The Legacy Collection Box Set

by Ruth Cardello

  And that damn black bun. It was just as tempting now as it had been when he’d fabricated every excuse possible to enter her office at his father’s old company. It left her neck delectably exposed, itching to be kissed.

  Stephan turned on his side and punched the pillow beneath his head. He had to stop thinking about her. He should be focusing on the reason for this flight.

  Dominic was finally going to pay for what he had done.

  Was it wrong to take advantage of his rival stepping away from negotiations to deal with his father’s will?

  In most cases the answer would be yes, but this was Dominic. His indifference was evident in his lack of attendance at the funeral and wake. Dominic had only returned to the States for the money he hoped he’d receive from the will. More was never enough for a man like Dominic. He had to have it all.

  Had the situation been reversed, Stephan had no doubt Dominic would have done the same. There was a bit of pleasure in knowing that taking advantage of someone’s misfortune was a classic Corisi move. They were a ruthless bunch, bent on the destruction of not only their competition, but also each other.

  In some ways, Stephan had Dominic to thank for his success in the business. Victor Andrade had been too old-fashioned to weather the global market changes. He’d believed in long-term business relationships and maintaining a good reputation. His kindness had been his downfall. By helping rather than buying out his competitors, he’d left himself vulnerable to corporate sharks.

  On the other hand, Andrade Global was based on what Stephan had learned by watching Dominic’s rise to power: Morality is subjective. Take, don’t ask. Attack the stronger, absorb the weaker. Accumulate enough so you never have to apologize, and pay people well to clean up the mess you leave behind.

  It was a recipe for success that had made Stephan a billionaire.

  But money and power weren’t enough.

  Nicole.

  Dammit. This wasn’t about her. It was about his family’s island. It was about settling an old score.

  And Nicole.

  There was no way she was as innocent as she claimed. Her timing revealed her involvement. She’d infiltrated his father’s company just before Dominic’s forced buyout of it. And now she’d thrown herself at him the day before he planned to take down her brother.

  Okay, so she hadn’t actually suggested anything more than a business deal, but it was pretty obvious the whole engagement, the fake fiancé scenario, was a lie designed to distract him.

  Did she have to look so sincere in her appeal? So saddened by his refusal?

  So positively sexy in her indifference to him?

  If only she had propositioned him and revealed her true nature, maybe then he wouldn’t be fighting an erection each time he pictured letting down her hair, unbuttoning her collared blouse, and kissing the cool reserve right out of her.

  There was nothing special about her. He knew plenty of beautiful women. She was merely a challenge, the intensity of which had been heightened by the length of time he’d wanted her.

  Stephan crossed the aisle and got his laptop. Apparently, he was not going to sleep on this flight. He was also damn well not going to spend it in some hormonal stupor just because he had seen her again.

  Nicole had not belonged in his life seven years ago, and she did not belong in it now. Sex would only complicate things more.

  Even hot, wet, climax-until-you-can’t-move sex.

  He opened his laptop and stared at the start-up screen, then closed it with a snap.

  A pretend engagement to help her break her father’s will? Insane. People don’t buy companies and sell them back for no profit. She couldn’t have imagined he would even entertain her request.

  Unless she was desperate.

  Even so, refusing to help her had been the best choice.

  The only choice.

  He leaned his head back against the headrest and groaned as he remembered the tear that had twisted through his gut like being stabbed by a dull knife. Was it possible that her father’s death had shaken her? Why was it important to stop Dominic from temporarily taking control of her father’s company?

  And the most painful question: Will the great Dominic be able to save her company after his own empire comes crashing down?

  Why do I care?

  I don’t care.

  Stephan put the laptop aside and reclined back in his chair again. He covered his eyes with one forearm.

  This is going to be a long flight.

  Chapter Three

  Maddy was carried out of the ambulance on a stretcher to where her anxious husband was waiting. He took her hand, unashamed of the tears running down his cheeks.

