“I really must get back to my siblings.”
He extended his hand. “Yes, you do that. We will talk. Let me say, I’m pleased with your promise to continue our arrangement.”
After again shaking his hand, I replied, “My husband was known for his good business sense. I see no reason to make any abrupt changes. I do hope that I won’t be sidelined by any future unfortunate events.”
“Mrs. Harrington, the Albinis help those who help the Albinis. We will talk.”
“Yes, Niccolo, we will. Now if you’ll excuse me.” I nodded and stepped around my uncle.
NEITHER TRAVIS NOR I discussed the hallway meeting until after my mother was through surgery, recovery, and into a room. It was dark by the time we finally left the hospital. Once we were in his SUV, I checked my messages. There were multiple text messages from Brody. I’d told him about Marilyn and he’d offered to come to the hospital. It was more than I could deal with; instead, I asked him to come over to the penthouse once I got home.
“I need to text Brody to have him come to the apartment.”
“Really, Mrs. Harrington, it’s late. You’ve agreed to go to the warehouse tomorrow. Can’t you wait until then to get fucked?”
My head spun toward Travis. His jaw was clenched and his knuckles blanched. What the hell was his deal?
“It’s not what you think,” I replied, keeping my voice calm. “I’m going to ask him to write up another contract, one with your name.”
“Why? You surprised the shit out of me in the hallway. You keep that hard-assed businesswoman shit up and you don’t need Craven or me.”
“Not for the Albinis, but I do for Keene and Craven and whoever else wants a piece of me.”
“You’re willing to put my name on it?”
“I am, but as your employer, it’s never happening.”
“As the proprietor of the contract…” he began.
“I don’t give a fuck. We’re going to work this shit out somehow and bring this to an end. The way I see it is that if he forces me to sign his contract, it won’t be valid if I’m already under obligation from another contract. I’m just not letting him know that until I get his proof.”
“That’s fucking genius.” Travis lifted his chin and peered momentarily in my direction. “You know, what you did this afternoon… you may have played this perfectly.”
“How so?”
“I’m sure that Craven never suspected that you’d have the balls to work directly with Niccolo.”
Shaking my head, I tried to sort everything out. “I’m standing by my accusation that someone besides Marilyn is responsible for her accident. I don’t think she willingly drank fifteen ounces of alcohol in, what? Less than two hours? According to Lyle there wasn’t even any alcohol in their house. That would mean she’d have had to go buy it and basically guzzle it. I don’t get it. Why would the Albinis try to kill my mom? If Niccolo is going to walk up to me and talk to me in person, why hurt her?”
Travis shrugged. “It doesn’t make sense, other than that he couldn’t get a hold of you the other night. You remember, when you were fucking Phillips or he was fucking you.”
“Stay on the goddamned subject. Do you think it was them? If not the Albinis then who? Why?”
Travis replied, “I suppose it could be Craven. I didn’t think it was his modus operandi, but then again, I don’t know. Maybe he didn’t expect you to cave so fast. Maybe this was his backup plan.”
“Did Stewart always work with the Albinis?”
“As long as I’ve been around.” Travis cocked his head to the side. “People talk. The Albinis have been in charge of this area for a long time, but they’re not the only family. It wasn’t even them who your dear ol’ stepfather owed the money to. And each generation there are new names trying for power. Your mother’s accident could have been a setup, to make you think it was the Albinis and break off the agreement.”
“This fucking sounds like fiction. This shit doesn’t really happen, does it?”
“It’s your mother in the hospital and your stepfather who drove into the ocean. You tell me if this shit really happens?”
“Whom did you pay the money to? To whom was Randall indebted?”
Travis’ expression filled me with a sense of pride. “Your listening skills have improved. You’re following along.”
“And you’re doing a better job of talking in complete fucking sentences. How about you keep it up? If you know who it is, tell me.”
“The family’s name is Durante.”
I blinked as I tried to remember people and faces. “Why does that name sound familiar?”
