High Stakes Seduction - Book 3 (11 page)

For some reason I thought about Naomi—the beautiful, hard-edged woman at the charity event.

"Like Naomi?" I knew it was perverse, but I couldn't help asking. "Is she part of that past?" Then I held my breath.

He looked down for a moment, gathering his thoughts. When he looked up at me, eyes clear and focused.

"Naomi is my past. Way, way back in my past. And yes, one of the things I need to clean up. One of the things…people… who keeps showing up in my life."

"Like at the charity event."

"Yes, like at the charity event."

I raised my eyebrows, asking the silent question. Hoping for the answer I wanted to hear. After the last few days, I felt I deserved an answer.

"It's over, Ange. Truly over."

I breathed a small sigh of relief. And hoped that what he'd just told me was the truth.

I was on my own. Antonio was busy with his "business meeting" and it was almost my last day onboard ship. It had been a while since I'd engaged in any "people watching" with my camera. Maria had been asking for pictures, so it was a good time to enjoy the sunshine on deck again.

This was a whole different experience from the last time I'd been on deck with my camera. As I watched the happy couples cavorting in the pool and cuddling at the cafes, this time I was smiling, too. I shared in their enjoyment, instead of envying it.

Even though there was still the fact I was here by myself, and Antonio was elsewhere, meeting with…

With those guys I’d seen days earlier at the shuffleboard games? And in the casino? The guys who all knew each other intimately and always seemed to hang out together.

I raised my camera to get a closer look. Yup. Definitely Antonio. And the thugs… including Walker from the poker table.

He turned to look at me, and for a moment, panic struck. I wasn’t sure what to do. But after a few seconds of holding my breath, I realized he hadn’t actually seen me. I could… I could what? Run away? I scoffed at the idea. Running away and hiding was what I’d been doing every time I was faced with Antonio’s shady dealings. Maybe this time should be different.

Raising my camera again, I took a few more pictures, inching closer and closer until I was just within earshot.

"You’ll have to set things in motion as soon as we’re back in town," I heard Antonio say.

"That’s almost a week away," said Walker in his whiny voice. "It’s not like you can’t make a phone call and start the ball rolling now."

"You’re stalling, Mancini," said one of the thugs, leaning in as if to intimidate him. "What game are you playing?"

I saw Antonio lower his eyelids to half-mast, his jaw tighten as his hand went to the gold watch on his wrist. "I’m not the one playing games—you're calling the shots. But do you really want to let this get out of control while you’re in the middle of the ocean? You could stand to learn that patience is a virtue." He punctuated each word in the last sentence.

The other thug leaned in on Antonio, invading his personal space. "Is that a threat, Mancini? You tryin' to take over… "

"Hello, gentlemen," I said cheerfully, placing my hand on Antonio's shoulder. My heart was visibly pounding in my chest. When I saw the guys stepping in to threaten Antonio, my naturally protective instincts popped up. All I could think was that I had to do something to help him.

The two thugs stepped back and Walker turned his head away from me, as if he had never met me or hoped I wouldn’t recognize him.

"Nice to see you again, Walker," I started.

I felt pressure on my hand, Antonio squeezing it none too gently. I was probably pushing my luck, but I wasn’t about to just stand there while these guys threatened him.

"We’ll deal with this later," said one of the goons. Abruptly, he turned and left, with the other one following close behind.

Walker shoved his hands in his pockets, standing there awkwardly for another minute or two until Antonio said, "I’ll see you tonight at the tables. Come on, Angela."

Together, we walked away.

"You shouldn’t have done that," Antonio said under his breath.

"I’m sorry, but I wasn’t going to let them push you around."

He laughed. "I appreciate your concern, Angela, but I promise you, there’s nothing to worry about. They're just posturing—it's the "grown up" version of bullying on the playground. Even if they'd meant me harm, there's nothing they would have done here in front of all these people."

I thought about that for a moment, realizing how obviously true it was. I felt a little silly.

Antonio’s arm slipped around my shoulder and he hugged me closer as we walked. "I was serious about you staying out of this. But, that was a sweet gesture," he said, kissing the top of my head.

"What do you think of these?" Tony asked, pointing to a pair of the most beautiful little heart shaped earrings. The deep blue opals shimmered in the light.

"Those are beautiful."

"Good. I thought you’d like them," he said. "They suit you. And what about those?" He pointed to a pair of sterling silver flower-shaped earrings with small blue opals at the center.

"Are you thinking of increasing the jewelry line at the store?"

"No. I thought they might be nice for Maria."

"Tony! That’s really sweet of you to think of my sister."

"Ange, she deserves something for letting me steal you away for so long."

This man continued to surprise me. I smiled, wrapping my arms around him in a big hug. "You’ve already done so much for us. And thank you for having Thompson look out for Maria."

His brow creased slightly for just a moment, then he chuckled, turning to address the clerk.

