Postcards From Rio

‘Oh, I gave it to Diego so that he could arrange a permit to allow you to work in Brazil.’ Becky stood up. ‘It’s not surprising you’re feeling confused after everything that’s happened. I’ve got to go, or I’ll miss my flight. Diego’s PA will be able to explain things more clearly.’

By the time Clare had stuffed her belongings back into her rucksack and hurried down the steps of the Dakota, her sister had disappeared into the airport terminal.

‘Miss Marchant?’ She turned towards the voice and saw an elegant-looking woman with dark hair and an exotic olive complexion. ‘My name is Juliana Alvez, Mr Cazorra’s personal assistant. If you would like to come with me, Diego has scheduled a meeting with you at twelve o’clock to discuss your new role.’

Clare was conscious that her shorts were creased after she had slept in them and her hair was a wild tangle of untidy curls, in contrast to Juliana’s sleek chignon and sophisticated cream skirt and jacket.

How personal was Diego’s personal assistant? she wondered, hating herself for the hot surge of jealousy that swept through her. Once again she had a sense that her life was spinning out of her control.

‘That’s good, because I have many questions for Diego,’ she told Juliana with an air of calm composure that disguised her anger at the way she had been outmanoeuvred.

* * *

A helicopter flight over the city gave Clare spectacular views of the iconic landmarks of Rio de Janeiro, where the coastline was met by steeply sloping hills. Sugarloaf Mountain and the towering peak of Mount Corcovado with its famous statue of Christ the Redeemer dominated the skyline. The chopper swooped over beautiful Copacabana beach before it landed on the helipad at the top of a skyscraper building that looked over the bay.

‘Where are we?’ Clare asked Diego’s PA as she followed her inside what appeared to be a luxurious boutique hotel. The whole beach-facing side of the building was glass so that even the corridors offered views of the sea.

‘The helipad has direct access to Diego’s private penthouse apartment,’ Juliana said. ‘He owns the whole skyscraper and the Cazorra Corporation’s offices are on the lower floors.’ She opened a door and ushered Clare into an enormous suite. ‘This is where you will be staying. You have a personal maid, Vitoria, who will look after you, and I will return just before twelve to take you to Diego.’

Clare felt decidedly out of place in her crumpled clothes as she explored the elegant sitting room, huge bedroom and en suite bathroom with a sunken bath the size of a small swimming pool. The decor of muted shades of blue and cream, and dove-grey velvet carpets, was sophisticated but impersonal. She found it hard to imagine Diego living in the penthouse when he had admitted that he loved the wildness of the rainforest.

From the bathroom she heard the sound of the bath filling and headed towards it. The maid, Vitoria, was readying an enticing bubble bath.

‘Mr Cazorra said you would like to take a bath,’ Vitoria explained as she added fragrant oil to the water and the room became infused with the scent of an English rose garden. The thought of sinking into the fragrant foaming water was too irresistible for Clare to argue and, after she had bathed, she made use of the luxurious body lotion provided and used a hairdryer to tame her auburn curls into glossy waves.

Returning to the bedroom, she found that the maid had laid out a peacock-blue silk dress by a famous European designer. There were shoes to match the dress and exquisite underwear, all in Clare’s size, but when she searched the room she could not find her rucksack containing the few items of clothing she had brought to Brazil.

The maid’s excellent grasp of English suddenly seemed to desert her when she was asked about the rucksack. ‘I do not know where is your bag, but you no need it, because Mr Cazorra has supplied clothes for you to wear during your visit.’ Vitoria opened the wardrobe to reveal dozens of outfits, mostly in bright colours that Clare would not have had the confidence to choose for herself, preferring to stick to a safe palette of navy and taupe.

Unless she was prepared to meet Diego wearing a towel, she had no choice but to put on the dress, Clare realised. When she looked in the mirror she was forced to concede that the designer was a genius who had turned a piece of fabric into a garment that was both elegant and sexy in the way it flattered her hourglass figure. The three-inch stiletto-heeled shoes made her appear taller and slimmer, but she firmly reminded herself that she was only borrowing the clothes until she saw Diego and she would insist that her rucksack was returned to her.

