Valdez's Bartered Bride Read online

  ‘By that you mean you.’ She put down her wine glass and glared at him, everything clear at last. ‘Your father added the marriage clause in his will to trick my father.’

  ‘I consider it more of a shrewd tactic to safeguard the considerable amount of money he had loaned to your father’s business. He must have been sure your father wouldn’t obtain such levels of funding through the usual channels and added the extra condition in his will, should the debt remain unsettled in the event of his death.’

  ‘I hardly think forcing either of us into marriage is shrewd or businesslike. It’s medieval.’ She stumbled over the words as she realised how futile they were and when a smile tugged at the corners of his lips she wished she were bold enough to get up and walk away.

  ‘After our marriage, all the properties will become mine and therefore the debt will be repaid and the board of directors satisfied. The only issue is that we must remain married for two years—living together.’

  ‘Are you actually suggesting we get married, just to clear the debt? I thought you were against any such idea as much as I am.’ Lydia couldn’t take it in. Married. To this man. For two years.

  ‘That depends on how much you want to help your father.’

  Lydia didn’t have to think very hard on that one. She didn’t want to help her father, but she did want to protect his mother, her grandmother. The woman who’d cared for her, loved her as a daughter. She was the only reason she was still here having this discussion.

  ‘Of course I want to help my father, but I will not marry anyone to do that.’ She wasn’t about to enlighten Raul Valdez to the fact that her father had tried several times to push her into a marriage that would financially benefit him. The fact that this man’s father could possibly succeed where hers had failed was not a pleasant prospect.

  ‘In that case you will be interested to hear of my solution.’ Her attention was caught not only by his words, but by the tone of his voice.

  ‘Which is?’

  ‘I suggest we make the marriage and clear the debts. We can lead separate lives whilst living in the same place. After two years, I will not contest a divorce.’ He sat back in his chair, the expression on his handsome face close to being smug.

  ‘Is that the best you can do?’ Irritation surged through her. Had he met her here to put forward a suggestion that was at the moment the only obvious conclusion? She was so angry with her father. He could have warned her of this, months ago. He must have known he couldn’t make the repayments. Now she understood why he’d made it so easy for her to keep up her annoyed silence. He’d gone to ground, hiding like a coward. ‘Why have you left it five months to contact me? You must have been made aware of the will conditions months ago.’

  ‘I had other, more pressing issues to deal with.’

  ‘Such as?’

  He looked at her as if assessing her ability to be trusted and, just as when he’d first swept his gaze over her, the scrutiny did strange things to her. ‘I have been trying to contact a family member whose existence I only discovered upon the reading of the will. If found, that person would offer a very different option for both of us and there is a large financial reward which can be used to clear your debts, but I have as yet been unable to find that person.’

  ‘So, in the meantime, you thought you’d come and force me into a two-year marriage.’ Irritation rushed through her. They weren’t getting anywhere.

  ‘I am still intending to search for that person, but your father has not made any further payments and has managed to evade all attempts at a meeting. I now have no choice. The board is calling for settlement of the debt. They will not wait any longer. Our engagement must be announced.’

  He sat back and sipped the last of his wine, the calm and unruffled exterior unsettling her more than she cared to admit. ‘There are agencies for such things.’ The confusion on his face as she derailed the topic was priceless and for a brief moment she wanted to laugh. ‘Finding missing family members, that is.’

  ‘If you wish to make it public, then yes, there are.’ He clenched his jaw as he finished speaking.

  ‘You want to find someone yet keep it secret?’ That made no sense whatsoever and at the same time intrigued her. Who did this power-hungry man wish to contact and why?

  ‘It is not something I want the press to get hold of.’ The annoyed growl of his voice gave her immense satisfaction but as she took a sip of wine an idea filtered through her mind. Genealogy was something she was very interested in and she’d spent long happy hours helping friends trace their family roots back many generations. Was it possible she could provide what this man wanted? Maybe there was a deal to be made here?

  ‘That sensitive, is it?’ She toyed with him, like a cat who had stumbled upon a mouse, enjoying the sensation, even if only briefly, of power.

  ‘Yes, as a matter of fact it is, but it bears no relevance to our discussion.’ The curt tone of his voice blended with his accent and she wondered what he would sound like if he were whispering words of love. Except a man like him didn’t indulge in love—only lust.

  ‘Supposing I was able to find this family member—discreetly, of course.’

  ‘You?’ The surprise in his deeply accented voice sent a smile of satisfaction spreading across her lips. He obviously thought she was nothing more than an empty-headed socialite, who did nothing but party and shop.

  ‘Yes, me. It could clear the debt and relieve us of the need to get married.’ It was also far more than that for her. She wanted to hold on to all she’d worked for in life and if this man could sweep in and demand the properties her father had put in her name, would he then want all she had? Her business?

  ‘Go on.’

  ‘I happen to have a passion for genealogy.’

  ‘A passion?’ His brows rose and a shiver of awareness spread all over her as he said the word, giving it a totally different connotation from the context she’d meant. ‘Now you have aroused my interest. But how can it help with this matter?’

