Harlequin Historical September 2021--Box Set 1 of 2

by Christine Merrill

  She’d been so excited to get home and tell her grand about her new job—she hadn’t even thought to call her brother. Now he looked at her, with a knowing look.

  He got out and hugged her. “Your first time to the big city not going well, little sister?”

  Evelyn shook her head as a sob escaped.

  “Miss Laroque—please wait.”

  Evelyn turned to see Jeb, Lorenzo’s second-in-charge, walking briskly toward her with something in his hands. As he got closer, Evelyn wondered why he was chasing after her with what looked to be a stack of papers.

  “Miss Laroque, please come back inside. Mr. De Luca wants to offer you a contract that includes room and board in one of the apartments above the club. He and I have discussed how best to keep you safe now that you are in our employ. I understand there was some sort of misunderstanding, and as this was partly my idea I wanted to make sure I explained it to you, since Mr. De Luca seems to have jumbled this up. Will you please come back inside so we can go over your contract?”

  Evelyn looked from Jeb to her brother. Both men looked back at her, waiting for her response.

  “I’m a foolish woman. I apologize for my abrupt retreat. It was my misunderstanding, not Mr. De Luca’s. I’ve called my brother down here, and now I feel quite ridiculous.”

  “I’m sorry it took me so long to catch up to you. I was in the middle of getting the contract drawn up when Mr. De Luca found me to tell me what had happened. I came as soon as he told me.” Jeb smiled and turned to Carmichael. “It’s a pleasure to meet the brother of this phenomenal singer.” Jeb stuck out his hand and Carmichael shook it. “Why don’t we all go inside to get a drink and discuss the details?”

  Jeb put his hand on the small of Evelyn’s back and guided her back toward the club.

  Carmichael followed.

  Evelyn squinted under the scrutiny of the setting sun. She was probably imagining it, but she thought everyone on the street was staring at her. They saw her for the fraud she was. She’d put herself on this pedestal, but she had no right to be so judgmental. That had always been her problem. She’d judged her own parents for wanting to keep her safe. She’d thought of them as cowards, and her last thought before they’d died protecting her had been how wrong she was.

  Now here she was again—making foolish assumptions about someone who was attempting to help her. She needed to be cautious with Lorenzo, but she didn’t have to be cruel.

  Once back inside, she felt her cheeks warm immediately. She looked around frantically, to see if she could find Lorenzo. The feeling in the pit of her stomach when she realized he wasn’t in the club was either relief or disappointment, and the terrible thing was that she really didn’t know which one it was. It didn’t matter because he would probably find ways to avoid her after her tantrum.

  Jeb led them to one of the tables in the back corner, farthest away from the music. Evelyn decided she liked the atmosphere of the club during the day, even this early. The music wasn’t as loud. No one was dancing. Everyone was sitting, chatting and eating. It was more like a restaurant than a speakeasy. It was a place she could see herself spending a lot of time, just getting to know people and writing songs.

  A waitress set a glass of water in front of each of them. Jeb ordered eggs, ham and sausage for the table. He also ordered three cups of coffee.

  “So, what is this contract you are offering my sister?” Carmichael’s tone was the quiet, menacing tone of a protective brother.

  If Jeb noticed, he didn’t respond. He smiled and handed over the stack of papers he was holding. “I want to point out a few important things, and then you can take it back to the apartment and go over it in more detail with your brother, if you would like. The most important part is the wage you will be paid. I hope you find it to your liking. The apartment is what we’re calling a perk of your employment, but if for some reason you were to quit, you would have free room and board for a month, to give you time to find new lodgings. Lastly, you will only sing three nights a week. There are other singers on the other nights, and if for some reason you need to take some time off you won’t need to worry. There would be someone to cover for you. I’m sure the customers won’t be happy, but there might be occasions when you need to have time off that fall on the days you usually sing. Do you have any questions?”

  Evelyn shook her head and looked at her brother. He shook his head as well. Just then, the food arrived. It smelled amazing. Evelyn’s stomach let out an embarrassing gurgle. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was until the smoky savory scents created a cocoon of deliciousness around her.

  They were all silent for a few minutes while they ate.

  Carmichael was the first to finish. He always ate like someone was going to take his food at any minute if he didn’t finish it. Evelyn noticed that Jeb was nearly done as well. She was famished, but she took her time savoring the way her mouth watered at the salty rich sausage. The eggs, fluffy and yellow, just like her grand made, felt like little clouds on her tongue.

  “So, what exactly does my sister need to know about the mob boss who owns this club?”

  Jeb looked up. He didn’t appear to be taken off guard, but Evelyn knew the question was rude and he probably hadn’t anticipated it.

  He wiped his mouth and cleared his throat. “Lorenzo De Luca is not a part of the mob. Like anyone, he can’t choose his family, but he has chosen not to have his business involved with any dealings that would put his clientele and those working for him at risk. Yes, he runs a speakeasy that sells illegal alcohol, but he is actually working to change the laws. He’s put a lot of money toward fighting Prohibition the legal way. He’s a good man, and I’m not sure what I’d be doing if I wasn’t working with him.”

