Page 44 of Her Spanish Scandal

“Did I hear someone with you downstairs?”

“Yes, you did. I invited Elvira to spend the night here. Her house was overrun with media and she had only servants at home.” He realized he was explaining himself, something that he never did.

“Didn’t you think to ask me first?”

“She’s grieving, Kara. And she’s an old friend. I couldn’t turn her away.”

“Of course not,” she said, walking toward the doorway.

“I don’t answer to you. Even after we are married.”

“I know that,” she said. Her big eyes were wide and she kept blinking. He had the feeling she was fighting back tears and he felt like a total jerk.

But this hadn’t been the easiest day for him. And he still had to talk to his parents. And then finish getting Elvira settled in.

“I’m sorry,” Kara said. “We can talk about this in the morning. But please remember what we talked about when I agreed to be your fiancée.”

“What was that?”

“That neither of us would hold the other to this marriage, or engagement, as the case may be, if the other found love.”

He wanted to curse. “I can’t deal with jealousy right now, Kara. My family has just had a bad scare and I need to make sure that they are okay. I’ll deal with you when I have more time.”

She took a deep breath and then walked back into the room, closing the door behind her. She didn’t stop until less than a foot separated them.

“First off, I’m not jealous. You told me there was nothing between you and Elvira and I believed you.”

“Very well. Then what is this about?”

“This? Gui, you called me over three hours ago and said you’d be home in a few minutes. Your family has called looking for you, and I had to say I had no idea where you were. Then I get the news from Katie that the husband of your old lover is dead, and you show up with her in tow. What do you think is wrong?”

He leaned back against his desk, crossed his arms over his chest. He’d been hoping for the peace that Kara always brought to him and instead tonight he was finding more chaos than he wanted to deal with right now.

“It sounds like jealousy.”

“Stop saying that. I’m not jealous. I was worried about you. I thought something might have happened to you, or perhaps you’d learned bad news about your brother and that you needed me, Gui. I was worried because I wanted to be by your side and help you through this.”

“I don’t need that.”

“You don’t? What do you need then? Because I’ve tried everything I can think of to be what you need, and I still can’t figure it out.”

“I need a woman who knows when to give me space. I need a woman who will realize that in the middle of a family crisis, I can’t deal with her and her petty jealousies.”

“Is that really what you need?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Then I guess you don’t need me.”

She pivoted on her heel and walked to the door, and he let her go.

Chapter Eleven

Kara had no idea where she was going to go, but she needed to get away from Gui and away from his house. But he stopped her before she got very far.

“Don’t run off like this. I know that my words seemed harsh, but this hasn’t been an easy day.”

She went back to him, putting her arms around his waist and hugging him. He sighed and hugged her back and she thought that maybe things would be okay. “I know this has been a long day.”