have a good stomach?”
Kat’s head was in a jumble. “Why would I need a good stomach?”
“I’ve arranged a trial-run on a yacht for the day. I’m thinking of buying a similar one. I thought I’d better have a test first.”
“Why on earth do you want me to go? I won’t be any help. I’ll be in the way.”
“For the experience. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.”
“I will?”
“Come. Grab some things and we’ll go.”
“What sort of things? What will I need?”
He pulled a face. “Just something you feel easy in. Don’t wear your Sunday-best though.”
***
The powerful Lamborghini pulled to a halt at the top of the ridge, kicking dry soil into clouds. Rafael could see for miles. He jumped out of the car and shielded his eyes. From the scrub of the middle distance through to the horizon it shimmered with heat.
He glanced toward Kat. She peered through the car window, still awkward about being caught in his study. He supposed he would have done the same, had he been in the same position. She ought to have guessed he didn’t keep important stuff at home, though.
God, what a dilemma the woman was! Half the time, he felt his brain was exploding into his trousers. He had to get over this juvenile obsession somehow. He couldn’t help wanting her, but he’d made a promise.
Now he understood a little about her, it made him protective, and that was scarce. For years, he’d been a shit to women. He wasn’t proud of it.
Something about her life unsettled him. Her outburst made him realise there was more than she’d first let on. Whether or not she agreed, he was going to use whatever resources he could. He was going to track down her mother and learn what had gone on.
Kat stepped out of the car and stretched.
She didn’t realise, but the contract would go through on her ability alone. They desperately needed her skills. The cutting edge, which once kept them at the front, was no longer quite so cutting. They were one step behind the competitors and didn’t know why. Maybe Papá had lost his touch. For the business to maintain its position, they needed special input.
Kat’s genius might just provide that input. Had things been different, she might have headed her own empire. Rafael arched his fingers. He doubted if she understood her potential. This needed a Machiavellian strategy to make it work.
Way below them, a stretch of narrow valley sandwiched a dry riverbed, which in the distance, widened to meet the sea. Close by, safe above the flood-plain, a cluster of old villas stood bone-white in the sun. On the flat roof of one, a line of washing flapped, laconic.
Rafael tested the air currents with a wet finger and nodded. “It’ll make a good day,” he said. “We don’t want too much breeze.”
Kat leaned on the roof of the Lamborghini without enthusiasm. She said, “I’d prefer there to be none.”
It took another twenty minutes to reach the tiny harbour. A handful of fishing smacks and rowing boats waltzed to the idle movements of the estuary. The yacht dwarfed everything, gleaming in the sun. His would be the twin. Under construction in the yards, it had the most thrilling line he’d ever seen in a yacht. He’d called in several times, but still it gave him a buzz to see this one in the finished state. He’d been obsessed with boats for as long as he could remember, since he’d been for a spin on his uncle’s yacht, as a boy.
“It’s bigger than I imagined,” Kat said.
He shrugged. “They often are; especially when you see what’s below deck.”
The yacht was white with a blue flash, loads of chrome, high mast, and a sleek glass enclosure surrounding the wheelhouse. The lines were beautiful, a rich man’s toy, but Papá was a rich man, and indulged him.
He waved to a group of men who lounged nearby. “Let’s get this thing going.” He turned to Kat. “They’ll take us out. When I know the ropes they’ll turn us free.”
“By ourselves?” Kat turned to him and frowned. “We’re going to be alone in that thing? Suppose we get stuck, what then?”
“It has all the latest gizmos; radio with backup; distress beacon; satellite navigation system. Why should we be stuck? This is a sophisticated piece of technology. I’ve been handling yachts forever, and this is the best yet.”
“However much does a thing like this cost?”
Rafael laughed. “That’s hardly the thing you ask a gentleman. And does it matter