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  She stepped into place and took a deep, shuddering breath as the makeup girl applied a light dusting of powder to her face before stepping out of camera range. Valentina met Mateo’s smug gaze, narrowing her eyes at him in warning. He raised his eyebrows in an innocent “Who, me?” expression that really was Oscar-worthy.

  “Okay, everyone. Aaaaand, action!”

  Mateo’s eyes became heavy-lidded and sultry as he stepped toward her. He circled her once, coming to a stop behind her with his hands resting on her shoulders. “You’re too tense, querida. Here, let me help you relax.” He gathered her hair over one shoulder and began softly massaging her neck and shoulders. He stepped closer to her, pressing his chest against her back. That was her cue, so she reluctantly let her head loll back onto his shoulder, closed her eyes, and waited. She didn’t have to fake her ragged breathing as she struggled to stay on her mark. All she wanted was to run like hell back to her dressing room.

  Mateo slid his arms around her waist and untied the sash of the robe. He ran his hands up her arms until his fingertips rested on the bare skin of her neck just beneath the collar of the robe. He pressed his lips to the side of her neck and she shuddered with revulsion. Mateo chuckled by her ear – a sound so low that she knew it was meant for only her to hear.

  “Still so tense,” he murmured against her skin for the benefit of the camera. “I know just what you need, what we both need.” And with that, he slid the robe from her shoulders and the fabric puddled on the floor at her feet. He resumed massaging her shoulders, but this time he let his fingertips dip below her collarbones, stroking her skin and coming precariously close to her cleavage. When she stiffened at his touch, he tightened his grip on her shoulders. “Relax,” he bit out. The words, whispered solely for her benefit, were barely audible in her ear.

  He slipped a fingertip beneath each of the negligee’s delicate straps and slowly slid them over her shoulders. The straps dipped precariously over her upper arms, with the silky fabric held aloft only by the curve of her breasts jutting out on a fierce inhalation. She held her breath, knowing that one wrong move would send the fabric straight to the floor.

  Determined to help things along, Mateo grasped her by the hips and pulled her back against him. As the fabric began its downward slide toward her nipples and beyond, he pulled her even closer until his erection was nestled between her ass cheeks.

  “Oomph!” A swift elbow to his ribs had him blowing out a lungful of air as he bent over double and grabbed onto a nearby chair.

  “That does it!” Valentina fumed, crossing her arms over her chest just in time to avoid a dreaded ‘nip slip’. As he stood, he pointed at her angrily and opened his mouth to speak. Without missing a beat, Valentina slapped him with everything she had. “You call that acting?! I don’t think the script called for a hard-on.”

  “It’s implied,” he smirked, still wincing and holding his side. “What can I say? I’m a method actor. Gotta keep it real.”

  “Cut!” Ramone groaned as he rose from his chair and stormed over. “What is it now?!”

  As she backed away from Mateo, Valentina slid the shoulder straps back into place and picked the robe up off the floor. With the sash securely tied in a double-knot at her waist, she spun around to face the director. “I’m sorry,” she said stiffly. “I can’t do this.”

  “What?! No, there is no ‘not doing this’. Do you know how much money you’re costing me with these delays?”

  She glanced around helplessly and caught Luis’ eye from where he stood in the shadows by the stage door. His face was twisted with rage, his fists clenched at his sides. There would be no help from him, so she walked away, leaving raised voices and mayhem in her wake.

  “You don’t walk off my set!” the director shrieked at her retreating back. “You do this and you’re finished! You hear me?! Luis, grow some balls and control your client!”

  She just kept walking and took refuge in her dressing room, locking the door behind her and gathered her personal belongings. Then she called her driver to take her home.

  Chapter Five

  Victor Ramirez could feel his blood boiling. Who the fuck did this little poindexter think he was anyway? It paid to have trusted informants planted on the movie set to let him know what that little fucker was up to. And it was a good thing his father had insisted he not go to Guatemala himself or he’d ring Luis’ scrawny little neck personally.

