Reckless Night in Rio (17 page)

‘Don’t you understand?’ She shook her head tearfully. ‘Robby is your son.’

The echo of her words hung in the air between them like a noxious cloud.

Gabriel stared at her, then staggered back.

‘What?’ he choked out.

‘Robby is your—’

‘I heard you,’ he cried, putting his hands over his ears. But he couldn’t stop his mind from repeating those words.
Robby is your son.
‘You’re wrong. It’s impossible.’

‘No,’ Laura said quietly. ‘Didn’t you notice how he looks so much like you? That he was born exactly nine months after our night together? How could you not know? How could you not see?’

He shook his head. ‘But—but it can’t be,’ he gasped. ‘I was careful. I used protection.’

She shook her head. ‘Condoms have been known to fail—’

‘Only to people who use them incorrectly,’ he muttered. ‘I do not.’

‘But even then, three percent of the time they—’

‘No.’ He held out his hand, blocking her words. He felt as if he couldn’t breathe, and loosened the tie on his tuxedo. ‘I can’t be his father. I can’t.’

Laura took a deep breath. She looked so beautiful in her white gown and veil. He’d never seen her look so innocent, so beautiful. So deceitful.

‘I know this must come as a shock to you,’ she said softly. She gave him a tremulous smile. ‘It was a shock for me, too. But Robby’s not an accident. He’s not a mistake.’

‘Then what is he?’ Gabriel demanded.

She looked up at him, her blue eyes luminous.

‘A miracle,’ she whispered.

Images of Robby’s chubby, smiling face went through his mind. His dark hair, his inquisitive dark eyes.
Of course
Robby was his son. Pacing, Gabriel raked his hair back with his hand. How could he have not seen it before?

Because he hadn’t wanted to see it, he thought grimly. Because having a child, when he’d killed his parents and prevented his brother from raising his, was the one thing he could not allow himself to do.

‘I destroyed my own family,’ he said in a low voice, staring blindly through the windows toward the wintry hills. ‘I don’t deserve another.’

Laura came slowly toward him, her beautiful face filled with tenderness and love, her eyes glowing with light.

‘What happened that night was an accident. It wasn’t your fault. But you’ve buried yourself in the cemetery with them, not allowing yourself to be happy or loved, always punishing yourself—’

‘Not punishment.
Justice
,’ he said in a low voice, feeling as if his heart were being ripped out of his chest. ‘If I hadn’t tried to talk Guilherme out of having a family, if I hadn’t tried to talk him out of committing to his wife and baby, they would all be alive. Why should I enjoy the life I denied my own brother?’

‘Your brother is gone. He forgave you long ago. But we’re still here, and we need you,’ she said. She took a deep breath and lifted her tearstained eyes to his. ‘Please, Gabriel. I love you. Love me back.’

His jaw hardened as he stared down at her.

‘Don’t use the word
love
,’ he said harshly. ‘You lied to me. And you turned me into a liar, as well. I said I would never have a wife. Now look at me.’ Rage burned inside him as he gazed down at his tuxedo. He ripped the tiny rose boutonniere out of his lapel. ‘Just look at me!’

She went pale beneath her wedding veil, and the beautiful light in her eyes dimmed. ‘I’m sorry. It’s why I didn’t tell you I was pregnant. I knew it wasn’t what you wanted, that you’d feel trapped by duty to a child. But—’ she took a deep breath ‘—I couldn’t marry you. Not without telling you the truth.’

‘Thank you,’ he said coldly, pacing the carpet. He stopped. His body felt chilled, as frozen as a New Hampshire winter. Maybe because of the icy dagger she’d just plunged through his back. ‘Thank you, Laura, for being so trustworthy and decent.’

She flinched. Her eyes were red, her beautiful face swollen with tears. ‘I understand if you want to back out.’

‘Back out?’

‘Of the wedding,’ she whispered.

He saw the way her petite, curvaceous body was shivering in her wedding dress. He forced himself not to care. What difference did her feelings make to him anymore? His lips curved as he looked at her scornfully. ‘I’m more determined to marry you now than ever.’

She licked her lips and he saw a tremulous hope in her blue eyes. ‘Because you love Robby?’

He stared at her. ‘Because he’s my duty.’

Tears fell unchecked down her face as she clutched her arms together over her exquisite beaded gown. ‘Can’t you even try to love him?’

‘The deal stands,’ he said coldly. ‘I will still marry you. I will still take care of your son.’

‘
Our
son!’