  A paramedic cautioned Richard to move, but the reluctant husband took another moment to plant a kiss on both his wife and the exposed forehead of his new son. One more gentle touch of the baby, as if making sure all was fine, and he allowed the medical staff to wheel Maddy down the hallway as he continued to hold her hand.

  Alone, Nicole stepped down and out of the ambulance, feeling a bit dazed by the whole experience. She hadn’t wanted to interrupt the reunion, but she wasn’t sure what to do next. Should she stay? Should she leave? What did one do in this circumstance?

  A middle-aged nurse touched her arm and asked, “Would you like to get cleaned up?”

  Nicole looked down at the bloodstains on her pants, stains that even the dark material of her clothing did not conceal. She’d been so focused on the mother and baby that she hadn’t noticed the dried blood that was still splattered up and down her arms. “Yes, please. I didn’t realize . . .”

  “That babies are so messy?” The nurse laughed as she led Nicole to a room where she could wash and change into scrubs. “The mother was lucky to have you there. We heard you stayed calm and did a great job with your first delivery.”

  Nicole started scrubbing down at the sink, grateful to have someone to relive the experience. She said, “I was terrified,” and realized how true that statement was as she said it.

  The nurse turned her back as Nicole changed into the scrubs, but kept talking. “They say courage isn’t a lack of fear. It is doing what has to be done, despite your fear.”

  Nicole joined her when she was dressed and said, “I’ll have to remember that saying. I like it.”

  “Ready to go?” the nurse asked, moving to open the door of the changing room.

  Not really, she wanted to say, but didn’t. She wasn’t sure what she wanted. Her part in all of this was finished. Time to slip out a side door of the hospital and go home. She may have helped Maddy, but she didn’t belong here with Stephan’s family. The sooner she left, the better. Instead of sharing her thoughts, she simply nodded and followed the nurse back out to the emergency room entrance.

  Nicole called her limo driver, who informed her he had arranged for a new vehicle and was already on his way, but lacking a siren, wouldn’t be there immediately. Nicole headed back into the hospital’s waiting room to get out of the late-evening humidity. Sitting was a welcome relief.

  A short time later, an older woman with a slight Italian accent approached her. “Nicole?”

  “Yes?” Nicole answered unenthusiastically and stood, feeling drained now that she was coming down from the adrenaline that had been coursing through her. She was filthy and tired. The last thing she wanted right now was to be seen by anyone.

  “My name is Elise Andrade, Maddy’s mother. Richard told us you were here and I just had to find you to thank you for everything.”

  Oh, great.

  Why couldn’t it have been someone who knew my father? Someone I could give a fake smile to and run away from? Why did it have to be someone I used to dream of one day meeting?

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Congratulations on your new grandson.” Nicole shook the woman’s hand and accepted the double-cheek kiss the woman pulled her down for. Elise was a petite auburn-haired woman with a waistline that hinted at a love of pasta. Her delicate features were frame
d by expertly shaped curls. The simple flowered dress she wore was comfortable, understated elegance.

  Looking down at herself ruefully, Nicole supposed she should be grateful to have had time to clean up before meeting her. At least in the scrubs, she didn’t look like an extra in a horror flick.

  “How are you holding up?” the woman asked with genuine concern.

  Nicole looked away, uncertain of how to respond. “Maddy did all the work. I’m just relieved they are both okay.”

  A tall, dark-haired man dressed in a simple gray Fioravanti suit approached them. His hair was neatly trimmed in a traditional conservative style. The harsh lines of his face softened as soon as he saw the two women. “You found her,” he exclaimed and enveloped Nicole in a hug that lifted her clear off her feet.

  Elise laughed. “Alessandro, put her down. Nicole, this very enthusiastic man is my husband.”

  Once released, Nicole nervously smoothed her clothing back into place.

  With an unabashed smile, he turned from Nicole to lift his wife in the same type of crushing hug. “Tesoro, I can’t help it. I just saw the baby. He’s so beautiful and he has my hair. Richard wants to name him Laurent, but I suggested Joseph, after my father. Joseph—that could be a good French name, too, no?” He returned her to the ground but kept an arm around her waist.

