prudish stiffness of her body.

“How much did you hear?” he asked, slipping his hands into the front pockets of his jeans.

“Enough to understand what you think about me.” She dropped the bags in the doorway, pivoted, and disappeared down the hallway.

Great. Married an hour and he'd already managed to piss off his wife. Could today get any worse?

How could she have thought Juan was nice? Dana walked back in the direction of her room. In the elevator it dawned on her, she couldn't hide away because she'd turned her room key into Sarah at the front desk.

She'd lived at the hotel for two months, and still had one month to go before she pulled up shop and headed home to Colorado for a break. She enjoyed being the Reese distributor and saleswoman during the winter months at different ski resorts. It beat working alongside her dad at the main office.

Now she was married. What a mistake.

She pushed the first floor button. Too bad she couldn't fly back to daddy's house and hide out there while the family was gone. But she'd already told her father she was skipping any kind of honeymoon, so now she had to work all next week. The doors slid open. She walked out and headed toward the lounge.

Settled in the back corner, near the floor to ceiling windows overlooking the lit snow covered slopes, she gulped down half of the double martini she'd ordered before she slowed down to pace herself. She'd only been trying to find a way out of her troubles — so how had she managed to dig herself into an even bigger hole?

Juan seemed to be feeling similarly. For all his attitude and convincing speech that everything would work out in the end, he'd talked down about her to another woman. For all she knew, the woman on the phone was a long-term girlfriend or one of his girls at another lodge. Well, Dana wasn't one of his admirers. Thank you very much.

Disgusted by her behavior, she picked up her phone and dialed her father. She hated admitting defeat and needing his help, but she had a feeling she'd need his lawyer to get herself out of her marriage.

“Dana?” Her father spoke to someone in the background, and then continued. “What's wrong now?”

“I need you to contact John Blate,” she said.

“My attorney?”

“Yeah.” She sank further down in the chair. “I might've made a mistake in marrying — ”

“Juan Santiago,” her father bellowed. “Probably the one thing you've done right, dammit.”

She grimaced. “No, I really think — ”

“You need time, especially with a man like Santiago.” Her dad sighed heavily. “Once you've calmed down, we'll talk. If you still think you need to get out of your marriage, I'll hire one of the best divorce lawyers in the state. Just think about what you're doing and to whom you're married before making a rash decision. Your union with him could skyrocket sales for the company.”

“But, I — ”

“You've always been impulsive,” her dad said. “Listen to me for once. Your marriage is exactly what we … uh … you needed.”

“Whatever,” she muttered. “I need to go. I'll call you in a couple of days.”

She disconnected the call and stared at the phone. Without hesitating, she brought up the browser on the screen and searched her husband's name. Watch it turn out that he was already married to that Crista woman he was talking to on the phone, and now she'd broken the law. It was one thing to marry on a whim, but she was a Reese. Scandal was something she didn't do.

Daddy would kill her if she brought any more disappointment down on the family. She'd already put herself on his bad side by defending her right to work at the rental shop at the lodge and refusing to jump into the shark pool of sellers. She enjoyed doing the same thing day after day without anyone knowing where she came from or who her father was.

But there was something in her father's tone of voice that told her she was missing some important detail. He seemed too excited, too happy, too encouraging about her marriage to Juan.

A Santiago fan site popped on screen. She scanned the headings.
Oh. My. God.

Not only had she married a member of the U.S. Olympic men's ski team, but also the guy everyone nicknamed Amante Español. She traced her finger over his face.
Spanish Lover.

How could she not have connected that the man known for seducing women in every city was the same guy who'd helped her strip out of her clothes?

He'd romanced and flirted his way across the world, and no woman had ever tied him down. She shut off her phone. Now she remembered what she'd heard about Juan's background. Known as the kid who'd worked his way up from poverty to a millionaire, charming everyone on and off the slopes, he was also the sports world's most eligible bachelor, according to
People
magazine. Her daddy's fortunes wouldn't impress someone who'd built their own success.

She smacked the top of the table. That's why her dad wanted her to stay married to Juan. A famous skier would bring more attention to Reese Enterprise, which meant more money coming in to the company and her father's hands.

But that didn't explain why Juan married her.

A squeal and loud cheering broke out across the lounge, interrupting her thoughts. She gazed at the bar, spotted Juan surrounded by his fans, and slouched further down in the chair. He'd followed her.

Along with a dozen women, he stood in the lounge, smiling at everyone as if his life hadn't changed at all a few hours ago when he said
I do
. She drained the rest of her drink. No one, not even Amante Español, would make a fool out of her.

She stood, shoved her phone in her pocket, and worked her way around the empty tables to her husband. Standing behind him, she overhead more than she wanted to hear.

“Thank you, sweetheart. Not tonight. I've got practice in the morning, and need to be alert and ready to ski my heart out.” He accepted the exuberant hug from a woman with bleach blonde hair and fake boobs.

Another woman, taller and dressed more for a summer night's party than the winter season pushed her way between Dane and Juan. “I'll make it worth your time, and leave you more energetic. The things I can do for you, no woman will be able to match, Juan.”

Seriously? What a conceited bitch.
Dana reached between them and yanked the woman away. “You're more than anyone can handle, honey. Go sink your claws into someone else's husband.”