“Your friend Sheila—it’s her maiden name.”
I fell back against the seat, a wave of nausea hitting me like a sledgehammer. “Is she involved?”
“No. I can say that with confidence. She knows about her family and its businesses, but she’s not involved. I’d suspect that’s why she’s so engaged with charities like the Harrington Society. It’s her way of balancing out what others do. However, her husband is a different story…” Travis’ dark eyes left the road and stared toward mine, probing and encouraging me to use my brain and connect the dots.
“Fucking Senator Keene, he’s the brother-in-law to a crime family that wants to overtake the Albinis?”
“Yes, Mrs. Harrington, congratulations.”
I looked at him with utter bewilderment. “Are you fucking joking?”
“No, I’m dead serious. With your little show of unity with the Albinis, you for the first time officially are the one to fuck Senator Keene. My guess is that he won’t be happy when he realizes that he’s the one with a dick in his ass.”
I tried to remember my mother’s confession. “Is Niccolo the top one? I don’t even know how to phrase it. The head of the family?” It reminded me of a fucking episode of The Sopranos.
“No, he’s not. Carlisle is. He’s Niccolo’s older brother.”
“Didn’t I read somewhere about firstborn sons and shit, or is that all TV crap?”
Travis shook his head from side to side. “I don’t know all the ins and outs. Honestly I think the daughters are revered too. But either way, Carlisle has the oldest son.” He gave me a sideways glance. “His only child, named Wesley.”
“Really?” I knew Wesley and I were in the same grade, but then again, I was older, wasn’t I? If I’d had my real birthday, I’d have been two grades ahead of Val. “Does Niccolo have any sons?”
“Two, but they’re younger. I heard a rumor that Carlisle’s wife was at one time engaged to Niccolo. I don’t know if that’s true, but it doesn’t matter. If Niccolo offered you the Albini family support, you have it. Fuck! You impressed the shit out of me. Maybe you can use your brains as well as your pussy.”
Asshole! Against my better judgment, I grinned. “Thanks, I have other plans, too. First, I need to take care of Parker.”
“With your pussy?”
“I don’t plan on it.”
Travis’ forehead furrowed. “Interesting, Mrs. Harrington. By the way, it’s we, not I.”
“We what?”
“You’re not going to the warehouse alone.”
I sighed, honestly thankful for his presence. “Parker insinuated that he would demand that I fire you after I signed his contract. I don’t think he likes you very much.”
Travis shrugged. “Well, you did fire me a few days ago. So I don’t give a fuck what he likes and what he doesn’t like. You don’t like me either. I’m still here.”
I looked out the passenger window. The morning storms had cleared and the familiar blue of day had turned to the black of night. As cars and buildings passed, I thought about the view. “How come I never rode up front before?”
“I think the better question is why are you doing it now?”
“I don’t know. I like it.” I tilted my head toward the backseat. “It’s lonely back there.”
“You like it?”
“Yes, I do. I can see better up
here, better than I can in the back.”
Travis nodded.
“And maybe,” I confessed, “you’re not as big of an asshole as I previously thought.”
“The sentiment is mutual, Mrs. Harrington.”
I rested my head against the seat and watched as glimpses of ocean shone between the buildings. The moon was full over the water, creating reflections like millions of small mirrors bouncing the silver rays back toward the sky. As we neared the apartment, I tried to make sense of everything, but nothing made sense.
According to my mother, if the Durantes could prove that I—her and Carlisle’s daughter—was alive, they could use that as proof that the Albinis lied, that Wesley wasn’t Carlisle’s first born. Stewart knew all of this. Had he helped to propagate the idea that I was a Conway to both families? After all, one would assume that even in a male-dominated world, a daughter of the Albinis, the strongest family around, wouldn’t be shared, and certainly not openly, by the man who provided one of their biggest covers.
I couldn’t think straight. Fucking forget asking me my name. I truly didn’t know.
“ARE YOU FUCKING crazy?” Brody asked, running his hand through his strawberry blonde hair and walking the length of Stewart’s office.
