"I'm sorry." Melo reached out to touch him, even though she'd been delighted his relationship with another woman had hit the skids, she couldn't stand to see the pain still lurking behind his eyes. "You must have loved her very much."
"I thought I did." Cade's finger's curled around hers. "But in hindsight it was a lucky escape. We didn't really understand each other."
He was a kind and caring man. And once again, despite her protestations of keeping Paradise Beach, the only real solution to her family's problems lay in Cade's capable hands. Once he'd bought the beach, the relationship between them would be built on a different foundation. With Cade once again providing the finance. Pain stabbed at Melo's temples.
"Tell me about you," Cade said. "There must have been some men in the years since we were teenagers."
"Some," Melo admitted. "But no one serious."
"Sebastiano?" Cade's voice was dark as he growled the name.
"Only for a little while, when I was a teenager. But he was much more interested in getting close to Rosa." She smiled at the memory, which had no further ability to hurt. "Men are always trying to get close to Rosa. Adam will have to watch out for that."
"I can't see why men would be more interested in your sister." Cade brought her hand to his lips, and kissed it slowly, eyes never leaving hers. "You're by far the more interesting sister."
A shiver traveled the length of Melo's spine at the sincerity in his tone. Desire was evident in his face as their eyes met and held, and the cloak of tiredness was dashed away in the flare of heat that passed between them.
"Cade!" An elderly woman waved from across the room, and got to her feet, making her way toward them slowly.
Cade pushed back his chair and stood.
"Darling, how lovely! I didn't know you were coming." The woman beamed as she reached the table. Cade quickly pulled up a chair from an empty table and helped her into it.
"Melo, this is Margie. Margie, meet Melo." Cade made the introductions, then kissed Margie on the cheek. "Margie is the artist we were speaking of earlier," he said to Melo before turning his attention back to the older woman. "We were admiring your paintings in the penthouse-as usual."
"Oh, you sweet boy." Margie's cheeks colored.
"They're wonderful," Melo agreed. "Cade tells me you're working on an exhibition?"
"Thanks to him." Margie patted Cade's hand as if patting a small dog. "I bet he didn't tell you he arranged for a friend of his to visit and look at the paintings, did he?"
Melo's gaze flickered to Cade. "No, he neglected to mention it."
Margie nodded. "He would. He's altogether too modest. If it hadn't been for Cade here, I wouldn't have sold a thing. He saw a painting I did for a charity sale, paid way more than the asking price for it, and commissioned a whole series." She shook her head as Cade tried to pour her a glass of wine. "No, I won't disturb your evening. I'm here with my family. I just wanted to say hello." Her gaze held Melo's. "And meet your lady."
Melo's mouth opened, then closed when she didn't know whether or not she could be described as Cade's lady, and anyway, the old lady looked so delighted at the prospect it seemed a shame to disillusion her.
"He's a wonderful man," Margie whispered. "Look after him." With those pearls of advice, Margie stood, kissed Cade on both cheeks, and headed back to her table.
"Well, you've got a fan there," Melo's voice trailed into silence at the intensely serious expression on Cade's face.
His green eyes held a hint of sadness.
"All I did for Margie was buy a couple of paintings and introduce her to someone who'd buy more," he admitted.
"I wish this beach wasn't lying between us like an unexploded bomb," he muttered deeply, and his mouth twisted. "I miss the … the honesty between us." He must have read the "it's your fault" expression on her face, because his hands clenched on the tablecloth's smooth surface. "I know, I destroyed it by not telling you about my deal with your father, but I had no choice, Melo."
"I know."
After all, hadn't she too held a secret from the people she held most dear at her father's urging? She couldn't really blame Cade for it, defying Marco's edicts was darn near impossible. And with his health so compromised … She puffed out a breath. "My father is a difficult man to say no to."
Cade's expression lightened, and he reached across the table to clasp her hand. "All I've thought about since that night is being with you again."
Melo's heart leapt. No matter how she'd tried to block out the need for him, it flooded her anew with his deeply spoken words.
She trailed her tongue over her top lip, watching as his eyes focused on the tiny movement. Resisting him was too difficult. She wanted to run her fingers through his hair and feel his strong body next to hers. Could they start again? Could she trust him?
"We could … " As her gaze met his she almost lost her nerve. Was she really ready for this?
He waited, passion flaring in his eyes.
"There's nothing we can do about Paradise until we hear from the lawyer. Let's enjoy the time we have together," she forced out huskily.
"You won't regret it," Cade said. And heaven help her, her heart pounded fit to burst.
****
Melo was giving him a chance to start again, and this time he'd make sure not to screw it up. She was so open, so giving, even now, after he'd shattered her trust by staying silent about Paradise Beach. Revealing his past disastrous relationship had been hard, but through it all her caring attention had urged him on, had made him face the fact that he'd closed himself off from the possibility of loving someone. Of having a relationship, instead of an affair.
Cade swept a hand through his hair, pushing it back from his face as the reality of the path his thoughts had taken struck him like a thunderbolt. A relationship? Was this where this strange fascination with Melo was heading? When Margie had called Melo "his lady" he'd wanted it to be true with a fierce longing that had blindsided him.
He hadn't been able to stop thinking about her since they met. Had been furious when Sebastiano made a move on her. He'd never felt such a surge of territorial possessiveness before. With Melo he felt uneasy, out of control. It wasn't a sensation he was happy with, but it sure wasn't something he could brush away.
Adrenalin flooded him as he took that second chance.
His hand rested on the small of her back in the elevator, feeling her body's warmth through the soft jersey fabric that clung to every curve. The discreet camera in the upper corner was always monitored, so he resisted his body's urging to pull her closer and show her just how her nearness affected him. Instead, he breathed in the fragrance drifting from her hair, and watched the numbers counting up on the brushed steel display with mounting impatience.
As the doors slid open, he strode into the darkened penthouse, not bothering to flick on a light but instead letting the gleam of the full moon that flooded the room light their way to his bedroom.
When he turned, she was instantly there. And, as his hands speared through her hair she sighed and leaned into his kiss. When their lips met, tension flowed out of him like a river reaching the sea. Her lips parted, and his tongue slipped inside, tangling with hers in a sensuous dance which heated his blood. One hand slipped to her nape, and his fingers found the tab of her zip and slid it slowly down. She moaned softly into his mouth, and his body tightened instantly at the tiny sound.
Her skin was soft, silky, irresistible. She shivered as his fingers traced her spine, and her breasts pushed against his chest in unspoken invitation. Cade pulled back to ease the soft jersey from her shoulders, revealing a dark navy silk bra with a lace edging. The dress slid over her tanned skin, pooling at her ankles, and she kicked it away with one stiletto clad foot with a confident smile.
The sudden ringing of the telephone shot through his senses like a fire alarm.
Melo's gaze darted to the phone.
"Ignore it," Cade murmured, trailing his fingers down her arm, watching in rapt amazement as the tiny hairs stood up in response to his touch.
"It could be home … " Melo glanced back, worry evident as she stepped to the phone. "It could be bad news." She answered it, listening then cupping the handset to whisper, "The operator says it's my sister, and it's urgent."
She sank down onto the silk quilt.
Cade sat on the bed next to her.
"Rosa?" The sound of Rosa's weeping bled through the line.