Seduced by the Heir(7)

His cell phone chirped, alerting Rafael that he had a new text message.  He took his iPhone out of his backpack and punched in his password.  Reading the message from Gerald Stanley gave him a surge of adrenaline.  His security advisor was one step closer to single-handedly cracking the  case.





I just got off the phone with my source at Miami PD. Gracie O'Conner has  no alibi for the night of the arson, and neither does her ex-con  brother.





Rafael was pleased with the work Gerald had done, and sent a short, quick response.

The suspects in the case were obvious, so why hadn't the police made any  arrests? he wondered. Why were they taking their sweet-ass time  bringing the perpetrators to justice? Gracie O'Conner, Nicco's former  assistant, was a scheming manipulator with an ax to grind. And although  she was a petite, soft-spoken woman, Rafael's gut feeling was that she  was involved in the crime. But Gracie wasn't the only one who hated his  family. His father had made a lot of enemies over the years, and Rafael  wouldn't be surprised if one of his dad's old business rivals was out to  destroy him.

His cell phone rang, and the sound yanked Rafael out of his troubled  thoughts. He didn't recognize the number, but saw the area code, and  knew the person was calling from Washington, D.C. "This is Rafael  Morretti."

"Hello, Mr. Morretti," said a husky female voice. "My name is Danica Lyons."

The name didn't ring a bell, so he waited for the woman to explain who  she was. It was 5:00 a.m. on the East Coast, and Rafael couldn't image  why someone he didn't know would be calling him first thing in the  morning. After a moment of silence, he asked the question at the front  of his mind. "How did you get my phone number?"

"It doesn't matter. I'd like to speak to you privately, and the sooner the better."

Rafael frowned. He turned her words over in his head, but they still  didn't make any sense. "I'm sorry, Ms. Lyons, but I'm afraid I don't  understand what this is pertaining to."

"I'd rather not discuss the matter on the phone," she said in a crisp  tone. "I'd like to come to your office tomorrow to speak in person."

"I'm out of the country, and won't be back in Washington until January 3."

"Don't play games with me, Mr. Morretti, or things will get real ugly for you."

Taken aback by her abrupt rudeness, Rafael stared down at the phone,  unable to believe what he was hearing. "Are you threatening me?" he  asked, struggling to control his temper. "Because if you are, this  conversation is over."

"I'm not threatening you, Mr. Morretti. I'm simply stating a fact."

Rafael struggled to not lose his cool. Keeping his head was paramount,  so he took a deep breath and cleared his voice of emotion. "Call my  office, and my secretary will book you an appointment."

"Very well. I look forward to meeting you."

What the hell? Rafael hit the end button and immediately dialed Gerald's  number to tell him about his bizarre conversation with Danica Lyons. He  suspected she knew something about the arson investigation, so he asked  Gerald to do a background check on her. Everyone everywhere wanted to  get their hands on the Crime Stoppers reward, and although Rafael didn't  put much faith in the Washington PD solving the case, he refused to  leave any stone unturned.                       
       
           



       

Seconds later, when he'd ended his phone call with Gerald, Rafael felt  as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He had nothing to  worry about. By the end of the week he'd have a detailed, comprehensive  report on Danica Lyons, and he was looking forward to reading every  salacious word.

He slung his backpack over his shoulder and slowly perused the circular  glass cases in the upscale pastry shop. After ordering a latté, he  bought gourmet chocolates for his mom, Italian cookies for his father  and amaretto brownies for his brothers, and paid to have them delivered  to the villa.

At the cash register, Rafael spotted Paris. She was standing in front of  the elaborate cake display, snapping pictures of it with her cell  phone. Tapping her foot, she swayed to the beat of the music, rocking  her hips provocatively from side to side. Her moves were hypnotic, and  like a drunk guzzling Cristal, he was hooked. She was close enough to  touch and caress, but instead of reaching out to stroke her sinuous  curves, he looked away, stuffing his hands deep into the pocket of his  blue jeans.

He picked up on the whispered conversation of two dark-haired men nearby  as they pointed at Paris, obviously admiring her beauty. His chest  automatically puffed up with pride. An odd response, considering she  wasn't his girlfriend, but Rafael couldn't help the way he felt. Nothing  had changed. If anything, Paris was more captivating and appealing. She  was as vivacious as ever, and everywhere she went people gravitated to  her. As he continued to watch her sway and groove to the music, he could  see why.

Rafael glowered menacingly at the cocksure businessmen, who were  speaking in rapid-fire Italian. His hands balled into tight fists and  his heartbeat thundered inside the walls of his chest. The men were  discussing how to lure Paris into bed, and even joked about filming the  encounter and posting it online. Their conversation was none of his  business, but Rafael felt compelled to say something. Had to before he  lost his temper and pummeled them both into the ground.

Rafael spoke to the men in an authoritative voice, and scowled for good measure

Back off, fellas. The lady's with me? his conscience repeated. How original!

"W-we're sorry," stammered the man with the mustache. "We didn't mean any disrespect. We were just joking around."

The two took off through the side door, and Rafael sighed in relief.  Crisis averted. Nothing wrong with telling a little white lie, he  decided, tasting his coffee. It was either that or lose Paris to someone  else, and he wasn't about to let that happen. Rafael didn't want anyone  to ruin his chances with her-

Your chances of what? his conscience questioned.

Paris must have sensed him behind her, because she glanced over her  shoulder, then hit him with a pointed look. But when she spoke her tone  was rife with amusement. "See anything you like?"

Do. I. Ever! His mouth watered and his temperature soared. The view of  her big, beautiful backside made an erection swell inside his jeans. Her  eyes lit up like stars when she laughed, and she smelled sweeter than  the desserts inside the pastry shop. "The truffles look good," he said  casually, gesturing at the wall behind her. "I think I might get a few  packages for my soon-to-be-sister-in-law. Angela loves chocolate almost  as much as she loves Demetri!"

"So, the rumors are true." Paris dropped her cell phone inside her purse  and gave him her undivided attention. "Your brothers found love, and  are both getting married next year. How exciting! Is it a double  wedding? When are they tying the knot? Where is the venue?"

His jaw stiffened like clay, but he managed a weak smile. He didn't want  to talk about his brothers or their future wives. Not here, not now.  But if he changed the subject Paris would think he was rude. Or worse,  jealous, and he wasn't.

Rafael averted his gaze and raked a hand over his hair. He tried not to  think about how lonely he was, how empty he felt inside. These days he  hardly saw his brothers, and when he did they droned on and on about  their fiancées. Especially Nicco. He was the worst perpetrator. He  adored Jariah and her six-year-old daughter, Ava, and over the past  three months the trio had developed a strong bond, one he talked about  nonstop. At times it was funny, endearing even, but at other times it  got on Rafael's nerves.

He was happy his brothers had found their soul mates, but he didn't want  to discuss their love lives. He was dying to know more about  Paris-where she lived, what she did for work, if she was dating  anyone-and he didn't want to waste time chatting about wedding nonsense.  "I'm the wrong person to ask. I don't even remember when the wedding  is, and I'm the best man!" he joked good-naturedly.                       
       
           



       

"Are you sure Nicco's ready to get married?"

Her question surprised him, gave him pause. "Yeah, why?"

"Because I was at the grand opening of Dolce Vita Atlanta and he was flirting with everybody!"

Rafael chuckled. "He wasn't engaged back then. Jariah started working  for Morretti Incorporated last summer, and apparently they hit it off  immediately. Nicco says it was love at first sight, but the jury is  still out on that one!"

"So do you like her?"