  Much to her disgust heat rushed to her cheeks and yet again she lifted her chin and fixed him with a piercing glare. She couldn’t let it show just how much he was affecting her, how he was making her stomach flip and her heart pound like a lovesick teenager. Not when she’d sworn she’d never indulge in such nonsense. Hadn’t her time with Daniel been enough to warn her off?

  ‘I’ll make a deal with you, Mr Valdez. If I find this person, all the debts will be cleared without the need for marriage.’

  ‘That’s a massive charge for such a service when I could hire an agency, as you say.’

  ‘But would you have the confidentiality you require?’ She waited, hardly able to breathe, the anticipation immense. Had she actually managed to dig her way out of the mess her father had landed her in?

  ‘It’s still a high price, Miss Carter-Wilson. Are you sure you can deliver?’ He leant forward, his forearms on the table, his long tanned fingers holding the stem of the wine glass.

  ‘Yes.’ She crossed her fingers beneath the table and smiled boldly at him.

  ‘How long?’

  ‘That depends on many things. Months at least.’

  ‘You don’t have months.’ The brittleness of his tone made her blink rapidly.

  ‘Weeks, then.’

  ‘Four at the most.’ He assessed her again and she wondered if he sensed her panic.

  ‘In that case you have yourself a deal—but be warned, if this is leaked before I am ready, or you are not successful, then I will want full and immediate payment of the debt, which would mean you as my wife.’

  ‘That threat won’t be necessary, Mr Valdez.’ She kept her voice firm as she put out her hand to shake on the deal. ‘I suggest we meet again as soon as possible, then you can give me any information you already have before you return to Spain.’

  ‘If you are investigating my family, I will be keeping a close watch on what you are doing. Which means, Miss Carter-Wilson, you will return to Madrid with me.’

>   CHAPTER TWO

  RAUL COULD HARDLY believe the surprising deal he was about to agree on with this woman. He’d been immediately captivated by her beauty, but had pushed that aside, unable to think past the terms of his father’s will or the fact that it appeared ever more likely that he was going to have to do the unthinkable and marry.

  He had no desire to get married to any woman. Least of all one his father had tricked him into marrying. The last thing he needed right now was the constant temptation that this woman would represent if she came back to Madrid with him. From the moment he’d first seen her, annoyed and angry at his late appearance, he’d been fighting the pull of attraction that insistently demanded satisfaction.

  He couldn’t act on it, not when it was the one thing his father had wanted, obviously considering him as much of a womaniser as he had been. Did his father recall the time he and Lydia had met? Had she been part of his plans even then? But what was there to gain from two years of marriage? That was the part that didn’t yet make sense.

  As he’d arrived at the busy London restaurant, decked out for Christmas, the one thing he hadn’t anticipated was that Lydia would hold cards of her own—and be more than willing to put them into play.

  Had she sensed how much he needed to track down Max? Did she really have the connections to trace people or was family history just the passing fancy of a rich girl with too much time on her hands? He had little option but to trust her now and cursed himself for having confided in her. Her offer of a deal, even one as outrageous as that, was one he wasn’t able to refuse. Not now she could walk away and spill the long-kept family secret he’d only recently discovered. There would of course have to be a back-up plan, one that would mean he wasn’t about to risk his business reputation now that he’d finally proved he was not the same man as his father to those that mattered in the business world.

  Until recently, he’d been unable to work alongside his father and had started buying up small and struggling businesses, turning them around and either selling them on or trading their shares. It was far more than just the banking business his father had operated. It was a way of helping people and now the Lopez deal was back on the table. His biggest yet.

  ‘You want me to come to Madrid? To drop everything at this time of year just so that you can trace a long-lost relative?’ Lydia’s shock-infused words dragged him back to the hustle and bustle of the busy London restaurant.

  ‘And what keeps you so busy, Lydia? Parties? Shopping? All of that happens in Madrid too.’ Annoyance filled each word. He hadn’t expected instant compliance from her, but he had anticipated she’d be ready to do anything to avoid her father’s debts.

  ‘Don’t assume you know me.’ Her eyes sparked angrily at him.

  ‘I don’t assume anything other than you will come to Madrid, trace the person I am looking for and settle your debt. Unless you wish to be married before Christmas?’

  ‘I will not go to Madrid on your whim.’ She pulled back her hand before he could shake on the deal and he had to suppress the urge to smile. He liked the anger that sparked in her eyes brighter than the Christmas lights of London. He liked the way her lips parted in almost total contrast to that anger. What he didn’t find so appealing was his questionable urge to kiss those lips until desire replaced the anger in her eyes.

  ‘Then there is only one alternative open to us.’ He let his words hang heavily between them and for the briefest of seconds it was only the two of them. The noise of the other diners slipped away and all he could hear was the rhythmic thump of his heart. He couldn’t let her walk away now. He had to find Max as discreetly as possible—and quickly.

  ‘Which is?’ The brittle words snapped from her and he became aware of everyone around them once more.

  She scowled at him, suspicion in those sexy green eyes, and he decided perhaps it wouldn’t be so very bad to be bound in marriage to such a fiery beauty. Two years living as her husband would at least be entertaining.