For a long time, she stood, staring at him. Her lips parted to speak, and his cell phone rang in his pocket. Emotionlessly, he turned away from her. ‘Santos.’

‘I’m afraid I have to back out of our deal, Santos.’

Gabriel recognized the voice at once. Felipe Oliveira. His eyes widened in shock as he stepped away from Laura. ‘Is that some kind of joke, Oliveira?’ he growled into the phone. ‘Some attempt to drive up the price? Because you’ve already signed the papers.’

‘Just the preliminary papers. And Théo St. Raphaël has just offered me three million euros more for Açoazul than you. Best of all, he’s throwing in his prize vineyard to sweeten the offer.’ The man gave a laugh. ‘I’ve always wanted to make my own champagne, and his vineyard is legendary.’

‘You can’t do that!’ Gabriel exploded. ‘We signed a contract!’

‘A preliminary contract,’ the man pointed out gleefully. ‘All I need pay for reneging on the terms is a small penalty—a million American dollars. Which St. Raphaël has also offered to cover.’

Gabriel cursed aloud. ‘But why? Why betray me like this, Oliveira, after we helped you see Adriana’s true nature?’

The older man cackled. ‘Now that I’m rid of her, I suddenly find I’m interested in business again. Sorry, Santos.’ He paused, then said with greater seriousness, ‘Sorry, young man. But you’ll live to fight another day.’

‘I’ll leave within the hour,’ Gabriel said desperately. ‘I can be in Rio by tonight, and we can talk further—’

But Oliveira had hung up. Gabriel stared for a long moment at the phone in his hand. He felt dizzy with the vertigo of how much he’d lost in the last two minutes. He’d lost…
everything.

He whirled on Laura, who was staring up at him with big eyes. ‘Let’s get the wedding over with,’ he growled, stomping toward the door. ‘As soon as it’s over, we’re leaving for Rio.’

Her trembling voice stopped him. ‘No.’

He frowned, looking back at her from the doorway. ‘No? What do you mean, no?’

She licked her lips, coming closer. Her eyes were luminous in the morning light.

‘I could accept you not loving me,’ she said. ‘I told myself that my love could be enough for both of us.’ Her eyes narrowed, glittering like a frozen blue sea. ‘But I can’t accept you not loving Robby. He can’t just be your
duty
.’

‘I just found out he’s my son,’ he retorted, ‘after a year of your lies. What do you expect from me? That I declare my love and fall at your feet?’

She looked at him, and her lips trembled in a smile. ‘That would be nice.’

He shook his head angrily. ‘Accept what I can give you. And be grateful!’

‘Grateful?’ she cried. With an intake of breath, she held up the hem of her wedding dress and marched right up to him. Her beautiful face was outraged. ‘I waited five years for you to love me,’ she said. ‘I dreamed of you for the whole last year! All I wanted was for you to marry me…’

‘And I will,’ he said impatiently. ‘Come on.’

‘But I was wrong.’ She lifted her chin. ‘Love is what matters. Without love, this marriage is nothing but a lie.’ She shook her head fiercely. ‘And I won’t let Robby settle for that. I won’t let him grow up wondering why his father doesn’t love him, why his parents’ marriage is so strained, what he’s done wrong!’

Gabriel stared at her. It suddenly seemed as if an ocean divided them. He reached out his hand. ‘Laura…’

She slapped it away. ‘No!’

He glared at her. ‘I don’t have time for this.’

‘So go.’

He briefly considered the idea of dragging her forcibly down the aisle. But she was surrounded by farmers and ranchers and strong neighbors with guns, while to their eyes he was just some stranger who was taking her and Robby away.

But he wasn’t just a stranger. He was Robby’s father.

Gabriel sucked in a deep breath, overwhelmed by the flood of emotion in his heart. He couldn’t give in to the feeling.
Couldn’t…

Grabbing her wrist, he started to pull her towards the door. ‘We will marry, then leave for Rio—’

She ripped her arm out of his grasp. ‘I’m not going.’

‘You’re being ridiculous. Don’t you understand? Oliveira is backing out of the contract! If I don’t change his mind, I’ll lose everything!’

‘I understand,’ she said softly. ‘You should go.’

‘I’m not leaving the country without you and our son.’

‘I’m not marrying you. Not like this.’

‘You’re being selfish!’

Laura swallowed, her cheeks pink. He could see he’d hurt her with the accusation. But she wasn’t going to let him manipulate her so easily. ‘I’ll never try to stop you from seeing Robby whenever you want. Our lawyers can work out some arrangement. But I won’t marry you, and I won’t leave the people who love us for someone who doesn’t.’

