Kitabı oku: «Kings of California», sayfa 2

“Sal—” His tone filled with warning.

“Fine.” He held up both hands. “We won’t speak of the past, but of the future.” Sal turned his head, looked out the window and stared into the distance. Nodding his head, he said, “My Gina needs more in her life than her beloved horses. You need more in your life than your ranch. Is it so crazy to think the two of you could build something together?”

Adam just stared at him. “You want your daughter to marry a man who doesn’t love her?”

He shrugged. “Love can grow.”

“Not for me.”

“Never say never, Adam.” Sal slid a glance at him. “A life is long and not meant to be lived alone.”

Life wasn’t always long and Adam had discovered that it was better lived alone. He had no one’s interests but his own to look after. He lived the way he wanted and made no excuses or apologies for it. And he had no intention of changing any part of his life.

Irritation spiked inside him. He did want that damned land. It had become a Holy Grail of sorts for him. The last square to place in the King family quilt of holdings. He could almost taste the satisfaction of finishing the task he’d set for himself. But now…looked like he’d be tasting failure instead and that knowledge notched his irritation a little higher.

“Thanks, Sal. But I’m not interested.” In any of it. He wanted the land, but he wasn’t willing to marry again. He’d tried that once. And even before the crashing end, it hadn’t worked out for him or for his wife. He just wasn’t built to be a husband.

“Think about it,” Sal said and pointed out the window.

Adam glanced in the direction indicated and saw Gina and her mother out in the pasture. While he stood there, Teresa walked off, leaving her daughter alone in the field, surrounded by small, sturdy horses.

Sunlight dropped down on Gina like a cloud of light. Her long, dark hair whipped around her shoulders and when she tipped her head back to laugh, she made such an intriguing picture Adam gritted his teeth even harder.

“My Gina’s a wonderful woman. You could do worse.”

Adam tore his gaze from the woman in the meadow, shook his head and looked at the older man beside him. “You can let this idea of yours go, Sal. So why don’t you do some realistic thinking and come up with a price for the land that we can both live with?”

This whole situation had gotten way out of hand and Adam felt as if the walls were closing in on him. Looking at Sal, you’d never guess he was crazy as a loon. But clearly he was. Who the hell bartered their children these days?

Giving reasonable one last shot, Adam asked, “What the hell do you think Gina would say if she could hear you?”

Sal shrugged and smiled a little. “She doesn’t have to know.”

“You live dangerously, Sal.”

The older man snorted. “I know what’s good for my children. And, I know what’s good for you. This is the best bargain you could ever make, Adam. So you are the one who should think carefully before you decide.”

“Decision’s already made,” Adam assured him. “I’m not marrying Gina or anybody else for that matter. But if you change your mind and want to actually talk business, you give me a call.”

Adam had to get out of there. His blood was buzzing in his veins and he felt like his skin was on fire. Damned old man, throwing something like this at him out of the blue. Turning for the foyer, Adam crossed the room in a few long strides and yanked open the front door just as Teresa Torino was stepping inside. She jolted.

“Adam.”

“Teresa.” He gave her a nod, shot another incredulous look at Sal, then walked outside, closing the door behind him.

Instantly he felt as if he could breathe again. The sharp, clear air carried the scent of horses and the far-off sea. A cool wind brushed past him and almost without thinking about it, Adam turned his head and thoughtfully looked at the meadow where Gina Torino was communing with her horses.

Even from a distance, he felt the tug of an attraction he hadn’t felt in too long to count. The last time he’d seen Gina, it had been at his wife and son’s funeral. He’d been too numb that day to notice and since then, he’d mostly spent his time working the ranch.

And rather than heading for his car, he surprised himself by heading toward the fenced meadow.

Gina watched Adam approach and told her hormones to take a nap. Apparently, though, they weren’t listening. Nope, instead of lying down and keeping quiet, her hormones were instead tap dancing on every one of her nerve endings. Heck, she was surprised she wasn’t actually vibrating.

“Oh, Shadow,” she whispered, stroking the mare’s velvety neck, “I am such an idiot.”

“Morning, Gina.”

She braced herself, turned to face him and with one look into Adam’s dark eyes, Gina knew she could never be “braced” enough. Why was it this one man absolutely lit up her insides like a fireworks display on the Fourth of July? Why did it have to be Adam King her heart yearned for?