He had gone to great lengths to arrange for her to remain in Brazil rather than fly back to England with Becky. The question uppermost in her mind was why. He had been angry that she’d fooled him into believing she was a nun, and understandably furious that she had told the pilot to take off from Torrente without him.

She felt guilty about her behaviour and uncomfortable at the prospect of seeing him again, especially when she remembered them making love in the cave. Colour flooded her cheeks as she recalled her wanton response to him. The time they had spent together in the rainforest seemed like a dream and she had discarded her inhibitions along with her virginity. But now she was back to reality, back to being ordinary Clare Marchant, and she wondered what Diego wanted from her.

His PA could not hide her surprise when she saw Clare’s transformed appearance. As she followed Juliana along a corridor to Diego’s office, Clare was conscious of the sensual slide of the silk underwear and dress against her skin. Was it because she was no longer a virgin that her senses seemed heightened and she was intensely aware of her femininity?

Juliana opened a door and ushered her into a large modern office. Clare had a vague impression of chrome and black glass furnishings and a stunning view of the ocean, but her attention was riveted by the man standing next to the window, who was familiar and yet almost unrecognisable.

From across the room Clare saw the predatory gleam in Diego’s silver-grey eyes that reminded her of the unnerving stare of a wolf stalking its prey. But every other aspect of his appearance was different from the rough, tough gold prospector she’d met in the rainforest.

His jeans and T-shirt had been replaced with a superbly tailored charcoal-grey suit teamed with a crisp white shirt and grey tie. Although his hair was still below collar length and covered his ears, it had been tamed into a sleeker style, and the blond stubble on his jaw was now trimmed close to his skin so that he looked groomed but dangerously sexy.

He waited until his PA had closed the door and watched Clare take a deep breath and walk across the room towards him before he spoke.

‘The first time I saw you at the convent I knew there was something not quite right about innocent Sister Clare. I’ve got it now. It’s the sexy wiggle of your hips when you walk.’ His voice hardened. ‘I should have listened to my instincts that said you were not a nun. But you are a liar, like most women.’

She flushed but refused to drop her gaze. ‘That’s a very sweeping generalisation, and in my case it’s not true. I am usually honest, but I was persuaded by the Mother Superior to dress like a nun because I hoped the kidnappers would be more willing to release my sister. I didn’t expect a...situation to develop between us.’

Clare ignored Diego’s snort of derision and sat down on the chair he indicated. She felt as if she was being interviewed when he settled himself in his executive leather chair and surveyed her across his desk.

‘I have explained why I couldn’t be honest about my identity, but you lied too. You let me think you were a gold prospector.’

‘It wasn’t a lie. I am a gold prospector and I search for gold deposits in the Amazon basin. When I get the opportunity, I still join a team of miners and go into the Old Betsy mine to look for diamonds. For the rest of the time I am here running the Cazorra Corporation. But I get restless after I’ve been in the city for too long.’

Beneath his designer suit and his veneer of wealth and sophistication was the Diego she had first met, who felt more at home in the rainforest, and who had made love to her and kept her safe in his arms throughout the night. Clare forced her mind away from the evocative memories.

‘Why have you brought me here? Why did you tell my sister I will be working for you, and why have you provided me with a wardrobe of designer clothes? I don’t know what game you are playing, Diego.’ Frustration edged into her voice when his familiar, faintly cynical smile gave no clue to his thoughts. ‘I want to go home.’

‘You seem to have forgotten something.’ Beneath his sardonic drawl Clare heard anger in his voice, and she felt a ripple of unease when she noted that his grey eyes were as hard as steel. ‘You seem to have forgotten that I secured your release from Rigo by giving him the Estrela Rosa diamond. In effect, I bought you for one million dollars.’

‘Of course I hadn’t forgotten.’ She bit her lip, thinking of the huge debt. ‘As soon as I get home I will make it my priority to work out how I can repay you.’

‘It will take you years to earn a million dollars,’ he said bluntly. ‘I was thinking of a more personal method by which you could repay your debt. By agreeing to be my mistress,’ he elucidated when she looked at him blankly.

