‘They are unique and vulnerable,’ he explained.
Diego’s hard face had softened. This was a side of him she hadn’t seen before. It made her even more certain that she wasn’t the only one who had allowed the past to colour her life. As she stared at the broad sweep of his shoulders and his strong, tanned neck she wanted to ask so many questions, but she was here for a fact-finding trip of the island, not him, and so she settled for, ‘I didn’t take you for a nature-lover.’
‘Oh, I love nature,’ he said, standing up to fix her with an assessing stare. ‘It’s people I have a problem with.’
Okay. She turned her attention to gathering more shots for Holly.
They held concerts in the underground theatre here, Diego explained as he led the way into the incredible facility buried deep in the bowels of the earth. ‘We invite people over from neighbouring islands.’
As you do, Maxie thought wryly. ‘How many people can the theatre seat?’ She had immediately reverted back to business mode and was taking notes.
‘Three hundred or so—more if we take the seats out.’
‘It would be perfect for a party after the wedding breakfast,’ she mused out loud, though of course it would be up to Holly to make the final decision.
She was standing too close to Diego, Maxie realised as her body thrilled a warning. Moving away, she stared down the steeply raked aisle to the unusual stone stage, with its backdrop of rough-hewn rock glowing amber beneath the lights. She took some shots, made a few more notes, and then turned to go—almost colliding with him.
As she skirted past she could hear his steady breathing above the thundering of her heart and something made her ask impulsively, ‘Do you mind if I stop by to watch you training your horses?’
‘You’d find it boring, surely?’
‘No. But if I’d be in the way—’
‘You wouldn’t be in the way.’
If her heart had been thundering before, it was out of control now. ‘Are you sure?’
‘I’m sure.’
They climbed back up the steps and emerged into the light. ‘Do you still think you can ride my bike?’ Diego asked.
She stared at the big black monster, sensing there was a bigger decision to be made here than whether she could ride his bike. ‘Yes, I do,’ she said.
Diego needed someone to stand up to him. She needed to test herself. Bring it on.
THE bike seemed to have grown bigger, while Maxie seemed to have shrunk. Drawing in a steadying breath, she tried not to register anything when Diego swung onto the saddle behind her—and failed miserably. Her back lit up like the Fourth of July. At least he couldn’t know how she was feeling—and at least he couldn’t see the tension on her face.
‘Just thumb the starter button, Maxie.’
There was another moment when he reached around her to guide her hands and his hard, muscular torso pressed into her back. The temptation just to close her eyes and lean against him…
‘Did you get that, Maxie?’
Diego’s tone was enough to eject her from that daydream. ‘Got it,’ she confirmed.
‘Good. You may have ridden a bike before, but I promise you you never rode a bike like this before.’
‘Like everything else on the island, I’m sure it’s extraordinary,’ she said dryly, smiling as she turned on the engine. It purred like a kitten.
‘Squeeze, don’t grab at the controls,’ Diego warned as she upped the revs. ‘You have to make love to them.’
‘I will,’ she said briskly, not wanting to think about making love in any context right now.
‘If you do exactly as I tell you,’ Diego added, ‘you’ll find the bike will respond like a—’
Like a lover? ‘Like a bike?’ she suggested.
‘Like the most responsive of bikes,’ Diego amended coolly.
Blowing out one last steadying breath, she released the brake and hit the throttle.
‘You’re doing ninety,’ Diego yelled above the wind. ‘Slow down or I’m taking over!’
She laughed as exhilaration took her over, and only slowed at the next bend. She took the corner well and didn’t speed up again. She’d had her moment. She wasn’t trying to provoke Diego. She just wanted to push the boundaries for once in her life.
That was Maxie Parrish, Maxie concluded wryly as the countryside turned from a dun-coloured blur into a crystal-clear image of scrubland punctuated by the occasional tree, she always knew when to pull back.
‘You ride well,’ Diego commented now he could be heard over the engine.
She could only blame the island for freeing something crazy inside sensible Maxie. ‘Thanks for letting me ride!’ she yelled back.
As Diego eased back in the saddle, she felt the loss of him instantly.
‘Do you ride a bike every day?’ he said.
‘Every day to work—and sometimes when I’m at home.’
‘Home?’ Diego queried, frightening her with the speed of his pick-up. ‘Do you live alone?’
‘I do now,’ she said lightly.
‘No boyfriend.’
‘No…’ She drew the word out as if she had no time for one, which was true.
‘You don’t live with your parents, then?’
‘No.’ She took a moment. ‘My mother’s dead.’
‘I’m sorry for your loss,’ Diego said, leaning forward to speak in her ear. ‘My parents too—both of them.’
‘I’m sorry.’
‘It’s been quite some time now.’
‘But it never gets any easier, does it? I think about my mother every day. I still miss her. I always will. I suppose you just learn coping strategies.’
‘I suppose you do,’ Diego agreed, and then after a moment he added, ‘What about your father, Maxie?’
Every part of her was instantly on red alert. ‘He’s retired,’ she said, reverting to the one-liner that always got her through. ‘He lives quietly now.’ She waited tensely, and was relieved when Diego let the subject drop.
‘Take a left here,’ he instructed. They were almost back at the palacio, and were entering a fenced lane beyond which lay endless paddocks where countless horses were grazing.
She stopped the bike and Diego got off. With the immense power of his upper body he barely used his legs as he vaulted lightly over a gate. A sleek bay pony, instantly recognising its master, came trotting over. Nuzzling Diego’s pockets imperiously, it consented to consume a packet of mints.
‘Are you going to ride him?’ Maxie asked almost simultaneously with Diego springing lightly onto the horse’s back. His injury counted for nothing now. Nudging the horse into a relaxed canter, he was at one with it immediately—but she guessed that when it came to playing polo at a professional level the stiffness in Diego’s leg would hold him back. Climbing the fence to watch, she rested her chin on her arm.