A Scandalous Midnight in Madrid

Alejandro frowned and said nothing. ‘You’ll have to see how you’re feeling at the time,’ he finally conceded.

‘Of course I will,’ she said as he kissed her again.

This kiss was so long and lingering, she shivered involuntarily because it felt like goodbye. ‘Are you going somewhere again?’ she asked when he released her.

‘Would you miss me?’

‘Of course.’

‘And you wouldn’t do anything silly while I’m away?’

‘You are going,’ she said with certainty. ‘So, how long is it this time?’ She had no right to ask, but the words had shot out of her mouth before she could stop them, and now she regretted each and every syllable, because they made her sound desperate, when she relied on no one and never had.

‘I can’t tell you how long I’m going to be exactly,’ Alejandro admitted, ‘but I’m always on the other end of the phone, so don’t turn yours off this time.’

Nothing had changed, Sadie reflected, feeling as if a big black hole had just opened up in her stomach. Alejandro continued to live as if he was accountable to no one, and the truth of it was he was right. She had no call on him, though she felt sick to the stomach at the thought of him leaving. In fairness, she had needed space to get used to the idea of a baby, but what if Alejandro needed space from her? Glibly promising that she would forget the past was one thing, but someone should tell that wretched worm of doubt inside her to stop twisting and turning.

‘Go get some sleep. You must be exhausted. I’ll be leaving in a few hours’ time, so I won’t disturb you.’

So not even the prospect of one last night, wrapped in each other’s arms.

‘Sadie...’ Dipping his head, Alejandro stared into her eyes. ‘I am coming back, and until I do I want you to rest here. With Maria to look after you, you couldn’t be in a better place.’

‘I can’t stay here. What about my job in Madrid?’

‘Resign.’

‘That isn’t an option for me.’

‘And when the baby’s born?’

‘I’ll sort something out.’

They stared at each other in silence before finally accepting that neither of them was about to give way, and then Sadie dragged her gaze away from Alejandro’s and returned alone to her room.

After a restless few hours’ dozing, she heard the helicopter taking off. Rushing to the window, she stared out as the powerful machine soared overhead and wheeled away. Alejandro was giving her space she had thought she needed, but she didn’t want it now; she wanted him. They still had to talk about the baby and plan the future...unless Alejandro didn’t think it necessary to consider the future, because he would decide, he would plan, he would instruct—No! The baby joined them, but everything was going to be different from Sadie’s experience as a child. She’d make sure of it.

To anchor herself, she called Chef Sorollo to tell him the news, and as soon as he heard about the baby he insisted she must take a sabbatical to coincide with her pregnancy. She agreed that it was time to step out of her insular existence in Madrid, to discover more about the other side of her baby’s heritage, and she didn’t have to wait for Alejandro to help her do that. She’d always been strong, and now it was time to use that strength.

As Marissa and Annalisa were spending time together in Madrid, Sadie’s obvious destination was the flamenco camp. She wasn’t interested in resting, as Alejandro had suggested. She felt fit and well, and there was no reason why she couldn’t carry on researching recipes and traditions in the mountains. Her body would tell her when she’d done enough, and she would rest when that time came. She wasn’t worried about arriving unannounced at the camp, or being without her friends Annalisa and Marissa, because cooking, like music, brought people together across the world, and this was the best chance she’d get to learn more about the customs of the people that through Alejandro’s mother had enriched the de Alegon line.

Telling Maria where she was going, she packed her bags. Taking one last look around her fabulous suite of rooms, she left the building to hitch a lift up to the flamenco camp with a group of gardeners who were heading there within the hour. Returning to the community she loved was something she looked forward to, though whether it would take her mind off Alejandro... Staring up at the sky, she wished she didn’t miss him quite so much already.

* * *

The call shocked him out of bed at two in the morning. Like all middle-of-the-night calls, it had far more impact than if he’d received the same news at two in the afternoon, when the world was a livelier, brighter place, and his brain was firing on all cylinders. Receiver jammed between ear and shoulder, he logged the vital information as he tugged on his jeans. A disaster had struck the flamenco camp.

And Sadie was there! Pregnant Sadie. Sadie, pregnant with his baby!

