Rebecca turned to look at him. She didn’t know what to say to him anymore. He was like a stranger to her. When they talked, it was about the baby or the wedding, nothing more. And that was only sporadic. It was like he wanted to pretend she didn’t exist until he had to speak to her about something. As soon as he had an answer, he went back to studying the screen of his cell phone or speaking rapid Spanish to someone on the other end of the line.
“She hasn’t returned my call yet.”
He looked surprised. Rebecca shrugged. She was accustomed to her mother’s shallowness by now.
“She’s probably shopping. Or skiing,” she added.
Disapproval hardened his expression. “Do you want to wait so she can be here for the ceremony?”
She picked at a thread on her sweater. “It’s not necessary.”
Silence for several seconds.
“My sister wants to meet you.”
Rebecca smiled. “I’d like to meet her, too.” He’d always spoken with affection for his sister. Rebecca was nervous about the prospect of meeting Valencia, but curious as well. Perhaps Valencia wasn’t taciturn and moody like her brother. Rebecca hoped that was the case. She could use a friendly face for a change.
“She is arriving tomorrow for a short visit. We can be married while she’s here, if that is agreeable.”
Rebecca fiddled with her bracelet to hide her surprise. He hadn’t mentioned his family at all since she’d returned. He also hadn’t mentioned a specific date to get married. Suddenly, it was sometime soon. How very like him to make a decision and barrel forward with it.
“Does she know about the baby?”
“Sí, I have told her.”
Which meant his sister knew why they were marrying so quickly. “And your parents?”
“They will know soon enough.”
She wasn’t sure what to think about why he hadn’t yet told his parents. “What will they think about you marrying me?”
He gave her a significant look. “They won’t care. They are far more interested in their own lives than in mine or my sister’s.”
She heard the bitterness in his voice. She hadn’t forgotten what he’d said to her in the car the night they’d returned from his parents’ party. After her brief time in Juan and Carmen Ramirez’s company, she knew it was probably the truth. They reminded her of her own mother. Selfish and self-absorbed narcissists who lived for themselves alone.
“They will not be at the wedding?”
His laugh was sudden and sharp. “You don’t want them there, believe me. They would somehow manage to turn it into a personal drama where they occupied center stage.”
“You had a lavish wedding before. I believe the king and queen attended.” She’d looked up photos on the Internet. Alejandro had been spectacular, his bride gorgeous—but neither of them smiled much.
“There is no time for that kind of wedding,” he said coolly. “You would be big with our baby by the time we married. We will have a quick civil ceremony and be done, sí?”
She pushed her hurt down deep. It wasn’t that she wanted a huge wedding. She just wanted it to be about something more than a marriage of convenience to him. She also wanted to understand why he’d married his first wife since he claimed not to have loved her.
Something he’d said once tickled her mind. “You told me the night of the anniversary party that your father wanted to chase me away five years ago. If he cared who you married then, why not now?”
Alejandro sighed. “It wasn’t you specifically, Rebecca. He wanted me to marry my brother’s fiancée.”
“I don’t understand.”
“My father arranged a marriage for my brother. It was a matter of family honor to him. When Roberto died, it fell to me to keep the agreement.”
“Your brother died before you met me. If you were to marry her in his place, then you were already engaged.”
Tears pricked her eyes. Stupid hormones. This was old news. Nothing to cry over now.
Alejandro’s brows slashed down. “No. I had no intentions of marrying her, in spite of my father.”
“But you did anyway. Did the sheets even get cold before she moved in?”
“You left me, Rebecca.”
She lifted her chin and met him dead in the eye. “It took me almost a year to see someone else. Yet you were married and expecting a baby by then.”
It was hard to admit the truth, but why hide it any longer? He acted like he was the one who was wronged. What about her? She wanted him to know how difficult it had been for her.
His look was intense, curious. “You did not take a new lover? Why should I believe this?”
Of course, he would question her.
“You can believe what you want, Alejandro.” She lowered her eyes, toyed with a hula girl charm on her bracelet. “I’ve never been the sort of woman who falls into bed with whomever strikes my fancy. Not that there’s anything wrong with it, but I always had to be so careful. My life wasn’t like other girls my age. Not in any way.”
Alejandro stared at the top of her head. All this talk about marriage was closing a vise around his neck. He had every intention of marrying her, of binding her to him so he had legal rights to his child, but the thought of doing so always made anger burn low in his gut. He would marry her, but he didn’t have to enjoy the prospect. Sometimes he wondered if he’d been expertly maneuvered into it. He tried not to consider that possibility very often.
But what was this about being careful who she slept with? Her attention was firmly fixed on the gold bracelet she wore. He wanted to reach out, clasp her arm, and make her look at him. But he did not.
“What do you mean, querida?”
“My father. Layton International.” She never looked up. “He liked to test me.”
He thought back to how upset she’d gotten when he’d told her he’d had her investigated. Was this the
