Renegade Millionaire (12 page)

With her hand braced on the doorknob, she paused to make a very important declaration. “I think it's best if we just try to stay away from each other until my mom and Joseph leave.”

Rio glanced up at her, the wrench poised in one hand. “And after that?”

“I don't know.” And she didn't.

He went back to tinkering with the bolt. “As I've said before, you'll have to come to me.”

“That's interesting. I don't remember it being that way at all this morning.”

His gaze snapped to hers. “This morning was an exception. From now on, it's entirely up to you.”

Big, tough Rio, she wanted to say, but she only sent him a hard look that he didn't notice due to his preoccupation with his repairs. He might pretend to have all the strength in the world, but she was beginning to know better, at least when it came to their mutual desire. Joanna wasn't all that strong either, which meant anything could happen from this point forward. And though it might not be a good idea to find her way into Rio's bed, the thought was all too tempting.

 

An hour later, Joanna prepared to find her way into Rio's bed—to keep company with her son. As she came
out of the bathroom, she found Joseph examining several items on the small table situated in front of the black sofa in the bedroom's sitting area. He picked up a small crystal figurine in the shape of a jungle cat and held it up for examination.

“Be careful, Joseph. We don't want to break anything.”

Joseph set the statue down gingerly then turned and bounded into the bed. “How come Rio likes cats?” he asked as he crawled beneath the covers.

Joanna stretched out on the bed and turned on her side to face him. “It's part of his culture.”

Joseph frowned. “Huh?”

“His mother was descended from the Mayan people in Mexico and they believe animals are special.”

“Oh.” Joseph plopped back on the pillow. “I think animals are special, too. Can we go to the zoo tomorrow?”

She laid an arm above his head. “That sounds like a plan.”

Joseph yawned. “I really like Rio. Do you like Rio?”

She stroked his fine, dark hair. “Yes, I do.”

“Is that why you were kissing him?”

Here it comes.
“Yes. Does that bother you, sweetie?”

“I think it's kind of yucky.”

Joanna chuckled. “You probably won't when you get older.”

He wrinkled his nose as if she'd said he would learn to like zucchini. “I don't think so.”

Joseph sounded so certain, so much older than his six years, bringing about Joanna's wistful smile. “Well, you've got plenty of time to decide. Right now you need to go to sleep.” She reached over and snapped off the
bedside lamp—shrouding the room in darkness—then settled her head onto the pillow. She immediately detected Rio's distinctive scent and felt oddly comforted by it. A strong sense of yearning washed over her, a longing that had more to do with emotional needs than those of the flesh. She couldn't afford to want that much from him. He couldn't give her that kind of commitment.

Besides, she had her son, and that's all she really needed.

“Mama?”

“Yes?”

“I like Rio a lot.”

So did she. A whole lot. “Good. Sleep tight.”

“Mama, one more thing.”

“Okay, one more thing.”

“Am I ever going to get a real dad?”

Joanna's heart began to hurt over such a simple yet complex question. She had no idea how to answer. No idea at all. “If I find someone whom I think would be a good dad for you, you'll be the first to know.”

He sighed. “Okay, but I think Rio would make a real good daddy.”

 

Rio had no idea why he was doing it, only that he couldn't seem to stop. Everywhere they'd gone today, he couldn't maintain control of his hands. At the zoo, he'd found himself holding on to Joanna's elbow with some sort of primal male possessiveness. On the Riverwalk, he'd taken one of her hands into his when Joseph had taken the other, as if they were a typical family on a Saturday stroll. At the Tex-Mex restaurant, he'd inadvertently laid his palm on Joanna's thigh beneath the table as if he had a right to do so. He certainly had to
hand it to her—not once had she slapped him. Or stopped him.

Rio had noticed a few covert looks from Joanna's mom—knowing looks. Still, he liked Margaret a lot. She'd been amusing, friendly and she'd shown a great deal of concern for Joanna without being overbearing. And Joseph—well, the kid was great. Rio saw Joanna's strength in him although he was much more outgoing. But then Joanna had been gregarious during their outing and he suspected that had to do with her family's presence. She'd also seemed more relaxed. Unfortunately Rio wasn't relaxed, then or now.

As tired as he'd been, both from an inability to catch up on lost sleep but also from wrestling with a six-year-old several times during the day, he'd agreed to play some video games with Joseph. And after that, he'd agreed to watch an action-packed video involving martial arts and bad jokes.

Now here they were, boy and man, stretched out on their bellies across the den floor. Somewhere midpoint in the movie, Joseph had fallen asleep with his arm around Gabby who, too, was snoozing away.