  The bastard had gone too far – or he would have, if Valentina weren’t the strong, classy woman he knew her to be. She had walked off the set like a fucking queen, but was now without representation, which was the kiss of death in the entertainment industry. She was also unprotected, which suddenly seemed more important. That changed everything, as far as Victor was concerned. The time to make his move was now.

  There would be no time for the niceties. No wooing, no dates, no fancy proposal in an elegant restaurant. He wasn’t sure he would have ever had the patience for any of that anyway. But regardless, Luis’ ability to be a complete asshole had escalated the situation. The more he thought about it, the more Victor was convinced that he needed to go to Guatemala without delay and take care of business himself. He would just take what was his. His father had done it. His uncle had done it. She would just have to understand. Anyway, the ultimate outcome would be unchanged: Valentina, in his home, in his arms and in his bed. This approach would just be more efficient.

  It was late enough that he could still wake one of the pilots and hop a flight on the family’s private plane. Before he could change his mind, he rushed from the room and packed a suitcase with the bare necessities and headed toward the front door.

  As soon as his hand touched the doorknob his father’s voice cut through the air. “I had a feeling you might try that.”

  Victor slowly turned around. His father stood in the foyer, his arms folded over his massive chest.

  “She’s not even here yet and already she’s in your head and affecting your good judgment.”

  “She’s been through enough,” Victor said. “I’m going to go get her and bring her home with me, where she belongs.”

  “You underestimate my power. I already have the situation well in hand. Go to bed.”

  “She’s mine! It’s my job to go get her,” he snapped, his voice gruff. Why wouldn’t his father listen to reason?

  “This isn’t about your ego, mijo—”

  The endearment calmed Victor as it always did and he forced himself to settle down and listen to what his father had to say.

  “These are dangerous times. The cartels there are at each other’s throats at the moment. Certainly, you don’t expect me to send you into dangerous region, where life and limb would be at stake. Do you know what it would do to your mother and me if something happened to our boys? We only just got Tony back safe and sound. It was hard on all of us, but especially your mother. She’s got the whole mama-bear thing going on these days. I’m not poking the bear, son, not even for you. You’re staying put.”

  Great…now he’s playing the mother card. “We’re hardly boys, Father.”

  “I know, I know. But you try telling your mother that.”

  Victor’s shoulders sagged in an outward show of defeat. He knew what his father was saying was true. They had enemies, people who would love to execute the Ramirez twins. This was a dangerous time to try to go legit by expanding their business interests into the entertainment industry. It was a good call long-term, but it would be fucking dangerous getting there.

  When Ricardo was assured he had his son’s attention he continued. “I’ve already sent King to retrieve her and we both know how convincing he can be. He’s fluent in Spanish and light-skinned enough to pass for a tourist.”

  “You’ve already sent him. Fuck,” Victor muttered, dropping into a nearby chair.

  “Yes, and he’ll have a little help from El Demente. Your woman will be here by tomorrow night.”

  Victor’s jaw ticked erratically, an outward sign of h
is distaste at the prospect of another man retrieving and, inevitably, touching what was his. It was a good thing he and the two men were on good terms or he’d be daydreaming about putting a bullet in someone’s skull.

  As if his father could read his thoughts, he chuckled and said one more thing: “Don’t worry, Victor. Take it from the voice of experience. If all goes well, she’ll sleep through the whole thing and wake up in Louisville. And then she’ll be all yours.”

  “She already is. Always has been.” He couldn’t help the wicked grin that touched his lips. He was looking forward to seeing her expression when she woke up at his mercy.

  Chapter Six

  The nightmare was so real that Luis could feel his neck and throat closing, depriving him of precious air. In that dreamlike state between sleeping and waking, something smooth and cool was causing him to slap at his neck in his sleep. It wasn’t until his head was shoved roughly against the headboard that he realized his dream was all too real.

  “Son of a bitch!” he screamed, sitting up in the bed.

