Her Latin Lover (Contemporary Romance) by Katheryn Lane Read Free Book Online Page A

must thank God that the evening turned out the way it did.”
    “What? Thank him for Nick running off and taking everything with him?”
    “Señor Kingsley was wise to leave when he did. I hear that El Leon was very angry when he lost the card game and when El Leon is angry, he can do awful things. He is a man who has forgotten God.” The priest crossed himself. “The safest place for your friend is where he is now, out of the country and back in England, and you are safe here with Don Paulo de Castile. Take my advice and go and stay at his house.” He gave her arm a final squeeze before letting go and standing up. “Now, if you will excuse me. There are things that I must attend to.”
    “Thank you. I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
    “It’s Francis Caxinaua, but everyone calls my Padre, or Father.”
    “Thank you Padre.”
    Mary shook his hand and then walked out of the church wondering how she could contact Paulo and what would happen if she moved into his house.
     
     
     

 
     
     
     
    Chapter 5
     
    Don Paulo stood at the reception desk paying Señor Marcos for Mary’s room. He was not sure how much longer he could afford to keep her at the hotel and Señor Marcos refused to give him any kind of a discount. He heard the main hotel door swing open and looked up to see Mary strolling in, wearing a tight black T shirt that showed just how tiny her waist was. Don Paulo thought that he could probably span most of it with his two large hands.
    “Good morning Señora. Please excuse my behaviour last night. It was most unkind of me to walk out as I did.” To his relief, she gave him a huge smile. He could see the tiny gap in her front teeth that made her look so sexy. He took the smile as a positive sign and ventured further. “Maybe you would consent to having a coffee with me?”
    “I’d love to. Or perhaps lunch? I seem to remember you saying that there was a good restaurant in a nearby village. Maybe we could go there?”
    “But of course.” He picked up his jacket which was lying across a chair and led her out of the hotel. Señor Marcos gave him a wink as they left.
    Women were so unpredictable. When he left her last night she was angry with him, but now she was practically all over him, chatting away as if they were old friends. Maybe she felt guilty for getting cross when he explained that he had saved her from the clutches of El Leon. However, he didn’t ask her and was just thankful that she was in a better mood than he expected.
    But nothing, not even her cheerful behaviour, could have prepared him for what she said to him over lunch. He was just finishing a large bowl of beans that had been stewed with thick, local sausages, when she stated that the hotel was unpleasant and it would probably be more comfortable if she moved to his house until it was time for her to fly back to London.
    Don Paulo didn’t know what to say. He couldn’t believe what he had heard. He took a sip of red wine and looked at the bottle. They had only had a glass each, so she wasn’t drunk. He’d been thinking of inviting her up to see his house, but he hadn’t dared to suggest that she move in.
    “Are you sure?” It was all he could think of to say, though he dreaded hearing her answer in case she said no.
    “Yes of course. $160 a night is an awful lot to pay and especially for two whole weeks.”
    So that was it: money. She thought that he didn’t have enough money to look after her. Maybe she had heard about his financial problems. Corazon was a small town and everyone knew everyone else’s business. He didn’t need her pity. “Money is absolutely no problem,” he lied. “Please, do not mention it again.” And he called to the waiter for the bill.
    “But I don’t want to stay at the hotel,” she persisted. “It’s not very nice. You yourself said that the food’s awful and I hear that you have a lovely house.”
    He did have a beautiful house, built over one hundred years ago by his