Clare felt a sharp pain beneath her breastbone, as if she had been stabbed through the heart. She was shocked by how hurt she felt. She knew that the night they had spent together in the cave had meant nothing to Diego, and she told herself it meant nothing to her. Anger came to her rescue and made her blink back the stupid tears that she would have rather died than let him see.

‘Let me get this straight. You’re suggesting that I could pay off my debt by having sex with you? How would that work exactly? Should I draw up a spreadsheet, and every time you have me will mean that I can tick off another few thousand dollars? How much is the going rate for sex?’ Her lip curled with disgust. ‘Is blackmail the only way you can get a woman? You really must be desperate.’

Diego’s eyes narrowed. ‘Careful of your sharp tongue, querida, and you can drop the act of outraged virgin. You gave your virginity to me while you were fooling me that you were a nun. Deus—’ he slammed his hand down on the desk, making Clare jump ‘—have you any idea how guilty I felt for leading you astray from what I believed was the chaste life you had chosen?’

She flushed. ‘I’m sorry that I lied to you.’

He leaned back in his chair and studied her in silence for several minutes. ‘Sex with you was good, I’ll grant you, but not so good that you can repay me the value of my diamond by lying on your back a few times,’ he said coldly. ‘I want more than your body, anjinho. I also want your brain—’ he gave her a mocking smile ‘—specifically, your expertise as a PR consultant.’

Despite hating him at that moment, Clare was curious. ‘What do you mean?’

‘I’ve looked up reports about A-Star PR, and I’m impressed by the agency and by your leadership. You have run several high-profile PR campaigns for businesses in the UK and I am interested in what you might be able to provide for me. You may have heard of the jewellery company Delgado Diamonds?’

She nodded. ‘The London store in Mayfair is always busy, and I believe it was recently granted a Royal warrant.’

‘My business partner Cruz Delgado established the business a few years ago when he opened the first store in Paris. Cruz has a family now and wants to cut back on work commitments. He will continue to be CEO of Delgado Diamonds in Europe and I have bought the franchise to open Delgado-Cazorra Diamonds stores in the whole of South America. The first DC Diamonds shop will be launched here in Rio. But there is a problem.’

Diego ran a hand through his hair and saw Clare’s eyes dart to his mutilated ear that he had unwittingly exposed. He quickly lowered his hand and his jaw hardened. ‘The PR agency I originally hired to plan an advertising strategy has failed to come up with any inspirational ideas, and now the opening of the store is fast approaching but hardly anyone knows about the launch. It’s partly my fault for taking my eye off the ball, but I’ve been distracted...’ He trailed off. ‘This is an opportunity for a PR expert, possibly you, to impress me by organising an aggressive marketing campaign with the aim of making every household in Brazil aware of DC Diamonds.’

‘When is the flagship store due to open?’

‘Three weeks from now.’

‘Three weeks! The kind of multi-strategy campaign you want would take a few months to organise.’

He shrugged. ‘If you don’t think you can do it, I’m sure I will have no trouble finding a PR agency that will seize the opportunity to represent a globally successful company, which the Cazorra Corporation is.’

‘I didn’t say that I can’t do it,’ Clare said quickly. ‘It will be a challenge, but it’s not impossible.’

‘After looking at your portfolio I am confident of your ability to promote DC Diamonds. In the expectation that you would accept the commission I ordered new clothes for you that are more suitable for your role than a pair of shorts, or a habit and veil,’ he added drily.

Diego watched rosy colour flare on Clare’s cheekbones and pictured her face flushed with sexual arousal when she had lain beneath him in the cave and he had nudged her thighs apart so that he could make love to her. The ache in his gut, which had started when she had walked into his office looking as sexy as sin in a dress that clung to every delectable dip and curve of her body, intensified to a sharp tug of desire.

There was no reason for her to refuse what was, in his opinion, an extremely fair offer that would allow her to repay her debt. Her hesitation fuelled his impatience to conclude their discussion so that he could do what he had wanted to do since she had walked into his office—namely, make love to her on the nearest flat surface, which happened to be his desk.

‘Can I assume that you want A-Star PR to be given the commission to run an advertising campaign to promote DC Diamonds?’

