Mills & Boon Stars Collection: Passionate Bargains: The Perfect Cazorla Wife / The Russian's Ultimatum / Once a Moretti Wife

He stepped over to his briefcase, which he’d placed on the bureau, and unlocked it. About to open it, he was distracted by his phone vibrating. He grimaced and shrugged before pulling it out of his pocket, looking at the screen, and deciding whoever was on the other end was worthy of his attention.

He left the living room and disappeared, she assumed to his study.

Relieved for a few more minutes’ grace, she pulled her own phone out of her bag and answered the dozens of messages that had come through from overjoyed staff and the children’s parents alike, all of whom had been waiting on tenterhooks like her.

Done, she stared at Raul’s briefcase, which was still where he’d left it, unlocked.

Unable to wait a moment longer, she opened it and pulled out a hefty brown envelope lying on the top. She had a quick peek to make sure it was the deeds and not another business-related document that was none of her concern.

A fresh wave of excitement swept through her when she saw the address of the new centre in the middle of the cover page. She pulled the thick sheath of papers out of the envelope and rifled through them, her mind awhirl with all the plans she had for the centre, plans that would now become a reality.

Her grasp of Spanish had increased greatly in the past two years but legalese was a whole new ballpark. All the same, she persevered, right through to the last page. By then she’d finished her wine and was ready for another glass, but, rather than pour herself one, she stared at the pages with a frown.

Something bugged her. She couldn’t think what it could be but her intuition told her something was off.

She started scanning the pages again, fiddling with a lock of hair as she forced herself to concentrate...

The bastard!

Now she knew what was wrong.

Sucking on her little finger, she skimmed through all the papers one more time looking in vain for her name.

In a maelstrom of anger and indignation, she stormed to his office and shoved the door open.

Raul was sitting at his desk, phone in one hand, a pen twirling between the fingers of his other.

‘You lying, manipulative...’ she said, throwing the deeds onto his desk.

He stilled for a moment, then spoke quietly into the phone and disconnected the call.

‘Has something upset you?’ he asked with steely calm.

‘These deeds are in your name.’

‘Yes,’ he agreed.

‘You said the building would be mine.’

‘No, I said the building would be in the Cazorla name and that is exactly what I have done.’

‘You know perfectly well I thought it was being put in my name. I was going to form a trust and hand it over to the centre!’

He laughed. ‘Then it seems I made a wise decision to put it in my name. What do a bunch of childminders know about managing a project such as this?’

‘Don’t speak so...so derogatorily about them,’ she snarled, pulling the word out after having it trip over her tongue. She hadn’t even known what derogatory meant five years ago. ‘Besides, they weren’t going to manage the project, I was, and I know a lot more than you credit me for. I didn’t go into this lightly.’

‘Maybe you did, maybe you didn’t; it doesn’t change the fact that you couldn’t get the financing for it and for the very good reason that your track record in business is abysmal.’

‘You’re sick,’ she seethed. ‘You’ve done this deliberately, haven’t you?’

He shrugged. ‘Does it matter? The end effect is the same—the building will be used for a new centre.’

‘But under your control.’

‘I am not a team player, cariño. I don’t deal with collaboration. You will get your centre but you will not have the opportunity to mess up the renovations.’

‘I am not going to mess this up!’ she shouted.

He gave her a measured stare. ‘Control your temper. It is most unattractive.’

‘Do you think I care what you find attractive?’

‘You should, considering the project hasn’t even started yet.’

She knew exactly what he meant. ‘Are you seriously serious? If I don’t toe the line then you’ll pull the plug?’

‘If necessary. But as I’ve said numerous times, if you fulfil your side of the bargain then I will fulfil mine.’

‘You lied to me.’

‘No. You made assumptions.’ He rose from his seat and rested his hand on the desk, leaning forward. ‘I made it very clear that I would be taking control. I will be in charge and you will be by my side. Look at it from a positive perspective—this time you’ll see how a project is conducted properly all the way to its conclusion.’

The anger inside her had risen so high it threatened to choke her. The worst of it was that she knew he was right. She had made assumptions.

But, damn him, he’d let her.

She’d known from the start that her husband was a competitive man who had to be the best at everything he did. He wasn’t satisfied until he’d mastered whatever he’d set out to do. In this case he’d set out to master her, to punish her for her refusal to have the child he thought was his due.

Unable to be in the same room as him for a moment longer lest she throw something at him, she stormed out and ran up the stairs to the sanctuary of the room she’d made her own.

The room was empty.

She checked the wardrobe, the dresser and the bathroom. Every single one of her possessions had gone. The bed had been stripped, the white mattress and plump pillows lying there uncovered as if in forlorn sympathy for her.

‘Your belongings have been moved into my bedroom.’

She spun around to find Raul pressed against the doorway.

‘Nice to know you didn’t waste any time,’ she said, not bothering to hide her contempt.

He smiled lazily and stepped over to her, placing his hands on the tops of her arms and leaning down to breathe into her hair. ‘Your anger is a waste of your energy.’ His voice dropped as he slid his hands down her sleeved arms and covered her balled fists. ‘Come, let me show you where you’ll be sleeping for the next four months.’

‘I’d rather sleep in a box,’ she hissed, somehow managing to hold back the burn of angry tears that had welled in her eyes.

‘Cariño, are you deliberately trying to rouse my anger?’ he asked in a caressing tone that contained an edge of warning.

‘Why should I be the only one to be angry?’ she demanded. ‘You’ve hoodwinked me.’