  Carmichael was quiet for a moment. Then he said, “I just want to make sure my sister is safe. She’s been through enough and she doesn’t need any trouble with law enforcement.”

  “I believe that Mr. De Luca will see to it that she is safe and doesn’t have any trouble.”

  “I don’t need you all talking about me as if I’m not sitting right here,” Evelyn said, feeling her heartbeat speed up.

  She was exhausted, and now that she’d eaten, she was ready to get some rest before she needed to sing again.

  Picking up the papers, she kissed her brother’s cheek. “Carmichael, I know you’re busy, and I can’t thank you enough for coming down here. I’m so sorry to have worried you. I will call you later. I need to get some rest now.”

  Carmichael nodded. “I have to get going, actually. I’m glad you’re okay, little sis.”

  “Here you go, Miss Evelyn.” Jeb slid a key across the table to her.

  “Thank you again, Jeb. Please give Mr. De Luca my apologies.”

  With that, Evelyn stood and walked toward the back of the club, to get to the stairs that would lead her to the apartment. The only thing was to get there without running into Lorenzo...

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Lorenzo

  Lorenzo gulped down the moonshine, slammed the glass on the end table and fell back on the bed. His offer to Evelyn had not gone as planned, and to make things worse he hadn’t responded the way he should have. Now he had no idea where she was or if she was okay. The waiting had his head throbbing and his eyes burning. Although he’d called in Jeb to smooth things over. Jeb was good at that.

  The phone rang, and Lorenzo gasped at the sudden disruption of the silence. He stumbled from the bed to the phone. “Hello?” He was dead tired, but he didn’t care. The only thing he wanted to know was that Evelyn was okay.

  “She signed the contract and I gave her the key. She should be in the apartment now. Her brother was here with her. He doesn’t like you.” Jeb laughed.

  “That’s not funny, Jeb.” Lorenzo sighed.

  He laid his head back against the wall, letting out a long breath. He told himself that his con
cern for Evelyn was out of an obligation to protect a young woman who worked in his club, but he worried that there might be more to it than that. After all, there were other women who worked for him, and he hadn’t offered any of them an apartment.

  Yalaina still lived with her mother, not far away, and the others had stable living situations as well, so he didn’t have to worry, but for some reason Evelyn traveling back and forth by herself unsettled Lorenzo. He felt the danger that surrounded his life like it was a second skin. He didn’t want that danger to touch Evelyn.

  No matter what, he would have to keep his dealings with her purely professional. If he reacted to her in this way and he’d only just met her, he couldn’t imagine how he’d behave once he got to know her. He was protective of the people he cared about because he was so afraid of losing someone close to him again.

  A barely audible knock at his door unsettled him. He wasn’t expecting anyone. Running his fingers through his hair, he peeked at his reflection in the mirror by the door. His eyes were red and his skin had lost some color. He shook his head and opened the door.

  “Hey, Malcolm. What are you doing here?”

  “I’m sorry to bother you,” said the little boy with sad blue eyes. “But Mr. Jeb said I would find you up here. I just wanted to say thank you, but my momma says we can’t take no charity from the mob. I don’t know what that means, but she says strings are attached to stuff like that and...well, anyway... Thanks for trying to help us.”

  He turned to walk away. The boy still had on the dirty clothes he’d been in when he’d got caught stealing food from the club. There was a bag outside of Lorenzo’s door that held all the new clothes Lorenzo had had Jeb purchase for the boy and his family. It was just the essentials that they would need immediately. Lorenzo had more being delivered to the apartment that he’d set up for them a few blocks away.

  He didn’t think it was the best idea for children to live in lofts above a speakeasy, so he’d given them an apartment in one of the other buildings he’d renovated. He hadn’t been intending to hold on to it, but with so many families in the city needing safe housing, now he planned to use money from the fundraiser to help create a charity to run his public housing venture.

  “Wait—don’t leave. Let me come with you to meet your mother. I want to help her understand that there are absolutely no strings attached to anything I will give you. I don’t want anything from you or your family. I just want to help.”

  Lorenzo kneeled down in front of Malcolm.

  “You see, I’ve been able to make a good life for myself. I’ve not always done the right thing, but I’m a different person now, and I feel like it’s my...my job to help others because I’m in a position to do so. Do you understand?”

  Malcolm’s sad eyes were focused on the ground. He didn’t say anything.

  “Listen, I can talk with your mom. Will you let me walk with you? I want to meet your little sister anyway.”

  Malcolm nodded. He didn’t look up, but he had agreed to let Lorenzo come with him, and that was good enough.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Evelyn

  Evelyn nearly dropped the glass of water she was holding when someone knocked on her door. She wasn’t used to living alone. She’d lived with her parents and then with her grand. Having her own apartment—and such a nice one—was a little unsettling.

  “Who is it?” she said through the door, straightening the lounge shirt and pants she had on. She reached for the gloves she’d placed in the drawer of the table in her foyer for circumstances just like this. Sliding them on, she tried to look through the peephole.

  “It’s me—Jeb. I have a message from Lorenzo.”

