Sold on You (9 page)

"Need any help?" he asked.

"No, everything's almost ready. I always wait until the end to add the capers. That way the sauce doesn't become bitter," Gabriela said.

Marcos gave her a hopeful grin. "Does that mean we're eating soon?"

"Yes, as soon as I drain the pasta," Gabriela said as if speaking to a small child.

"Good," he grunted. "I'm famished."

Gabriela poured the balsamic vinaigrette over an assortment of tender green arugula, radicchio, and romaine leaves. "Here, toss the salad in the meantime," she said, handing Marcos the frosted glass salad bowl and silver servers. She turned off the oven and bent over to retrieve the warm, crusty garlic rolls. She could feel his gaze on her, although she couldn't see him.

"Nice," Marcos murmured appreciatively.

Gabriela straightened and shot him a withering look.

"Chill. I was referring to the salad," Marcos said, chuckling devilishly.

"Oh dear, I didn't realize we'd be eating so soon! I haven't folded the napkins yet," Abuelita Coqui said, giggling as she scurried out of the kitchen toward the dining room.

Abuelita Coqui was folding the last napkin when she heard a knock at the front door. She put down the napkin and went to peek through the peephole before opening the door.

A slim woman with sleek blond hair stood before her in a skimpy scarlet dress and holding a bottle of champagne. "Oh—" she faltered, her keen blue eyes bright with astonishment.

"You must be Marcos's grandmother," she said, extending a manicured, slender hand.

Abuelita Coqui shook the young woman's cool hand. "Yes, I am. And who are you?"

"Nicole Harrison."

Chapter 6

"I'm Mrs. Calderon. How do you do?" Abuelita Coqui said, ushering her into the living room.

"It's a pleasure meeting you."

"Likewise."

"I'm a close friend of your grandson's." Nicole looked around. "Is he here?"

"Yes, he's in the kitchen. Follow me."

With the champagne bottle in hand, Nicole followed Abuelita Coqui.

"Look who's here," Abuelita Coqui announced when they approached the kitchen entrance.

Marcos and Gabriela turned their attention toward Abuelita Coqui and met Nicole's arrival with joint shocked expressions.

Marcos shot up from his seat, realizing that he had neglected to advise Nicole that his grandmother would be staying on for a few days. The original plan had been for Gabriela to be finished with their weekend date after brunch, thereby leaving him free for his date with Nicole.

Nicole greeted Marcos with a chilly smile. "Hello. I thought you might enjoy this with your grandmother." She handed him the champagne and pointedly ignored Gabriela.

"Thanks." Marcos turned to his grandmother. "Abuelita, this is Dr. Nicole Harrison. She's a colleague and friend of mine."

Abuelita Coqui smiled shrewdly. "Yes, we've already introduced ourselves." She turned to Gabriela. "You
do
know Nicole, don't you?"

"Yes, of course. Would you like to join us for dinner, Nicole?" Gabriela asked, directing a sly smile toward Marcos.

What was Gabriela up to?
Marcos' eyes bulged at her in disapproval. He felt like wringing her neck for inviting Nicole to join them. To make things worse, his grandmother seemed to like the preposterous idea.

"You must stay for dinner. Gabrielita has prepared a delicious meal," Abuelita Coqui said enthusiastically.

Nicole glanced at Marcos. "Oh, I couldn't possibly intrude on a family dinner."

"You're not intruding. We can toast to Marcos and Gabriela's engagement with the lovely champagne you brought," Abuelita Coqui said pleasantly.

Nicole ignored the silent plea Marcos issued with his eyes. "Their
engagement?
Oh, by all means then," she drawled, giving him a spiteful look.

Surrounded by three determined women, he knew that he couldn't object without sounding rude and offending Nicole. Not offending Nicole wasn't his only priority, he decided when he noticed a jealous flare in her blue eyes as she assessed Gabriela. He needed a way out.
ASAP!

In a flurry of activity, Gabriela and Abuelita Coqui carried platters of food into the dining room and placed an additional setting for Nicole. Before long, Marcos sat at the round table across from his grandmother, flanked on either side by Nicole and Gabriela.

