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“You’re late,” she sassed, trying for casual, but knowing that she failed miserably by the laughter that peeled from the back seat.
“Please, join me, Ms. Rossi.” She gasped at his use of her last name. He obviously was way ahead of her in their little game. She hadn’t figured out anything about him, other than he seemed to have more money and arrogance than any man she had met before. And Lord, those blue eyes of his were something she could get lost in. She wondered how his overly long, blond hair would feel to run her fingers through. Val shook her head, effectively trying to shake the path that her dirty mind was heading down.
“I’m afraid that you have me at a disadvantage, Sir. You seem to know more about me than I currently know about you.” She turned as if to leave, but second-guessed herself, turning back. She ran smack into his solid chest with a thud. His arms banded around her, and she felt her traitorous body lean into his grasp. He smelled as good as he looked and felt even better.
“My name is Nicholas James. You can call me Nick, but Nicky is off the table.” She smiled up at him, actually smiled. She wanted to groan and chastise herself for falling for the dashing, debonair act that he had apparently mastered to make women swoon because she didn’t swoon—ever.
“Well, Nick, as I said, you are very late. I’m afraid that we will need to reschedule, as I have plans.” His mouth quirked into the sexiest little half-smile she had seen in some time. She wanted to kiss that smirk right off his smug face, but that would be crossing a line that she wouldn’t allow herself to step even a toe over.
“Where are you off to, Ms. Rossi? Maybe I could give you a lift?” He enthusiastically nodded to his limo, and she shook her head. Accepting his offer would mean that she would be spending more time with him and that was the last thing she needed, given the way her body and mind were reacting to Nicholas James.
“No, but thank you,” she stuttered. “I’m meeting someone and don’t have any more time to waste on you, I mean us—shit,” she cursed. She couldn’t believe that a total stranger had the power to leave her stammering, speechless, and cussing on the streets of Manhattan, but here they were. Valentine realized that she was still pressed up against Nick’s body and carefully took two steps back, not wanting to give away just how much he affected her.
“Please, allow me to drop you where you are going and then we can have a little time to discuss Anton.” Her eyes darted to Nick’s, not missing the sympathy that was now evident every time he looked at her. A part of her worried that Anton was dead, and that poor Nick was to be the one to tell her the bad news. Val felt bad that a small part of her wished that her brother was dead because if he wasn’t, she and her mother would be in grave danger. Either way, she had to know because her family was depending on her to keep them safe.
“Fine,” she barked. Val slid into the limo’s backseat, as the driver held her door open. “Thank you,” she said to the older gentleman.
Nick joined her, getting in on the opposite side, not waiting for his driver to get to his door. “So, where to, Ms. Rossi?”
Valentine sighed and gave him the address to the hotel she was staying at. When she set up their meeting, the thought of having a perfect stranger know where she was residing seemed like a bad idea. So, she told Nick to meet her at the only other hotel in town that she knew. Her parents brought her and Anton to New York when they were just kids and they stayed there. So many memories came flooding back to her as she entered the stale lobby, through those big, gold, revolving doors. She remembered thinking of it as a palace, where she and her brother could find many adventures together, but she was wrong. Seeing it through her adult eyes now, only drove the point home that she lived in a fantasy most of the time, and she was ready to grow up.
“Please call me Valentine or even Val. Ms. Rossi is my mother,” she offered. Nick seemed pleased and nodded his agreement.
“Valentine, it is lovely to make your acquaintance.” He pulled her hand into his own, kissing the back. The gesture had her heart skipping a beat, although she would never admit that to Nick.
“Please drop me off at the Mondrian, Park Avenue.” Nick smiled at her and nodded to his driver.
“So, you are staying someplace different than where we agreed to meet, smart girl.” Nick seemed impressed by her, but really, she wasn’t out to impress him or anyone else. She was trying to save her mother and hopefully, her brother. Impressing Nicholas James wasn’t a part of her plan.
“I meant no offense, but I watch my back. I don’t know you, so I thought it best to be safe than sorry,” Val admitted.
“Well, I can’t fault you for erring on the side of caution, Valentine.” She shivered at the way Nick drew out her name, every time he said it. Almost as if he was savoring it, like a fine wine.
“So, you have news about Anton?” Val was starting to feel a little skeptical. If Nick had news, he wasn’t being very forthcoming in sharing it. In fact, she was starting to feel like he was avoiding the topic altogether.
