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CHAPTER ONE

‘BUT why didn’t Belinda tell us last year that she had given birth to Pablo’s child?’ Antonio Rocha, Marqués de Salazar, de astonishment etched in the hard set of his sculpted cheekbones, his lean, darkly handsorim

‘We barely got to know Belinda while your brother was alive’ Doña Ernesta’s fine-boned features reflected her regret over that state of affairs ‘How could we expect her to turn to us for help after he had abandoned her?’

‘I tried several ti with Belinda She always made excuses,’ Antonio reminded the older woman ‘Finally, she insisted that she didn’t need our help and sherelated to her’

‘Her pride ine Pablo left her with little else Now that we know that he nant, my heart is even heavier,’ Doña Ernesta confessed ‘Yet when he ht finally settle down’

Being an incurable cynic, Antonio had had no such hopes After all, his younger brother had broken the heart of his own fa havoc beyond that select circle Although born with every advantage into the h society, Pablo had started getting in trouble at an early age

His parents had found it impossible to control him By the time Pablo had reached his early twenties, he had dissipated a substantial inheritance and defrauded several relatives and friends of large ahout those troubled years, countless people had made repeated efforts to understand, correct and solve Pablo’s problems All such attempts had been unsuccessful, not least, Antonio believed, because his brother had got a huge kick out of breaking the law and swindling the foolish

It was three years since Pablo had co his beautiful English girlfriend Overjoyed by his return, Doña Ernesta had insisted on throwing the wedding for the happy couple while at the sae, however, had failed and Pablo had returned to Spain twelve er man had lost his life in a drunken car crash

‘It astonishes me that Pablo could have kept such a secret from us,’ Doña Ernesta lamented ‘It is even h to share her child with us’

‘I’ve ,’ Antonio told her, frowning when the elderly woant marble fireplace continued to look deeply troubled ‘Try not to dwell on your sorrow As a family, we did all that we could and ill now do our very best for Pablo’s daughter’

It was only that afternoon that Antonio had received an urgent call from the family lawyer, who had in turn been contacted by Belinda’s solicitor in England Antonio had been sincerely shaken by the news that his brother’shad not only given birth to a child six ht ago He had been relieved that, independent though Belinda had evidently intended to be, she had still had the foresight and sense to nohter, Lydia At the fareed that, even though he had no reason to doubt that the little girl was his brother’s child, DNA testing, distasteful though it ould be a sensible precaution

The lawyer had then infor after the child Dismayed by that information, Antonio had appreciated that his own intervention was i for such a responsibility and he thought it unlikely that her lifestyle would be conducive to the care of a baby

Antonio had met Sophie when she had acted as a brides The pronounced differences between the two sisters had disconcerted his conservative faloss and clear diction of the British middle class, Sophie had appeared to hail frolish had been rammatically correct than hers had been As he recalled those unexplained discrepancies his incisive gaze veiled An involuntary linting green eyes assailed Antonio Not a beauty in the classic elegant style of her sister, certainly Even so, Antonio had found his attention continually returning to the youngest, smallest bridesmaid that day and he had been equally quick to notice that there wasn’t a man in the room impervious to her appeal

But her apparent appeal had been very short-lived, Antonio re with disdain Sophie had been sparkling, sexy and intensely feminine But as he had discovered she had also been a slut Watching her trail back into her hotel at daith her youthful lover and with her clothing dishevelled froht of passion on the beach had been a salutary lesson Clearly, she had been no more particular in her habits than the e in rampant casual sex and an excess of alcohol

‘A little girl My first great-grandchild,’ Doña Ernesta re her rather severe features, her well- into as a rare randson ‘Lydia It is a pretty name A baby will transform the castillo’

Antonio resisted a dis that he had been in no great hurry to embrace fatherhood He was barely thirty years old He had yet to experience the faintest glieneration and had never had the slightest interest in babies In fact he generally gave the rug rats a fairly wide berth at fa baby lay in the fond eye of its parent and ically enabled the parent to overlook the fact that babies were horrifically noisy and messy

‘I i to have the nursery suite in the little-used east wing renovated at speed He would also ensure that a full complement of staff was hired to service the child’s every need

He was not ashamed to admit that he liked his life just as it was He had had to work incredibly hard for a very long tie done to the Rocha

family fortunes by Pablo’s ceaseless depredations While his brother had been running wild and free on his ill-gotten gains, Antonio had been working eighteen-hour days Self-indulgence, personal interests and relaxation had all been luxuries out of Antonio’s reach Having since aed a billionaire, Antonio now relished his own highly sophisticated existence, his fantastic social life and his freedom to do exactly as he liked

But he was equally well aware that change was in the air: Pablo’s daughter was now his personal responsibility It was his duty to take charge of the orphaned infant and bring her back to Spain It was right and fitting that this should be the case, Antonio conceded The baby was of his blood and part of his fahter

‘You’ll have to get randht as this-tledown

Startled by that disconcerting assurance, Antonio swung back to survey the old lady, as carefully addressing her attention to her needlework Grudging aolden eyes, for he ell aware that his grander for him to take a wife ‘With all due respect, Abuela…I don’t think that a sacrifice of that nitude will be necessary’

‘A baby needs a mother I’m too old to take on the role and the staff cannot be expected to fill the gap You travel a great deal,’ Doña Ernesta re level of care and affection which a young child will require’

As Antonio listened the aaze ‘I don’t need a wife’

Glancing up without apparent concern, Doña Ernesta treated her grandson to an understanding smile ‘Then, I can only offer you ht this matter over—’

‘I have and in depth,’ Antonio slotted in rather drily, for he was unirandmother’s pretence of innocence

‘And you’re prepared to sacrifice all your free time for your niece’s benefit After all, with only you to depend on, she will need so much more of your attention’