Page 41 of Their One-Night Rio Reunion
A year ago, Cristo Redentor Church, Rio de Janeiro
ANADIAZWASLATE. Approximately ten minutes late. Which was perfectly respectable—expected, even—on a traditional wedding day, but this wasn’t a traditional wedding, and Caio could feel a prickling sensation at the back of his neck.
He was acutely aware of the small congregation behind him, whispering and looking at him. Speculating. A sense of exposure crept over him when he thought of the fact that Rodolfo Diaz was a notoriously tricky individual to do business with, and Caio had only done so because he’d known that Diaz had more to lose than he did in their deal.
But now he wondered if he’d missed something. If he’d got it wrong. Perhaps the marriage set-up with his daughter, Ana, was some sort of distraction technique—she’d stand him up at the altar, publicly humiliate him, and wreck Caio’s reputation with a view to undermining his business. After all, Diaz knew his weak spots—hence the suggestion of a convenient marriage.
Caio imagined his father gloating. He’d always hated the fact that Caio had left the family and made a fortune all on his own. He’d love to see his youngest son fall flat on his face. And nowhere better than in the middle of high society in Rio de Janeiro.
But just as he was beginning to fear the worst he heard the congregation hush behind him. The surge of relief caught him off guard. He turned around to see Ana on her father’s arm in the church’s entrance.
She cut a curiously traditional figure, in a long dress that covered her from neck to toe and shoulder to wrist. A veil covered her face. But he could see her long dark hair, drawn back from her face.
She started walking down the aisle. For the first time Caio could appreciate her figure. She was usually wearing something baggy, making him wonder what she was hiding. But even in this less than fashionable wedding dress he could see that she’d been disguising a slimly petite figure with tantalising curves.
He imagined her long dark hair tumbling down her narrow back and a spark of desire made his blood pulse. He immediately tensed against it. This marriage was not about desire. It was about business, pure and simple.
She’d reached him now and he could see her eyes under the veil, huge and dark. Something about the modesty of her dress caught at him. He realised that after years of seeing women parade in front of him in as little as possible there was something erotic about Ana’s entire body being covered up.
And then he had to grit his jaw and exert control again. He wouldn’t be peeling this dress off his new wife.
She was looking up at him from under her veil and Caio lifted it up and over the back of her head, revealing her face. The purity of her bone structure and the lush natural pout of her mouth gave him a sense in that moment that he might very easily underestimate this woman, and that it would be a mistake to do so.
Then he noticed that she looked irritated. He said, for her ears only, ‘Okay?’
She gestured minutely towards where her father stood to one side. ‘I’m sorry I’m late. He delayed us...just to prove some macho point to you or something, I’m sure.’
So Caio had been right. Diaz might not have gone so far as to ruin the wedding, but he wasn’t above playing games. He had never expected Ana to be in his corner with such a lack of guile. He felt a surprising sense of kinship with her. Even though he barely knew her.
He took her small hand in his and said, ‘Let’s do this, shall we?’
Now she looked nervous, but determined. ‘Okay.’ And she turned to face the priest.
It took a long second for Caio to take his eyes off her face and turn to the front...
The memory of their wedding day lingered in Caio’s head. He’d thought of it because looking at Ana’s profile now, as she stared out to sea, reminded him of that day in the church for some reason.
Her profile looked serene. He knew he should be feeling serene too. He’d just experienced a night of unexpected and unbridled passion and now he was a free man again. His business had never been better, nor his prospects as good.
But he didn’t feel serene. He had the same feeling he did when he hadn’t prepared well enough for a business meeting and knew he was at a disadvantage or on the back foot. The same feeling he’d had when he’d realised that he was in danger of eroding his success unless he did something drastic.
Marrying Ana had been a drastic move. But it had also been the best decision he’d ever made.
She looked totally impenetrable. Even though they’d spent a year together, and last night had effectively smashed aside the last boundaries of intimacy, right now he felt as if he knew nothing about her. She was as much of a mystery as she’d been when they’d first married.
‘What are you thinking about?’ The fact that he’d had to ask that question because she wasn’t simpering all over him irritated Caio.
Ana glanced at him and then away again. That irritated him too.
‘Just about the fact that within a couple of days I’ll be on the other side of the world, starting a whole new life.’
Caio felt something hard lodge in his chest. He should be cheering Ana on. He should be offering to make arrangements to rebook her flight. But that rudderless feeling was back. That feeling of needing to do something drastic.
For a man who had carved out a solitary path and made a huge success of it, heshouldbe relishing this confirmation that she was okay with what had happened, and that she was happy to proceed with getting on with their separate lives.
He should be. But he wasn’t.
He still wanted her.
