Page 24 of Modern Romance June 2025 5-8

And, best of all, the dreams hadn’t come last night… The shadowy memories which had scared her before. Because he’d held her as she fell asleep. And promised to keep her.

Until the hunger stops…

She sighed and flopped back onto the bed, to stare at the ceiling and try to take stock of what it all meant—feeling overwhelmed, but also secretly thrilled.

Last night had been nothing short of incredible. For so many reasons.

The discovery that sex could be amazing if you were with someone who knew what they were doing—and Santiagodefinitelyknew what he was doing—was just one of those reasons. He’d been so focused, his usual intensity and control all centred on her. And, as a result, her first time had been nothing short of mind-blowing.

Of course, she had to be careful not to make too much of what was basically a physical attraction. Fleeting and exciting but not necessarily unique. Or at least not for him. And just because it had been her first time, she needed to make sure she didn’t fall into the trap of confusing sex with emotional intimacy. Because her life was already confusing enough.

She was glad he had insisted she no longer be paid to watch Ana, that he wanted her to remain at thecastilloas the family’s guest.

She frowned. Although how was that going to work? How would Ana react once she discovered she’d been correct about their attraction to one another? Maybe it didn’t have to be too big a deal? Cerys could simply spend her days hanging out with Ana and her nights hanging out with Ana’s brother…

All the tender achy places throbbed in enthusiastic agreement.

Yeah, maybe don’t think about the nights or you’ll be unable to focus on anything else, and Ana will notice and be impossible.

Easing off the bed, she spotted a pile of her clothes neatly folded on the chair opposite her—with a note attached that had her name scribbled across it. But there was no sign of Ana’s torn dress or the heeled sandals she’d borrowed.

She dragged the sheet with her to shield her nakedness, feeling shy despite the fact the house was quiet and it had to be close to noon. Santiago was probably at work already—because he wasalwaysworking, even on a Sunday.

She opened the note. Heat climbed up her chest as she spotted the scrawled S at the bottom. Then the hot blood exploded in her cheeks as she read the rest of it.

María has supplied the clothes and will arrange a replacement for Ana’s dress. Enjoy your beauty sleep, but when you are ready come directly to my study. I have a proposition for you.

S

Embarrassment came first—because now María would know all about last night. It probably hadn’t even occurred to Santiago how their affair was going to affect thecastillo’s staff. She would have to tell Santiago she wanted to keep their arrangement on the down-low. She’d formed a strong bond with the staff and considered María a friend. She didn’t want the housekeeper, or anyone else, to feel uncomfortable around her because she was basically sleeping with their boss.

But surely that wouldn’t be a problem for him. She doubted Santiago wanted to make too big deal of this liaison either, given his aversion to gossip and his pathological need for privacy. So they were all good.

Warmth swelled though as she read the list of typically curt instructions—or rather orders—again. Santiago might be an exceptional lover, but he was also far too used to having his every command obeyed without question.

She’d found him so daunting before now, that aura of command more than a little intimidating. But she could still remember his charming smile, the playful note in his voice and the way he’d held her as she slept. She’d seen a completely different side of him last night—not so much commanding as protective, possessive even. It only made him more attractive. But now she had agreed to a wild summer fling with the guy—the logistics of which had to be the proposition he was talking about—she would have to set a few boundaries. Or she’d end up getting steamrollered by that iron will.

Boundary number one: impress upon Santiago she didn’t take orders from him any more… Well, not outside of the bedroom anyway—where taking orders from him was super hot.

After reviving in the villa’s surprisingly modern power shower and soaping her hair and body with toiletries that carried Santiago’s woodsy scent, she tugged on the T-shirt and shorts combo María had chosen for her. Perhaps she and Santiago could confine their fling to this villa on the edge of the vines. They could make a secret pact to meet here at nightfall, after thecastillowas asleep—because it was obvious he already used the place as some kind of getaway. It was so secluded and private it would be perfect. Sensation rippled over her skin at the thought of her midnight trysts withel Duque…

Something tugged at her memory… An odd feeling ofdéjà vu. Almost as if she’d done this before…

Her breath caught, the sharp twist in her abdomen reminding her of her raw reaction to Ana’s story two days ago… But then her mind engaged, and the tension in her stomach eased.

She couldn’t possibly have had an affair with anyone before now, not if she had been a virgin. Good to know being a total novice had some upsides.

She huffed out a strained laugh, recalling the hopelessly awkward conversation she’d had with Santiago the night before, when she’d made a complete twit of herself reassuring him about taking her virginity. Why had she assumed he even cared about that?

As she headed back through the orchard, she could hear the staff clearing up after the party.

A blush mottled her chest. Had anyone noticed they hadn’t returned to the event?

She paused in the trees and watched thecastillo’s maintenance guys—all of whom she knew by name—busy dismantling the dancefloor.

She decided midnight trysts were all well and good, but if she was going to spend the summer here, as Santiago’s guest, she would need to establish a few ground rules—to preserve her pride, as well as not complicating her friendships with the staff. She was more than happy not to be paid a salary any more, especially as she and Santiago would be sleeping together, but she wanted to make herself useful, so she didn’t feel like she was taking advantage of his generosity. And while he’d been very sweet to offer to buy her a whole new wardrobe, no way could she let him do that. He’d been paying her a very generous salary—while also providing room and board—so she already had some money saved.

She switched directions before the crew could spot her and headed towards thecastillo’s kitchen entrance where María’s office was situated. Even though Santiago had told her to come directly to the study, she wanted to thank the housekeeper for bringing the clothes—and track down Ana. Her friend was probably still fast asleep, but she needed to let her know she hadn’t been kicked out after all, and apologise about the torn dress… Her blush intensified at the thought of how the heck she was going to explainthatwithout getting the third degree on where she’d been all evening from Santiago’s sister. Because Ana would definitely have noticed the two of them hadn’t returned to the party.

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