Nikki Logan - Her Amazing Boss! - The Daredevil Tycoon

“ANY one of a number of friends,” Rafael said calmly.

But was it true? He had many business acquaintances, some casual friends to go to parties with or sail with. But except for Phillip Stanton and Marco Valdez from school days, he had a superficial relationship with most people. It had even been a number of months since he’d spoken to Phillip or Marco.

Or his brother.

For a moment he wondered what special tie connected Amalia and her brother. Banding together in the face of tragedy? Would he put his life on hold if Andreas needed him? Rafael liked to think so, but he began to wonder if Andreas would reciprocate.

“Good for you,” she said, looking out at the other balloon. “How long before we stop again?”

“Another two hours, I hope. The air is cooler today, meaning it’s easier for us to get lift with the hot air. As long as the propane lasts, we’re good to go.”

She sighed.

“Hey, this is a perfect chance to see Spain from the air. You’re missing a lot by not taking advantage.”

“Like heart attack, nausea, fainting.”

He laughed and crossed to her side. Taking her hand in his, he pulled her closer to the side. “I’ll hold on to you to keep you safe,” he said as he positioned her near the wicker, but not too close. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her back against his chest, leaning over slightly to rest his chin on her shoulder. “Look at that. It’s hard to imagine all that open land when we live in such a crowded city.”

Amalia slowly let her eyes drink in the view. It was breathtaking. Rafael had been right, it was lovely. Slowly she turned her head to see as much as she could. When she turned it the other way, she bumped into Rafael’s face. His cheek was warm. She could feel him smile.

“Nice, huh?”

What, the view?

Or being held by him, feeling safe and secure and almost cherished? She savored the moment. His arms held her securely to his rock-solid body. His feet were braced to balance them in the slight sway of the basket. She could let go of her fear and enjoy the spectacular vision spread out beneath them.

And her senses were far more attuned to the man holding her than to her fear of falling. It was a delight to savor the moment. She closed her eyes and tried to imprint every detail on her mind to remember through the rest of her life. Soaring over Spain, held by Rafael, her real life faded into the background. For these few moments, this was real.

By the time Rafael found a spot where he could safely put down the balloon, Amalia was more than ready to stop. A person could only stand being on edge for so long. She wanted to run on the ground, get away from his disturbing presence and touch base with reality.

Her boss’s balloon had put down twenty minutes earlier. She was beginning to suspect he didn’t carry as much fuel as they did. So they, once again, gained some distance, but Stefano could easily catch up and pass them while they exchanged tanks. They were still too close to predict any clear-cut winner.

The chase crew was already in the clearing, which Amalia found amazing.

Once the balloon was down and secured, a festive picnic lunch was served and quickly eaten as everyone stood. Using a GPS indicator, Rafael calculated the distance they’d already gone.

“Think we can make another one hundred miles this afternoon?” Julio asked.

“If the wind holds. It kicked up once or twice.”

“A problem?” Manuel asked.

“No.”

Amalia finished her meal and jumped up. “I’m going for a quick walk. Being in that confined space gets to me,” she said. Maria offered to go with her.

“Thanks, but unless you really want to, I’m fine. I’ll look at the scenery from ground level and relish not being airborne for a while.” She flicked a glance at Rafael.

“We leave in ten,” he said.

She started off along the road the truck was parked on. It was dirt, but packed hard and easy to walk on. It had grown warm and she left her jacket at the picnic area. There was plenty to do to ready the balloon for the next leg, but the others were far more competent than her.

And she needed some time to herself. Being with Rafael felt like a roller-coaster ride. She disliked being in the balloon yet she was captivated by her pilot. She resented his autocratic ways yet she yearned for a kiss.

That stopped her. She shook her head and started walking again. The very last thing in the world she needed was to be kissed by Rafael. She had a feeling it would spoil her for any man in the future.

And for him it would merely be another woman in a long line of women. He’d probably forget her name by Christmas.

Sighing softly, she tried to count her blessings and hope something would happen to speed up the race.

Amalia was just about to turn around when she heard a vehicle behind her. Stepping to the side of the road, she stopped. It was the chase truck. Rafael was driving. He stopped even with her and looked at her through the passenger side window.

“You walking home?” he asked easily.

She shook her head and opened the door. Climbing in, she looked at him.

“I was just walking. Has it been ten minutes?” She wasn’t wearing a watch, but surely she hadn’t been gone that long.

“Nine. We’ll be back in a sec and take off again.”

“Did you really think I’d try to walk away?” she asked. She hated being his partner, but she would not let him down, because she was starting to believe her boss needed taking down a peg or two.

“No. But if you twisted your ankle or something, it would have been hard for you to get back. Feeling better for the walk?”

“Yes,” she said.

It took only a moment to return to the balloon. Maria had a phone to her ear. When she saw the truck, she said something to Paolo and then headed to meet Rafael.

Amalia hopped out of the truck and watched as Maria came up to Rafael.

“The office is trying to reach you,” she said, holding out the phone.

Rafael took it. “Make it quick,” he said. A moment later he bit out an epithet. “Under no circumstances tell her you’ve talked to me. If she calls again, tell her you’ll relay the message and that’s all. Put Jaime on the phone.” Rafael walked away talking to the man on the other end.

Maria grinned at Amalia and said, “Girlfriend troubles.”

“Teresa Valesquez?”

“Yes, she keeps calling. I think Sophie is getting fed up with all the messages she’s left. Guess now Miss High and Mighty wishes she hadn’t thrown away her chance for the long jump after all. Though she was not a ballooner—you never heard such complaining!”

Amalia vowed to keep her own thoughts about ballooning to herself. She may not like it, but she wanted to give no cause for gossip.

Rafael was impatient to begin the ride. Amalia scanned the sky. There was no sign of the other balloon. Maybe they would maintain their lead.

Once in the basket and beginning to lift, she asked Rafael, “Do you think Stefano will have reporters there again tonight?”

“I wouldn’t put it past him,” Rafael said, eyeing the balloon. Amalia was not able to judge their rate of ascent since she kept her eyes inside the basket and had nothing to gauge it by. She enjoyed watching Rafael when he was concentrating on something else.

When he turned off the burners, she looked around. Still no sign of Stefano’s balloon.

“So we got a jump on him this leg,” she murmured.

“Enough to keep the lead, I hope.”

Amalia stood in one corner and leaned against the propane tank.

Rafael took the map from one of the storage pockets and began to study it.

“Shouldn’t you be watching?” she asked.

“I’ll check it soon. You let me know if we’re going to crash into anything.”