Her lips tightened. Her entire posture tightened. ‘I’m sure you have no shortage of friends and acquaintances who would be only too happy to accommodate your needs. I wouldn’t stand in your way, so long as you were discreet, of course.’
He stroked his chin thoughtfully and her eyes were drawn again to the strong lines of his face, the dramatic planes and dark-as-night eyes and wished his features weren’t anywhere near as well put together. ‘Then possibly it might work,’ he said, ‘And possibly you are also right about not having sex. It’s not as if you’re my type, after all.’
‘Fine!’ she snapped, her eyes wide, her cheeks flaring with colour. ‘So much the better!’
‘Bueno,’ he said, smiling at her snippy response because, for her all her eagerness to announce that she had no interest in having sex with him, it was clear she didn’t want to hear the reasons why he might not be interested in having sex with her. ‘So long as we understand each other. As you’ve mentioned, we don’t know how long such a marriage might last. Several months. A year. You couldn’t expect me to remain celibate for the duration.’
‘I would hate you to have to suppress your natural desires, although perhaps you might try exercising just a little more control.’
‘Why should I? I like sex.’
‘I don’t want to hear it! All I know is that if you agree to this, there will be no sex between us. So there will be no chance of a child. So there can be no “complications”.’
He sighed as he turned back towards the window, the light fading from the sky, the lighting around the Bay coming on, turning the shoreline to gold. Perhaps she was right. Without sex there could be no unwanted pregnancy. No complications, just as she said. Which meant no chance for her to claim against the Esquivel estate.
And meanwhile this marriage would get his mother off his back into the deal.
He almost laughed. There would be no point in Ezmerelda continuing to wait for him to propose because he’d already be married. It was utterly delicious. He couldn’t remember when he’d ever been tempted by such a crazy deal. But would anyone believe it? Would anyone actually believe that, of all the women in the world, he had chosen this particular one to marry? Because he hadn’t been joking. She was nothing like his usual kind of woman. He preferred his woman more overtly sexual, whereas this woman looked like a waif in her baggy clothes.
And even though there was something about her cool blue eyes and her husky voice, and there was something of feminine shape hidden away that he’d caught a glimpse of, if he was to agree to anything, the terms would definitely need some work. He would need a bit more of an incentive if he was going to bother to make their arrangement look convincing.
‘It’s very noble of you, sacrificing yourself on the altar of marriage for your grandfather’s benefit. But why should I go along with it? What would be in it for me, given you’ve ruled out sex?’
She blinked up at him and he could tell she was completely unprepared for the question. He wondered at her naivety. Did she imagine he would go along with this out of the goodness of his heart? ‘Well,’ she began, ‘you do now have most of Felipe’s vineyard.’
‘I told you, I bought that land, fair and square. That land is mine already.’
‘But you knew how he’d lost it. You took advantage of an old man’s misfortune because it suited you.’
‘If I hadn’t bought it, someone else would have.’
‘But you’re the one who bought it and don’t tell me you didn’t jump at the chance. Felipe told me your father had been trying to get him off his land for decades.’
‘And you think that my agreeing to this will ease my conscience over the fact a large chunk of his estate is now mine?’ He shook his head. ‘No, my conscience is clear. I don’t have any trouble sleeping at night. In which case, you’re offering me nothing. And if I’m going to agree to this, I need a real incentive.’
Her heart jumped in her chest. ‘If I’m going to agree to this’? Was he serious? Was she that close to getting him to agree to her crazy plan? She licked her lips. ‘So what would it take to secure your agreement?’ she asked tentatively, almost afraid to breathe as she waited for his response.
‘Am I right in thinking Felipe will leave the balance of the estate to you, as his sole beneficiary?’
She blinked. ‘Um, yes, he still has to see a lawyer to change his will, but he’s mentioned that’s what he wants to do.’
‘Then that’s my price. When Felipe dies and you inherit, I want you to agree that you’ll sign over the rest of the estate to me.’
‘All of it?’
‘There’s not a whole lot left—and you do want me to marry you, don’t you, so Felipe believes his precious vines are reunited once more?’
‘Of course I do.’
‘Then, subject to your final agreement of my terms, I’d say that makes us officially engaged.’
CHAPTER FOUR
‘WHAT’S IT TO BE, my prospective wife? You decide. Do we have a deal?’
Did they? Her heart was hammering so loud she could scarcely hear herself think. Half of her was already celebrating. She’d done the unthinkable and secured Alesander’s agreement. Soon Felipe would see his precious vines reunited under the mantle of their marriage.
But after he was gone—after their marriage was dissolved—they would stay reunited. Alesander would own the entire estate.
He was waiting for her answer, his half-smile telling her that he was already anticipating her agreement.
Should she accept his terms?
Felipe had promised her what was left of the estate when he died, wanting the vines to stay in the family, wanting to ensure that she would be taken care of financially. After her spendthrift parents had left her with nothing but a few trinkets, it would have been all that she owned. And now, if she agreed to Alesander’s terms, she’d be left with nothing again.
But what good were the vines to her anyway when her plan had always been to return to her studies in Melbourne? What point was there in her keeping them, other than as a link to a past and a life she’d been denied most of her life? She didn’t belong here. Not really. She was no vigneron, whatever her heritage. She couldn’t even speak the language. Not properly. ‘All right,’ she said, her voice little more than a whisper, knowing that ultimately she had no choice. ‘You have a deal.’
‘Good, I’ll get my lawyers to draft up the agreement.’
‘This can’t get out! Felipe must not suspect.’
‘You think I want it to become public knowledge? No, my legal people will not breathe a word of this. Nobody will know our marriage is not real.’
She nodded, feeling her shoulders sag and her very bones droop, suddenly bone-weary. She’d come here and achieved what she’d never thought she’d achieve—the impossible had happened and Alesander Esquivel had agreed to her crazy plan. Soon the vineyard would be reunited and Felipe would have a reason to smile again. She should be over the moon ecstatic right now. And yet instead she felt wrung out, both emotionally and physically. ‘I must go,’ she said, shocked when she glanced out of the window and realised how the light was fading from the day. ‘Felipe will be wondering where I am.’ She looked back at him. ‘I imagine you’ll be in touch when the papers are ready to sign.’
‘I’ll get my jacket. I’ll drive you home.’
‘There’s