‘So that’s it?’ he said incredulously. ‘You’re giving me an ultimatum?’

‘Yes.’ Her eyes filled with tears as she gave him a trembling smile. ‘I guess I am.’

Gabriel swallowed against the sudden lump in his throat. He couldn’t force her to marry him. He couldn’t seduce or charm or bully her into it. When did she get so steady? When did she get so strong?

Raking his hair back, he looked at her. ‘Laura,’ he said slowly. He exhaled a deep breath. ‘I can’t do it. What you’re asking. I wish I could, but I can’t. I can’t…love you.’

Pain flashed across her face, raw and sharp. Then she straightened her shoulders in her wedding gown. Reaching up, she pulled the vintage lace veil off her elegant blonde chignon. Her blue eyes were stricken but steady.

‘Then I’m sorry,’ she said quietly. ‘But if you can’t love us…you can’t have us.’

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

G
ABRIEL
had to hurry. Every second he wasted with Laura was like a grain of sand falling through a fatal hourglass. He had to leave at once.

And yet he couldn’t.

Leaving her felt like a death. He took a deep, shuddering breath. ‘This isn’t over,’ he said hoarsely. ‘I’ll be back after I close the deal in Rio.’

‘Of course.’ Laura’s shoulders straightened, even as her lower lip trembled. ‘I will never stop you from seeing Robby. I hope…I hope you’ll see him often. He needs his father.’

Gabriel heard the music start to play downstairs and thought of the guests surrounded by white roses and candlelight, waiting for the wedding ceremony to begin. He clenched his hands, feeling that same strange spinning, sinking feeling in the region of his chest.

‘Remember,’ he said tersely, looking at her. ‘This was your choice. I wanted to marry you.’

She swallowed as tears streamed unchecked down her pale cheeks. ‘I’ll never forget that.’

No, he thought suddenly. It couldn’t end like this. Not like this!

With a sudden, ragged breath, he seized her in his arms. Pressing his lips against hers, he kissed her with every ounce of passion and persuasion he possessed. He never wanted to let her go.

She was the one to pull away. He saw tears falling down her cheeks as she stepped back, out of his reach. ‘Goodbye.’

He sucked in his breath. But there was nothing he could do. Nothing to be done. ‘I’ll be back,’ he said heavily. ‘In a few days.’

She gave him a wan smile. ‘Robby will be glad whenever you choose to visit.’

He left the room. Went out the door. Walked past her mother, who was waiting at the bottom of the stairs. He went outside into the cold winter air to the limo waiting outside. Gabriel felt a sudden pain in his chest when he saw that someone—one of Laura’s friends, perhaps—had written Just Married across the back window in white shaving cream, and attached aluminum cans to the back bumper to drag noisily down the road.

His hands clenched as he flung himself heavily into the backseat of the limo. Carlos, who’d apparently been texting someone as he waited in the driver’s seat, jumped.

‘Mr. Gabriel! What are you doing, so soon…? And where is Mrs. Laura?’

‘She’s not coming,’ he replied tightly. His throat hurt. ‘And she’s not
Mrs.
’

‘But
senhor
… What happened?’

Gabriel looked bleakly out the window, at the beautiful fields of endless white. ‘Just go.’

Laura stood by the closed door until the sound of Gabriel’s footsteps faded away.

Sagging into a chair, she covered her face with her hands. She’d been happy to be a bride, a single mother no longer—so pleased to finally leave the scandal behind her. She thought of her baby, downstairs now with one of her cousins, and a sob came from her lips.

But she’d had no other honorable choice. If she’d been willing to accept a life without love forever, what would that have done to her soul? What would that have taught her son?

She’d done the right thing. So why did she feel so awful?

She heard the door squeak open and looked up with an intake of breath.

Her three sisters, all dressed in elegant bridesmaid gowns, stood in the open door with their mother. ‘Why did Gabriel storm off like that?’ Ruth asked tremulously. Then she saw Laura’s tearful face. ‘Oh, sweetheart!’

A moment later, Laura was crying in their arms as they hugged her, and her scowling little sister Hattie was cursing and offering to go punch Gabriel in the face. That made Laura laugh, but the laughter turned to a sob. Wiping her eyes, she looked up at them.

‘What do I do now?’ she whispered.

Her mother searched her gaze. ‘The wedding is off? Is it for sure?’