“Hello, Adam,” she said and silently congratulated herself on keeping her voice so nice and steady. “You’re out early this morning.”

“Yeah.” His features twisted briefly, then he made an obvious effort to ease them before saying, “Had a meeting with your father.”

“About what?”

“Nothing,” he said so quickly that Gina knew something was definitely going on. And knowing her father as she did, it could be anything.

Still, it was clear Adam wouldn’t be talking about whatever it was, so she’d save her curiosity for later. When she could pry it out of her father. For now, it was all she could do to keep from gibbering like an idiot. Adam walked closer, leaned his forearms on the top rung of the fence and squinted into the morning light. And wouldn’t you know it, the wind shifted directions, just so it could tease her by drifting the scent of him toward her.

Nothing so prosaic as aftershave, though. Nope, the only scent she picked up was soap and man. Which only made it harder to draw a breath. Oh, yeah. This was going really well.

“Looks like you’ve had a new addition to your herd,” he said with a nod at the foal.

Instantly Gina grinned and looked at the sturdy baby nuzzling his mother. “He arrived last night. Well, the middle of the night, really. I was up until nearly four this morning—hence my close resemblance to Frankenstein’s Bride.”

God, idiot. Make sure you point out to the man how haggard and hideous you look. First time you’ve seen him since his family’s funeral and you have to look like the wrath of God? Just fabulous.

“You look great,” he said and almost sounded grudging about it.

“Yeah. I’m sure.” Gina laughed, gave Shadow one more caress, then climbed through the fence. She knew right away that she should have just taken a short walk and opened the gate. She was too tired and strung a little too tightly to gracefully maneuver slipping between the rungs of the fence.

The toe of her boot caught on the bottom slat and she only had a second to think, This is perfect. I’m about to fall on my face in the dirt, right in front of Adam. Can this get any better? Then Adam’s hand curled around her upper arm and he held on to her until she found her balance again.

Flinging her hair back out of her face, she looked up into dark-chocolate eyes and said, “Thanks—” Whatever else she might have added died unspoken because her mouth dried up completely.

The heat in his gaze was nearly overpowering. She felt blasted by it, as if she were being hit by a flamethrower. Blood sizzling, breath straining in her lungs, stomach spinning in wild circles, she could only stare at him. The feel of his hand on her skin only added to the sensation of heat pouring through her.

And just when she wondered what in the hell she could possibly say to explain why she had suddenly become dumb as a post, Adam said, “Have dinner with me.”

Three

The words were out before he could stop himself and once they’d been said, Adam thought—why the hell not?

Yeah, he’d surprised himself and judging from the expression on her face, he’d surprised Gina, as well. But damned if he’d expected this rush of something hot and needy pulsing inside him. She’d caught him off guard, that was for sure.

Gina Torino was luscious. He hadn’t noticed the last time he’d seen her. But now, just looking at her made him feel something he’d thought himself immune to. And he was male enough to enjoy the rush of lust crowding his system.

While she stared up at him out of golden eyes, he heard her father’s offer repeat again and again in his mind. And as desire pumped fast and fiercely through his bloodstream, he told himself maybe he should rethink his instant rejection of her father’s idea. It wouldn’t be too much a hardship to make Gina Torino his wife.

And God knew he could hardly believe himself that he was considering this. But after all, it didn’t have to be forever. There didn’t have to be a baby. All he had to do was marry Gina and he’d get the land he wanted so badly. Then he’d divorce her with a good settlement and everybody’s happy.

Was he as crazy as Sal? Possibly. On the other hand, Adam had always been able to look at a situation, see it from every angle and then make the moves necessary for him to come out on top. Why should this be any different?

It wasn’t as if he was going into the deal with an idea to cheat Sal. The old man had come up with this bizarre plan all on his own. And Gina?

Well, hell. His gaze swept her up and down in a heartbeat of time. He took in her bright, golden eyes, her full mouth tipped into a smile, her lush breasts pressing against the faded fabric of a denim shirt and her rounded hips and long legs encased in worn jeans. She was enough to make any man’s mouth water. And the fact that she was getting to him was enough to have him considering Sal’s proposal.

“You look surprised,” he said when he realized that seconds of silence were ticking past.

“Well, I am.” She brushed her palms against her thighs but it was clearly more about nerves than cleaning her hands off. “I haven’t even spoken to you in the last five years, Adam.”

