by Casey Hagen
Valentina locked her gaze with Dante’s and slowly backed up to the wall. Dante circled around the table and wrapped an arm around her, whispering low in her ear.
Jeremy reminded himself that she saw Dante as a confidant. They’d known each other for a long time; so, naturally, she would turn to him for comfort.
No matter how much he wished she had turned to him.
And why was that? She stirred his blood, sure, but he wasn’t looking for forever. He had too many demands between his business and his ailing father to take on a woman, especially this woman with her boatload of problems.
A woman who would walk away when she decided he wasn’t enough.
“If we go by the timeline, whoever did this will try again within the next four or five days. We go on as if I’m just here making arrangements to fix the cars. We pretend that nothing is amiss, that we don’t know about the sabotage, and we watch.”
“And if the person doesn’t reveal him or herself?” Dante said.
“Then you need to get the police involved.”
Valentina glared at him. “No.”
“Yes,” Jeremy said. “What happens when someone near you becomes collateral damage because you were too proud, too stubborn, to see reason?”
“They’ll hate me. They’re all I have now that my father is gone, and if I put them under a microscope like common criminals, I won’t even have that.”
Jeremy took her hand and pulled her to him. He cupped her face. His palms tingled at the softness of her skin. He skimmed his finger along her jaw. “You’ll be protecting them, too. They’ll see that in the end. This person is sloppy, maybe even desperate. That has disaster written all over it, and not just for you… but for those around you, too.”
“I refuse to be afraid in my own home.”
“No, I don’t imagine afraid is your style. You’re smart, though. You’ll be smart about this, and we’ll find out who’s doing this before they’re successful.”
She stared at him. He’d swear he could see the wheels turning in that quick mind of hers.
“Okay,” she said.
He cupped her neck and held her before him, just inches away from his face. “Okay? That’s it? No more arguments?”
“No more arguments.”
“What’s your schedule like over the next few days?”
“I have a shoot tomorrow. Dante will be with me.”
“Anything else?”
“Family dinner Friday night, but that’s here with the staff.” She snapped her fingers. “Oh, and a fundraiser dinner Saturday. Then I work from home until the end of next week.”
“Okay, while you handle your shoot, I’ll stay here and make arrangements to get the cars moved. After that, I’ll start going over the cars left. If anyone asks, I’m here to inspect the cars since I’m your new mechanic. That’s it. Understood?”
Valentina nodded. Sliding a slim hand over his, she tucked her cheek into his palm, and he kissed her forehead. He shouldn’t be crossing lines, but damned if seeing what had been done didn’t spike his protective nature.
“Agreed,” Dante said. He reached out a hand, and Jeremy shook it.
Jeremy nodded and ducked out of the room. He pulled his cell from his pocket and dialed Jack.
“Hey, big brother. Haven’t heard from you in a while; it’s about damn time you called.”
“Yeah, well, the last time I called, you had the nerve to answer the phone while...” He cleared his throat. “I can’t even say it. I’m still traumatized.”
“Hey, I thought it would be funny.”
“I’ll remember that when I pay you back.”
“Please, you’ve been celibate for so long you may qualify for born-again virgin status.”
“How the hell would you know?”
“You’ve been a cranky bastard. It’s telling.”
“Jesus. No more sex talk. I actually called for something important. I have three cars that need to be towed from Tallulah Cove wine country to the shop.”
“Three, huh? Big wreck?”
“Sabotage and I don’t want these cars touched by anyone but you and me.”
“What’s wrong, Jeremy?”
He looked around, but he was completely alone. “You know who Valentina Giordano is?”
“Of course, doesn’t everyone?”
“Well, I didn’t. Not at first anyway.”
“God, as gross as I find it, you so need to get laid.”
“I’m not looking for a quick lay.”
Where the hell did those words come from?
“That’s a first.”
And it meant he was in a heap of trouble.
“Look…can you focus, please? I’m at her estate—”
“Oh, so that’s the way of it. You’ve got a crush on a supermodel like millions of men on the planet. How original.”
“It’s not some schoolboy crush.”
“But it is something?”
“I met her a couple of hours ago. I think it’s a bit early to call it something.”
“Oh, I don’t know. You’ve always tried to one-up me. I married in a matter of weeks; I’m giving you a run for your money.”
“Jesus. You’re impossible to talk to. Listen, someone’s trying to kill her.”
“What?”
He sighed. “Paying attention now? Three of her cars were tampered with, resulting in three accidents.”
“You need to call the police.”
“We will, if I can’t figure out who’s doing this over the next few days.”
“Jeremy,” she warned.
“I’m not playing hero. I’m just going to see if we can flush out the person doing it. Maybe I can save the Dame some unwanted attention.”
“The Dame?”
“Yeah, if ever there was a woman who fit the description, it’s her.”
“Fascinating, brother. I don’t like it, but I’ll defer to your judgment. Make sure you use both brains, not just the one…it’s faulty. I can be there first thing in the morning for the first one. Anything I should know about the cars?”