  “I don’t much cotton to you smacking Lola, motherfucker. What’d she ever do to you?” King chuckled as his favorite girl slithered out from under the sheets, which promptly became saturated with Luis’ piss.

  King scooped up the enormous white Boa and pulled her in close to his chest, smiling as the snake curled around his body. With the business end of the serpent a few inches from his own face, he spoke soothingly to the snake, whispering endearments and playfully touching the tip of his tongue to hers. He laughed softly as the snake slid the top of its head against his cheek, much like an overly affectionate cat.

  “Such a pretty girl, such a pretty, pretty, girl. Don’t worry about that mean man, Lola. Daddy will handle him.” He carefully placed the behemoth back in her carrier and returned his attention to the ashen, slack-jawed man. “Lola is an excellent judge of character. She doesn’t care for anyone who crosses the Ramirez brothers. Like most creatures, snakes are far more intuitive than people give them credit for. It’s as if she can tell when she’s in the presence of a liar and a cheat. Of course, the piss was a dead giveaway.”

  King leisurely lowered himself into a Victorian velvet tufted wingchair and idly twirled a pen that he’d picked up from the nightstand. “Well, I see you enjoy the finer things in life. Nothing wrong with that, until you start taking credit for another man’s efforts. Until you try to sully something so beautiful and pure.” He held the pen up and studied it, turning it over and watching how the light reflected off the gleaming barrel. “Hmm. A Graf von Faber-Castel, and I’d be willing to bet that it was bought for you by your former client. Am I right?”

  He smiled at the scowl that darkened Luis’ face. “I’ll take that as a yes. Well, you’re through, Luis. She is, even as we speak, on a plane bound for America, to meet the man who is truly responsible for her successful career.” King slid the pen into his pocket and glared, as if silently daring the man to say something. “Your days of taking advantage of the lady are over. As you know, our mutual friend Victor Ramirez is quite taken with her. Your efforts to take advantage of the object of his obsession have not been well received.”

  King leaned in and lowered his voice, as if sharing a secret with a close friend. “I honestly don’t know how stable he is when it comes to that woman. He’s always had a nasty reputation for being ruthless when it comes to his enemies, so can you even imagine how he’ll be if his woman is involved? I have to be honest with you, man, I’ve never seen him this smitten with anyone. It’s unchartered territory, really.”

  King shook his head with feigned regret. “I think you may have mistaken him biding his time as a sign of weakness.” He cocked an eyebrow and glared into Luis’ eyes. “Do you think my boss is weak, Luis?”

  Luis frantically shook his head and looked around as if expecting Victor to appear and confront him about how he’d treated Valentina. “I-I have no idea what you’re referring to.”

  Of course, he’d heard the horror stories about the Ramirez brothers. It was rumored that Antonio Wayne had put a man’s head in an industrial vice and tightened it until the man’s eyeball popped out. Supposedly Antonio Wayne had just laughed and said he’d read about it somewhere and always wanted to try it. Between that and the body parts the brothers were in the habit of cutting off, Luis wanted no part of it. As Valentina’s career had progressed, his dealings with Victor Ramirez had been long distance and he wanted to keep it that way. Suddenly with King sitting here in his bedroom, delivering a message of sorts from Victor Ramirez, things had rapidly gotten real.

  “I’m referring to the fact that you’ve been taking credit for the success of Cuentos de Amor. Even worse, you tried to cheapen the beauty of a woman who means a great deal to Victor.”

  “She doesn’t even know him. They were introduced once, that’s all.”

  King waved him off. “A minor detail. You must have mistaken my boss for a chump because you damn sure haven’t shown him the proper respect. When you disrespect his woman, you disrespect him. As you can imagine, respect is everything to a man like Victor.” King tutted as if reprimanding a child when Luis opened his mouth to speak. “He chose to stay in the background while she established her career, but you’ve forced his hand and now he’s ready to make his presence known. Now, if you’re smart you’ll count your losses and release the woman from her contract—the woman Victor made a star, I might add. There will no silly talk of lawsuits from you or the studio; such unpleasantness is unnecessary, wouldn’t you agree?”