“Wow, you don’t pull any punches, do you honey? You are a get right down to business, kind of girl.” Val had diverted her attention to the buildings as they passed by her window. She loved this city, loved its people. They were fast talking and fast walking, compared to her new life in California, but she felt right at home in the Big Apple.
“Nope, you lured me into your car, promising me details about my brother, so spill them.” She knew that she was being pushy, but she felt as if she was at the end of her rope. Val was ready to find out whatever information Nick had, get back to her room, strip, and sink into a nice hot bubble bath.
“All right,” Nick held up his hands, feigning defeat. “I know where your brother is, but they will be moving him soon. If you want to get to him, we will have to move fast.” Val did a double take, at his words. What the hell did he mean by “we will have to move fast”? There was no way that she was involving a stranger in her problems. They were big enough as it was.
“I think you misunderstand, Nick. I didn’t contact you to help me get to my brother. Your services begin and end with telling me where he is. I can handle the rest on my own.” Valentine looked out of the limo window watching the Manhattan skyline go by and she knew that her time in the Big Apple was just about up. She was going to have to find her brother and get back to Chicago. Her mother’s life depended on it, and she was afraid that hers did too.
Nicholas
Nick knew that meeting with Valentine Rossi was a mistake, but once he heard who had Anton, he had no choice. Val’s father saved Nick’s dad’s life on more than one occasion, and he owed her family the courtesy of sharing the information he had on Anton. Hell, he owed Valentine more than that, but at least finding her brother was a start.
He was thrilled when she agreed to meet with him, after two weeks of sending private texts back and forth. He was all set to leave work early, to ensure that he made it to their meeting with time to spare, but his boss cornered him and asked for a quick update on the case. What was he supposed to tell his captain, to fuck off because the hottest woman that he ever saw was waiting for him in a hotel lobby downtown? He knew that would be a big mistake because he wasn’t supposed to be in contact with the Rossi family. His boss expressly told him to steer clear of them, but he couldn’t. Nick had grown up hearing stories about how Mr. Rossi had saved his pop’s life, while he was on the force.
Val’s dad was a hero in his book, but she would never know that she couldn’t ever find out her dad turned on the families that he was working for and provided Nick’s dad with evidence to put the heads of most of Chicago’s major crime families behind bars. It’s what ended up getting Mr. Rossi killed and that gnawed at his own father’s conscious for years.
Nick never understood why his dad didn’t just tell the Rossi family about their patriarch turning state’s evidence. After he grew up and followed in his pop’s footsteps to become a detective, he began to see that telling them would put them all in greater danger. In this case, ignorance was bliss and he tried to leave well enough alone until Anton found himself in more trouble than he could handle.
Anton was just a dumb kid, getting mixed up in things that he should have steered clear of. Nick knew the score—the kid wanted to be like his dad, but he was going about it in the wrong way. Keeping his mouth shut was taking a toll on the Rossi family and he wanted to set the record straight and let the chips fall where they may.
Blowing his cover wasn’t an option. As far as anyone could tell, he was a wealthy business tycoon that dabbled in dealings on the wrong side of the law. His job was to get noticed by some local families in New York and hopefully, word would spread to the major crime families in Chicago. So far, everything was going according to plan, but telling Val who had Anton might throw a monkey wrench into his undercover operation. Still, he could hopefully share his news with Val, feign ignorance about how he came across this information, and then disappear from her life. And wouldn’t that be a shame?
Valentine was just the type of woman that he usually fell for. Her long dark hair spilled over her bare shoulder and her body—damn her body was perfect. She wore a tight-fitting dress for their meeting that showed off all her sexy curves. He almost swallowed his tongue when he saw her standing on the corner, hailing a cab. Nick had nearly missed their meeting and it took all his charm to persuade Valentine to get into his limo. Sure, she made up some silly lie about having to meet with someone else, and not having time for him. But he could tell by the way that she leaned into his body when he saved her from almost taking a tumble onto the sidewalk, that she wanted him. The way that Val looked at him made him hard and he wanted to do things with her—to her that he hadn’t done in a fucking long time. If just talking to Val was against his captain’s rules, he was pretty damn sure that fucking her was completely off the table. But having her sit so close to him was driving him crazy and he was dying to taste her, if just once before he had to walk away from her.
