AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Riley was outside and saw her pull up. Then she saw Raphael and Crystal down at the beach, ran over, and asked them who she was. They told her. She told Gabriel. Gabriel called me. I had Miss Claire Monet checked out. She’s a twenty-nine-year-old woman from Connecticut who was a financial manager at her parent's insurance company.”
“Okay? Why is she here in Los Angeles and buying a dilapidated house?” His brows furrowed.
“This is what she paid for it.” I handed him the Post-it note.
“You can’t be serious, Shaun. Is she fucking crazy?”
“See, that’s what I thought at first.” I pointed at him. “She wanted that house so badly that she paid double to ensureRaphael would sell. The question is, why? And another thing. Her last name is Monet, which is her mother’s maiden name.”
“What exactly are you saying, Shaun?” Carter asked.
“I’m saying that Joseph Reed wasn’t her biological father. If he were, her last name would be Reed.”
“That could be, but that doesn’t mean shit. Maybe her mother didn’t know who the baby daddy was, or the baby daddy could have taken off after he found out. There are a lot of reasons why mothers give their children their names. Take you for example. Your mother gave you her last name because—” His eyes widened.
“Exactly!”
“Fuck, Shaun.”
“This stays between us until I can find out more information on this Claire woman. The gala is tomorrow, and I need to focus on that for now.”
“Yeah, sure. I won’t say a word.”
“Not even to Zoey.” I pointed at him.
He laughed. “I won’t. And you don’t say anything to Jenni.”
“Fuck no.” I shook my head.
CHAPTER 12
Claire
I stared at myself in the full-length mirror as I ran my hands down the black corset-style formal gown with the decolletage neck and slender straps. It fit like a glove, and it looked perfect on me. After placing the small round diamond pendant around my neck and placing the matching earrings in my ears, I slipped my feet into my new black stiletto shoes. Nick would be here any minute, so I went into the bathroom to check my makeup one last time. As I was touching up my lips, I heard a knock at the door.
“Wow. Just wow.” Nick smiled.
“You like?” I grinned.
“You are so stunning, Claire.”
“Thank you. Come in. I’m not going to lie, Dr. Nick. You are one hell of a sexy man in that black tuxedo.”
“Thanks.” He chuckled. “Are you ready?”
“I am. Let’s go to the gala.”
We walked out the building door, and a black limousine was waiting for us.
“A limo?” I smiled.
“Of course.” A handsome grin crossed Nick’s lips. “We are attending a gala, after all.”
“This is nice. Thank you.” I leaned over and kissed his cheek.
“You’re welcome.”
I was a little nervous about attending the gala. Since Shaun and Christian were the ones putting it on, I assumed all of my brothers would be in attendance. I’d be standing in a room with all of them, including my cousins since almost all were doctors. Shaun was already suspicious of me, that much I could tell from our meeting.
