Page 29 of Brazilian Surrender
“I’ll be back soon. Don’t worry,” he said before he closed the door behind him.
Don’t worry?Her heart throbbed at the base of her throat. The criminal knew where she was and still wanted to scare her off. Maybe I should take this as a warning and leave. Sure, she wouldn’t finish her internship and would dearly miss her friends and new life in the Big Apple. But she’d survive, and she had the support of her family in Brazil.
Camila shook her head. No. If she left, her stalker would win. She’d already lost her beloved dog and her sense of security. Why would she part with her internship? She’d worked so hard to graduate and perfect her English. She’d applied to various places until Hatch offered her the coveted position. Walking away meant shutting down a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
She returned to Erika’s suite and plastered a smile on her face, glad everyone had been too busy before to notice anything. The makeup artist started the finishing touches, and she stayed still.
For the next hour, she went through the motions, doing her dutiful bridesmaid job, for the first time in her life. In Brazil, instead of adult bridesmaids, children strolled down the aisle before the bride. Had she not been tense and wondering about Jaeger until halfway into the ceremony—when he finally showed up quietly and took a seat at the back of the room—she’d have enjoyed her part more.
Emanuel gave Erika a kiss a tad longer than what was probably socially acceptable during these things, and a dramatic Valentino dip, which got the guests cheering and clapping. When the pastor gave them their blessing to leave as a married couple, Camila sighed. Tears brimmed her eyes.
Weddings had an invisible way of reaching down her throat and clutching her heart. Her parents had not formally married; neither of them could afford it. They just moved in together and made the best of it until many decades later, before her mother died. Her father then had been fortunate to receive financial help from his sons. They held a small event at a church her mother used to go to when she’d felt less ill; it had been short so as to not flare up her lupus and other health issues. Yet those hours had stayed in Camila’s mind forever. The loving way her father glanced at her mother—much like Emanuel did to Erika, and her other brothers did to their wives.
Much like she’d like a man to look at her someday.
“Camila,” Addie whispered, and Camila shook her head, willing those memories away. Addie gestured with her hand and Camila understood the cue to go down the aisle after the couple. The professional photographer followed them, and a few guests also snapped pictures with their smartphones.
Camila followed along, and for the next thirty minutes, paid all her bridesmaid dues: took pictures with and without the newlyweds, smiled, asked the others if they needed anything. The official toast wouldn’t happen for another hour at least.
“Camila,” Jaeger called out to her, and she recognized the raspy sound before she even turned to face it.
“Yes. Sorry, it’s been crazy. What happened?”
He touched her elbow and nudged her away from the crowd, behind a tall tree decorated with several candles of different sizes. “I visited the shop. It’s linked to a website so they wouldn’t tell me who sent them, because they don’t know. I called Tony and asked him to hack into their system to find out.”
“And?”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Someone used a fake name and credit card to pay for it.”
“We don’t know who that is?”
“Not yet. He’s trying to get to the source, but it’s ten times harder. It’s a thing now…people can buy fake IDs and credit card numbers from online dealers. This way, they don’t get traced when they’re looking at illegal stuff. I decided to go to the flower shop on the off chance the sender would have followed us here. To make sure that hadn’t been the case and cover all bases.”
She let out a long sigh, unable to keep her shoulders straight any longer. Jaeger pulled her into a hug, and she rested her face on his shoulder. That was the first time he gave her a public display of affection when they were outside the bedroom. Sure, he’d try little touches here and there, but mostly when others were around so she believed his affection wasn’t organic. This seemed…real.
“Who knew about this wedding, and that you’d be here?” he asked.
“Your aunt knows, because she did my hair. I told Lee about the wedding a couple of weeks ago. I must have mentioned it to the neighbors, but that was a few weeks ago, when I asked them for pet sitter referrals. And I mentioned it to Zoe when I emailed her, just in case she comes back into town.” Zoe was out of town, and the neighbors had no real reason to want her out. Sure, real estate was hard these days, but to kill a dog and send out threats for it? “You’re not thinking someone wants my apartment, right? When the realtor said it was to die for, I never imagined she could mean it literally.”
“We’ll figure it out,” he said, and squeezed her against his chest, and a foolish happiness invaded her being.
…
Jaeger swallowed. The quick tap on her back he meant to give turned into an intimate embrace, and for a moment, he let his guard down. She rested her face on his shoulder, and he resisted the urge to kiss the top of her head. He did, however, hold her tight against him. She didn’t return the hug, which relieved him.
His insides burned with need, and his fingers tingled to touch her hair, massage her neck, cup her beautiful face—all distractions he didn’t need to keep her safe and alive. For the past couple of days, they’d enjoyed each other’s bodies while following his rules—she restrained and he, in control. Camila never complained about the arrangement, and he decided not to dwell on bedding a client. He’d worry about it after she left his life. Until then, he’d have to fucking multitask.
But how to stop touching her outside the bedroom? She rested her hands on his waist, then lifted them to his chest, placing them between herself and his body. She grabbed his tie, pulling him down for a kiss.
No. He jerked away, wishing he had done so more smoothly when her jaw dropped. “I’m sorry.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “I…I can’t.”
Camila nodded, but couldn’t disguise the sadness in her eyes. God. What was he doing? Thousands of men—any rational man—would love to be the object of her affection. “I’m just shaken, that’s all,” she said.
Me too.He’d never admit to it out loud, but a side of him worried about losing her more than he would a regular client. The idea that someone knew of her location, knew exactly where she was…he curled his fingers into a ball. Jaeger couldn’t wait to knock all the teeth out of that bastard’s mouth. “Listen…let’s enjoy the wedding. Tomorrow we’ll go back first thing in the morning. I want you to continue staying at my place.”
“Can’t I be watched at my place?”
“Yes, but what if your roommate comes back? It’ll be harder to control who comes in and out. If you’d rather stay at a hotel, you can, but there’s also a lot of movement and it’ll make you more vulnerable.” Apprehension moved through him, and he hoped she wouldn’t notice he actually wanted her to stay at his place. Their business agreement made it all possible—he enjoyed the coziness of having her at his side without having to worry about much else, emotionally wise.