The woman topped Dana's own five-foot-five body by a good four inches, but Dana refused to back down when the woman got in her face. Geez, what did Juan see in these skanky girls?

“Babe.” Juan slipped his arm across her shoulders and led her away from the group. “I was looking for you. You shouldn't have run off.”

“Don't ‘babe' me.” She glared without missing a step. “New rule. While our marriage is still valid, you won't embarrass me by hanging around your groupies.”

“What?” He laughed. “My groupies?”

“Sluts, hos, bunnies, skanks, bitches,” she waved her hand, “whatever you call them. I'm trying to be considerate, since you obviously have some reason why you married me when you're rolling in money and can save your own ass.”

“You threw yourself at my mercy. You didn't have to say
I do
.” His mouth hardened and he dropped his arm. “And I can't finance my way into the Olympics — it looks bad and my fans need to see that I have sponsors who believe in me enough to put their name on my back.”

“Whatever.” She stormed off in front of him and entered the elevator. When the door closed, she turned to him. “I am a Reese. I will not allow you to embarrass, ruin, or damage my family's name. Until I can talk to my lawyer in the morning, stay away from other women … and me.”

“A lawyer?” He frowned. “Now, wait a damn minute.”

“I'm sure he can have our marriage annulled by the end of the week.” She exited the elevator.

He caught up with her and flashed a smile that made her catch her breath. “What's the hurry? I thought we had an agreement.”

“I'm sure you want to get back to Crista and your thousands of women who are ready to show you the art of screwing while standing on their head.”

“Where did you get that number?” He threw back his head and laughed.

“I Googled you.” She crossed her arms. “It was rather enlightening in a gross, rather pathetic way if you're big on making your mark on the world by how many pants you've ripped off willing women.”

“Don't believe everything you read or hear,” he muttered.

“You're telling me that those women out there” she pointed at the door, “are not the same ones who I've spotted coming off this floor with their bare asses jiggling early in the morning when I'm going downstairs to work. I don't know, Juan, they sure look familiar. I know a pleased smile when I see one.”

“No doubt they're the same ones.” He sat on the couch and stretched out. “But I'm telling you, I haven't slept with any of them. You'll just have to believe me.”

She snorted.

“I'm serious. It's been two months since I've had sex.”

“Setting world records there,
Amante Español
.” She rolled her eyes, unable to keep the sarcasm out of her voice.

He grinned. “Vicious, babe.”

“Will you stop smiling? It's disturbing. There's nothing funny about our situation.”

“I like this side of you,” he said.

“You mean for a spoiled daddy's girl, I'm two dimensional?” she said through clenched teeth.

“Shit.” He groaned. “I didn't mean that, babe.”

“Yes, you did. I heard you.”

“No.” He stood. “Okay, I did mean that, but not in a bad way. In a month, competitions will start and once I'm done, we'll go our separate ways. Until then, can you act like you enjoy being married to me?”

One month. She stared at Juan. If it would keep her in her daddy's good graces a little longer until she had her life on track, maybe. At least a month would buy her enough time to find the strength inside of her to continue with her plans with a new direction.

She stuck out her hand. “Fine. I'll wait a month, but you can't hook up with any other women while we're married. That's embarrassing for me, and I don't want anyone laughing behind my back.”

“No problem, babe. You won't regret it. I promise.” He ignored her offer of a handshake and cupped her face with his hands.

“W-what are you doing?” she whispered.

“It's called a kiss to seal the deal.” He lowered his head.

His breath fed her. In. Out. One more inch and their lips would touch.

“That's n-not a good idea.” She stared into his eyes, which resembled melted chocolate right before it started to boil.

He titled his head. “It's a very good beginning … ”

His gaze went to her mouth and his lashes covered his eyes. She moistened her lips. What would he taste like?

She grasped his shirt, unsure whether she wanted to push him away or pull him closer. “With a quick ending.”

“Stop talking,” he murmured, tilting her face higher.

“I'm afraid to.”

“Why?”

Her breath caught. “You might ki — ”

His mouth captured hers. A light kiss that allowed her time to adjust to the reality that she was kissing the famous Amante Español.

The kiss was warm and firm, but soft enough to make her want more. She leaned in slightly, and electricity shot through her. Need burned hot and bright, melting her resolve not to ever touch him.
Oh, God, I'm in trouble.

He let go of her face and cupped the back of her head, holding her in place, while his free hand went to her lower spine and tugged her closer. He used just enough pressure to draw her that much more intimately against him, but not make her feel confined or forced.

Parts of her began to ache. Startled, she realized she'd never felt this way with Jace.

Juan deepened the kiss, then pulled back and looked into her eyes. “There will be more kissing.”

She nodded, before she caught herself. “I mean, no. We can't do that again.”

Aware of how dangerous being married to America's playboy was, she escaped to her room and shut the door. For good measure, she turned the lock. Her knees shook and her heart raced, and she knew it wasn't fear, but an uncontrollable lust for her new husband that had her hiding.

Snow blew sideways on the north slope of the mountain. Juan stood at the top of the run and adjusted his goggles. Last trip down for the day, and all he could think about was how Dana's lips had softened against his last night.

Despite his distraction during practice thinking about his
wife
, he'd clocked in on his second run. The coach was happy, and his wife's daddy was footing the bill for him to continue skiing. He gripped the poles. As soon as the Olympics came and went, he'd pay back his new father-in-law.