‘Of course I do. As you pointed out, every PR agency would seize the chance to work for the Cazorra Corporation.’ Clare looked at Diego and hated the way her heart flipped as she watched his mouth curve into a sexy smile. ‘But I assume that you will only give me the contract if I agree to all your terms and work for you in the bedroom as well as the boardroom?’

‘It’s a fair deal.’

She stood up and drew herself to her full height, grateful that her high heels gave her a few much-needed extra inches as she struggled to hide her disappointment. It would have been a huge boost to her career and to the reputation of the A-Star agency if she’d secured a commission with the Cazorra Corporation. Her father would have been proud of her, and she would have shown Mark Penry she couldn’t care less that he’d cheated the day after he had told her he was in love with her.

With a sudden flash of insight Clare realised she did not need to prove she was worthy of her father’s love. Nor did it matter that she didn’t share her sister’s stunning supermodel looks. The trip into the rainforest had shown her she was capable of more than she’d believed, and nothing, not even the career opportunity Diego had dangled in front of her, was worth sacrificing her self-respect for.

Head held high, she marched across the office and yanked open the door before swinging round to face him. ‘You know what you can do with your job offer. I won’t take either of the positions, but I will find a way to repay you the value of the Rose Star diamond, even if I have to scrub floors and clean toilets to earn extra money. You did not buy me, Diego, because I was not and never will be for sale.’

It was an impressive exit line, she commended herself as she walked out and slammed the door behind her. Unfortunately, she had to spoil it moments later and go back into the room. ‘You have my passport and I would like you to return it.’

Even wearing three-inch heels, Clare had to tilt her head to look at Diego’s face. She had not expected him to be standing by the door when she opened it and almost collided with him. He was unsettlingly close and her senses quivered as she inhaled an evocative scent of sandalwood cologne mixed with a sensual musk of maleness that was uniquely him.

His expression was unreadable. ‘You can have it back once I have confirmation that you are not pregnant.’

* * *

Diego waited for a heartbeat and watched the colour drain from Clare’s face. ‘You were a virgin and therefore I assume you were not prepared for sex any more than I was when we made love in the cave.’

The prospect that she might have conceived his child evoked mixed emotions in him, chiefly anger with himself that he had been so crassly irresponsible. He had never had unprotected sex before, and it was no excuse that the night he had spent with Clare in the rainforest had seemed unreal. The stark reality was that he could have fathered a child with her.

Deus, the idea that he was no better than his own father filled him with shame. But he would not abandon his baby as his father had done. His experiences had shown him that a child needed a father. He thought of Cruz’s baby twin boys who were growing up with loving parents, and Diego felt a curious tug on his heart as he imagined himself holding his own son or daughter in his arms. Children were so vulnerable. He had never understood how the man whose genes he carried could have been utterly uninterested in the offspring he had carelessly fathered. One thing was certain, he could not allow Clare to return to England while there was a chance she was carrying his baby.

‘I’m sure I’m not pregnant,’ she said in a strained voice.

‘Are you saying you are on the pill or used some other form of contraception?’

‘No. But I’d only finished my period a few days before we had sex.’ Clare told herself it was ridiculous to feel embarrassed discussing intimate details about herself when Diego knew her body more intimately than any other man. ‘It’s a biological fact that women are at their least fertile in the first few days of their monthly cycle.’

‘We are not talking about women in general; we’re talking about you and the fact that you could have conceived my child,’ Diego said bluntly. ‘When will you know?’

‘In a little less than three weeks.’ Her period came regularly every twenty-one days. ‘There’s no reason why I can’t go back to England, and if...if the worst has happened, of course I’ll phone you.’

‘So you would consider being pregnant the worst thing to happen?’

Clare bit her lip. ‘I...I don’t know how I would feel if I was actually going to have a baby. It’s not something I’d thought about at this stage of my life,’ she admitted. But now she was forced to think about the full implications of possibly being pregnant—and she realised with a jolt of surprise that being a mother would not be the worst thing to happen. She enjoyed her career and felt proud that her father had put her in charge of A-Star PR. But any job seemed unimportant when she imagined holding her own baby in her arms. Her and Diego’s baby, she amended as she glanced up and found him watching her. She wished she knew what he was thinking. ‘What I meant was that it wouldn’t be great news if I found out I was going to be a single parent.’

