Caleb shook his head, dismissing the idea. “Rosanna can be a little prickly with people she doesn’t know. We’re friends, it should come from me.”
“Go. I think I can handle one woman.”
Cooper was right about one thing. Caleb was anxious to get back to Samantha, although not for the reasons they believed. As for Rosanna, he’d almost pay to see her mop the floor with Cooper’s ego. That alone was worth sending Cooper inside.
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
* * *
Scented waves of garlic and spice drifted in the air as Caleb stepped off the elevator. His stomach growled as he faced the plain, unassuming door to his condo.
The smell reminded him of his childhood, and the meals his mother used to prepare.
Sophia Martin had been a kind, compassionate woman who’d loved her family with a fierceness Caleb had admired. And man, did she love to cook. Not a day went by he didn’t miss his mom’s bright green eyes and warm smiles. Amanda was so much like her that, at times, it made Caleb’s heart hurt.
Shaking off unwelcome memories, Caleb punched the code and put his key in the door.
“Welcome home, honey.” Alec joked, not looking up from his laptop screen.
“Funny. How’d it go?” He tossed his keys on the counter and went to the fridge for a beer. Pots littered his stove, the sink was piled with dirty dishes, and Samantha was nowhere in sight.
Alec’s grin crinkled the corners of his eyes. “It went great. I promise we didn’t mess up your sheets. Much.”
“That’s good to know,” Caleb spat. His suspicion about Alec’s relationship with Samantha was eating a hole in his gut. “Did you find anything?”
Alec finally looked at him. “Offer me a beer and maybe I’ll tell you.”
“Your arm broke? Get your own beer.” Caleb grumbled, but retrieved another bottle anyway since it gave him something to do. “And, since when do I have to offer anything? From the looks of it, you’ve already helped yourself to what was in my fridge.”
“True, but I didn’t want to get up. You just saved me the trip.”
“God forbid, you have to walk four feet to the fridge.”
“You’re closer.”
Caleb couldn’t help but crack a smile. Alec was such a kid sometimes that it was difficult to take him seriously. Hard to believe he was a tech genius. “Tell me something good.”
Alec clicked away at his keyboard. “There’s a big fundraiser this week. Very exclusive guest list. Old and new money. From what I’ve been able to gather, our boy will be there.”
“What kind of fundraiser?”
“To benefit local artists. It seems Vincent has a thing for art.”
“Where’s it being held?”
“The Botanical Gardens.” Alec sat back and took a swig of his beer. “It’s not ideal. There are plenty of places to hide.”
“Lots of people. Media coverage. It’s the kind of place a dipshit like Matteo wouldn’t want to make a scene. Sounds like neutral territory to me.” It was time he and Vincent had a little chat. Caleb wasn’t a patient man and Vincent had pushed him well past his limit. The petty break-ins over the last year were one thing. Last night was a game changer.
Caleb couldn’t keep the smile from his face. The thought of having Vincent within arm’s reach satisfied the darkest regions of his soul. “Can you get us in?”
“Already done. You, Samantha, Amanda, and Joe are all on the guest list.”
Caleb was impressed. He hadn’t thought ahead enough to think about taking Joe with him for backup. Not that he had any intention of needing it. In his gut, he knew his time with Vincent was coming. The fundraiser would be just the appetizer. Caleb would do the right thing and give him a chance to back the fuck off. One chance.
It was more than the bastard had given them last night.
“How’d you pull that off?”
“Are you kidding?” Alec looked offended. “Besides my mad skills, society folks are frothing at the mouth to have the elusive daughter of media mogul Thomas Quinn show up at one of their events. Her attendance will keep their jaws bending for weeks.”
Caleb frowned. He’d forgotten about Samantha’s dad. She never talked about him and, as far as Caleb knew, didn’t see him either. “Is her dad going to be there?”
Alec shook his head. “That would be a deal breaker. Samantha wouldn’t willingly go anywhere she knew her father would be.”
Again faced with Alec’s knowledge of Samantha’s life, Caleb nodded and drained his beer. It bothered him that he didn’t know why she avoided her dad, and he wasn’t about to ask Alec for the information.