by Leanne Banks
“We can meet for lunch at one of my brother’s restaurants. Peachtree Grill okay?”
“That will work.”
Still all business, he thought, and made a split-second decision to remind her that he was a man and she was a woman. He took her hand in his and rubbed his thumb against the soft underside of her wrist. “Thanks for working with me on this.”
Surprise and awareness flashed through her eyes. “You’re, uh, welcome,” she said and he removed his hand just before she would have.
He watched her rub her hand over her wrist as if it burned and felt a jab of satisfaction. The lady wasn’t as cool as she pretended.
Nicole felt her pulse pick up as she killed her engine just outside the restaurant where she was to meet Rafe. She took a deep breath, telling herself that she was reacting to the threat he represented, not his masculine appeal.
So he’d done well with Joel last night. That hadn’t been much of a test. A couple hours, she scoffed. That was nothing.
Grabbing her purse, she rose from the car and straightened her wool jacket, then walked toward the restaurant. A hostess wearing a short black dress and boots greeted her just inside the door.
“I’m here to meet Rafe Medici,” she said noticing that the restaurant appeared to be nearly full.
The hostess shot her a smile as she guided her around the corner. “Lucky girl. Come this way. Oh, look, the servers are swarming the poor guy.”
Nicole glanced up and saw three women dressed in short skirts and white blouses standing in front of the wooden booth where Rafe sat.
The hostess cleared her throat loudly. “Excuse me. Here’s Mr. Medici’s lunch date.”
Nicole wanted to correct the hostess. This wasn’t a date-it was more of an inquisition. All three female servers turned to stare at Nicole in envy.
“Enjoy your meal,” the hostess said and two of the servers left with her.
Rafe stood and slid his hand over hers for a sizzling instant. “Good to see you. What would you like to drink?”
“Coffee is fine,” she said, feeling her heart bump at the way he looked at her. She forced her gaze away from his as she sat on the leather bench.
“Cream?” the lone remaining server asked.
“No, thank you. I’ll take it black.” Mentally girding herself, she looked up at him and couldn’t help noticing how handsome he was. Heaven help her if Joel turned out this good-looking. She would be beating the girls off with a stick. It wasn’t just Rafe’s dark hair, attractive features and killer body that would weaken a woman’s defenses. It was the liveliness in his eyes and his expressive mouth. His sheer attentiveness would boggle most women. She needed to make sure she didn’t fall into that already overflowing group.
“How was your morning?” he asked, taking a sip of his coffee.
“Productive,” she said, surprised he would be remotely interested. “I visited three clients and coordinated some additional services for one of them. Also received a referral.”
“I’ve heard you’re well liked by your clients and that the medical community considers you a bit of a bulldog, but still respects you.”
“And where did you hear that?” she asked as her coffee was served.
“From a private investigator.” He shrugged. “Don’t waste your energy on outrage. You wouldn’t talk to me, so I had to find out for myself. Wouldn’t you have done the same if the roles had been reversed?”
The idea of having someone snoop into her business irritated her. “Would you say he’s good at what he does?”
“Very,” he said. “Why do you ask?”
“Maybe I can hire him to give me information about you.”
Rafe met her gaze and she saw a flash of challenge in his eyes. Then he laughed and leaned back in his seat. “Go right ahead, but I can save you the money. Ask me anything. I’m yours for the next hour.”
Three
Nicole wondered how many women had ripped off their clothes at the sight of his wicked smile. She could easily understand why Tabitha had been seduced by him. He possessed an electric appeal. The same way a bug zapper seduced mosquitoes and zapped them to death.
“Tell me about your family,” she said after they’d placed their orders with the server.
He paused and his expression turned thoughtful. “As I told you, my father died when I was young. It was a train accident. One of my brothers died at the same time.” She watched the grief cut through his eyes and felt a stab in her heart. “My mother couldn’t handle us alone, so my brothers and I were placed in foster homes,” his hand clenching into a fist. “Our world was blown apart.”
Despite her huge doubts about Rafe’s ability to be a good father to Joel, his story tugged at something inside her. “That must have been difficult.”
“It was, but a lot of things in life can be difficult. I was much luckier with my foster parents than my older brother was. He emancipated himself as a minor before he graduated from high school.”
“Wow,” she said, thinking of how insulated her boarding-school upbringing was in comparison. “What is he doing now?”
“Running an obscenely successful company with a few sidelines when it suits him. He just got married.” A smile played over his lips. “He would do anything for her and she would do anything for him.” A glint of envy crossed his face so quickly she wondered if she imagined it. “Not everyone is that lucky. He deserves it. I can afford to be generous. I finally beat him at pool,” he joked.
“Sounds like an interesting family,” she said, feeling a teensy bit envious at the camaraderie she heard in his voice.
“I’m betting it’s worlds apart from yours,” he said.
“Mine was-” She paused. “Is different from yours, that’s for sure.”
“In what way?” he asked.
The server brought the food and set it on the table. “Tabitha and I were sent off to boarding school by the time we were eight. I liked the structure more than Tabitha did.” Nicole shook her head, laughing at a chain of memories that ran through her mind. “She was so wild. She would have gotten kicked out if I hadn’t-” She broke off, even now respecting their vow of secrecy.
