‘What are elevators for?’ he demanded, when she made a half-hearted attempt to stop him with her hands pressed flat against his chest.
‘They’re for going up and down,’ she said, frowning at his question.
‘Exactly my point,’ he agreed.
* * *
Their engagement party was being held at a café in the projects, and Karina’s face was wreathed in smiles when she saw how many people had turned out to wish them well. Several samba bands had come along and the drums were thundering as they walked into the square. Everyone was in their best costume, with feathers in rainbow hues and enough sequins to sink a small ship. Swinging her into his arms, Dante held her close as they moved to the samba rhythms. ‘They love you almost as much as I do,’ he said, dropping kisses on her neck.
‘I’m just so glad everyone can celebrate with us, but you did say it would just be a few of friends, along with Jada, the girl I sponsor, and her mother, and some people from the café.’
‘Don’t you prefer this?’
‘You know I do, but I can’t believe how many people are here.’
‘What?’ Dante asked with concern when her expression changed to a frown.
‘Do you think that elevator has been reported out of order?’
‘Let Luc worry about that,’ Dante soothed. ‘This is your night off, remember?’
He laughed as she pulled a face and the next moment they were in the thick of it, with everyone surrounding them. Dante’s teammates and their wives were waiting for them too, but it was more like a gathering of a happy clan than a group of rampaging barbarians.
Which was the truth of the matter after all, and just the way it should be, Karina reflected happily as Dante led her into the café, with all their guests crowding in behind them. What use was a rampaging barbarian without a strong woman to channel all that energy?
She wouldn’t change Dante in any way. They had both been isolated and mistrustful. Dante because of a father who had derided everything he’d done, while she had hidden from the world after losing the baby until it had become a habit she couldn’t break. But they were stronger together than they had ever been apart. She’d heard that the professor who had abused her had recently lost his job, and was being held by the police for attacking several other women.
When she had asked Dante how his cruelty had first come to light, all she got was a shrug, but not before she’d seen the flash of warrior fire in his eyes.
‘Happy?’ he murmured, pulling her into his hard body.
‘As I’ve ever been,’ she said honestly.
‘Well, that’s lucky, because you, soon-to-be Senhora Baracca, are vital to my existence.’
‘As you are to mine,’ she said. ‘What?’ she asked, instantly suspicious, when she saw a particular look flash in Dante’s eyes.
His lips pressed down as he gave her a wicked look. ‘No one will notice if we slip away.’
‘Of course they will—it’s our engagement party.’
‘We’ll say we’re making arrangements for the wedding.’
‘But our wedding’s tomorrow,’ she said, as he guided her through the crowd. ‘And all the arrangements have been made. I made them myself, so I should know.’
‘Karina,’ Dante murmured, as he pulled her into the shadows. ‘There’s no law against rehearsing for our wedding night, is there?’
‘If there were such a law, you’d surely break it.’
‘That’s my duty as a barbarian,’ Dante insisted, as he steered her ahead of him.
‘So you just want me for sex?’
‘I definitely want you for sex. And for the baby we’re going to make. I can’t do it without you,’ he pointed out.
‘How have we managed to leave the party without anyone noticing?’ she marvelled.
‘A tribute to your good planning,’ Dante insisted, as he edged her deeper into the shadows. ‘Everyone is enjoying themselves so much they haven’t noticed that the guests of honour have left.’ Kissing her, he frowned as he rested his hand on her stomach. ‘And I really do need to make a start on your most important project for this year.’
‘A start?’ she queried. ‘I thought we’d already done that several times over.’
‘There’s nothing wrong with perfecting our technique.’
‘Dante...’
Suddenly scared at the thought of a baby, she clung to him, but Dante’s confidence remained rock solid. ‘I’ll be with you every step of the way,’ he said quietly and intently. ‘And you’re strong, Karina, never forget that.’