In contrast to her previously serious mood, Gabriela was smiling broadly as she served everyone her pasta. Abuelita Coqui seemed to be in a particularly upbeat mood, too. So he was the only one not enjoying their little party, he thought to himself, disgruntled by the turn of events.

After offering a roll to Gabriela and Nicole, Abuelita Coqui handed Marcos the breadbasket. "Would you like a roll?"

Just as he reached for one, Marcos felt Nicole's hand descend on his upper thigh and he gulped. When she squeezed lightly, he shouted, "No!" and tossed the roll into the basket.

Abuelita Coqui's eyes widened in alarm. "What's wrong? Was it too hot?"

Marcos stood abruptly. "I forgot the wine."

"No, you didn't," Nicole said. "It's right here beside me."

"Oh," he growled, sitting down again.

When he felt Nicole's hand return to his thigh, he reached underneath the tablecloth and firmly removed it. Eyebrows drawn together above stern eyes, he gave a disapproving shake of his head in her direction.

Nicole made a face and simply shrugged her thin shoulders as she took a sip of wine.

"Gabriela, what a delicious meal! The grouper is wonderful. Everything is. Isn't it Marcos?" Abuelita Coqui prompted.

Marcos choked on the wine. "Wha—what did you say?" he sputtered, shocked when Gabriela's soft foot slid underneath his trouser leg and curled around his ankle.

"What's wrong with you?" Abuelita Coqui asked, her tone reproachful.

"Nothing," he muttered, sending Gabriela a quelling look.

"I was complimenting Gabriela's meal," Abuelita Coqui said, urging him with her eyes to say something nice.

"Oh. The meal." He paused, distracted by Gabriela's big toe as it slowly slid up his calf. "Yeah, I guess it's good."

"That didn't sound very enthusiastic," Gabriela chided. She took off her glasses and peeked at him through long, curly lashes. Her mischievous grin was all blatant flirtation, something he'd never seen her do. "Don't you like my cooking?" she said softly.

"I like your cooking just fine," he replied, not amused by her antics. When Abuelita Coqui looked down at her plate, Marcos took advantage of her decreased hearing at eighty-five to mutter under his breath, "That's the
only
thing I like right now."

"How do you know Marcos?" Abuelita Coqui asked Nicole.

"Nicole is an anesthesiologist," Marcos said before she could answer.

"Yes," Nicole said, smiling slyly. "I've worked
closely
with your grandson this past year."

Gabriela placed her hand on Marcos's biceps and squeezed, hard, digging her nails in. She put her glasses back on and said pleasantly, "
Amor,
can you pass me the bread?"

Marcos handed Gabriela the breadbasket with a look of disbelief. Was he doomed to spend the evening between two women hell-bent on making him uncomfortable? While his grandmother indulged in small talk with the two rivals, he glanced at Nicole's cool blond beauty. His gaze shifted to Gabriela, whose soft cheeks were flushed rosy from cooking and whose green eyes twinkled with mischief behind horn-rim
 
glasses. In contrast, Nicole's cheekbones appeared too sharp and her fair coloring looked washed out despite her carefully applied makeup.

Even though it reached to her collarbone, Gabriela's soft burgundy sweater invited stroking. He had to stop himself from reaching over to tug at a tiny tendril of her curls that had escaped from the confining clip, just to feel its silkiness. In comparison, Nicole's sleek bob and daring red dress seemed contrived and calculating. Ordinarily, he would have been turned on by Nicole's sexy dress. But tonight he couldn't take his eyes off Gabriela, utterly delectable in a soft sweater that emphasized her full breasts and a casual pair of pants that highlighted her small waist and delightfully round bottom.

"Have you seen much of Naples, Mrs. Calderon?" Nicole asked.

"Not yet. Today, Marcos took me to Mass and then later to brunch at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel," Abuelita Coqui said. "There was a wonderful jazz trio playing while we ate."

"What a shame you won't be staying long enough to see the sights!" Nicole said. "Marcos told me that you'll only be here for the weekend."

Abuelita Coqui smiled. "That was the original plan, but I'll be staying on a few more days so I can get to know Gabrielita better." She beamed at Gabriela. "It's not every day a grandson gets engaged."