“If you hadn’t?” he asked.
“Old news,” she said, lifting her hand and dismissing his question.
“Your personality seems very different from hers,” he said. “You look similar, though her hair was lighter, wasn’t it?”
“She was a blonde in her heart. She lit up a room when she walked into it,” Nicole said.
“And you?”
“After we grew up, I didn’t usually walk into the same rooms she did. I was studying for my master’s degree, working as a teaching assistant.”
“Did you ever envy her?”
“Sometimes,” she said, remembering the awesome experience of when Tabitha had given birth to Joel. Nicole had wished for the same, but she’d never let anyone get that close. “On the other hand, being the life of the party looks like a lot of work. Maybe it comes natural to some people. Like you?”
He lifted a dark brow. “I wasn’t the life of the party. I was more interested in surviving. People will do lots of things to survive.”
“Never thought of it that way,” she said, pushing her salad around her plate and remembering how Tabitha had worked her way around her father in a way Nicole had never managed.
“Your mother is in France, right?” Rafe asked.
“More from my dossier?”
He gave her an unapologetic smile.
“Yes, she lives in France with a younger man and alimony from my father.”
“Do you ever see her?”
“Not often. She’s busy living the life she missed when she was married to my father.”
“And your father?”
“We’re not close,” she said, averting her gaze. There was too much bad blackness in that relationship. “I see him about once every couple of months.”
“I would think he’d be interested in an heir for hi
s business. A grandson would be a huge ego boost.”
“I suppose the idea of a grandson is a huge ego boost. He definitely missed having a son, but my father has his priorities. I have mine. He’s expanded his business more in the international market, so that keeps him out of town more.” When Tabitha had died, her father had argued vehemently with her that he should be Joel’s guardian instead of Nicole. Her second-best defense had been that he was out of town so frequently. Her number-one defense, however, had created an ugly tension between them.
“Who’s your backup for Joel?”
She didn’t like the turn of the conversation. “I have a cousin with a baby. We’re very close. She’s there for me when I need her, but I’ve been able to handle most of my parental responsibilities myself. I’ve chosen the best preschool and I’ve arranged my job so that I have flexibility if I need to take a day off.”
“Superhero,” he said.
“No,” she said. “Just the best substitute mom I can be.”
“He calls you Mom.”
Her heart contracted at the reminder. “I had a hard time with that in the beginning, but then I realized that Joel needed to feel like he had a mom. I was it.”
“What else do you want to know about me?” he asked.
She gave a short laugh and smiled. “Everything. Just everything. What’s your attitude toward corporal punishment?”
“The death penalty?” he asked, crinkling his eyes in his confusion.
“No. Spanking children.”
“Oh,” he said, realization crossing his face. “I was spanked as a child, but Lord, there’s got to be a better way. Time out, no cupcakes, no Wii. Something’s gotta work. What do you think?”
Surprised that he’d turned the question on her, she paused a half beat. “All of those,” she said. “I’ve been fortunate with Joel. He responds well to other methods. If there’s a problem area, I try to work up a reward system. We’ve used star stickers before,” she said, smiling.
“Star stickers,” he said. “I got them when I read a book, cleaned the commode, mopped the floor or made the honor roll.”
“How often did you make the honor roll?” she asked, curious.
“Not as often as you did, I bet,” he said. “I played football.”
“Ah, a jock,” she said, the words coming out before she could edit them.
“And you were a nerd,” he said. “A hot nerd.”
“Just a nerd,” she said.
“You wouldn’t have looked twice at a football-playing, low-class guy like me,” he teased.
She suspected she would have secretly lusted after him. “Oh, I don’t know. I always envied others with athletic skills.”
He gave a rough laugh that skittered down her nerve endings. “What kind of boys did you torment during high school?”
“None,” she said, then remembered the geeky guy from a neighboring boys’ school that had seemed to have a crush on her. “Okay, maybe one or two. I left most of that for Tabitha. She came out of the womb ready to seduce the world.”
“What about you?”
“I came out shy and tentative, a little awkward. I needed to think things over.”
“And now? Where is the man in your life?” he probed.
“The man in my life is Joel,” she said in a deliberately cool voice. “For the sake of my son, my love life and my party life can wait. Can yours?”
He met her gaze. “Is that what you’re afraid of? My wild lifestyle?”
She shrugged. “I have to think about what’s best for Joel.”
“I’d be lying if I told you I was a monk or a saint, but I didn’t become successful by partying every night. Contrary to your dubious opinion of me, I’ve worked damn hard.”
Nicole inwardly winced. She’d gone too far. “I didn’t mean to suggest that you-”
“And if you’re worried about women-”
“I-”
“My tastes have changed in the last five years. I know better than to let a spoiled little heiress wrap me around her finger and squeeze my guts out.”
Nicole felt the punch of his confession in her stomach. So he had genuinely cared for Tabitha. Confusion raced through her. Tabitha had conveyed that Rafe had merely viewed her as a plaything-his plaything to control. She struggled with his description of her sister.