He relayed the accident information so she would know how to load each. When he told her the makes and models, she whistled low.
“Seeing that Camaro had to hurt.”
“Broke my heart. I’ll see you in the morning. And Jack? Thanks.”
“Anything for you…you know that.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Wild Ride
VALENTINA TOSSED AND TURNED the entire night. No matter what angle she looked at the situation from, no one she knew seemed capable of trying to hurt her. Apparently, it was one more sign that the culprit was good at subterfuge.
The rest of the night, she thrashed in tangled sheets because of a certain man sleeping in the room next to hers. It was completely unnecessary, but he insisted, and because of that, she spent hours staring at the shared wall between their rooms.
She should have just marched in there, climbed on top of him, and exposed this damn simmering attraction between them.
Since she hadn’t, she now fought to stay awake in the makeup chair.
“You’re all finished,” Sydney, her makeup artist, said.
“Thanks, love.” Valentina turned to the mirror and smiled. “As usual, stunning work.”
Sydney lifted Valentina’s hair and ran her fingers through the cascading waves. “You make it easy. Half the battle is taking care of your skin when I’m not here, and that, my dear, you have down. The bruise was a bit of a challenge, but fortunately, that caramel skin of yours hides it well. If you had been fair-skinned, I would have been swearing something fierce by now.”
Valentina laughed and hugged her. “None of us wants to be on the end of that temper of yours.”
“You say that like you don’t have one of your own.”
“These days I’m too tired for temper.”
Sydney frowned. “I noticed. Want to talk about it?”
“I do, but right now I can’t.” She laid a hand
Sydney nodded, and Valentina left her. She headed down the hall to her office where her favorite photographer, Emil, waited with his equipment. The first time she had ever gone to a shoot, she had been distracted by the lights, the filters, all the cords, and the cameras. Now, after more than a decade, she barely noticed them.
Today’s shoot was unlike any other. Today she posed for the cameras as a successful businesswoman. Her picture would be featured in Forbes as one of the most successful businesswomen under thirty.
They had wanted to send their photographer, but she wasn’t having it. Emil had been loyal. They understood each other. With just a look or a gesture, she knew just what he was looking for. If this were baseball, she’d be the pitcher; he, the catcher.
She’d chosen an ivory, single-breasted blazer over matching ivory trousers tailored to fit her every curve, the legs long enough to reveal only a bit of her heels. Today was about intelligence, about power, with a touch of the style she had built her reputation on.
“Where do you want me, Emil?”
“We’re going to do a few different shots, one on the chaise, but not lounging. One of you sitting in the center of the loveseat. A couple by the bookcase. The rest, they’re all going to be behind your desk.” He took her hand and led her to the loveseat first. “I want wide arms, face tilted downward, just a fraction. I want you almost looking at me through your lashes. Give me confidence, strength, and that look…you know the one. The ‘Piss Off, World; I Own This Shit’ look.”
“Dialing my face to ‘Piss Off, World.’ Coming right up.” She sat the way he said but couldn’t help the bubble of laughter that sprang from her chest. Emil got her. He’d been a faithful photographer, and even when he hadn’t been the photographer for her shoots, he’d been there anyway as an overseer, working in her best interest.
This is exactly what she meant by not imagining one of her own could be out to get her. She surrounded herself with people she had trusted and loved for years. The newest member of her team was Sydney, and they’d been friends for five years now.
Her mind wandered back to Jeremy. Okay, so, technically, he was the newest member of her team, but he didn’t count since he was after the car accidents.
And he was temporary.
“Hey, fix that face. Where did you just go?”
She shook her head and focused on Emil. “Doesn’t matter. I’m with you now.”
He moved her through the different areas of her office and directed her poses. They finished off with her desk shots. She leaned back but kept her back straight, resting her forearms on the curved arms of the leather, high-back chair.
She caught movement out of the corner of her eye, and there, in the doorway, Jeremy leaned against the doorframe and watched her. Despite her best efforts, her mouth tilted in a hint of a grin, as if they shared a secret.
Maybe the secret was the knowledge that, soon, they’d lay bare this brewing attraction and see where their desires led them. At least if she had her way.
“Oh, that look. Hold it, hold it.” The camera clicked away, flash after flash, Emil capturing a secret thought, a deep desire burning within. “Excellent, Val. I can’t wait to see these!” Emil practically vibrated with excitement.
Jeremy pushed away from the doorframe and met her in the middle in the room. “Such a classy dame you are.”
She smiled. “Thank you. Did you need me for something?”
He raised a brow at her. “You offering?”
“I guess that depends on what it is.”
He lifted the keys to her Oldsmobile F-88 and shook them in front of her eyes. “The Olds is clear; how about taking me for a drive?”
She let out a laugh. “Seriously? You want me to drive you?”
He spread his arms, palms up. “Well, it is your car.”
“You surprise me, Jeremy. A big, strong guy like you willing to hand over all the power. I’m impressed.”
“Yeah, well, when you grow up with a sister like mine, you learn to share power. Basically, you enjoy the power she’ll give you.”
