Now and Always: South Beach Sizzles Contemporary Romance Series, #1

By Charity Pineiro

Romantic Times: 4 Stars “Pineiro “ignites her own brand of Miami heat in this sexy and humorous romance.”

Rendezvous: “. . . a fast-paced, well-developed plot . . . anxiously await other books by this gifted author!”

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “. . . a compelling love story. . . beautifully imbued with details of everyday life in Miami….”

Connie Gonzalez is a driven, ambitious woman who is one of the FBI’s best agents and determined to prove herself in a man’s world. Assigned to the Miami Bureau, Connie soon finds herself going undercover in Miami’s glamorous South Beach area. An injury throws her together with the very rich and tempting Dr. Victor Cienfuegos. Victor is everything Connie should avoid, but despite the risks of her work and allowing any distractions, Connie cannot deny the attraction between herself and the sexy physician. Will danger keep them apart or is their love strong enough to survive for now and always?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Caridad Pineiro
• Release date: Mar 20, 2014
• ISBN: 9781497766556

Book preview

Chapter 1

Miami, Florida

Victor glanced at her resume, certain he wouldn't hire her.  She was too young and too inexperienced.  Nancy at the personnel office must have been crazy to even send her over.  He considered calling the agency to cancel her upcoming interview, but the young woman was probably on her way.  Disgustedly, he stared at the empty waiting room of his office.  This was going to be a bad day all around.

The temp had misread his note, canceled his appointments for the day, and rescheduled them for tomorrow.  Too bad that today was the day he had time for his patients.  Tomorrow he was expected in surgery.

Victor dragged a hand through his hair and tried to guess how many of his patients would remain with him if these screw ups continued. And all because his regular nurse/receptionist, Yolanda, had decided to get pregnant.

Damn, he cursed, but Victor wasn't angry at Yolanda.  He was sorry that she was now at home, flat on her back until the arrival of the baby in another four or five months.  He couldn't wait for her to come back once she had the baby, even if only on a part-time basis.  But Yolanda's unexpected defection to the ranks of motherhood had thrown his neat little world into a state of chaos and made him question too many things.

He was supposed to be a triple S if there was such a thing -- thirtySomething, Single, and Successful.  An up-and-coming orthopedic surgeon who hopefully would be Chief of Orthopedics sometime this year.

So why was it that with so much supposedly in his favor, at times he didn't know who or what he was any more or what he wanted out of life?

He set aside the resume, drew in a deep breath, and smelled something rank.  Looking down at the overflowing wastebasket next to him, he caught a glimpse of the days’ old remains of someone's lunch.  Something else the temp couldn't seem to do right, although it defied logic why someone couldn't arrange to keep the wastebaskets clean and the office looking neat.

Victor shook his head, stood, and began to straighten the disorderly piles of magazines and health brochures available for his patients.  He walked into the receptionist's area and stopped short.  A number of his patients' files were haphazardly stacked on the desk, waiting to topple at the slightest provocation.  If they did, it would take hours of work to reorganize them.  He reached to balance the precarious pile.

From the other side of the desk someone said Hello, surprising him into jostling a goodly portion of the files onto the floor.  They landed in a heap of scattered papers and manila file folders.

He cursed under his breath and glared at the young woman.  Couldn't you have knocked at least?

She squared her shoulders and crossed her arms in front of herself.  I did, but apparently you didn't hear.  She eyed him curiously as he stooped down and shoveled together the papers from the files.  If your bedside manner's like this, it's no wonder you have an empty waiting room.

He stopped picking up the papers.  Who are you anyway?

Carmen Gonzalez.  I'm here for the interview for the nurse/receptionist position, although you look like you're in more of a firing than hiring mood.

He laughed, surprising himself.  There was just something about her that made it hard to stay angry.  Maybe it was her sauciness or her young eager face.   Too young.  I'm sorry you wasted your time coming.

