Loe raamatut: «A Scandalous Midnight In Madrid»

CHAPTER ONE

THE SKY WAS as deep and smooth as black velvet over the heart of old Madrid, as Don Alejandro, Duque de Alegon unfolded his powerful frame from a vehicle he’d casually abandoned outside the hottest club in town. City clocks chimed midnight as a valet rushed to park the top-of-the-range muscle car. Nightlife in Spain’s capital was fast and furious...and late.

Pressing a generous tip into the attendant’s hand, Alejandro switched his attention to a flash of flame on the opposite side of the street, where, framed in harsh light, a woman was flambéing a dish alongside the world-renowned Chef Sorollo in the kitchens of El Gato Feroz. The young woman was voluptuous beneath severe chef’s whites, her mouth was firm and her brow was furrowed with concentration. Her attention didn’t waver from the task as her small, capable hands worked swiftly to some internal rhythm.

As if sensing she was being observed, she glanced up. Distance stole the details, but her glance was sharp and bright with intelligence, and he guessed there’d be a sprinkling of freckles across her short, straight nose, as a few baby curls of copper-bright hair had escaped the cap she wore for work. Fiery hair was reputed to mean a fiery demeanour, which led to thoughts of fire in his bed. He could vouch for the food she was preparing being exceptional, as he had dined at El Gato Feroz many times. That was the reason he’d chosen the restaurant to host his sister’s engagement party tomorrow night, and why he was here, outside the club where his sister was holding a pre-engagement party for her female friends. Her last night of freedom, as Annalisa had worryingly told him.

‘Alejandro!’ his sister yelled now.

He held up a restraining hand, impatient to see more of the woman in the kitchen. What was it about the young chef that gripped his interest, when beauties and sophisticates of every type were waiting inside the indigo womb of Club Magia? Something about her confident demeanour chimed with his approach to life, Alejandro decided. Here in Madrid, he was Don Alejandro de Alegon, a Spanish grandee of impeccable lineage with responsibilities and duties that embraced an international business, as well as vast land holdings and a wayward sister, but when he left the city he was a different man. It was the poise of the woman that suggested she could adapt as easily as he could that made him curious to know if there was some other side of the young chef with the serious demeanour.

‘Alejandro!’ Annalisa repeated with frustration. ‘My friends are waiting to meet you.’

All the more reason for delay. ‘I’ll be there in a few minutes,’ he promised as he turned to cross the street.

Annalisa’s friends were in no danger from him. His taste ran to older women who knew the score. No long-term entanglements. No complications on either side. Duty left him with little time for a personal life. The only freedom he permitted himself was when he visited his mountain retreat, where both he and Annalisa could switch off from the demands of the city and rediscover the rich heritage of their flamenco gypsy roots. In the mountains he was no longer a Spanish grandee to be fawned over merely because he held a title, but Alejandro, a man to be judged alongside all others without regard to wealth or rank, and it was only in the mountains that he truly found peace.

‘Alejandro!’ Annalisa’s voice was ever more insistent as she played to a gallery of friends. ‘We need you to escort us inside!’

‘I’m sure you can do that without my help,’ he called back to a chorus of disappointment. His bodyguards would protect the young women, and he had laid on all the food and drink he thought necessary for a good time that wouldn’t descend into chaos.

He adored his sister but would be the first to admit that he’d spoiled her. She’d been so young when their parents were killed and he’d assumed responsibility for her care. They had enjoyed the most wonderful childhood, so it was no wonder Annalisa was stricken when their parents were taken so suddenly in a tragic accident. Without a mother to confide in, she’d been lost. He’d done what he could and might have overcompensated in trying to make her feel secure again. Annalisa could be temperamental but more than made up for this with her sunny outlook on life and her ability to spread happiness. Other than where he was concerned at this moment, Alejandro conceded with some amusement as Annalisa followed him across the road.

‘What do you think you’re playing at, Alejandro? You promised you’d be nice to my friends.’

‘And I will,’ he assured her. ‘My promise won’t be broken, but something came up.’

‘Something?’ His sister, who knew him better than anyone, narrowed her eyes. ‘Or someone?’ she commented shrewdly. ‘Just don’t let this someone keep you too long. You’ll be missed, Alejandro.’