  King could see the wheels in the man’s head turning to try and figure out any way he could hang on to the beauty who had made him so much money.

  “Oh fuck, you don’t realize that the Ramirez family owns the telenovela. Los dos Idiomas, the company that produces the show, is owned by the Ramirez family, you moron. That show is the flagship for the whole bi-lingual television expansion they’re doing. So, you’ll sign now.”

  King’s face was impassive as he handed Luis the pen and reached down for a stack of papers on the small table next to his chair. “I’ve got a plane to catch. Victor Ramirez is not a man who likes to be kept waiting.” King smiled at the slight tremble in Luis’ hand as he signed the papers that released Valentina from his greedy grip.

  When the papers were signed King picked up the pen, tucked the papers under his arm, and headed for the door with Lola safety coiled up in her carrier. It was true, his boss didn’t like to be kept waiting. They would leave tonight and, if all went according to plan, Valentina would wake up to a new life in Louisville, Kentucky.

  King turned at the door and said one more thing as he waggled the pen in Luis’ direction. “I’ll just keep this. I don’t think Victor would like the idea of his woman giving another man an expensive, personal gift like this.”

  By the time he arrived at the airstrip, Valentina was already on board the plan, fast asleep from the sedative she’d been given by King’s partner in crime, El Demente. While King had been dealing with Luis, El Demente had entered Valentina’s home while she slept. She never felt the prick of the needle.

  As they taxied down the runway, King settled in for a nap. It was a little over sixteen hundred miles back to Louisville. It was a little after midnight. They would touch down in Kentucky in less than five hours. With the two-hour time difference, they should still be home in time for breakfast. Not bad for a day’s – or night’s -- work.

  He couldn’t help but feel compassion for the latest woman to be caught in a Ramirez man’s web. He grinned and shook his head as he flicked off the overhead light and pulled down the window cover next to his seat. The woman never stood a chance.

  Funny how a person could think they truly knew their life inside and out, only to discover their fate had been in the hands of a stranger all along.

  Chapter Seven

  Victor sat in a chair in his bedroom, enjoying the simple pleasure of watching Valentina sleeping in his bed. He’d taken control of her as soon as h
e met the plane on the tarmac. He had forbidden any of the guards from touching her, insisting that he and only he pick her up and bring her home.

  Home.

  He closed his eyes on a deep breath, shuddering as he exhaled. She would never be touched by another man if he could help it, except, of course, for when their children were born. The thought of her pregnant with his child brought a satisfied curve to his lips.

  Of course, she would likely need a little persuasion before she warmed up to the idea. He didn’t expect her to be on board with belonging to him right away; in fact, he expected her to give him one hell of a fight. Hell, he was looking forward to it. His smile widened. That was fine; he could be a patient man when it counted.

  He hadn’t expected the way his whole world seemed to tilt and shudder as he lifted her in his arms and carried her off the plane. She fit perfectly against his chest as if she were meant to be there. The scent of rose petals wafting through the air did him in. As he pulled her closer, the feel of her hair brushing his cheek sent shivers along his overheated skin. She was so much more beautiful…just, more…in person than she was on camera.

  There was no doubt the camera loved her, but he was enamored and fascinated with every detail of her physical form. He’d had plenty of time to fall for her, had spent countless hours watching her performances. Hell, even with HD she was flawless. And yet, nothing could have prepared him for the reality of her.

  He wasn’t a man who believed in love. The darkness had always been the only force that governed his world. For the first time in his life he felt out of control. What if she refused him? Oh, sure, she’d likely refuse him at first, he was expecting that. But he had no idea what he would do if things didn’t eventually go his way. The thought of losing her made him think of a million depraved ways to make sure she stayed. Fuck love; right now, possession was enough and he planned on making the most of it, sooner rather than later.