You're not even going to interview me? she said softly, her crimson painted lips forming a frown.  Look, I know we started off on the wrong foot.

He held his hand up to stop her.  It's not you.  I'm in a rotten mood and besides, you're too--

Young and too inexperienced, Carmen finished for him.  Nancy was afraid that you would say that.

Victor nodded, bent, and returned to gathering the papers.  Nancy knows what I want.

And you're certain that I'm definitely not it, she shot back quickly.

He laughed again, shook his head, and glanced at her.  Do you always do that?

She looked taken aback and her dark chocolate eyes widened with doubt.  Do what?

Finish whatever anyone is saying.

She blushed brightly and looked away.  Only when I'm nervous.

Victor doubted that there were many situations in which Carmen could be nervous.  She struck him as the cool and capable type.  Just like his old receptionist Yolanda who could handle just about anything.  Despite that, he needed someone with more job experience, especially with the nightmare his office had become in the last few weeks.

He stood and rearranged the scattered papers and folders into a pile on the desktop.  He would have to organize them when he had a precious spare moment.  Look, I appreciate your coming down here, but I think Nancy made a mistake.  It just wouldn't work.  I need someone who can straighten out this mess and handle my patients.

You actually have patients? she teased and glanced around the empty waiting room.

A chuckle worked out of him and he pondered again what it was about her that could make him laugh given the current state of his life.  In fact, he couldn't remember the last time he had actually been this spontaneous.  Not in a long time anyway.

Yes, I do have patients.  The problem is that the temp canceled today's appointments and rescheduled them for tomorrow.  I have to be in surgery tomorrow.  So if you don't mind, I really have to go and start calling them.  Hopefully I'll still have some patients left when I'm done.  He bent, collected the last of the papers, and dumped them on the desk.

Carmen had yet to move, so he eyed her, wondering why she was still lingering and she finally got the message.

Carmen gave him a disappointed nod and walked away.

The office phone began to ring.  The problem was the phone was nowhere to be seen.

Victor searched all over the desk and burrowed under the pile of papers that had once been his files.

Well don't just stand there, he snapped at Carmen.  She had stopped at the sound of the ringing and now stood in the middle of the waiting room.

Please help me find the phone, he added more politely, ashamed that he was being rude.  That wasn't normally his style, but he had neared his limit of patience.

Carmen shook her head in amusement, picked up the phone they kept for patients to use, and with the quick push of a few buttons, she answered. Dr. Cienfuegos's office.

She glanced at him for further instructions as the garbled sound of someone on the other end of the line drifted over to him.

Victor didn't know how she had done it and didn't care at the moment.  He waved for her to go on with the call.

Yes, Mrs. Ruiz.  We're sorry that the doctor's temp called to cancel your appointment.

Victor heard the angry burst of Spanish from his position across the room.

Carmen held the phone away and motioned for him to take the call, but he waved his hands and shook his head.  The last thing he needed to deal with today was Mrs. Ruiz.  He didn't care if she was one of his mother's very rich, very influential friends.  She was a royal pain in the ass, generally vicious, and he was in no mood to deal with her today.

Carmen relented and got back on the phone.  In Spanish, she calmly explained the mix-up.  She reminded Mrs. Ruiz about Victor's problem, what with poor Yolanda having difficulties with her pregnancy and leaving him without help.  That seemed to bring a round of commiseration from the other woman.

Yes, of course.  I can imagine how hard it was for you, too.  I'm sure you can understand how Yolanda feels and how poor Dr. Cienfuegos is trying to handle all this with her gone. You know men are lost without us, Carmen said, earning the other woman's sympathy.

Another burst of Spanish came across the line and then Carmen laughed, a rich, full-throated laugh that reached into her eyes.  He grinned, enjoying how she had the shark eating out of her hand.  It gave him second thoughts about his earlier decision not to hire her.

Yes, yes, I agree, Carmen said, shaking her head and looking his way.  I'm so glad you're not angry.  What would be a better day for your next appointment, by the way?  She motioned for him to bring over his appointment book and after a few tries, he located it, and brought it out to her.