‘That won’t happen. My father abandoned my mother when she was pregnant but I will not allow history to repeat itself. If you are expecting my baby I will support you and the child. I can’t allow you to leave Brazil until we know.’

‘You can’t force me to stay. It’s preposterous.’ Clare’s anger was mixed with panic that Diego was powerful enough to do whatever he wanted. But, deep down, she felt strangely reassured that he had said he would support his child, unlike his own father, who had consigned Diego and his mother to a life of poverty in a favela. She reassured herself that statistically the likelihood of conceiving early in her monthly cycle was virtually zero.

‘Three weeks is not long, and the time will pass quickly while you are working on the PR contract for DC Diamonds.’

She stared at his chiselled features as if they might give some clue to his thoughts. If he really meant to award her the contract she would be a fool not to accept it. ‘I’ll be happy to work on the advertising campaign, but that’s all. You can’t force me to be your mistress.’

His lazy smile caught her off guard. He was altogether too sexy for her own good, she thought darkly. But her traitorous body did not care that he was danger with a capital D. A swift downwards glance revealed the hard points of her nipples jutting beneath her silk dress. She instinctively stepped away from him and found herself with her back against the wall as he moved closer, his wolf’s eyes gleaming as he cornered his prey.

‘I have never forced a woman in my life and I don’t intend to start with you, my little wildcat.’ Diego’s voice deepened and took on a sensual note that made Clare feel as if thick treacle was trickling over her. He placed his palms flat on the wall on either side of her head and watched the jerky rise and fall of her breasts. ‘We both know you will come willingly to my bed whenever I decide to have you.’

‘The hell I will.’

His outrageous arrogance fuelled her temper. As he lowered his head and angled his mouth over hers, she stiffened, determined to deny him a response. And she might have succeeded if he had claimed her lips with demanding passion, as she expected him to do. But he did not play fair and took her breath away with a kiss that was as gentle as the brush of a butterfly’s wings. He took little sips from her mouth, tasting her, tantalising her. His unexpected tenderness evoked a sensation like a knife being twisted in her stomach and desire flooded through her and pooled, hot and urgent, between her legs.

If she could not fight herself, what chance did she stand against Diego’s potent sensuality? Clare thought despairingly. He was not using his superior strength to demand her response, he wasn’t even touching any part of her body except for her mouth, but when he deepened the kiss she capitulated and parted her lips to allow him to slide his tongue between them. He continued to kiss her unhurriedly and with such exquisite eroticism that she moaned softly and swayed towards him, longing for him to press his body against hers.

She could have cried with disappointment when he lifted his mouth from her lips and stepped away from her. To give him credit, he did not taunt her for her pathetic weakness, and the sultry glint beneath his half-closed eyelids betrayed his hunger.

‘In a moment, Juliana will take you to meet the staff who will assist you with the DC Diamonds PR campaign. If you need to leave the Cazorra building for any reason, whether work related or for personal reasons such as shopping, you will be accompanied at all times by either me or a bodyguard.’

‘Is that really necessary? My sister was targeted because she is a famous model and easily recognisable, but kidnappers won’t be interested in me.’

‘I am not prepared to take the risk. While you are working for me, you are my responsibility.’ Diego’s firm tone dared her to argue. ‘I have assigned Miguel to take care of you.’

‘Miguel! You’ve asked one of Rigo’s thugs to be my bodyguard?’ Clare pictured the man who had come to the cave with the other kidnapper, Enzo. ‘I’d prefer to go out alone and take my chances. I know you said Miguel is your friend from years ago, but...’

‘But you still don’t trust me,’ Diego finished her sentence grimly. ‘Deus, without my help, you and Becky would still be trapped in Torrente and at Rigo’s mercy. I have asked Miguel to protect you because he is the best person to do so. Many years ago I saved his life. In Brazil it is regarded as a lifelong debt of honour, and Miguel would willingly give his life to keep you safe because I have asked him to.’