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Of course he hadn’t. Her heart twisted painfully. ‘You ran a global empire and are used to having teams troubleshoot problems sometimes before they happen. It’s a natural reaction for you. It’s not for me.’
He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Although the gesture was a gentle one, his body remained tense, his gaze calculating and direct. ‘It’s the most efficient way to mitigate potential problems.’
Her fists balled, but she struggled to keep her voice even. Her emotions where he was concerned might be slipping out of her control but she could control this. ‘I’m not a potential business problem, Ramon.’
His hand dropped, his hands shoving into his pockets. The gaze that had hers captive swept down, shutting her out. When it rose again it was charged with double the purpose. ‘No. I’ve lost too much. I won’t risk this baby’s safety.’
Pain lanced her. ‘And you think I will?’
His jaw clenched tight. ‘I think you should remember our agreement. You agreed to the presence of a medical team for the duration of the pregnancy. You won’t go back on your promise now,’ he finished harshly.
The finality of that statement, the reminder that she was just the vessel incubating his heir, hollowed out any last vestige of the hope that she foolishly clung to in the dark of night. The hope that if they’d been as compatible in bed as she recalled, then perhaps, once the baby was born, they could go forge something out of the bones of that compatibility. It’d been a shameless, desperate wish. But a wish that she’d thought had foundations.
The look in his eyes told a different story.
Chemistry might prompt his body to react a certain way to hers but the most important part of him, his heart, would never be hers.
Slowly she unfurled her fists. ‘Fine. Since that’s what your piece of paper states, then, by all means, have them come.’
Skirting his imposing form, she hurried away from the terrace.
* * *
Ramon watched her walk away, wondering if the tempestuous upheaval that best described his current state of being was pushing him into taking decisions that weren’t entirely sound.
No, he concluded in the next breath. What was more sound than ensuring the optimal well-being of Suki and their baby? He knew the statistics. He also knew that expert care and quick action during a crisis would be the difference between saving the ones he cared about and having his heart ripped out all over again.
He couldn’t take that.
But what about her fears?
Discomfort irritated beneath his skin, the voice very much like his brother’s sparking a deep vexation.
She’d signed the agreement, yes, but did a piece of paper take into account the true reality? For the first time he’d allowed himself to truly hear her. Had he allowed himself to see the torment that always lurked in her eyes? The same torment she must have felt when faced with the diagnosis of their baby the first time round.
She’d lived through it. He hadn’t. Did he not owe her the benefit of a little peace of mind?
But at what cost?
Gripping his nape, he looked to the heavens, seeking clarity. But as with everything else, he knew he would only find it within himself. And yet the instinct he’d trusted all of his life was flashing with an out of order signal. Because the options it was throwing out were laughable.
Or perhaps you don’t want to trust what it’s saying?
‘Shut up, hermano,’ he sneered under his breath.
Dios, he was losing his mind.
Folding his arms, he leaned against the balcony and attempted to calm his racing thoughts. But nothing would be calmed. Nothing had been calm since he first set eyes on Suki, he realised. She managed to consume his thoughts with very little effort.
Day or night.
Except he’d found a minimal outlet in the form of the nearly finished sculpture residing in his studio.
The sculpture you’re tipping into obsession over?
He growled under his breath. So what if he was obsessed? He’d made a promise and he planned on keeping it. No matter that he was pouring a part of himself into the project than he’d never done before?
No matter that he fell into bed and dreamed about the subject of the project and woke up with a hollow feeling in his chest?