‘No, I won’t,’ he countered coolly as her friends watched this mini drama play out. ‘You’ll be too busy dancing on the table with your friends. But, be warned. I’ll be back in ten minutes. And please try to remember you’ll be engaged to a prince by tomorrow night, and I doubt he’ll indulge you as I do when he sees your photograph splashed across the press.’

‘You always were a spoilsport,’ Annalisa fired back with a familiar mix of fire and love in her expression as she returned to her friends across the street.

If you mean, by calling me a spoilsport, that I love you and care for you, you’re right, he mused as the door to El Gato Feroz swung wide and the maître d’ rushed to greet him. He stated his wishes and the man hurried off. Dangerous seconds ticked away, during which his imagination ran riot as to what Annalisa was getting up to. Just when he thought the wait couldn’t get any worse, a woman he recognised from a brief encounter years back entered the restaurant with her elderly, wealthy husband. ‘Alejandro,’ she purred, pausing to place a jewelled hand on his arm. ‘When are you and I going to get together again?’

‘Never,’ he murmured discreetly as a pretty young hostess distracted the woman’s husband. ‘You’re married now.’

‘And?’

The woman blushed guiltily as her elderly husband turned back to introduce himself to Alejandro. ‘Your Excellency,’ the older man exclaimed, dipping his head with respect. ‘What an honour...’

‘The honour is all mine,’ Alejandro assured him as he returned the courtesy.

Gossip suggesting that his prowess in the bedroom was unparalleled had done him no favours at all, he reflected with amusement as the would-be siren cast a lingering glance over her shoulder when her husband ushered her away.

When the maître d’ returned, his downcast expression suggested the young chef was as diligent as Alejandro had first thought her. His sympathies were with the maître d’, who couldn’t have looked more miserable if he’d tried. Throwing his arms wide, he exclaimed, ‘I’m so sorry, Don Alejandro, but Chef Sadie is in the middle of service, and asks me to tell you that she cannot possibly be disturbed.’

‘Not your fault,’ he reassured the man, ‘but mine for succumbing to impatience.’

Sadie. Her name was Sadie. He played the name over in his head. Well done, Sadie, he mused as he left the restaurant. This little skirmish might be over, but the battle was not lost. A smile played around his lips as he crossed the street. It pleased him to discover a woman who refused to obey his smallest whim.

* * *

Why had Don Alejandro, Duque de Alegon, asked to see her? Sadie peered out of the window as the athletic shape of one of the most famous, or should that be infamous, men in Spain strode across the narrow street. The Don was infamous, thanks to rumours suggesting that his expertise in business was only exceeded by his skill in bed. A quiver of awareness ran through her at the thought of all that raw, sexual energy contained in one immensely powerful individual. That was the huge difference between them right there. She had no sexual experience to speak of, and no time for it. Having seen her mother degraded by her father throughout Sadie’s childhood, she was in no hurry to change the status quo. Her father had been enough to put her off men for ever, with the exception of her boss, Chef Sorollo, who was an exceptional human being, and who had always kept her safe.

It wasn’t long before Sadie’s thoughts strayed back to Don Alegon. No one had ever asked to speak to her personally in the middle of service, unless it was to request a special dish from the kitchen. Perhaps he’d wanted some last-minute advice on the menu for his sister’s party tomorrow night. A rush of hot embarrassment swept over her, because if that were the case, she should have agreed to see him. There again, if that was what he wanted, wouldn’t he deal directly with Chef Sorollo?

She glanced through the window in time to see him disappear inside Club Magia, where high society liked to congregate and check each other out. Some men with powerful physiques looked uncomfortable in a sharply cut suit, but the dark, exquisitely cut garment clung lovingly to what was undeniably a brutally masculine form.

Sadie’s heart was threatening to leap out of her chest by the time she turned back to her cooking. Why did she have to raise her head from the sauce in the first place, to see a man with the Duke’s reputation staring at her? Animal instinct, she supposed; the hunter and the hunted. The feeling of being a quarry was new to her and made this brief encounter with danger all the more exciting. There was something undeniably animal about him that made her mouth dry and her body yearn for things it had never experienced, but she had more sense than to encourage a man like Don Alegon, who moved in extremely exalted circles, while this kitchen was her home.

Nothing made Sadie happier than nurturing and feeding people. Perhaps as a result of her socialite parents finding her a nuisance, she had sought out the friendship and company of their servants, and it hadn’t taken long to discover the pleasure that came with making people happy by providing good food. When her father had died of one drink too many, and her mother had rejected her completely, Sadie had known exactly what she wanted to do.

