She never should have slept with him. She’d known it was a mistake, and she’d had the crazy faint hope the last few days that maybe something was developing between them that was more than hot sex, like she’d told him. Her own feelings for him were deep and powerful, but she’d tried to not to show that to him, not so soon, and thank Godfrey she hadn’t.
Sure they’d said they’d keep things separate. She’d told him she still intended to try to get the other executives to see that she should be the one to step into her father’s shoes. He hadn’t denied that he was still feeling the same way. So why did it hurt so much that he’d taken control in that meeting and so easily taken that away from her?
Had she been foolishly thinking that because they were sleeping together he’d step aside and let her lead the company?
Surely she wasn’t that stupid.
She lifted her head and shoved her hair back, blinking her stinging eyes. No, she wasn’t stupid, but she was in love, and she’d let herself get all soft and hopeful and...stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
She sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly, willing her heart to slow its frantic beat, trying to relax her tense muscles. Her bottom lip quivered, and she sank her teeth into it.
Okay. It had been an epic fail to get involved with Travis. She should have known no good could come of it when they were locked in a battle for control of the company. Her heart fluttered a little, though, remembering being with him, remembering how much she’d wanted him, how much she cared about him.
Stop. She had to stop those thoughts. She’d made a mistake, but now she’d had a little slap in the face, and she was back to reality. Travis was still ambitious and determined to take over. He’d thrown her a bone by letting her be involved. Fine. She would show him. She’d show them all she knew what she was doing. She’d build that frickin’ traceability system. She’d save them all kinds of frickin’ money. And she’d go to frickin’ Matagalpa and find out what her father had been doing there. She’d finish it and make the company more money that way.
This battle wasn’t over yet.
Chapter Sixteen
Samara handed her passport and declaration forms over to the Matagalpan customs official, and he eyed her carefully before turning to his computer screen. He took his time, clicking through various screens, looking at her, then back at the monitor.
“The purpose of your trip?” he asked in lightly accented English.
Samara hesitated. “Business,” she finally said. “I import coffee.”
He nodded. “Cedar Mill Coffee Company.”
How did he know that? Apparently her life was an international open book. Whatever. She had nothing to hide. “Yes.”
He typed something into the computer, paused, then typed again. He finally stamped her passport and handed it back to her. Without a smile, he said, “Enjoy your stay in Matagalpa.”
She tucked her passport into her bag and walked through to the baggage claim area to find her lone suitcase. Once she had that, she cleared the last part of customs, stopped at the rental car kiosk to get her car keys, and strode out of Santa Anjelita International Airport, into a thick blanket of muggy heat. It was the rainy season in Matagalpa, but at the moment, the sun shone brightly, the temperature probably about eighty degrees. She shoved her long hair back, feeling it turn to frizz in the humidity, anxious to get to her hotel and have a shower. It had been a long trip from Portland, with a five hour layover in Houston before the flight to Santa Anjelita.
It had been years since she’d been to Matagalpa, and the last time she’d been there, her father had accompanied her. She’d been traveling after finishing college and had thought nothing of trekking through Central American countries alone, but now she was acutely aware that, although this country was incredibly beautiful and the people extraordinarily friendly, the political unrest and violence were always there.
Broad daylight made things seem safer as she drove the busy streets to the Corazon Palace hotel, not far from the airport. She loved this hotel, reminiscent of a Spanish villa with its creamy stucco, arched windows and red tile roof surrounded by lush greenery and flowers. The security gate she had to stop at also made her feel safer.
The valet took her car, and she checked in, her last minute internet reservation having thankfully worked then finally dragged herself and her suitcase into her room. The hotel was five stars, luxurious and cosmopolitan. She’d stayed there with her father and had loved it so had booked her room there. Besides, she didn’t know anywhere else, and this was a safe and comfortable place.
This was where he’d been staying before he’d died. This was the hotel whose staff had packed up his belongings and shipped them home, including the valuable laptop. Could she find who was responsible for that and thank them?
Maybe later.
A shower was the first thing she wanted, so she unzipped her suitcase, found her toiletry bag and headed into the spacious bathroom. The marble floor cool beneath her bare feet, she dropped her bag onto the stone counter next to a trio of creamy candles. Arched windows above the marble sink gave a view of the Tipcualpo volcano in the distance.
A lukewarm shower washed away the sweat and travel dirt she felt coating her body, and she emerged into the dim hotel room with a thick towel wrapped around her body, damp hair hanging down her back. She pulled the curtains and let the sun light up the room with bright afternoon warmth, spilling across the carpet in a glowing rectangle, illuminating the golden sateen fabric on the chairs.
She sat on the bed covered in a white puffy duvet and worked a brush through her wet hair. What would her first move be? She knew she had to find Javier Alvarez. She was going to have to drive to Ciudad Lupita to find him. Through the jungle. Alone.
Her stomach tightened, and she willed herself to relax. There was no point in being afraid. She’d always been alone, and that’s the way she liked it. She’d been here before, had a sense of the lay of the land, and was quite capable of doing what needed to be done. She didn’t need anyone else.
She gathered her damp hair into a ponytail at her nape then released it and blew out a breath. Tomorrow she’d head to Ciudad Lupita. Right now, it was too early for dinner, so after blow drying her hair and dressing in a cotton sundress, she went for a walk. She strolled the lush gated grounds, past the turquoise swimming pool where other guests sunbathed on white lounge chairs, beneath the spreading Schefflera trees and along the paved walk through ferny Jacarandas and exotic flowers she didn’t know the names of.
She pushed away thoughts of Travis and the expression on his face when she’d refused to talk to him and had retreated to her bedroom alone, with the door locked. She shook her head at her own contrariness and her disappointment when he’d let her go so easily. Damn him.
Her heart ached, but she resolutely straightened her shoulders. She’d known she and Travis had no future together since that night seven years ago. It had been a mistake to get sexually involved with him. Yet, she couldn’t regret it. It had been the most amazing sex of her life. No, it had been more than that. Much more.
Thinking of things like that led nowhere, so she took a deep breath, inhaling the rich scent of damp earth and greenery, and returned to the pool area. She found an empty chair and nudged it into the shade. Her fair skin wasn’t made for the tropical sun of Matagalpa, and at this higher elevation, it was even more dangerous. She’d packed sunscreen but hadn’t put any on before she’d left her room.
She leaned back and tried to relax, the voices of kids playing in the pool and splashing water blending into the background as she closed her eyes. But a few moments later, a feeling like she was being watched had her eyes popping open. She looked around.