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CHAPTER FOUR
BEFORE LUCAHAD drawn his attention to Sienna, Alejandro had barely noticed her. He’d been brooding, wondering what had happened to change Luca from the man he knew—a man he felt an affinity with in so many ways—to a doting, adoring, puppy-dog-esque husband, all of a sudden.
But now, Sienna was all he was aware of. He watched from a distance as she moved through the party. Hell, he could still smell her on him, taste her, if he closed his eyes he could feel her muscles tightening around his hardness, so he didn’t close his eyes, he didn’t allow himself to sink back into that memory. It wasn’t how he operated.
He watched her, a beer in one hand, grateful for the shadows that turned his symmetrical face into a chiaroscuro, obscuring him from notice, thankful that Luca was now too absorbed in his bride to notice anyone or anything else, because Alejandro had no idea how he’d ever be able to meet his friend in the eye again.
Besides, Sienna looked happy.
She looked as though he was the furthest thing from her mind. She’d stopped walking and was now talking to an older woman with short silver hair and a dress that was the brightest shade of pink Alejandro had ever seen.
As he watched, Sienna laughed at something her companion said, her head tilted back, her fabulous red hair like a beacon. He wanted to catch it all in his hand and wrap it around his fist, tilting her head back until her eyes stared into his and her mouth was open, waiting, needing...
He swore. It was time to get out of here, before he did something really stupid and suggested they spend the night together.
And yet he didn’t move. He stayed where he was, watching, wondering, wanting.
‘You know I’m not ready to settle down, Gertie. Not yet.’
‘But all these men!’ Gertie gestured to the party, shaking her head. ‘So many options.’
‘Yes, and none of them right for me.’ Sienna followed Gertie’s gaze, using all of her willpower to avoid so much as glancing within a dozen metres of Alejandro, even though she knew exactly where he was, even though she could feel his eyes on her in a way that was making her pulse flutter unsteadily.
‘What about my Andrew? You know he thinks the world of you.’
Sienna rolled her eyes, an indulgent smile softening her lips. ‘I work for him. Have you heard of a small matter of sexual harassment?’
‘It is not harassment if you agree to date, and he would make you happy.’
‘Gertie.’ Sienna laughed, shaking her head. ‘It’s never going to happen.’
Gertie tilted her hot-pink lips. ‘That’s a shame. I should have liked to claim you as my granddaughter-in-law.’
Sienna softened, putting a hand on the older woman’s shoulder. ‘How about just keeping me as a friend?’
‘And a lawn bowls partner?’ Gertie grinned, chinking her champagne flute to Sienna’s.
Sienna sipped in agreement, her head tilted back, so she missed the moment they were joined by another.
‘Ah, speak of the devil.’
‘I thought my ears were burning.’ Andrew Davison—the Earl of Highbury, and also Sienna’s boss—approached, holding two champagne flutes. ‘Actually, I thought you could both use a drink, but I see you’ve got that covered.’
Andrew was one of the few people who understood a little of what Sienna’s life was like—courtesy of her close friendship with Gertie, cemented when Sienna was only a teenager, and she had been truly miserable, and now their own friendship. He knew that while Sienna was very happy for her sister’s marriage, any family event brought with it a tension for Sienna that was almost off the Richter scale.
‘That doesn’t mean a second drink wouldn’t be welcome.’ Sienna smiled through gritted teeth, wishing that her entire body didn’t feel different.Her nipples were so sensitive that every movement brought the fabric of her dress brushing over them, making goosebumps dance on her pale skin, and between her legs there was a throbbing that made it impossible to forget Alejandro, that made it impossible not to want him again.
But that would never happen.
He’d made it clear that he wished they’d never slept together, and she wasn’t going to debase herself by begging.
‘No man is ever going to want a fat slob like you, Sienna. What did I do to deserve you as a daughter? Tell me that.’
She finished one glass of champagne, then took the other from Andrew. Kindly concern shaped his eyes so she smiled, a practised smile of reassurance, as she took the glass from him.
Gertie wasn’t wrong. Her grandson was gorgeous. Definitely eligible bachelor material—strange that Sienna had never so much as looked at him in that light. Oh, he was perhaps too old for her, in his mid-thirties, but then, how old was Alejandro? What was his last name? She gasped, shocked by how little she knew of a man who knew every detail about her body, covering the surprised reaction by quickly drinking from the champagne. That was what they’d agreed after all. Just sex. No strings. No promises. And she was fine with that. No regrets.
‘My driver is out the front. You know you are welcome to use his services to escape at any time,’ Andrew said, leaning closer, so only she heard the offer.