  She closed her eyes for a long moment, trying to get her breathing to slow. The mention of Lorenzo’s name made little pinpricks skitter across her forearms. She opened the door and tried to plaster a smile on her face.

  “I apologize for stopping by unannounced. Lorenzo wants to know if he can speak with you briefly.”

  “I’ll be at the club later. Can we talk then?” She was curious about what he wanted, but she hadn’t yet mustered up enough courage to see him again.

  “He said it was urgent. That’s why I’m here. He didn’t want to show up on your doorstep without permission. If you have a few moments, I can run up and let him know you’re available.”

  Evelyn looked around the hall frantically, like the answers she was seeking were there somewhere. She didn’t know what to say. She wanted to talk to him, apologize for her assumptions, but she hadn’t decided what she should say.

  Not able to think of a way out of it, she conceded to seeing him. “I’m not busy at the moment.”

  “Great, Miss Evelyn. I will go get him now.”

  Evelyn relaxed a little as Jeb turned and she closed the door. At least they wouldn’t be alone. Jeb would be there, to offer a cushion between her and Lorenzo.

  She went to the mirror to touch up her makeup and run a comb through her hair. She didn’t have time to pin it up. It fell in waves down her back. There was something intimate about having her hair down that she couldn’t describe. She always wore it pinned up in neat curls. Wearing her hair down around men she didn’t know seemed scandalous.

  She quickly whipped up a few curls and pinned them away from her face. The knock on the door was the only sound besides her pounding heart.

  She walked slowly, giving herself as much time as possible to pull her emotions together.

  When she opened the door, to her surprise Lorenzo was alone.

  “Hi,” he said, looking every bit as dashing as the first time she’d seen him.

  His gray-green eyes glittered in the light of day. His perfectly sculpted face, beard and long lashes reminded her of the men on the covers of the latest fashion magazines. It was like he was unintentionally trying to give the impression of nonchalant dishevelment, but failing because he still looked perfect.

  He ran his hands through his hair, and Evelyn realized she hadn’t returned his greeting. “Hello, please come in.”

  Evelyn stepped aside to let him enter. When he walked past her she inhaled the scent of honey, mint and rosemary. Evelyn loved to cook, so she could pinpoint the makeup of most fragrances just with one deep breath. Lorenzo’s scent tempted her in a way she couldn’t explain. Her mouth watered and she swallowed hard, trying to gain some semblance of restraint where this man was concerned.

  She gestured for him to have a seat on the luxurious couch that had been delivered not long ago. She absolutely loved the furnishings in the apartment. She couldn’t have picked better options herself.

  Taking a seat in the chair opposite the couch, Evelyn said, “So, what is it that couldn’t wait?”

  She crossed her arms, not missing the way he looked so intently at her. She would be lying if she said she wasn’t happy he’d come to see her. But she wouldn’t allow herself to imagine what that could mean. He was probably just ensuring she was going to return to the club to sing because he wouldn’t be able to find another singer on short notice.

  “First, let me say that I would never try to proposition you in that way. I was only thinking of what would be safest for you, knowing you would be leaving the club at odd hours of the day and night and considering what happened with the Klan. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t get hurt because of me and your association to me.”

  Lorenzo wore his confidence like a second tailored suit. He was all business now. And Evelyn regretted that she might never see him with his guard down again. He’d shared something painful from his past with her, and she had insulted him immediately after. Her behavior had been reprehensible. She blamed the men who had sown such a deep level of distrust within her after killing her parents...

  “I know that now. Let me apologize for my abruptness and my unfair assumptions about your motives. It’s not easy for me to accept help from someone lik
e you.”

  “Someone like me?” Lorenzo’s brow creased.

  “Never mind,” Evelyn said, looking away from his questioning expression. “I just want to say that I’m sorry. I have looked over the contract, and although it is way more generous than I’d been led to expect for this position, I am going to accept it. Because it is what’s best for my grandmother at this time. I hope me staying here isn’t an inconvenience to you?”

  “Well, I own the entire building. I don’t need to rent this apartment out. You’ve only just started, so I thought putting it in your contract as a part of your salary package would be the best idea.” He leaned in closer to her. “And besides, having someone with a temper like yours, I won’t have to hire any additional security for the club like I thought.”

  His lips quirked, and so did Evelyn’s. She’d always had a temper.

  “When I was a child, my parents nicknamed me Dr. Jekyll.”

  They laughed together.

  “I can believe that. I was actually very mellow as a child. My parents valued a lack of emotion, so I learned not to show my feelings.”

  Evelyn smiled at him, but she couldn’t help the sadness that invaded her thoughts. How awful to be just a kid and not able to express your feelings.

  She nodded. “Here is the signed contract. Thank you again. Is it standard for nightclub singers to get contracts?”

  “I’m a businessman, and I didn’t get to where I am without thinking through every possible situation. A contract ensures there are no misunderstandings that would cause my club to lose money. And I don’t want to lose you...for the club.”

  Lorenzo stared at her with that same intensity that Evelyn was beginning to enjoy very much. The tips of her fingers tingled as he reached over and squeezed her hand, grazing the top of her thigh where her hands were tightly clasped.