True. He’d never been a social type, like his brothers were. And in the last few years, he’d cut himself off even further from his neighbors. “I’ve been busy.”

She laughed and somehow the rollicking music of it seemed to slice through him, cutting him so deep his breath caught in his chest. What was this? Lust he could deal with. Use to his own advantage. But he wasn’t looking to be intrigued or captivated by her.

Yet he wanted her. And after years of feeling nothing, this rush of lust felt damn good. All he had to do was remind himself why he was considering this. The land. Marry Gina, enjoy himself, and when he was finished with her, they’d divorce and then this lust would be over with and he would have the land he required.

“You’ve been busy.” Nodding, she shot him a smile. “For five years.”

He shrugged. “What about you?”

“What about me?”

“What’ve you been up to?”

Her eyebrows lifted and she tipped her head to one side to look at him. “Five years of news is going to take a little while to tell.”

“So, do it at dinner.”

“First a question.”

“Of course.” Women always had questions.

“Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why ask me to dinner?” She pushed her hands into the back pockets of her jeans, arching her back a little, making her breasts push against the fabric of her shirt. “Why now all of a sudden?”

Adam frowned a little. Figured she’d make him work for this. “Look, it’s no big deal. I saw you, we talked, I asked. If you don’t want to go, just say so.”

She stared at him for a long moment or two, but Adam knew she wasn’t going to turn him down. She was intrigued. She was interested. And more than that, she was feeling the same sort of physical buzz he was. He could see it in her eyes.

“I didn’t say that,” she said a moment later, proving that he could still read people pretty well. “I was just curious.”

He gave her a casual shrug. “We both have to eat. Why not do it together?”

“Okay…where are you taking me?”

He offered the first place that came to him. It wasn’t as if he’d planned this all out. He’d come to the Torino spread looking to make a deal. Now, it appeared that he was going to make that deal after all—just not the one he’d counted on.

Gina’s insides were doing a happy skip and dance. She couldn’t believe that Adam King had finally noticed her. And for a few minutes, that was the only thought she concentrated on. But finally, dumb ol’ reality crashed in. Why now? She had to ask herself the question. She’d known Adam all her life and up until five minutes ago, he’d never acknowledged her existence beyond the occasional “hi.”

Since the death of his family five years before, Adam had pretty much been a recluse. He’d shut himself away from everything but his ranch and his brothers. So why all of a sudden was he Mr. Charm? A tiny nugget of suspicion settled in the pit of her stomach, but it didn’t do a thing to ease the thumping of her heart.

“What about Serenity?”

Ah. The almost impossible to get into place on the coast. He really was pulling out all the stops.

“Sounds good,” she said, even though what she really meant was, sounds fabulous, can’t wait, what took you so long?

“Tomorrow night? Seven?”

“Okay. Seven.” The moment she agreed, she saw satisfaction glitter in his dark-chocolate eyes and the suspicion crowding her jumped up in her brain and started waving hands, trying to get her attention. Well, it worked. “Though I really would like to know what actually prompted this out-of-nowhere invitation.”

His features tightened briefly, but a moment later, he gave her a small smile again. “If you’re not interested, Gina, all you have to do is say no.”

“I didn’t say that.” She pulled her hands from her pockets and folded her arms across her chest.

“Glad to hear it,” he said and reached for one of her hands, holding it in his, smoothing his thumb gently across her skin. He looked into her eyes, gave her a small smile and said, “So, I’ll pick you up at seven tomorrow? You can tell me all about what you’ve been up to for the last five years.”

When he let go of her hand, Gina could have sworn she could actually smell her skin sizzling from the heat he’d generated. Oh, she was sliding into some seriously deep waters here.

Adam was charming. Friendly. Smiley. Flirty.

Something was definitely going on here. Something he wasn’t telling her. And still, she wouldn’t turn down this invitation for anything.

“I’ll be ready.”

“See you then.” With one last smile, he turned around and walked with determined steps across the yard to the SUV he’d left parked near the house.

Gina stood stock-still to enjoy the view. His excellent butt looked great in the dark blue jeans. His long legs moved with a deceptively lazy stride and the sun hit his dark brown hair and gleamed in its depths.

Her heart actually fluttered in her chest. Weird sensation. And not a good sign. “Oh, Gina,” she whispered, “you are in very deep trouble, here.”