She threw back her head and laughed, feeling a whole lot freer than she had in days. With her shoot done and no other commitments for the day, sure, she would change and take Jeremy for a ride. She’d take him for a ride he’d never forget.
God, she loved her cars.
She changed into another leather suit, grabbed her driving gloves, and headed for the garage where she found him hugging a beautiful, dark-haired woman with a dagger tattoo running down her arm.
Valentina skidded to a stop.
Another woman.
Valentina maintained one belief in her industry: Women were always foes, until they proved otherwise. Even then, you never turned your back on one.
Jeremy glanced over to her. “Ahh, the Dame has arrived. Come meet my sister, Jack.”
His sister?
Way to be an idiot, Valentina.
Valentina nodded and smiled. “Nice to meet you. I’m surprised; you look nothing alike.”
“Nice to meet you, too, Valentina. No, I take after our mother, and Jeremy takes after Dad. Confuses the hell out of everyone,” Jack said.
“Yes, I would imagine so. Dad’s a handsome one, then?”
“Ack…if you say so.” Jack shivered. “I’m impressed. You’ve got my brother turned upside down, and you’ve even managed to drag him out of his seclusion. It’s refreshing to see.”
“Jack.”
“What?”
He gave Jack a hard glare. “Shut up,” he growled.
Jack crossed her arms, tilted her head up, and tapped her foot. “Fine, but just this once. After this moment, I exercise carte blanche to say whatever comes to mind until the day I die.”
Valentina loved her already.
“Deal. Now, don’t you have a car to tow?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” She turned to Valentina and shook her hand. “It was nice to meet you. I’ll take excellent care of your cars.”
“Thank you.”
“Anytime. And, hey, keep your eye on him.”
She met Jeremy’s gaze. “Absolutely.”
Jeremy had never seen anything like the Dame in her element. When the photographer gave her instruction, she complied in an instant. She hit every angle, every expression. The ultimate professional, she showed power and poise, a lethal combination of beauty and brains…the Dame was the whole package.
And now he got to see her behind the wheel.
Hell yeah.
She tied her hair up in a high ponytail and climbed into the Olds with a huge shit-eating grin on her face. He slid in beside her, and without thinking of all the reasons why it was stupid, he reached a hand around the back of her neck and pulled her to him.
Their lips hovered a fraction of an inch apart while their harsh breaths mingled. “You ever make out with a mechanic in a hot car?”
Her half-hooded gaze met his. “I’ve never made out with any man in any kind of car.”
“Well, it’s about time we did something about that.” With a tug, he exposed her slim, graceful neck. All that warm, glowing skin ripe for the taking.
He pressed his lips to that point where her pulse beat out of control and ran his tongue over her soft skin, tasting her. Her sweet skin made him wonder how she tasted…in other areas.
Something he intended to find out…eventually.
Her answering sigh encouraged him. Just under the edge of her jawline, he bit the flesh. When she moaned, he couldn’t wait anymore. He wanted to feel that urgency, that vibration from the depths of her throat in his mouth.
He found her lips just as eager as his. She laughed in the excitement of it, making him smile, resulting in a clumsy tangle of lips and tongues, but damned if he cared if it was graceful.
It was honest. It thrilled. Tasting the lingering remnants of tea on her tongue and her quick inhale sparked something in him that made him question what he really wanted from life because, all of a sudden, buying his dream car and rebuilding it paled in comparison to the excitement he found the minute he touched the Dame.
The minute he tasted her.
Breathed her in.
She held his face, her lips to his, and sucked in a deep breath before pulling away and opening her shining eyes. “Here’s to not crashing and burning.”
He searched her eyes. “The car or us?”
“Both,” she whispered.
He smoothed a finger over her temple, needing just one more touch. “I have faith in you.”
“At least one of us does.”
He pressed a swift kiss to her lips. “Take me for a ride, Dame.”
She winked. “You got it.” She took her sunglasses from between the seats, slid them on, and turned the key. The engine roared to life, and they sighed in unison.
“God, I love the rumble of a sexy car coming to life,” she said.
He laughed and buckled up. “You might literally be the perfect woman. I didn’t know she existed.”
“Oh, I have flaws. You just haven’t been around long enough to see them. You’ll have to stick around.”
He didn’t know what to say to that, so he just gave her a smile while sliding on shades of his own. She rolled out of the garage and headed for the track in the back.
He’d been in Tallulah Cove his entire life and never had a clue she lived here. Of course, she’d likely travelled the world with her rich father and gone to private schools. He’d never even heard of a business magnate of her father’s caliber living on the outskirts, but then, money could buy you unlimited privacy. But they’d missed out on the camaraderie of a small town. The way locals, more like family, took care of their own.
An almost-cloudless sky let the sun light up the track and the vineyards in the distance.
She had one hell of a view here in this slice of paradise.
With her constant jet-setting and various businesses, how much time did she spend enjoying it? Not that he should care.
Her life didn’t look to have room in it for a man. The last thing he needed was to fall for someone he couldn’t have.
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