* * *

The following evening Sadie and the team were making final preparations for Annalisa Alegon’s engagement party when Chef Sorollo was called to the phone.

‘A disaster!’ the great chef wailed on his return.

Everyone in the kitchen fell silent, and everyone, Sadie was sure, was filled with the same horror-struck thought: Not tonight!

Even the calmest chef could lose his cool sometimes, and Chef Sorollo was not the calmest of chefs, but this outburst fell outside the range of his usual tirade and he looked genuinely shaken up. Gentle probing by Sadie revealed that a close member of his family had been taken ill. Nothing came before cooking for Chef Sorollo, apart from his immediate and extended family, which included his staff. Fortunate enough to be included in the heart of that extended family, Sadie knew she had to step up to the plate.

‘Don’t worry. You go. I’ll take over,’ she said.

‘I knew I could rely on you,’ her friend and mentor exclaimed with relief as he called a cab.

It was the least she could do. The great chef had been like a father to her ever since the day she’d arrived in Madrid looking for a job. Having left home and blagged her way on board a super-yacht, Sadie had soon realised that a life at sea wasn’t for her, though her cooking had earned a glowing reference from the head chef in the ship’s galley. When the mega-yacht had docked in Barcelona, she’d headed inland to Madrid with the dream of pursuing a career in catering, specifically at the world-renowned El Gato Feroz. Sadie had read about the famous restaurant at school and could only imagine how wonderful it would be to work alongside the famous chef. Landing the lowly position of dishwasher was like a dream come true.

‘Start at the bottom and work your way up,’ had been Chef Sorollo’s advice. Unflinching loyalty and long hours of dedicated work in the professional kitchen was Sadie’s way of paying him back.

‘You’ve come a long way,’ Chef Sorollo commented as he grabbed his coat and prepared to leave her in charge of his kitchen. ‘Do you remember your first day here?’ he asked, glancing outside to see if his cab had arrived.

She would never forget it. ‘Vividly,’ she said, remembering how, with determination etched into every fibre of her being, she had followed a member of his staff through the back door. The best part of that first day at El Gato Feroz had been meeting the world-famous chef. She could hardly believe it when he’d insisted on personally conducting her interview. Having the great man show such interest in someone who was only going to be at best a very lowly member of staff had really impressed her, and she’d never forgotten it. Dishwashing was just the start, Chef Sorollo had promised, and if she agreed to stay on late each night, he would teach her to chop vegetables. If she mastered that skill, who knew how far she could travel?

‘That first day was the best day of my life,’ she told him now.

‘I knew this day would come,’ he told her with an affectionate smile that softened the lines of worry on his face. ‘I’ve always known I can trust you, Sadie. But don’t wear yourself out tonight. There’s no need to. You have a lot of support here, and Don Alegon is a good man. I’ve known him for years. He’ll understand why our plans have been forced to change.’

Sadie wasn’t quite so optimistic but said nothing to delay her friend.

‘Right, team,’ she announced as a cab drew up outside. ‘We’ve got this. Let’s get busy and make Chef Sorollo proud.’

* * *

‘What?’ Alejandro was incensed. He’d arrived early at Annalisa’s party to check everything was ready, only to learn Chef Sorollo would not be in the kitchen on this most special night!

A man who never lost his temper came as close as he ever had, because this celebration was not for him, but for his sister. ‘How can a head chef leave the kitchen on a night such as this?’ Silverware and crystal rattled at his bellow. The hapless maître d’ seemed lost for words. Not so, the woman who emerged from the kitchen. The woman who had refused to speak to him last night. On closer inspection she was even more beautiful, and not in a conventional way; it was the honesty shining from her eyes and the firmness of her jaw that attracted him.

‘Don Alegon,’ she said in the warmest of tones, ‘welcome to El Gato Feroz. How nice to see you—’

‘At last?’ he bit out.

Ignoring his ill temper, she smiled. ‘It’s very good of you to drop by early to check on everything. I would do exactly the same.’

‘Would you?’ he challenged sharply.

‘I’m sorry. I haven’t introduced myself,’ she said, not the least bit put off by his frosty manner. ‘Chef Sadie Montgomery, at your service tonight. But, please, call me Sadie.’