Just being that close to Adam, having him focusing his attention on her, had been enough to stir up all of the old fantasies and dreams. She felt shaky, like the time she’d had three espresso drinks in an hour. Only Adam King was a way bigger buzz than too much caffeine.

Her breath left her in a rush as Adam steered his car down the driveway and away from the ranch. She rubbed the spot on her hand where Adam had touched her. When the cloud of dust behind his car had settled back down onto the driveway, Gina thoughtfully turned her gaze on the house behind her. Adam might not be willing to tell her what was going on, but she had a bone-deep feeling that her father had the answers she needed.

“I can’t believe it,” Gina muttered, stalking around the perimeter of the great room. She must have made thirty circuits in the last twenty minutes. Ever since her father had confessed what his meeting with Adam King had really been about. Gina’s temper spiked anew every time she thought about it. She couldn’t seem to sit down. Couldn’t keep still.

At every other clomp of her boots against the wood floor, she shot her father a look that should have frizzed his hair. When she thought she could speak without screaming, she asked, “You tried to sell me?”

“You make too much of this, Gina.” Sal sat on the sofa, but his comfy, relaxed position was belied by the glitter of guilt and caution in his eyes.

“Too much?” She threw her hands high and let them slap to her thighs again. “What am I, a princess in a tower? Are you some feudal lord, Papa? God, this is like one of the historical romance novels I read.” She stopped dead and stabbed her index finger at him. “Only difference is, this is the twenty-first century!”

“Women are too emotional,” Sal muttered. “This is why men run the world.”

“This is what you think?” Teresa Torino reached over and slapped her husband’s upper arm. “Men run the world because women allow it.”

Normally Gina would have smiled at that, but at the moment, she was just too furious to see the humor in anything about this situation. Oh, man, she wanted to open up a big, yawning hole in the earth and fall into it. What must Adam have been thinking when her father faced him with this “plan”?

God. Everything in her cringed away from that image. Could a person die of embarrassment?

“You said yourself Gina should get married and have babies,” Sal told his wife.

“Yes, but not like this. Not with him.”

“What’s wrong with Adam?” Sal wanted to know.

Nothing, as far as Gina was concerned, but she wasn’t about to say that.

“There is…something,” Teresa said with a sniff.

Gina nearly groaned.

“You don’t know Adam well enough to think there’s something wrong with him,” Sal told his wife.

“Ah,” Teresa argued. “But you know him well enough to barter your daughter’s future with him?”

And the argument was off and running. Gina only half listened. In her family, yelling was as much a part of life as the constant hugs and laughter. Italians, her mother liked to say, lived life to the fullest. Of course, Gina’s father liked to say that his wife lived life to the loudest, but basically, it was the same thing.

She and her brothers had grown up with laughter, shouts, hugs, more shouts and the knowledge that they were all loved unconditionally.

Today, though…she could have cheerfully strangled the father she loved so much. Gina’s gaze shifted around the room, picking out the framed family photos sprinkled across every flat surface. There were dozens of her brothers and their families. There were old, sepia prints of grandparents and great-grandparents, too. There were photos of children in Italy, cousins she’d never met. And there were pictures of Gina. With her first horse. As the winning pitcher on her high school softball team. Getting ready for her prom. Her graduation. And in all of the pictures of Gina, she was alone. There was no husband. No kids.

Just good ol’ Aunt Gina.

Old maid.

The Torino clan was big on family. And she was no exception to that rule.

Gina had always wanted a family of her own. Had always expected that she would be a mother, once the time was right. But in the last couple of years, as she’d watched her brothers’ families grow while she remained alone and single, she’d begun to accept that maybe her life wouldn’t turn out the way she’d always hoped.

And on that depressing thought, she stopped walking crazily around the room, closed down her racing brain and focused her gaze on the slant of sunlight beaming in through the wide front windows and the dust motes dancing in the still air. The scent of her mother’s sauce spilled from the kitchen and wrapped itself around Gina like a warm hug.

Sal scowled at his wife, shot his daughter a cautious look and said, “Besides, all of this is wasted effort. You’re angry for nothing, Gina. Adam turned me down.”

“He did?”

“Of course he did,” Teresa said, reaching out to give her husband another smack.

“Hey!” Sal complained.

“Adam King is not a man to be trifled with this way,” Teresa said, lifting one hand to wag a warning finger. “There is a darkness there….”

Sal rolled his eyes and even Gina had to stifle a snort. Any man who didn’t like pasta wasn’t to be trusted in Teresa Torino’s world.