“Looks like he's down for the count,” Joanna said from above him.

Rio stretched and sat up to face her, every muscle in his body protesting the position he'd maintained for over two hours. But certain parts definitely came awake when he noticed Joanna's shower-damp hair and the robe she now wore, the same one she'd worn yesterday morning.

She'd been scarce most of the evening, engaged in conversation in the kitchen with her mother. And she looked happier than she'd looked since he'd met her. He liked that, seeing her happy. He liked making her happy,
a thought that jumped into his brain unexpectedly. One he would take out and analyze later.

“He hasn't moved an inch since the bad guys took one of the good guys hostage,” Rio said with a wry grin.

“I'll wake him so I can get him in bed.”

“I'll take care of it.” Rio gently rolled Joseph over then slipped his arms beneath him. The boy opened his eyes but only for a brief moment before closing them again. Rio carried him up the stairs with little effort, surprised by the strange feelings that ran through him when Joseph wrapped his thin arms around his neck, amazed that something so foreign as carrying a sleeping child to bed would actually feel so right.

When they made it to Rio's bedroom, Margaret was waiting outside the door. “I'll sleep with him tonight, Joanna. In your room, if Rio doesn't mind climbing a few more stairs.”

“I don't mind at all,” Rio said.

Joanna's staid expression said that she minded. “That's okay, Mom. It's your last night here. I kind of like having him nearby.”

Margaret scoffed. “I know how this little one sleeps, like a monkey trying to tear out of his cage. I heard you scold him for kicking you in the face last night when he worked his way to the end of the bed. Besides, he's totally out, so he won't know who's in bed with him.”

“Really, Mom, I don't mind.”

Rio started toward his room with Joseph still securely in his arms until Margaret said, “Wait a minute, Rio.”

He turned back to mother and daughter, wishing they would make up their minds. He personally voted to have Joanna in his bed with him, if she should decide she needed company from someone other than her son. Not
likely that was going to happen, but he could always hope.

Margaret brushed Joanna's hair away from her shoulders in an overt maternal gesture. “You look tired, Joanna. You'll have plenty of time to spend with him in the morning since our plane doesn't leave until late afternoon.”

“But—”

“No buts. You need a good night's sleep or you'll be no good to anyone in the morning.”

Looking somewhat defeated, Joanna sighed. “Okay, if you insist. But I'm warning you, he'll probably give you a few bruises.”

Without waiting to see if the arrangements changed again, Rio scaled the steep stairs leading to the attic room, holding Joseph fast against his chest. Once inside, he laid him on the turned-down bed then slipped the sheet over him.

Rio, Joanna and Margaret stood and stared at the boy as if awaiting something momentous to occur. As far as Rio was concerned, that moment was fundamentally special, watching a child sleep, something he'd never before experienced beyond dozing newborns.

He didn't try to fight the unanticipated emotions streaming through him. He simply chalked it up to exhaustion even though it felt a lot like longing.

“Good night, you two,” Margaret whispered, followed by a yawn. “Enjoy the rest of your evening together.”

While Joanna looked stunned, Rio accepted the cue and walked out the door. Joanna kept her distance behind him and as they took the stairs, silence pervaded until they reached the second floor. Instead of leaving her in the hallway, Rio followed Joanna to her room—
his room, he corrected. A room with a king-size bed that could more than accommodate two people. He wanted to join Joanna there, to take her on an all-night journey into oblivion. After all, Margaret had practically given them permission.

Joanna obviously didn't see it that way, considering she glared at him from the open door. Even though she now wore a frown and that god-awful robe, Rio felt surprisingly energized, especially when he imagined untying the sash—with his teeth.

“Did you have fun today?” she asked with only a hint of amusement.

“I had a great time. And you have a great kid.”

“I have to agree with you on that. I hope he didn't drive you totally crazy.”

“Not at all. I can't remember when I've had such a good time.” Rio sent a pointed look toward the master bath across the room behind her. “Actually, I do remember. Yesterday morning, in fact—”

Joanna clamped a hand over his mouth. “I don't think it's a good idea to discuss this now. Sound travels through the vents and I don't want my mom to accidentally overhear about…you know.”

When Rio streaked his tongue across her palm, she dropped her hand from his mouth as if he'd burned her. “Maybe we should take this conversation into the bedroom and discuss…you know.”

Joanna's eyes sparked with the desire he'd seen last night in the garage, the other morning in the bathroom, a few days ago in the hot tub, and with those memories came a stirring low in his gut. He was hard as hell and he wanted to do something about it. Now. But not unless she made the suggestion.