When he stopped near the window, I saw his reflection against the night sky. On his face I watched the bewilderment I heard in his words. Instead of answering his question, I leaned back against the chair and let him digest all that I’d said. It wasn’t even the tip of my iceberg, but since I’d spent most of the day at the hospital, I didn’t have the strength or the time to explain all that had happened since we’d last been together.
“Let me get this straight: you want me to construct a contract, like the one Parker wrote, but instead of Parker’s name, you want Travis Daniels? Vik, that doesn’t make any sense.” He spun toward me, his aquamarine eyes boring a hole into my soul. “If you’re going to trust someone, if you truly feel this is necessary, trust me.”
“I can’t, Brody. You don’t know what this is like.”
“Fuck! And Travis does?”
I stood and walked toward him, stopping just outside of his reach. “I don’t want you to see it.”
“I’ve read the damn contract. I know it involves other men. You’ve told me the basics. I don’t care.” When I looked down, Brody came closer and lifted my chin. “Vik, what I mean is that none of that matters to me. Don’t you get it? You’re more than the person who signed that contract. I know it. You do not need to go back to that. I don’t care what Parker has that you consider a threat. I don’t care how many other men want to get you back there.” He pulled me close and wrapped his strong arms around my shoulders. With the steady beat of his heart and fresh clean-scented aftershave, I allowed myself a momentary reprieve and melted against his chest. “Don’t you trust me?”
I nodded. I did trust him, but I couldn’t expose him to that side of me. It was one thing for him to think he knew. It was another for him to see it.
Brody pushed me back by my shoulders and looked deep into my eyes. “Vik, does this mean…” Once again, he turned away. “Fuck. Tell me this doesn’t mean that Parker is one of those men.” His volume rose. “Fucking tell me that Parker Craven wants this contract to help you, not because he’s been one of the men Stewart watched fuck you.”
My chest ached. Brody thought he could handle the contract. He can’t even handle a small part of the truth. I shook my head and sat on the sofa.
With his hands once again going through his hair, Brody stomped from one side of the room to the other. When he was almost back to the windows he turned and said, “I want to kill him. Just let me kill him. Fuck, I’ll kill them all. Do you know the others?”
“Brody, you’re not killing anyone. I have a plan. Part of my plan is to have the contract with Travis. If I do, the one I sign with Parker will not be valid.”
“But Vik…” He came to the sofa and sat facing me. “…don’t you get it? If you sign one with Travis, he has the same control over you that Stewart did.”
“No, he won’t. Travis works for me. He can’t make me do anything.”
“Then why? Why have the contract?”
“Please, Brody. It’s getting later by the minute. I’m tired. It’s been a long fucking day. I’d do it myself and use the contract that Parker wrote and just change the names, but Parker will be able to tell if it’s not exactly the way it needs to be. I need it to be perfect and legal.”
“None of this is fucking legal. And no.”
“No?”
“Vik, you’re not answering me. I won’t do this. I can’t do this—not to you, not after everything Stewart did to you. You deserve better. What are you afraid of? Who are you afraid of? Tell me.” He stood again and paced. “I’m a fucking attorney. If you believe in Travis so damned much, keep him around. I don’t care. The man is as big as a fucking mountain. No one is coming near you with him by your side. For fuck’s sake, do not go alone to the warehouse with Parker.” He spun, unable to find the room to expel the energy coursing through his system. “I fucking swear, if he lays another goddamned finger on you.”
“Brody, stop. I promise my days of being anyone’s victim are done. I’ve already made my presence known in a world I didn’t even know existed. I’m tougher than any of them thought. I’ve been underestimated for the last time.”
He collapsed to his knees in front of me. “Then let me write the contract with my name on it?”
I shook my head. “No. If you do that, Parker will know that you’re helping me. He might even suspect that we’ve been working together for a while. I can’t do that to you. You could lose your partnership.” I reached out and brushed my fingers against his cheek, relishing the sensation of the soft, stubbly growth. “I’m not worth it.”