  Elise shook her head in amusement. “Please excuse his manners. It’s not every day that our first grandchild is born, and we are so grateful to you.” She wagged a finger at her husband. “And let them decide on the name. Richard is French. If he likes Laurent we should respect his wishes.”

  “I won’t have people calling my grandchild Larry. Now, Joe is a strong name. What do you think, Nicole? Larry? Or Joe?”

  Nicole clasped her hands before her and said weakly, “I like both?” She looked over her shoulder, out the large window of the hospital, hoping to see her limo pull up.

  “I still can’t believe that Maddy didn’t come to the hospital this morning when she first started to feel pain. I told her to take it seriously, but children think they know more than their mothers,” Elise said.

  Nicole shifted uncomfortably. She tried not to think about her mother. It had been fifteen years since the morning she’d heard that her mother had deserted them, a day that was vividly and forever etched in her memories. The mere mention of a mother released a tsunami of painful questions she’d never been able to answer. Had she left because she wanted to, or had she been taken from us? If she’d left Papa by her own choice, why hadn’t she taken us with her? Why hadn’t she even said good-bye? And the most painful question of all: If she had stayed, would she still be alive today?

  “You must be exhausted,” Elise said, sensing Nicole’s change in mood. “Alessandro, have our driver take her home.”

  “No, no,” Nicole said quickly. “Mine will be here any second, but I appreciate the offer.”

  Alessandro said, “We must call Stephan and tell him that he picked a good woman to marry. You’re a hero.”

  Nicole’s stomach did a nervous flip. “Stephan and I aren’t . . .”

  Elise chastised her husband softly. “You were supposed to say nothing.”

  The large man shrugged as if it were of little consequence. “Si. Si. Maddy told us not to say a word, but surely it cannot be a secret now. Why would Stephan want to hide that he is marrying a woman we already love?”

  Why would Maddy think . . .? She must have heard part of the conversation in Stephan’s office. This was not good.

  Elise said, “Maybe he wants to wait until the time is right to tell us.”

  Her words did not sway her husband. “And what did waiting do for Maddy? She had her baby in a limo, practically in the streets of New York. Mio Dio, Stephan is lucky everyone is okay. He should have stayed with her.”

  Elise threw one hand in the air and added, “He’s not himself this week. You know how he gets about that horrible Corisi family.”

  Instantly realizing her faux pas, they both quickly looked at Nicole.

  “I didn’t mean—” Elise started.

  “I understand,” Nicole said. When you had a father whose ruthlessness in the business world was legendary, and a brother who was following in his footsteps, you got used to hearing your last name and profanity used interchangeably.

  Awkward silence in five, four, three . . .

  “Please. I spoke without thinking.” High emotions brought quick tears to the woman’s eyes.

  The phone in Nicole’s purse vibrated. “It’s okay. It doesn’t bother me, but I have to go. That’s my ride.”

  Alessandro handed her the plastic bag that contained her soiled clothing, a bag she’d meant to throw away but had forgotten to. She took it now, unable to meet the couple’s eyes.

  He didn’t let go of the bag until she looked up at him. When she did, he said, “No one blames you for the sins of your father or your brother. Tell Stephan that. He doesn’t have to protect you from us.”

  “I will,” Nicole said, knowing full well that she wouldn’t.

  Protect me?

  Nicole was pretty sure that was not what Stephan was going to feel inclined to do the next time they spoke.

  Nicole threw her bag of clothing into an outdoor trash bin before sliding into a very welcome open limo door. Once inside, she slumped into the back seat, slipping her shoes off and putting her feet up on the seat across from her.

  Her driver, Jeff, turned in the front seat and asked, “Are you okay?”

  Nicole snapped, “Why does everyone keep asking me that?”

  Isn’t it obvious? Jeff’s expression seemed to say before he turned forward and started the vehicle.