“There’s nothing wrong with Adam,” Sal argued. “He’s a good businessman. He’s steady. He’s wealthy so we don’t need to worry about a man marrying Gina for her money—”

“Oh,” Gina snapped, feeling the insult jab its way home, “thanks very much for that!”

“And,” Sal continued before either his wife or his daughter could interrupt again, “he needs a wife.”

“He had a wife,” Teresa pointed out.

“She’s dead,” Sal argued.

“So you sign me up as a pinch hitter?” Gina demanded.

“It’s not good to be alone,” her father said.

“God.” Gina slumped onto the arm of the closest sofa and stared at her father. “Did you and Mom rehearse that little ditty? Maybe we should put it to music!”

“There’s no reason to be smart,” Teresa said.

“No reason?” Gina slid her gaze to her mother in astonishment. Typical. A minute ago, Teresa had been furious with her husband. But the moment she felt he was the underdog, she jumped onto his side of the debate.

“Mom, I know Papa meant well, but this is…is…” She stopped and shook her head. “I don’t even have a word for what this is. Beyond the usual. You know…humiliating. Embarrassing. Demeaning.”

Teresa blew out a breath. “So dramatic.”

Gina just goggled at her. How did a person argue with parents like this? And why was she still living on this ranch?

Oh, she wanted to scream. How mortifying was this? She was so pitiful, so unwanted that her father had to try to buy her a husband?

Her head was pounding and her chest felt tight. Vaguely she heard her mother’s whispered mutterings as she continued her tirade. But Gina couldn’t even think about her parents at the moment.

What must Adam have thought? Oh, God, she didn’t want to know. Way better to just push that little question right out of her mind. How would she ever face him again? How would she be able to keep that dinner date with him tomorrow night?

And with that thought, everything inside her stopped.

He’d turned her father down.

He wasn’t willing to marry her for the land he wanted so badly. So why, then, had he stepped outside and asked her to dinner? Was this a pity date? Poor little Gina will never get married, why not toss her a bowl of soup and a nice night out?

No.

Adam wasn’t the doing-good-deeds kind of guy. She didn’t agree with her mother about the darkness in him, but he also wasn’t the kind of guy who went out of his way for people.

So what did all of this mean?

Her headache erupted into migraine territory.

“So what?” Sal asked. “How long am I going to be in trouble?”

Gina glared at her father.

“Long time, I guess,” he muttered.

“You want me to call and talk to Adam? Explain?” Teresa asked.

“Good God, no!” Gina hopped up off the arm of the couch. “What am I? In third grade?”

“Only to help,” her mother soothed. “To tell him that your papa is crazy.”

“I’m not crazy,” Sal argued.

“Matter of debate,” Gina said wryly and her father had the grace to flush.

“I meant no harm,” Sal told her.

Gina’s heart melted a little. No matter how furious he made her, she’d loved him too long to stay mad forever. “I know that, Papa. But please stay out of my love life.”

“Yes, yes,” he said.

When her parents started arguing again, Gina left them to it. She was just too tired to hold up her end of the battle. Walking across the ranch yard, she went straight to her own small house and stepped inside. It was quiet. Empty. She didn’t even have a pet. Since she spent so much time with her horses, it seemed silly to have another animal around.

She stopped just inside the living room. Her gaze swept quickly around the familiar space but it was as if she were seeing it with new eyes.

Here, too, just like up at the main house, there were framed photos. Pictures of her nieces and nephews. Laughing kids with gap-toothed smiles. Snapshots of days spent at amusement parks, on the Gypsy horses, eating at her kitchen table. There were drawings taped to the wall, too, each signed by the young artist.

And there were toys. Some scattered across her coffee table, others in a chest she kept under her front window. Baby dolls and fire trucks. GameBoys and coloring books.

In a blink, Gina knew that this was the pattern of her life. As it was. As it would always be. She would forever be the favorite aunt. The children she loved would never be her own. And she would no doubt end up an old woman, alone, with a houseful of cats.

Tears stung the backs of her eyes as she imagined it, the years spilling out in front of her so clearly, it made her head spin. Her house wasn’t a home. It was a place where she slept. It was a place that children visited and never stayed. It was a place that would forever be haunted by the ghosts of the children she might have had.

Unless she did something outrageous.

Something no one would expect.

Least of all Adam King.