Brody seized my face between his large palms. “Don’t you ever say that! You are fucking worth it! You’re smart, fucking beautiful, and…” His smile grew. “…never to be underestimated. You are so worth it. Damn, Vik, I’d walk away from Craven and Knowles in two seconds to go away with you and get you out of here, away from all these fuckers.”
I sighed, enjoying the warmth of his hands. “Where?”
The aquamarine clouded. “Where what?”
“Where would you take me?” With all the shit I’d had thrown at me, a momentary daydream seemed like the perfect medicine to calm my overwrought nerves.
He released my face and nuzzled his cheek against mine. Again the clean scent filled my senses and brought a welcome smile to my lips. Taking my hand, Brody stood and repositioned me. Next, he settled on the sofa behind me. Sighing, I laid my head back against his chest and listened as his words vibrated through me. “Sweetheart, I’d take you anywhere you wanted to go. How about our own tropical island?”
I’d read a story once where the couple went away to a tropical island. It was hot—both kinds of hot. I was tired of heat, though. After living my entire life in Florida I dreamt of cool. I shook my head from side to side.
Brody continued, “All right, no island. How about the mountains?”
That sounded cool. I nodded.
“Wherever I take you, I want it to be remote, so it’s just us.”
“I like that idea.” I listened to my own voice. It sounded foreign. In it, I heard hope, hope that I’d never before heard or never allowed myself to project.
“Then that’s where I’ll take you. We’ll go somewhere in the mountains, somewhere secluded. We’ll have a house on a lake. I’ve always liked lakes. Have you been around lakes?”
“No, just the ocean.”
“Lakes, especially lakes like our lake, are clear and clean. We can skinny-dip in there whenever we want.”
I giggled at the thought. “Will it be cold?”
His lips found my neck. I craned my head to the side, allowing him full access. “Don’t worry, beautiful, I’ll keep that sexy body of yours warm.” His warm breath bathed my collarbone. “I can see you now: dri
pping wet as we come out of that lake, a cool breeze against your fucking soft skin. It makes your dark pink nipples pebble. God, I like that.” From the growth of his erection against my back, I knew he did. “We have a blanket, a big fucking blanket. It’s laid out on the grass and the mountains… they surround the lake on all sides. Even though it’s summer…” He nuzzled my neck again and whispered, “…there’s snow on the peaks.”
“Snow?” I’d only seen snow when Stewart and I traveled. I’d never really experienced it.
“Yes, baby, snow. Even in the summer there’s snow on the peaks of the mountains. In the winter there’s so much snow we can’t go anywhere. All we can do is spend our days and nights making love by the fireplace, with a big roaring fire. In the summer, we can go up to those peaks and ski, but I like having you on that blanket.”
“Do we have neighbors? Is anyone watching?”
“No, no one’s watching. No more watching. It’s just you and me. You’re on your back. Those hard nipples are staring up at me from those fucking luscious tits. As I look down at you, I see your silky hair fanned out behind your gorgeous face and notice that your pussy is wet, but not from the lake. No, you’re wet and ready for me.”
I closed my eyes and imagined the scene he painted. “Brody, what do we do on that blanket?”
His erection twitched, and I wiggled against it.
“Oh, fuck, Vik. We’re going to fuck like rabbits in heat.”
I laughed. “Do rabbits go in heat?”
“They do, and when they do, they fuck all day and all night. I mean, it’s quite an incredible display. You see…” His hand brushed over my stomach and down to my thighs. “…they only stop to eat. They need their energy…” His rapid heartbeat pounded against my back. “…because each time they fuck and the male rabbit’s cock fits perfectly inside the female rabbit’s tight pussy, they both find the best fucking release they’ve ever had.”
My breathing quickened as my insides clenched. “Do they come even harder than on a wall at some cheap hotel? Because, let me tell you, if they do, they’re fucking lucky. It was the best orgasm I’ve ever had.”