She gave him a semi-dirty look. “If you'll recall, I've
told you we need to avoid that kind of contact. Which reminds me. What was all that touching about today?”

Rio decided playing innocent might work best. “Are you referring to me holding your hand?”

“I'm referring to you trying to cop a feel underneath the restaurant table.”

“I had my hand on your leg. If I'd tried something else, trust me,
querida,
you would have known the difference.”

Rio detected a slight tremor in Joanna's body although they weren't close enough for him to be certain. He wished they were that close.

“Okay, so maybe you only rested your hand on my leg,” she said. “But it was a little suggestive, don't you think?”

He braced his palm on the door frame above her head and leaned into her. “What do you suggest I was suggesting?”

“I don't know… I mean…you know.”

Rio decided it would be incredibly easy to kiss her, lead her backward into the bedroom, right into his bed. Take off that robe again, get out of his jeans that were less than comfortable at the moment, and get down to the business of lovemaking. Slow, unrestrained, in the way that she deserved to be made love to.

Just when he considered delivering a convincing kiss, Joanna backed into the room and pointed to the opposite end of the hall. “Go to bed, Rio.”

He pushed away from the door. “That's what I'm trying to do.” Damn, why couldn't he hold up his end of the bargain? What had happened to her making the next move? Why did he find it so hard to keep his hands off her? His mind off her?

She looked as though she was asking herself those
same questions and didn't particularly like the answers. “You said you were going to wait until I came to you, did you not?”

“True.”

“So go to bed before I…”

“Before you what?”

A grin crept in and lit up her crystalline eyes. “Before I change my mind and pull you down on the hall floor to do some horizontal Olympics.” With that, she shut the door in his face.

Rio acknowledged it was going to be one helluva hard night. And when the time came, he was going to have one helluva hard time letting her go.

“I
really like Rio, Joanna.”

Joanna glanced up from the Sunday paper to find Margaret assessing her from across the dinette. First her son, now her mother. Rio had become very popular. “He's a nice man.”

“And obviously very successful. Have you seen that marvelous game room?”

“Yes, I've seen it.” She'd almost initiated the pool table with Rio, not that she would make that revelation to her mother.

“Joseph's in there now. Kid heaven, I tell you. So many toys, so little time.”

Realizing Margaret was gearing up for a talk, Joanna folded the paper, tossed it aside and took a sip of coffee. “Rio's into toys. At times I think he's still very much a little boy.”

Margaret frowned. “Maybe he's a bit carefree, but he
seems very responsible. I mean, he's a doctor. You should know better than anyone the kind of responsibility and commitment that requires.”

Committed to his job, yes, Joanna acquiesced. But when it involved his personal life, he was committed only to his freedom. “Is there a point to this conversation, Mom?”

“Actually, I've been wondering if there's something going on between you two. Maybe a little more than meets the eye?”

Joanna fought a sudden surge of panic. “Why would you ask that?”

“Because yesterday he kept giving you
that
look.”

“What look?”

“The same one your father used to give me when we were dating.” Her smile was bittersweet. “The same one he gave me the whole time we were married.”

“Look, Mom, Rio's just not that kind of guy. He's a great doctor and a good friend.” A fantastic lover.

“And rather handsome, if you can get past the earring.”

“But he's not the forever type.”

“How do you know?”

Because he had made that quite clear to Joanna on more than one occasion. “Trust me, I just know.”

“Men can change, Joanna.”

“Adam never did.”

Margaret frowned. “So that's it? You're comparing every man to Adam? You'll never be happy with anyone if you keep doing that.”

Joanna turned the spoon resting near her hand over and over. “Maybe I don't need anyone other than my son, at least not another man.”

“But Joseph does.”

Joanna inwardly flinched at the truth in her mother's declaration. It had been all too apparent during the conversation two nights ago that Joseph had been thinking about having a father, and also how much he had enjoyed Rio's company. That worried her. “Rio's not a good candidate.”

“Oh, I think he'd make a wonderful father for Joseph.”

“Mother, please.”

Margaret reached across the table, yanked the spoon from Joanna's grasp and took both Joanna's hands into her own. “Life has a way of surprising you, and so do some people if you give them a chance. Don't close yourself off to the possibilities or you'll end up like your father's sister, May. She was a bitter, vindictive old woman who delighted in making others suffer because she refused to open herself up to love once the preacher dumped her.”

Joanna smiled at the memory of her aunt whom she'd greatly feared as a child and the legendary story of Aunt May's unrequited love. “I'll try not to turn into a shrew.”

Margaret studied her with a mother's smile “Just remember, Joanna, dear. Sometimes you have to take that leap of faith and risk the fall in order to learn to live again.”