What the hell was she doing at the flamenco camp? Why wasn’t she resting at his house in the mountains as he had instructed? He’d planned on her relaxing until he returned, and in a safe and secure place where she would be well looked after by Maria. He’d only had a couple of hours’ sleep, and his business was nowhere near concluded, but he’d meant it when he’d told Sadie that she wasn’t alone. Buckling his belt, he called to file an emergency flight plan. With any luck he’d arrive at the flamenco camp before dawn.

* * *

An avalanche in the height of summer wasn’t unusual in this part of Spain, Sadie learned as she checked on the well-being of a huddle of people who were sheltering beneath an overhang in the cliff. The rapid rise in temperature had melted the snow at the summit, and high winds had added to the problem, making the surface snow unstable.

The first Sadie had known of impending disaster was when the whisper of trouble she had thought was merely a change in the direction of the wind became a roar that tipped the guest caravan where she was sleeping onto its side, spilling Sadie out of bed onto a cold, hard floor. Once she was over the shock, she checked herself over and gave herself a moment to be sure that her tumble hadn’t harmed the baby. Then, finding her clothes amidst the jumble of assorted belongings that had hit the floor, which wasn’t hard, as most of them had fallen on top of her, she dressed quickly and forced a window open so she could climb out and see who needed help.

Slithering down the side of the upturned caravan, Sadie scrambled to her feet and looked around. A scene of complete devastation greeted her. The usually sun-drenched plateau had been transformed into a winter wonderland, but there was nothing funny or entertaining about this snow-covered scene, because people’s homes had been wrecked, and both children and adults were moving slowly around the site in a daze. If there was one thing she was good at, it was organisation. Without it, the most talented chefs would soon crash and burn. Having alerted the authorities and left a text on Alejandro’s phone when he didn’t pick up, she set to work. Discovering the extent of the damage to people and property was the first priority. Setting up a triage station manned by those with nursing skills was the next. Reuniting families was crucial, and, for the sake of children, the elderly and the injured, it needed to happen fast.

Delegating where possible, she liaised with the surprising number of people who had stepped up to help, issuing each of them with precise instructions as to where their help could best be utilised. Previously, her welcome at the camp had been friendly and polite, but now she was made to feel that she belonged.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

HE ARRIVED WITH not one, but three helicopters, ready to evacuate the camp. As the aircraft he was piloting swooped lower, he spotted a young woman, red hair flying as she gestured to those who’d marked out a safe landing site in the snow to stand clear.

‘Sadie?’

He was astounded to find her apparently directing the start of a clear-up operation. What the hell? She was pregnant and should be resting. Calling up his PA, he asked him to alert the best obstetrician in Madrid to

expect a new patient. Mountain rescue had already confirmed they were on their way with a fleet of service aircraft, and his fleet of private helicopters was in the air. Hovering over the landing cross, which the indomitable Sadie no doubt had marked out clearly on top of the snow, he brought the aircraft down and switched off the engine.

Appearing totally in control of the situation, she strode to meet him. The scolding he’d intended to give her was lost in the briefing she gave him as briskly as she might any other emergency professional in the field. ‘Initial stages of the rescue are well under way,’ she said when she’d finished the update, meeting his stern stare levelly.

Having reassured himself that she did look in the best of health, and had possibly never looked better, he replied in the same brisk tone, ‘Good job. Command centre?’

‘Your caravan, I’m afraid. It was one of the few structures left undamaged, thanks to its sheltered position in the encampment.’

‘No problem. How are you?’ he said, asking the question at the forefront of his mind. He stared at her intently as they strode along.

She glanced at him briefly. ‘I’m fine. The baby’s fine. I can assure you that I haven’t overdone it or taken any risks.’

‘You just initiated a full-scale rescue operation,’ he argued. ‘Was that safe, in your opinion?’

‘Would you rather I had sat it out?’

‘In your condition? Yes.’

Her glance this time was full of steel. ‘I’m okay, Alejandro.’

‘I guess you are,’ he conceded grimly.

‘This is what I’ve arranged so far,’ she said, turning the spotlight away from herself.

It was hard to believe quite how comprehensive Sadie’s report was. He had never admired her more, though she was one infuriatingly self-willed woman.

‘I hope you don’t mind,’ she said as they arrived at his caravan. ‘It’s also bigger than the rest of the homes, so requisitioning this particular van was the obvious choice.’

‘I don’t mind at all. It couldn’t have been put to a better use. Just tell me you haven’t done any of the heavy lifting,’ he ground out as he glanced at the piles of supplies that had already been air-dropped into camp.