Contract Baby

Hugging the dress he must have tossed over her while she slept, Polly reflected that he had gone from never having taken that risk to repeating it over and over again with a devastating lack of inhibition. But then she was his wife—once a chosen baby machine, she conceded rather sourly. No doubt he imagined it would be no big deal for her to find herself pregnant again so soon. But right at that moment Polly cringed at the prospect of her freshly slender and now apparently sexually attractive shape vanishing again. Raul wouldn’t find her remotely attractive any more and he might stray, she thought fearfully.

‘I’m sorry...’ Raul breathed tightly as the silence stretched and stretched.

‘It’s all right for you...you’re not going to get all fat and clumsy, are you?’

Instantly Raul closed an arm round her. ‘You were not fat and clumsy...you were gorgeous.’

‘You like babies. You’re not likely to tell me the truth—and I’ve never been gorgeous in my life!’ Polly added for good measure.

‘Why did I find you so tempting while you were in the clinic, then?’

Polly stilled. ‘Did you?’

‘I thought you were incredibly sexy...like a lush, ripe peach.’

She supposed peaches were at least round. But she looked at him, saw his sincerity and swallowed hard on another tart retort. ‘My body hasn’t settled down yet,’ she shared, striving not to be prim about discussing such a thing with him. ‘So I don’t know how much of a risk there is.’

As Polly shimmied back into her dress, Raul glanced at his watch and swore succinctly in Spanish. ‘Caramba ... look at the time—and we have guests coming to dinner!’

As she stood up, Raul zipped her dress for her. She was conscious of her body’s decided tenderness, the result of their frantic lovemaking. He was oversexed, as well as careless, but she still loved him to death. Otherwise she probably would have killed him at that moment for simply dropping on her this late in the day the fact that they were entertaining guests.

‘Who’s coming?’ she asked, balancing to slide into her second shoe.

‘Melina D’Agnolo and—’ A firm hand snaked out swiftly to steady her as she staggered on one leg and nearly went headlong down the slope. ‘Dios mío, mi esposa...take care!’ Raul urged.

‘You were saying?’ Her head bent to conceal her shock, Polly breathed in very shakily.

‘Melina, our closest neighbour,’ Raul shared, with what Polly considered to be megawatt cool. ‘She grew up on the ranch she’s currently renting from the estate. She’s bringing the Drydons—mutual friends. Patrick will join us. He used to work for Rob Drydon.’

‘I’ll enjoy meeting them.’ Polly sneaked a glance at Raul to see if he looked even slightly self-conscious. He didn’t.

Raul swept up the hamper and even joked about the fact that they had eaten nothing. They strolled back to the car. Raul helped her into the passenger seat.

‘I’m a brute,’ he murmured, scanning the bluish shadows of tiredness under her eyes. ‘But it was fantastic, es verdad ?’

Melina was a neighbour. The Ilanos looked empty for miles and miles, but they harboured the poisonous Melina somewhere close by. It was ghastly news. Worse, Raul expected her to entertain his ex-mistress. He was cooler than an ice cube. But then he wasn’t aware that she knew about that former relationship. Former, she emphasised to herself with determination.

Raul was a sophisticated male and she was being naive. His intimate relationship with Melina D’Agnolo might be over, but that didn’t mean he would cut her out of his life altogether. She had to taken an adult view of this social encounter.

CHAPTER TEN

‘I AM so very pleased for you both,’ Melina murmured, with a look of deep sincerity in her green eyes as she reached for Polly’s hand in an open and friendly manner.

Dear heaven, she could act me off the stage, Polly registered in dismay, not having been prepared for quite so impressive a pretence. Stunning, in a black lace dress which clung to her superb figure like a second skin, Melina curved a light hand over Raul’s sleeve and recounted a witty little story which made him laugh.

Polly had been feeling really good in her scarlet off-the-shoulder dress—until just before she came downstairs. Now her head was aching. She hoped Melina’s pleasantries were more than surface-deep.

Rob Drydon and his wife, Susie, were from Texas, and eagerly talking horses with Patrick German. As they transferred to the dining room Melina was in full flow of conversation with Raul, and Polly was left to trail behind them. Patrick caught up with her.

The condesa will walk all over you if you let her,’ he whispered in her ear.

Polly’s eyes widened. She glanced up at him.

Patrick gave her a rueful look. ‘The scene she threw on your arrival was too good a story for the staff to keep quiet. I heard the grooms talking about it,’ he confided. ‘And as Raul needs the least protection of any male I know, why is he the only person around here who doesn’t know about the warm welcome you received?’

Polly tensed. ‘There wasn’t any need to involve him.’

‘If you’d involved Raul, she wouldn’t be here now, spoiling your evening,’ Patrick dropped gently.