Nicole narrowed her eyes and gave Gabriela a scathing look.

"I'll make arrangements to take tomorrow afternoon off so I can take you sightseeing, Abuelita," Gabriela offered with a fond smile.

"Lovely! I would like that," Abuelita Coqui said, beaming.

Nicole groaned dramatically. "It must be nice to have the type of job that you can take time off whenever you like," she said, her tone condescending. "As physicians, Marcos and I don't have that luxury.
We're
devoted to our patients." Nicole's frosty blue eyes peered at Marcos over the rim of her glass. "You're not very talkative tonight, Marcos."

"His mind must be on his patients," Gabriela said. "As you mentioned, Marcos is quite devoted." She gave Nicole a pointed look. "You saw how kindly he attended to Christy Ramirez last night when she was agonizing with
painful
contractions. It's a shame that defenseless girl had to suffer unnecessarily."

Marcos couldn't believe it when Gabriela covered her mouth and said, "Oops, I forgot you didn't make it in time to administer the anesthesia for her."

"Is Christy your patient, too?" Abuelita Coqui asked Nicole.

"Yes," Nicole replied, her eyes blue icicles as she glared at Gabriela.

"I'm ready for dessert," Marcos said, rising from the table abruptly. "Gabriela, please help me."

When his grandmother started to get up from the table, Marcos said firmly, "No, Abuelita, stay there. Gabriela will serve it,"

"Yes, sir,
"
Abuelita replied, saluting his authoritative tone.

Gabriela gave Marcos a questioning look. "You've barely touched your meal. I thought you said you were famished."

He threw his napkin on the table. "I've had enough. Follow me into the kitchen," he said curtly.

Gabriela gulped at his quiet command and the meaningful look that accompanied it. "Very well." She reluctantly got up and followed him.

Once they were in the kitchen, Marcos slid the pocket door shut and turned to face her with a stern expression.

"What?" she asked lamely.

"Stop it," he said with a rough, low growl.

"Stop what?" she asked, feigning innocence.

"It's not Nicole's fault that I forgot to cancel our date."

"So? It's not my fault either." Gabriela shrugged to hide the mounting outrage she felt. So Marcos had conveniently planned on dumping her right after the brunch to take up where he'd left off with Nicole. Gabriela was suddenly glad that Abuelita Coqui had seen fit to remain a few more days, just to thwart the Latin lover's plans. "I'm only trying to keep up my end of the deal, Doc. You're paying me for this charade, remember?"

"Shh, keep your voice down," he hissed, glancing toward the door.

She raised her eyebrows in challenge. "Nicole is very condescending," she said, narrowly avoiding calling her a bitch. "I don't care for her."

"And I don't care what you think of Nicole," he said brusquely.

How rude!
she thought, simmering.

"I don't appreciate you trying to make this evening a disaster."

Gabriela had been enjoying the agitated look on his taut face but decided that she'd better sound contrite when she saw the muscle ticking in his granite jaw. She needn't forget he was paying her charity quite handsomely for her company. "I guess that sounded a bit childish. We're all adults here."

"Precisely. Now behave like one," he bit out. "Abuelita Coqui is no fool. I wouldn't be surprised if she has already noticed that something's amiss."

"I thought I was helping by flirting with you in front of her," she countered.

Marcos skewered her penetrating eyes. "If that's what you were doing, then why did you play footsies with me under the table where Abuelita couldn't see?"

She grinned flippantly. "Just earning my wages. I've worked hard tonight. The least you could do is appreciate my effort."

His jaw tightened further and a vein appeared at his temple. "Everyone's waiting for dessert," he muttered.

"Okay, let's go." She grabbed the cake and a serving spatula.

Marcos put a finger under her chin and lifted her face to meet his warning gaze. "You're not off the hook. We'll talk about this later." He slid open the pocket door and followed her.

"Anything you say, Doc," Gabriela chirped. So the sly doctor didn't like it when she turned the tables on him. He'd been flirting outrageously with her in front of his grandmother, even daring to pat her butt. Yet the moment his precious Nicole had arrived, he'd stiffened and turned into a stuffed shirt.