Carmen plucked the pen from his shirt pocket, sat down, flipped through the pages, and very efficiently rescheduled Mrs. Ruiz for another day.

Thank you very much for being so understanding. She hung up and handed him his appointment book.

There was no way Victor was going to take it.  Please reschedule the rest.

She eyed him doubtfully and clutched the book to her chest.  I thought you weren't going to hire me.

I'm not.  Not yet anyway, he admitted with a grin and a shrug.

He motioned to the phone sitting in the patient's area.  How did you do that with the phone and how did you know about Yolanda?

Carmen laughed, her dark eyes sparkling and her smile displaying straight, toothpaste bright teeth.  We have the same phone system at the nursing school.  I temp there sometimes for Nancy, who happens to be Yolanda's cousin.  And you will hire me.  Trust me.  I'm very determined.

She surely was, he thought with a nod.

Victor walked back toward the receptionist's desk. I'm going to try and straighten out the files.

He stopped short, turned, and asked, You're not planning on getting pregnant any time soon, are you?

You're not allowed to ask that question, she reminded him, waggling a finger.

Victor knew that only too well, but that didn't stop a suddenly mischievous streak from tossing back, Well, I did ask.  Are you?

Carmen chuckled and shook her head.  If I was, my parents would be checking me into the nearest convent.

He wrinkled his brow, trying to figure out that comment.  Why?

She shot him a saucy grin.  Because I'm a good Cuban girl and still single.  We don't do that kind of thing, Carmen said with an exaggerated roll of her eyes.

The laughter that erupted from his chest was heartfelt.  It made him feel warm and alive, something he hadn't felt in a long time.

Carmen, you are too much.

She nodded, placed the appointment book down, and dialed the next patient on the list.  My sister Connie says the same thing.

He stopped short.  There are two of you?

She waved him off.  We're not twins.  Connie's my older sister.  My way too serious older sister.

Victor smiled and mumbled again, Too much.

Hey, Dr. Cienfuegos, Carmen called out.  You should do that more often.

He faced her, slightly confused.  What's that?

Smile.  You're kinda cute when you smile.

Now, Carmen.  You know you're not supposed to say that kind of thing, he teased, waggling his finger in warning as she had done before.

She grinned saucily.  Well, I did.

Victor chuckled and walked away to fix his files.  He stopped at the desk and looked back at her as she started making calls.  He wasn't going to hire her.  She was too young.  Too sassy.  And as he looked at her, took in for the first time all her too dangerous feminine curves, he wondered if he was dead not to have noticed them before.

He was definitely working too hard.

Chapter 2

Connie Gonzalez slipped on the thin latex gloves before entering the crime scene.  She stopped at the door and checked the frame for signs of forcible entry.  Not a nick marred the lock or door jamb.  The perp had a key or was let in by the victim, she told the agent behind her, who examined the door and agreed.

Easy work, Gonzalez.  Any beginner could see that.

So let's see what else we have then.  Stepping inside the room, she scanned the interior of the shabby motel room, typical of those backstreet, by the hour establishments.  Two mismatched chairs sat beside a scarred table strewn with the remnants of a take-out Chinese dinner for two.  She stepped over and opened the containers.  One from Column A.  One from Column B.  Husband says they had finished dinner when he left.  Must be light eaters, she commented about the nearly full containers.

The agent behind her grunted, entered the room, and sat down at the table.  He picked up a fork and one of the containers. Want some? he asked.

Connie shook her head as he dug into the fried rice and leaned back in the chair.

Sir, I don't know how you can handle that, she said as she approached the bed where the victim lay.  Or at least what remained of the victim.

What's the matter, Gonzalez?  Stomach a little queasy? he teased as she bent at the knees and made herself face level with the edge of the bed and the body of the victim.