  Nicole took out a compact mirror and was instantly sorry she had. Her hair had completely escaped its clip. She smoothed a few areas that were standing straight up, but there wasn’t much she could do with her tangled rampage of black hair without an elastic.

  She caught Jeff watching her in his rearview mirror.

  “Just take me home.” Her brisk tone was meant as a warning, but Jeff remained unimpressed. He turned and simply stared at her, waiting. Jeff had his own set of expectations regarding driver-passenger etiquette. It was inappropriate, but his father, Arnold, had endured her teenage fits without complaint. The least she could do was tolerate his son for a few weeks. “Please,” she added.

  Satisfied, he turned and put on his seat belt. After he pulled away from the curb and onto the main road he said, “I’ve never seen you with your hair down.”

  She closed her eyes and sighed. “Do we need to discuss this? I know I look awful.”

  “Actually, you’re hot. Who knew?”

  Nicole didn’t know what was worse—that her driver was commenting on her looks and she was too tired to correct him, or that he sounded shocked that she looked good.

  Hot? Hmm?

  Nicole pressed the button to raise the glass partition, but her lips curled in a small, reluctant smile. I’ve been wasting money on stylists and designers when apparently all I needed to do was put my finger in an electrical outlet while wearing a potato sack. This is the look that works for me?

  Men are funny creatures.

  Chapter Four

  An hour later, rinsing off beneath a warm stream of water, Nicole looked at her flat stomach and wondered if she would ever carry a life within her. And if she did, would anyone come to the hospital when it was born? How pathetic was it that the only people she thought might were on her payroll?

  Did Maddy fully appreciate what she had? Parents who loved her. A husband who cried for her. What would it be like to be an Andrade . . . or a D’Argenson, as Maddy was? To be part of a huge extended family, surrounded by love, celebrated simply for being one of them?

  It wasn’t the first time Nicole had pondered this.

  Seven and a half years ago, during an internship for the now-dissolved Andrade Solutions, Nicole had visited their world. Stephan’s father, Victor Andrade, perhaps moved by Nicole’s earnest desi
re to learn the ins and outs of running a computer company, had taken her into his confidence. Unlike most people Nicole met, Victor had been neither intimidated nor impressed by her family’s influence in the computer market. In fact, in the beginning, they had spent more time discussing his extended family than her job description. Someone was always getting married or having a baby. Andrade arguments were sometimes heated but more often hilarious. The clan was huge and gathered for seemingly any reason. Victor’s stories were addictive and foreign, like fairy tales of some wonderful life Nicole could only dream of having.

  Before long, Nicole shadowed Victor through most of his day. He let her sit in on important meetings and debriefed with her afterward, often praising her on her fresh perspective. There had been gossip when she’d first joined his company that her loyalty might be with her father, but Victor had openly discussed this with her and believed her answer.

  Nicole wanted to take over her father’s company, but she wasn’t looking to take over the world. She had a deep appreciation for the way Victor valued his staff and integrated his family into the company. It was amazing for her to see how his decisions were based on what was best for everyone—not just for his wallet.

  Victor’s acceptance of Nicole had opened the door for her with the rest of the family. His wife, Katrine, had taken Nicole to lunch one Thursday afternoon and the two had enjoyed each other’s company so much it had become a weekly event.

  Katrine was a tall, voluptuous blonde with the same striking blue eyes as Stephan’s. It should have been easy to dislike her for that alone, but her warm personality diffused any jealousy. Although she didn’t work for the company, she knew everyone in the office, and her opinions were valued there. In fact, her suggestions often became policy after a period of debate. She openly adored her husband and son, but that didn’t mean she agreed with them. Watching Katrine and Victor argue over Stephan revealed a family dynamic so foreign to Nicole she might as well have been watching a PBS special on alien cultures. They clashed, sometimes at high volumes, but their anger came and went like a flash of lightning in the sky. Points were made. Compromises were agreed upon. No harm done. Nothing festered. The Andrades were not afraid of offending each other, because they trusted the love that bound them together.