“I think it would be a good idea for you to hire that P.I. Hell, I’ll pay for it. You can hire a different one if you’re afraid he’ll be biased.”
She wondered if he was daring her. What he didn’t understand was that she would do anything to protect Joel. “I suspect that you would only hire the best, so I’ll take your recommendation. But I’ll pay for it.” She glanced at her watch. “I should go. Thank you for your time and lunch,” she said, looking at the plate of food she’d barely touched. Nerves had chased away her appetite.
“I’ll walk you out,” he said, rising as she did.
“It’s not necessary,” she said. “I’m parked just across the street.”
She began to pull on her jacket and he reached over to assist her. The considerate gesture bothered her. One more little bit of evidence that perhaps he wasn’t a monster after all. Was it possible that Tabitha would have lied to her?
Rafe escorted her through the crowded restaurant. He was the kind of man to draw glances. His confidence and charm were magnetic. He opened the door and chuckled under his breath.
She shot him a questioning look.
“I’m not used to winter. I left my jacket in my brother’s office. We’ll probably trade some trash talk over the weather.”
“Like what?” she asked, curious.
“He’ll call me a lightweight. I’ll tell him he’s just jealous because he doesn’t live in the tropics in winter.”
She couldn’t resist a smile. “Please tell him he’s done a great job with this restaurant.”
“Despite the fact that you hardly ate any of your meal,” he said.
“It would have been nice if you hadn’t commented on that,” she said, feeling self-conscious because she wanted to project complete confidence.
“There’s nice and there’s stupid. Sometimes you have to choose one or the other. But I’ll let you tell my brother what you think of his place. You’ll meet him. You and I are just getting started,” he said.
The expression in his dark eyes bordered on sensual, but that couldn’t be possible, Nicole thought. Not in their situation. He was just a humongous flirt. He probably flirted with ninety-year-old women. Perhaps that was part of his appeal.
“Good-bye for now, then,” she said and stepped into her car, wishing he didn’t affect her the way he did. He pushed the door closed and stepped backward with a wave. Nicole shored up her defenses as she pulled away. She wouldn’t be deceived by his charm. As soon as she got home, she would call that investigator and ask for a full report on Rafe Medici.
She didn’t trust him. If he couldn’t be a good father to Joel, she might have to do the unthinkable. She might have to take Joel and flee from the country. Leaving the States would give her at least a shot at keeping Joel safe if Rafe turned out to be abusive. It would be far easier for her and Joel to disappear in a foreign country. The prospect terrified her. Nicole had always been a rule follower, but there was too much at stake now. After she put Joel to bed tonight, she would put together a contingency plan for how to get away from Rafe Medici.
Even though it was too damn cold, Rafe watched Nicole as she drove away. She was a peculiar mix, way too strait laced for his taste. But when she smiled, it was genuine, and warmth radiated from her. When she gave in to that husky little laugh, the sound grabbed at his gut. She was the kind of woman a man had to earn. Not so much because she counted on her beauty and wiles. She could have if she wanted to. She was certainly beautiful. No, the reason a guy would have to earn her attention was because she didn’t give it away easily.
Rafe worked from Michael’s house the rest of the day. He should have been tired, but it took h
im a long time to fall asleep. He finally drifted off to a restless sleep.
Flames surrounded him, the sound of screams stabbed at him. He watched his father’s face stretch into a grimace of pain.
Rafe heard his father shout.
The agony of the sound sent a bolt of terror through him. He saw his brother Leo screaming in fear. “Daddy, Daddy!”
Rafe ran toward his father and Leo, struggling to save them. Just as he grew close, a wall shot up between them. The wall was acrylic. He could see through it, but he couldn’t get past it.
Beating against the wall, he watched his father and brother suffer as flames engulfed them.
“Let me,” he yelled. “Let me…” His knuckles bled as he hammered his fists against the wall. “Dad…Leo…”
His father’s face turned gray, the color of death. Leo’s scream filled his brain. Rafe ran, desperate to save them both.
A cramp knotted his calf, jolting him awake. He swore under his breath, sitting upright in his bed, gasping for air. Sweat drenched his body. His heart pounded. He needed to get his father. He needed to save Leo.
Several seconds passed before he realized he’d been locked in a dream. The same dream he’d experienced since he’d been told that his father and Leo had died in the train accident. He’d spent so many nights wanting to fix it. To rescue his father and Leo. It had been too late, but he still wanted to save them.
He still had to try.
Sucking in a deep breath of air, he rose from his bed and paced from one end of his bedroom to the other. The wetness on his skin began to dry. It had been a dream, although years ago, some of it had been all too real. He couldn’t have done anything about it when it had happened. That tragic reality swept through him for the hundredth time. He couldn’t do anything about it now, either, he thought, inhaling deeply.
Rafe thought of Joel and Nicole. He could do something about them, he thought. And he would. Nothing would stop him. He would never be helpless again.
Early the next morning he put together a plan.
His BlackBerry rang, interrupting his thoughts. He glanced at the caller ID.