Connie laughed and tossed her shoulder length cap of hair aside.  Hell, no.  The salt and grease will kill you.  Plus the MSG always gives me a headache.

He chuckled and dug back into the fried rice as Connie rose, walked to the other side of the bed and examined the blood splatter patterns on the sheets and victim.

Twelve gauge shotgun.  Two blasts.  One to the chest.  One to the privates. She blushed as she examined the victim's body.

The other agent laughed, nearly choking on the mouthful of rice.  That some new technical term, Connie.  Privates?

Yes, sir.  I petitioned to add it to the FBI dictionary.  What do you think?  While she waited for his reply, she checked out the bathroom, and after examining the area, returned to the main area of the staged hotel room.

Her superior grabbed an egg roll, waving it as he spoke.  I think you need to get a thicker skin.  That Catholic school innocence gives the male agents a real opportunity for making you uneasy.  Want some egg roll?  He held up the victim's purported dinner and as he moved it around, bits of filling flew off.

Can I help it you guys don't have any class?  Anyway, let's get this over with.  You're making me hungry. Where's the other body? she said and sat down at the table across from him.

This time her superior did choke on the egg roll.

She reached over and pounded his back until he had control.

How did you know there was another body? he asked once he could talk again.

No forced entry.  The posture of the victim's body would indicate that she wasn't yet asleep and the sheets were off her even though it's kinda cold in here.

She rubbed her arms against the chill and looked up at the two-way mirror at one side of the room where other instructors were monitoring the test.  If it's intentional, please turn up the heat.  My Cuban blood can't handle this cold and it's the least you can do for solving this little puzzle.

The instructor sitting across from her laughed and dug back into the pint container of Chinese food.  Don't get too cocky, Agent Gonzalez.  Or should I say, Agent-in-Training?  Since so far you're the only one to have picked up on it, let's hear your theory.

Connie nodded, leaned back in her chair, and confidently laid out her explanation for the crime.  As I was saying, the victim was not covered, and the bed, lumpy and soft as it is, shows a deep impression.  More than our little 'victim', if she was of average weight for that height, would have made, she said, pointing to the mannequin that had been prepared for the exam.

The husband claims they had been involved with some drug dealing and that his wife was supposed to meet with one of the men.

She chuckled and shook her head in disgust before proceeding.  You guys have a twisted idea of what meeting with someone is.  Anyway, as I said before, there was no forced entry.  The nature of the gunshots is not typical of a drug style execution.  The husband claims they ate dinner, but it was barely touched.  My guess is, he went to get dinner, came back, and saw through the window that his wife was doing it with someone else.  Not too smart on her part, but maybe she thought he would take longer to return.  In any case, when he saw what was going on, he lost it, went and got his shotgun, returned, and blew them away.  He laid out the dinner to support his story.

The instructor nodded and urged her to go on.  What about the other body?  Where did it go?

Connie stood, walked over to the mannequin, and pointed to the groin area.  I'm assuming you intended these bits of stuff on the mannequin to be brain matter, because it's inconsistent with what would happen to a shotgun blast to the 'privates', she said with a smile, teasing him.  So, I'm assuming they were involved in, let's just say something my Catholic school mind would rather not discuss in mixed company.

I knew you were good, the instructor said.

Connie did a mock bow and continued.  The plastic liner of the shower curtain is missing from the bathroom and there's no trail of blood from the bed to outdoors.  Therefore, the husband likely wrapped his wife’s lover in the shower curtain and took the body elsewhere.  That's supported by the small bit of plastic caught on a nail by the door jamb.

The instructor clapped. Very good, Connie.  Nice job today.

Thanks.  If you don't have anything else, I'd like to go back to the dorm now, she said and walked back to her teacher.

He stood and plopped the pint container of food back onto the table.  Big exam tomorrow, right?

Connie nodded.  I have some studying to do and I want to call home and see how things are going.

He laid a hand on her shoulder.  "Don't worry.  You're going to pass that test with flying colors.  You're the first one to