Joanna refused to take the leap. She didn't dare hope that Rio would change his mind about commitment, or change at all for that matter. In reality, she wouldn't change anything about him. In fact, she loved most everything about him—his smile, his compassion, his innate wisdom, his free spirit. She loved…

Him?

Joanna didn't plan to go there. She didn't dare fall in
love with a man who had the hands of a healer and the heart of a renegade. But she feared she already had.

 

Rio stood back as Joanna said goodbye to her son and mother in the airport waiting area. He didn't care for goodbye scenes, especially this one, knowing how much Joanna was hurting. He could see it in the unshed tears brimming in her blue eyes when Joseph clung to her and begged to stay.

“I can sleep in the room by myself,” Joseph said. “Like I do at Gran's. Gabby can sleep with me.”

Joanna crouched on Joseph's level and braced his shoulders with her palms. “Honey, I promise it will only be a little while longer before you come to live with me again, right after you're out of school for the summer. I'll have a place for us to live then, a nice apartment with a swimming pool. Would you like that?”

Joseph stuck out his lip in a pout. “I don't want an old apartment. I want to live with Rio and Gabby. Besides, Rio has a pool. A big pool. And a bunch of games.”

“Joseph, I'm only living with Dr. Madrid until I can find something else.”

“But you said you liked him.”

“Of course I like him, but I can't live with him forever.”

Rio couldn't deny the twinge of bone-deep hurt over the prospect of Joanna leaving. He wanted to ignore the pain, shove it aside, but it kept jabbing at his insides, specifically in the vicinity of his heart. He just didn't know what the hell to do about it, not when she was so dead set against staying with him. And he wanted her to stay. God, did he want that. He hadn't realized how
much until now. But he couldn't force her to make that decision.

The grating sound of the ticket agent announcing the call for boarding caused Joanna to straighten. Rio approached the threesome and held out his hand to Joseph. “You're welcome to come see me anytime, bud,” he said in earnest.

Joseph ignored Rio's extended hand and opted to throw his arms around Rio's waist in a voracious hug. Giving in to a need he didn't understand and didn't want to claim, Rio picked Joseph up and held him tightly.

Joseph studied him with eyes much like his mother's, only they contained a definite trust that had been absent from Joanna's when she looked at Rio. “Did you save our last racing game on the video machine?”

Rio grinned. “Yeah, I saved it so we can take up where we left off, with you kicking my behind all over the virtual track.”

“It's time to go, honey,” Joanna said when the attendant made a last call to board.

Joseph reluctantly let go of Rio's neck, but not before giving him another hug. “Later, Rio.”

“Later.” Rio relinquished Joseph to his mother and turned his attention to Margaret. “Mrs. Mathis, it's been a pleasure.”

She laid a hand on her throat and blushed. “Oh, stop it with the Mrs. I'm just Margaret, plain and simple.” As her grandson had, she drew Rio into an embrace then whispered, “Take care of our girl, will you? Just don't let on that you are.”

Rio pulled away and acknowledged her request with a simple nod though he doubted he would have that luxury.

Grandmother and grandson handed off their tickets
and started toward the jet way while Rio and Joanna looked on. Operating solely on instinct, he came up behind Joanna and pulled her into his arms, her back to his chest. She leaned heavily against him, as if her legs might give way while they watched the pair disappear.

In that moment, he wanted to take care of her. He wanted to give her all that she desired. He wanted to be the man she needed, but the honest truth stared him in the face as she pushed out of his arms and walked away.

The question no longer existed if he was willing to make a go of a real relationship, because he was. The problem now involved Joanna. She was doing her damnedest not to need anybody. Especially not him.

 

Joanna needed Rio more than anything at the moment. Her bed was too lonely and so was her heart. Having Joseph and her mother with her over the past two days had only cemented her loneliness now that they had left.

Unfortunately, Rio had left, too, immediately following their dinner. Retired to the garage, or so he'd told her. Other than that announcement, he'd been relatively quiet throughout the meal although several times he'd looked as if he'd wanted to say something.

She needed to tell him a few things as well. Explain why she couldn't stay much longer. If she remained in his home, in his life, she would only become more emotionally entangled. How could she subject her son to the possibility of getting too close to a man who had no designs on having a permanent relationship? How could she subject herself to that very thing?

At the moment, she didn't want to think about that. She wanted Rio to fill the void in her soul, right or wrong. She craved his company, craved his touch, so much so that she decided to seek him out, to be with
him, if only one more time. She would make a few memories to take with her when she did decide to leave, hopefully with some of her heart intact.