‘Alejandro Alegon...’

Ignoring his invitation to drop the professional barrier between them to the extent that she would call him by his first name, she held out her hand for him to shake, and said coolly, ‘A pleasure to finally meet you face-to-face, Don Alegon.’

Remembering the previous night’s snub, he gave her a hard stare. She smiled pleasantly. He grasped her hand briefly, but it was long enough to register a great deal about the young chef. Her hand was cool and dry, and her handshake firm and no-nonsense. It was the grip of a woman in charge. Was he wrong about the fire beneath her contained exterior? For once he doubted his initial verdict. He couldn’t imagine this woman ever losing control.

‘Allow me to reassure you,’ she continued, ‘that, in spite of Chef Sorollo’s absence tonight, the menu remains unchanged, and the food will be as delicious as always at El Gato Feroz.’

‘With you in charge?’ He was at a loss as to how to deal with such straightforward charm and felt bound to take her to task.

‘Yes,’ she stated firmly, holding his stare without flinching.

Her eyes were violet, he saw now, and she used them to good effect, staring directly at him with nothing more in her expression than the desire to please, and a calm determination to soothe him now that it was glaringly obvious he wouldn’t be getting the top chef he’d paid for tonight.

‘I hope you’re pleased with what we’ve done,’ she said as she led the way deeper into the restaurant. ‘The team has worked really hard to make sure everything is perfect for your sister’s party.’

Glancing around, he had to admit that the restaurant did look at its best. He’d requested exotic, fiery blooms to match his sister’s vibrant personality, and florists had certainly worked their magic.

‘We’ll light the candles soon.’ He stared down at the young woman at his side. ‘And then you’ll see how the crystal and silverware sparkles like something out of Aladdin’s cave,’ she added, staring into the middle distance as if picturing the scene.

So, there was a softer side to Sadie. Interesting, he thought, though she snapped out of the reverie almost immediately. As they continued the tour, she remained every inch the professional, from the crown of her chef’s hat to the toes of her ugly, though sensible, shoes. It was when they accidentally brushed against each other when they moved as one to open a door that his body responded with surprising enthusiasm. He was tired of pushovers, he supposed as he took in the line of Sadie’s resolute jaw.

‘You have nothing to worry about, Don Alegon,’ she assured him. ‘We’re always meticulous with planning and preparations at El Gato Feroz, and I’m confident the team has thought of everything.’

She took no praise for herself, he noticed. ‘I’m not worried,’ he said, and with a casual gesture he added, ‘I expect the best, and I’m sure that you and your team will deliver exactly that.’ Strangely, he did have confidence in Sadie.

‘Thank you for putting your trust in us,’ she said, seeming pleased. ‘Would you like a cocktail while you wait for the guests to arrive?’

She gestured towards the famous mirrored bar with its line of deeply upholstered stools in midnight-blue velvet. ‘No, thank you,’ he said crisply, thinking how cold he sounded. This was the effect the city always had on him. It seemed to turn his default setting to tense, and when his sister was added to the mix, his desire for excellence was off the scale.

‘Can’t I tempt you with a glass of champagne?’

She could tempt him with many things, he thought as she stared into his eyes, but not champagne. He wanted a clear head tonight. His doubts on the wisdom of Annalisa’s choice of husband remained, and he needed to keep a watchful eye on the Prince and his friends. They might have grand titles, but a thorough investigation by his security team had proved they didn’t have the money to fund their extravagant lifestyles, and when his sister was in one of her reckless moods, she might not see trouble looming on the horizon as he did.

‘Champagne? No, thank you,’ he told Sadie.

‘Beer, then?’ she suggested with the hint of a mocking light in her eyes.

She was not afraid to tease and test him, which was another point in her favour. ‘A beer would be good. But only if you join me.’

Her polite smile didn’t falter as she told him, ‘I never drink on duty.’

They stared at each other with renewed interest until she said, ‘I believe your sister’s arriving, so I’ll have one of the waiters bring you your beer.’

Before he could say another word, she had gone. Once again, eluding him, he thought, grinding his jaw. Before he had chance to dwell on this, the fleet of stretch limos he’d ordered to accommodate Annalisa and her friends drew up outside the restaurant. He’d be too busy for the rest of the evening to talk to Sadie, but she’d thrown down a gauntlet he wouldn’t forget.