to be with you, and I don’t want anyone else,’ he said. ‘I want to share everything I have and everything I am with you, and I don’t want to waste another second of our lives debating this. I want our future to begin now—here—right this minute,’ he declared fiercely. ‘I’m asking you to be my wife, but to be your own person too.’ He stopped, knowing Holly’s answer would be final, and that nothing in his life had meant this much to him before.
‘Your life is so wildly different from mine,’ she said, managing to smile and frown all at the same time.
‘Wild is about right,’ he agreed. ‘But isn’t taking chances what life is all about? There never will come a point where things are easy and straightforward, but if we can work through the challenges together we can make this work. And hopefully, there are some problems you wouldn’t want to be without.’
‘Like you?’ she suggested.
‘I’d rather think of myself as a challenge,’ he teased her.
‘I agree. Life would be boring without challenges, but endless problems are depressing.’
‘Then let’s not make a problem out of this. Do you accept my challenge?’
‘I do,’ she said.
‘I love you, Holly Valiant.’ He folded her in his arms.
‘You love me?’
‘I love you.’
‘You love me,’ Holly repeated, as if testing the words and finding them, not only plausible, but gradually, slowly, oh, so slowly, believable. ‘You love me.’ This time she smiled as she looked at him.
‘Yes, I do,’ he confirmed. ‘Dios send an angel to help me convince you,’ he muttered beneath his passionate Latin breath. ‘And if it takes a lifetime to prove it to you, then that is what I will do, Holly Valiant. So,’ he said, ‘having got the main challenge out in the open and sorted out, have you worked out yet what the missing link is where your writing is concerned?’
‘I only wish I could,’ Holly admitted worriedly, raking her hair with frustration. Her mind was so scattered, she could hardly concentrate. He loved her?
Focus, Valiant, focus!
‘Let’s take a shower.’
‘Together?’ she said, frowning.
‘Is there any other way?’
‘Your writing will be fine now,’ he said later when they were both standing in front of the silent computer. ‘Before, you had just shut your mind to anything that frightened you, stifling original thought.’
‘And I suppose you’ve just done me a favour in the bedroom by opening it up again?’
‘It certainly helped,’ he said. ‘I think I can give you some further help if you need it,’ he added, glancing at the sofa.
‘Don’t you think of anything else?’
‘With you around?’ His lips pressed down. ‘Rarely.’ Grabbing her hand, he pulled her across the room. ‘I bet I can give that imagination of yours a real kick-start.’
‘I’ll try anything once,’ Holly said, gamely.
‘Excellent. First play and then work—’
‘If you think that’s the solution,’ she said, ‘We’d better get to it.’
‘I couldn’t have put it better myself. I think you’re going to write the best article of your life after this, Holly Valiant, and then I’m going to teach you to ride.’
She laughed. ‘And after that?’ she queried.
‘After that we’re going to show everyone how to dance the samba—’
‘You’re completely mad,’ she exclaimed as he lowered her down onto the cushions.
‘Mad for you,’ Ruiz agreed, unfastening his belt.
WHEN Holly was lying quiet and contented in Ruiz’s arms, she asked him, ‘Did you mean it?’
‘Did I mean what?’ he said, opening one wicked eye.
‘You know,’ she prompted.
‘Say it, Holly.’ Ruiz raised a brow as he waited.
‘When you said … you love me.’
‘Of course I did—I do.’
With a hum she settled back in his arms again. ‘I’m glad you didn’t go riding right away.’
‘Oh, so am I,’ Ruiz agreed in a mocking tone and with a smile Holly didn’t see. ‘But I am going to try out a new horse in a while, so you’ll have plenty of chance to write your article.’
‘Slave driver.’
‘Don’t tell me I haven’t filled you with enough inspiration yet?’ Dipping his head, Ruiz stared with laughing eyes into Holly’s sated gaze. He knew this was the only way they could both be happy—if he let her be free to explore her talent and her career.
‘You’ve certainly given me enough to go on for now,’ she said, reluctantly staggering a little as she got to her feet and walked to the desk.
‘Just call me back if you need any more help,’ he said, springing up and adjusting his clothing.
‘Don’t worry, I will,’ she said, already logging on.
* * *
Being singled out by Holly meant more to him than she could ever know. He was so used to being one of the Band of Brothers: Ruiz, the youngest, the fixer, the travelling glue pot for the family. The man who made things right again. He was so busy sorting things out he had never stayed anywhere long enough to form a lasting attachment, let alone with someone as precious to him as Holly. And now he wanted to do something special for her. She had to know how much he cared about her, how much he loved her. It was almost Christmas, and Christmas Day was also her birthday. Gifts for his brothers were easy—anything for their horses. Lucia was almost as easy. He could take his sister on a virtual shopping trip and let her choose anything she liked, but he didn’t want to do that with Holly. He wanted to choose something that had meaning for her. He wanted to spoil her because she had never been spoiled, and surprise her because he loved to see her laugh.
* * *
She had bought Christmas presents for the Acosta family, knowing she would be staying over the holidays with them, but she couldn’t find the perfect gift for Ruiz, the man who had everything—or who could buy it in the unlikely event he found a gap.
She had an idea. She’d have to work on it, and she’d have to work fast, Holly concluded, pressing Send on her latest ‘Living with a Playboy’ feature, along with a second message marked ‘URGENT’. The main article for ROCK! was still work in progress, and something told her that unless she wrote a couple of alternative endings she would have to wait until after Christmas to complete the final draft of that.
‘Are you ready for your riding lesson?’
She turned as Ruiz entered the room. ‘As I’ll ever be!’
‘Not chickening out, I hope?’ he said, smacking a whip against the side of his sexy, calf-moulding riding boots.
‘You wish,’ she said.
‘No, I’ll leave that to the pony,’ Ruiz said, laughing. ‘Come on.’ Throwing an arm around her shoulders, he led her out of the room.
Ruiz put her up on a young, dark bay gelding called Dulce. ‘Can I have hand rails?’ Holly asked nervously, feeling she should have a safety harness at the very