Joanna left the solitude of her bedroom and padded down the stairs wearing a plain cotton gown covered by an all-weather coat, intending to start her search in the garage. When she caught the faint scent of wood smoke in the second-floor hallway, she walked to his bedroom and pushed open the door.

Other than a fire burning in the small hearth, the room was dark, deserted and she wondered if maybe Rio was still in the garage after all. Then she noted the sound of the shower running full force in the adjacent bathroom. Knowing he was in there, without a stitch of clothes, brought about a solid round of chills playing over Joanna's entire body, coupled with an overwhelming heat. She considered joining him in the shower but when she heard the water shut off, she realized it was too late.

No matter. She would wait for him in the bedroom. He'd wanted her to come to him, and that's exactly what she intended to do—come to him. Give herself to him, at least in a physical sense. She would be wise to leave it only at that, leave all the fuzzy feelings out of it. But the driving need to have him in her arms once more outweighed the risk to her emotions. That alone convinced her to continue as planned.

Joanna slipped off her coat and tossed it onto the small sofa in the sitting area. Perching on the edge of the bed closest to the bathroom, she made the snap decision to remove her gown and panties, leaving no room for doubt what she expected from Rio tonight. If she couldn't have forever, then she would settle for what she could have in the time that remained.

Naked and flushed, Joanna turned back the covers and
slipped beneath the cool black satin sheets. Tonight the smooth texture against her skin and Rio's lingering scent served to heighten her desire. Feeling brave and bold, she opted to cover herself only from the waist down, leaving her breasts exposed to his eyes when he came into the room.

For a few moments she wasn't sure if he would return, a ridiculous thought. Where else would he go? Out the bathroom window? Of course not. Silly, silly girl, she silently admonished. At least she wasn't quite as nervous as she had been when she'd come into the room—until the bathroom door opened.

Joanna closed her eyes and grabbed the sheet to cover herself. Maybe she wasn't so hot at seduction after all. But she was definitely hot. Extremely hot, especially when she opened her eyes to Rio standing next to the bed wearing nothing but a veiled expression.

“Are you lost, or did you miss my bed?” he asked, his voice as soft as a caress, deadly to her senses.

She rolled to one side and allowed the sheet to slide down, baring her breasts. “I've missed you.”
I'm lost to you.

He didn't move at all or respond, at least not with words. But because he was standing there in the altogether, he couldn't hide his body's reaction to her spontaneous seduction.

“I'm thinking you might have missed me a little, too,” she said with a pointed look below his tattoo at proof positive she'd gotten his attention.

“What do you want, Joanna?”

“I want you.”

“Are you sure it's me you want? Or maybe you just need a little comfort. Something to get your mind off the fact you had to tell your son goodbye.”

She logically couldn't deny any of that, yet seeing Joseph and her mother off was only part of the reason. “I need to be with you, Rio. I
want
to be with you. You've told me I had to make the next move, so I'm making it.”

A muscle twitched in his jaw, his only movement. “You better be certain, Joanna, because if I get into that bed with you, I'm going to make sure that you don't have the will to change your mind.”

“And how do you intend to do that?”

“With my hands, with my mouth. And everything in between.”

Joanna drew in a deep breath and tossed the sheet away. “I don't plan to change my mind.”

His eyes darkened and his hands opened and closed at his sides. For the longest moment she thought he was going to refuse her until he moved closer to the bed. Then he abruptly turned and headed back into the bathroom.

Joanna's heart sank to her heels and she felt like screaming from frustration. Then he reentered the room and tossed two condoms onto the bedside table. Her heart took flight and now she felt like shouting from relief.

He slid onto the bed but instead of taking her into his arms, he took her hands and pulled her up until they sat opposite each other on their knees, face-to-face, covered only in the illumination coming from the hearth.

In that moment, Rio became the fire, from the golden glow of his eyes to the heat radiating from his body. And like the proverbial moth, Joanna was drawn to the flame.

He continued to study her a few moments until he finally said, “Convince me.”

Hadn't she done that by coming to his room and stripping? “I beg your pardon?”

“Convince me that you want this.”

Joanna knew of only one way to do that. She raised a trembling hand to his chest over the place where his heart beat strong and steady. Sliding her palm over his taut damp skin, she began her journey by tracing a path with one fingertip from the spattering of dark hair down along the ribbon to his navel. She paused at the tattoo to explore the territory the way she had wanted to the night she'd first seen it. The image was muted in the limited light but Joanna could still experience its power, as well as the power she had over Rio at the moment when his muscles constricted beneath her hand. She reveled in that dominance and wanted more of it, more of him. All of him.