  ‘You or your father must settle the debts—in full. By the end of the year.’

  ‘By the end of the year? That’s little over a month away.’

  ‘The debt must be settled, Lydia, by either full payment or marriage.’

  ‘Believe me, Mr Valdez, if I could make the payment I would, but I can’t.’

  A spark of fury rose in her voice and a smile pulled at his lips. Instantly her mouth pressed into a firm line of annoyance, which only made the urge to smile at her greater.

  ‘Then you have no alternative but to come back to Madrid and either find the person I am looking for, quickly and discreetly, or announce our engagement. The terms of my father’s will state there is a financial reward for finding that person. Enough to cover the debt.’

  She shook her head in denial, her soft dark hair bouncing invitingly on her shoulders, snagging his attention all too easily. ‘No, I won’t leave London now. I can’t.’

  ‘A lover?’

  ‘Not that it’s any of your business, but no.’

  ‘Then you will become my wife and settle your father’s debts—unless your claim is true.’

  He wouldn’t enlighten her yet to the fact that they would have to be seen as a couple, seen to be preparing for their nuptials. Carlos had insisted that would be the only way to satisfy the board of directors that he was calling in the debt, that his bride was willing.

  ‘If I am not about to waltz off to Madrid with you, I am hardly likely to agree to a marriage, whatever the conditions attached to the deal my father signed.’

  He watched as her eyes narrowed with anger and her lips pressed together and as much as he wanted to kiss those lips until they softened he knew he never could. That would be indulging a side of him he had no wish to explore, be it playboy or something more emotionally involved.

  However, her father’s debt was to be settled, she was well and truly off-limits and he certainly didn’t need the complication of having to resist an ill-timed attraction. He needed the board off his back, to know the debt would be settled. Then he could resume his search for Max, which now seemed much more hopeful if Lydia Carter-Wilson did really have a passion for family history. But what would she make of his family, of the tangled web of deceit that had corrupted recent generations?

  More to the point, could he trust her? If this got out it could undo all the good work he’d done to prove to the business world he was a man of morals and high values. A man to be trusted.

  ‘I can of course call in the debt right now.’ He could almost feel the angry vibe coming across the table at him and wondered what her reaction would be if they hadn’t been having this conversation in such a public place. Would she have given vent to her anger or would she have been as controlled as he was?

  ‘You wouldn’t dare.’ The whispered words had a hiss of anger in them and his body responded wickedly, the earlier urges to kiss her returned in full force. Only the desire to be different from his father had made him accept the somewhat desperate bargain Lydia had made. It would be a high price, but one worth paying if it avoided the messy tangle of marriage.

  ‘Don’t underestimate me, Lydia.’ He knew he sounded hard, more of a snarl, but he had to instil such aggression. He needed to make this deal, because he had never expected to be filled with lustful need for the woman he might well have to make his temporary wife.

  ‘It is you who underestimates me, Mr Valdez.’ Despite the anger that still simmered in her eyes he detected a hint of compliance in her voice.

  ‘I never underestimate anyone I do business with and you are certainly no different.’ He wouldn’t tell her that he’d done his homework on her, found out all he needed to know about the woman who could become his wife. ‘Whatever deal we strike, it is for business and nothing more.’

  ‘Nothing at all?’

  ‘No, nothing. It will be a marriage in name only and will end in exactly two years.’

  ‘Before I commit myself, I think you had better tell me exactly who it is I am locating f
or you.’ The frivolous tone of her voice belied the inner turmoil he could see playing out in those expressive eyes. He doubted she could hide anything from him and he certainly hadn’t missed that spark of attraction that had briefly showed through all the irritation he’d witnessed in their depths. Her pretty face was so expressive he could read every emotion that crossed it, including the attraction that had sprung as instantly to life as when they’d first met.

  Whatever it was sizzling between them, she was as aware of it as he was.

  ‘I am not sure I can trust you yet.’ He veered towards caution. She could take the secret he’d uncovered, which would blow his family wide open, and sell it to the press for a huge amount. Maybe not enough to clear her father’s debts, but it would still damage his business and his father’s, which was precariously positioned with share prices falling since his sudden death. He would not allow it to happen—whatever the cost. He was more than prepared to sacrifice his bachelor status—temporarily—to calm the nerves of the board.

  ‘Then you have wasted my time and yours.’ The crispness of each word jarred his senses and he quickly tried to rationalise the situation.

  With one call to the press she could destroy his family and his business, but it would ultimately drag her father into the limelight. She appeared to have as little desire for an arranged marriage as he did and even professed to have the skills and knowledge he needed to trace his half-brother. But would she be discreet?

  His father had been manipulative to the end. If Lydia successfully found Max, the half-brother he’d never known anything about, then he could claim the money, clear her debts and release them both from the need to marry. His father had excelled himself this time, but had his plan been to force him to marry or bring his unknown half-brother into the business?

  ‘Your father has a debt to pay, Lydia, and I am collecting it—from you. If you can indeed trace the person I am looking for, make contact without arousing the suspicion or interest of the media, then your father’s debt will be cleared immediately. Marriage in any form will not be necessary.’