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CHAPTER FOURTEEN
SIENNAHADBEENwrong about hurt, and she’d been wrong about hope. Nothing in her past had prepared her for this kind of hurt, nothing protected her from its sting, and hope, damn it, hope was always there, beating its wings within her chest, so, no matter how she tried to push it aside, she felt it every time her phone buzzed, every time a car pulled up the drive of Hughenwood House, until, a month after leaving Barcelona, it was like embers in the woods rather than a proper flickering flame. Dying, but not dead, there within her, even when she knew it was impossible.
Alejandro Corderó was not the kind of man to pine after a woman. He wasn’t sitting at home in Barcelona wishing she were with him. Hell, he wasn’t thinking about her, remembering her, wanting her—he probably barely even remembered her name.
She knew that to be true, and she’d known it from the moment they’d got involved, but that didn’t stop the pain from seeping into her organs, her cells, her blood until it was a thriving part of her.
‘Really, Sienna? Pink and purple? You seem to have forgotten you’re not an eight-year-old anymore.’
Sienna looked down at the dress she’d chosen—a summery, cotton shift in big bright splotches, and lifted her shoulders, pretending her mother’s words didn’t cut deep into her chest.
‘And with your hair? Perhaps I should get you checked for colour blindness.’
She ground her teeth together. ‘I’m taking Starbuck for a walk.’
‘It’s going to rain.’
‘I don’t mind.’
‘Suit yourself.’
Sienna snapped her fingers and Starbuck came bounding into the room, a big, happy smile for Sienna and a growl for Angelica Thornton-Rose. Angelica grimaced in the dog’s direction then turned, sashaying out of the kitchen as though the tiles were her own personal runway.
Sienna didn’t walk far. She couldn’t. She was so tired. In the first few days since leaving Spain, she’d been possessed by a form of manic energy, so she’d cleaned the house from top to bottom, pruned the orchard and replanted the vegetable patch, but as the reality of what she’d lost had sunk in she’d felt her energy deplete completely, and every day she woke with the same sense of dread in her belly: how was she going to get through this without him?
Alejandro shrugged off the woman’s hand before turning to face her. The bar was dark, the music muted, the crowd thick. It was the perfect place to be alone—which was what he wanted.
‘Alex, hi,’ she purred, her pink lacquered nails catching the down lights, making them shimmer. She lifted one to her lip, tracing the outline of the lower. ‘How’ve you been?’
He grunted in response, turning back to his drink.
‘That good, huh?’ She leaned closer, her perfume intoxicating. ‘I’ve got some ideas for how you can feel better.’
He vaguely remembered her. They’d slept together a couple of years ago, after meeting at the opening of a nightclub. Her name escaped him.
‘I’m not interested.’
‘That’s because you haven’t heard my ideas yet.’ And she kissed him just beneath his earlobe, a possessive hand pressing to his chest, so he stood abruptly, dislodging her completely.
‘I’m not interested.’
She stared at him, bemused. And could he blame her? He had earned the reputation he had as a womaniser, a devoted bachelor. No wonder she thought he was a sure thing.
‘Excuse me.’
He threw some money on the bar to cover his tab then stalked out, one hand in his pocket, curled around the emerald necklace that had, for a brief time, hung so close to her breasts and heart, a necklace he’d found curled carefully on the bedside table after she’d left.
His head was bent low and his heart raced. Because he hadn’t been with anyone since Sienna, and though he’d contemplated it, wondering if it might be what he needed to put her out of his head, he now had his answer: when the other woman had touched him, he’d wanted to hurl. Sex with anyone else wasn’t the answer. So what was?
‘I’m so happy for you guys.’ Sienna hugged Olivia close, her eyes meeting Luca’s over her sister’s shoulder. He had the decency to look ashamed.
‘Thanks. I wanted to wait until I saw you in person to tell you. Can you believe it? A baby!’
‘Wonderful news.’ Sienna nodded, mustering what she hoped would pass for an enthusiastic smile to her face as Olivia spoke almost nonstop about her pregnancy and excitement, about where they planned to live and how she wanted to decorate the nursery, and, in the small part of her mind still capable of functioning, Sienna saw for herself that Olivia and Luca were clearly besotted with one another. There was nothing fake about their relationship. Nothing contractual. They were in love. Genuine, mutual love.
Tears crowded her throat and she smiled, hoping they’d pass for happy tears. ‘Congratulations. Have you told Mum?’
‘I think I’ll save that pleasure for another day.’ Olivia looked from Luca to Sienna, as if for courage. ‘Actually, speaking of Mum, there’s something I wanted to talk to you about.’
