And a man tormented by a horde of demons.
She looked closer at him, tried to see the man behind the wall, the man who'd bared his soul for a brief moment when he'd spoken of his mother's abandonment.
But that man was closed off.
'What does it matter what I want? Frankly, I'm surprised my father hasn't been in touch about this.'
'He has. I refused to take his calls.'
'I didn't mean you. Since I was also the subject in these photos, I'm surprised he hasn't called me to vent his anger.'
His eyelids swept down and shielded his gaze from her. Apprehension struck a jagged path through her. 'He has, hasn't he?'
'He tried. I suggested that perhaps he refrain from contacting you and concentrate on kissing babies and convincing little old ladies to cast their ballot in his favour.'
Shock rooted her to the ground. 'How dare you take control of my life like this?'
'Would you rather I gave him access so he airs his disappointment?'
'What do you care? It's a little late to protect me, don't you think?'
His jaw tightened. 'For as long as you remain under my roof, you're under my protection.'
'Meu deus, please don't pretend you care!'
She realised how close she was to tears and swallowed hard. Fearing she would break down in front of him, she whirled round, intent on heading for her room. She made it two steps before he stopped her.
Flinging away the towel, he cupped her cheeks with both hands. 'Stop getting yourself distressed about this.'
'Is that another command?'
His eyes narrowed. 'You're angry.'
'Damn right I am. I wish I'd never set eyes on you. In fact I wish-'
His mouth slanted over hers, hot, hungry and all consuming. Her groan of protest was less than heartfelt and devoured within a millisecond.
A part of her was furious that he'd resorted to kissing her to shut her up. But it was only a minuscule part. The rest of her body was too busy revelling in the feel of his warm bare back and the fine definition of muscles that rippled beneath her caress.
His hands speared into her hair, imprisoning her for the invasion of his tongue as he took the kiss to another level.
His first kiss over two weeks ago had been a pure threat and the two that followed a show of mastery. This kiss was different. There was hunger and passion behind it, but also a gentleness that calmed her roiling emotions and slowly replaced them with a different sensation. Need clamoured inside her; a need to be closer still to his magnificent body; a need to dig her hands into his back and feel him shudder in reaction.
His groan was smothered between their melded lips as she dug her fingers even deeper. Power surged through her when he jerked again.
One hand dropped to her bottom and yanked her lower body into his groin. His erection was unmistakable. Bold, thick and hot, it pressed against her belly with insistent power that made her heartbeat skitter out of control.
She wanted him. Above and beyond all sense, she wanted this man. Her willpower, when it came to the chemistry between them, was laughably negligible.
But she couldn't give in. Couldn't …
The gentleness she'd sensed in him was false, she reminded herself fiercely. The bottom line was that in a few short weeks he would walk away. Leave her and her family devastated.
'I'm losing you. Come back, anjo,' he murmured seductively against her mouth. He ran his tongue over her lower lip and her knees weakened.
When he cupped her bottom and squeezed, she desperately summoned all her resolve and pushed against his chest. 'No.'
He raised his head and she saw behind the wall. He was as caught in this insane chemistry as she was. A little part of her felt better.
'I can change your mind, Inez. Regardless of what I intend for your father, what is between us is undeniable.'
'Do you hear yourself? You think I should forget everything else and sleep with you just because you made me feel a certain way?'
'That's generally the reason why men and women have sex.'
'But we're not just any man and any woman, Theo, are we?'
He stiffened, and a hard look entered his eyes. 'Are you saying that you've been in love with every man you've slept with?' he queried.
She froze and prayed her humiliation wouldn't show on her face as she tried to stem the memory of Constantine's treatment of her.
His cruel rejection was still an ache beneath her breastbone.
'Inez?' Theo interjected harshly.
'My past relationships are none of your business.'
His slightly reddened mouth twisted. 'Far be it for me to request to be lumped in with your other lovers, but isn't it a touch hypocritical to apply one criteria to me that you haven't done with one of your lovers, in particular?'
'If you're referring to Constantine, let me assure you that you have no idea what you're talking about.'
His hand tightened around her waist. 'Then enlighten me. Why did he dump you?'
Inez broke free. 'We weren't compatible.'
'Or he found out the true reason you were with him and wanted nothing to do with you?'
'No. That wasn't why … ' She screeched to a stop as the words stuck in her throat.
'So what was it? Did you really love him or did you convince yourself you did in order to achieve your aims?'
She bit her lip as he shone a light on the stark question. Had she blown her feelings out of proportion? Constantine had been charismatic, yes, but he'd never created the decadent chaos that Theo created in her.
When she'd imagined love, she'd always imagined passion, hunger and a keen pleasure even the slightest thought of that special someone brought. She'd believed herself in love with Constantine and yet she'd never experienced those emotions.
Well, she most definitely wasn't feeling them now.
'I believed my emotions were genuine at the time. But he didn't. He believed I was using him to further my father's campaign.'
'What did he do?' he asked. She looked into his eyes and fooled herself into thinking she saw a thawing of the hardness there.
'He made painful digs at me whenever he gave interviews. He made the tabloids call my character into question … much the same way you're doing now.'
He dropped his hand. 'It's not the same-'
'Yes, it is. Look Theo, I just want to be left alone to do my time.'
He paled. 'You're not in prison, Inez.'
She put much needed distance between them. 'Am I not? How else would you describe my presence here?'
* * *
Theo watched her walk away and curled his fists at his sides. The urge to call her back was so strong he forced himself to exhale slowly to expel the need. Her reference to her presence under his roof as a prison sentence had stung badly.
But hell, the truth was irrefutable. He'd forced her to make a choice, and no amount of dinner dates or designer shopping sprees would gloss over the fact that he'd set the tabloids on her as a way to dismantle her father's campaign.
Witnessing her clear distress just now had made his chest ache in a way that confused and irritated him.
Perhaps he needed to step up his agenda, end this dangerous game once and for all and move on with his life.
His brothers would certainly agree. He'd been avoiding their calls for the best part of a fortnight, replying only by email and with curt one-liners that he knew would only go so far before something gave.
He gritted his teeth against the prompt to deliver a swift killing blow to Benedicto da Costa.
His own ordeal hadn't been swift. It'd been long and tortuous. The punishment should fit the crime. Any hesitation on his part now merely stemmed from the afterglow of the chemistry between him and Inez. He freely admitted that theirs was a strong and potent brand, more intense than anything he'd ever experienced before.
It was messing with his mind, the same way the thought of her ex-lover had made him see red for several long seconds. But there was no way he was letting it impede his goal.
Which meant he had to come at this problem from another angle.
He swallowed the acrid taste in his mouth at the thought that Inez had put him into the same class as Constantine Blanco.
Slowly walking back indoors, he turned over the dilemma in his mind. By the time he reached his suite and changed out of his swimming trunks, a smile was curving his lips.
An hour later, he watched her descend the stairs, her duffel bag slung over her shoulder and an overnight case in her hand.
'Did Teresa tell you to pack your swimming gear?'
She regarded him warily. 'Yes. But I thought we were just taking the boat out?'
He shrugged. 'I thought you would welcome the opportunity to sunbathe away from the prying lenses of the paparazzi? There are several decks on the yacht that you can sunbathe on. Or we can swim in the sea, dine alone under the stars. Would you like that?' he asked, then felt a jolt at how much he wanted her to answer in the affirmative. In the past, he'd never taken the time to seek out what pleased his girlfriends beyond the usual gifts and fine dining. It was why he operated his relationships on a strict short-term basis with as little maintenance as possible.