I freed him from my hug. "You know, he was a little cold with me at first, but he’s really lightened up. And he seems to be taking really good care of Maria. Has he been with you very long?"

"I'm not surprised. He’s a loyal and valued employee." He pulled out his wallet to complete the purchases. "He’s been with me for the past three years."

"Well, Maria is sure enjoying his company. What did he do before?" I asked absently, admiring some of the other jewelry on display.

"I didn't ask," Tony said. "That's his business. I look at results."

I glanced sidelong at him. His expression was unreadable, and his words told me not to ask further. Why was he avoiding my question? Oh Geez, did Thompson have a shady past, too? Was Maria unwittingly getting herself involved with someone who might not be all that he seemed? It was starting to look as though the Tilson girls might not be such good judges of character after all.

***

We left the shop, walking hand-in-hand along the deck, the warmth of the sun streaming down on us. It was an aimless stroll, a quiet, contented silence between us that I was hesitant to break.

Antonio stopped, leaning over the railing, and we gazed out at the peaceful blue ocean, small white swells pushing the waves along.

"Thank you," I said quietly after a long moment.

He turned toward me. "You already thanked me for the earrings."

"No," I smiled into his eyes. "I meant… thank you for … everything. The cruise was… well it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting, but I’m really glad I came."

He turned to me then, fully alert, his hands slipping around my waist as he pulled me close. "What were you expecting?" he asked, his voice low and husky.

The sun glistened on his warm bronze skin and even his dark eyes glinted in the light. What had I expected? I didn’t want to admit out loud that I’d expected to be here basically as a call girl, working off my debt. Though, technically speaking, that’s still what I was, but… oh, god, it was so complicated. And he’d been so good to me…

"Were you expecting this?" he asked, and then his mouth found mine, erasing all other thoughts and sensations.

I held up the little purple negligee. "I guess you did the job you were assigned to do," I smiled as I packed my "secret weapon" away in my suitcase with the rest of my clothes. Tomorrow we’d be heading back to port, then hopping on a plane for home. I'd keep out just enough clothes for dinner tonight and the trip home tomorrow. With my packing taken care of, my day would be clear.

A knock at the door told me my companion was there.

"Hi, Ange," said Samantha. "You ready to go?"

***

The salon was surprisingly packed. I guess a lot of people were looking to doll themselves up for the trip home. I was glad we'd made reservations for a day of beauty. Samantha and I had pedicures lined up first, then massages. I sat in the leather chair and slipped my feet into the warm, soothing water.

"Isn’t this nice?" Samantha asked with a happy sigh.

I had to agree. It was definitely a life I could get used to.

"This is not the color I asked for!" came the voice across the room. "What in the world have you done? This is outrageous!" Across the room I spied a hairdresser fussing with her blond customer.

The manager stepped over quickly, talking earnestly to the customer, doing her best to sooth the situation.

"You bet you're going to fix this! And this time you'd better do it right." The staff kept their voices low, but not the customer.

"Some of us aren't so happy," Samantha said, glancing at me out of the corner of her eye.

"I've seen her before, or actually, I've heard her before," I said.

"Really? Do tell," Samantha raised her eyebrows.

"Oh, I don't know her. But she and her… tablemate got into some kind of… argument at dinner. We couldn't hear what it was about—well not his part anyway," I grinned. "She was pretty upset and he ended up getting his face slapped."

"Oh my, looks like we have a hell-cat in our midst."

"Oh, this one can hold her own," I agreed, remembering the entourage at the politician's party. Certainly she had the staff in here running at her beck and call.

MARIA

"I can’t wait to see you, Ange," I said. It was true. Two weeks really was a long time and although Nevia and Thompson and some of our neighbors had helped the time go by, I really did miss my little sister.

"Me too," Angela beamed. "I have so many goodies to share with you! Tony said we should be home shortly after dinner time."

"Oh that makes sense," I said, half to myself.

"What makes sense? Angela asked.

"Thompson is driving me to a meeting tomorrow, but he said he had to be back by four. I guess he’ll be picking you up."

A sly look crossed Angela’s face. "A meeting? What kind of meeting?" she asked coyly.

I blushed. "Nothing so sordid. We went to the art festival yesterday and met someone. She asked me to meet with her, but I don't want to get my hopes up yet—or to talk about it until afterwards. Please don't press me on this. You know how superstitious I can be."

I hoped Ange would let it go at that. The woman had watched me sketching with Emily. She'd come over to look at the sketches, sharing that she writes and publishes children’s stories. She really liked the idea of stories for children written by children, and she said she loved my art.

I wasn’t getting my hopes up about the meeting just yet, but still, it was a step in the right direction. A step I was actually taking, instead of sitting at home trying to ignore my studio.

"Anyway," I said, shying away from the subject. I was still feeling modest about my art. Sharing my new ideas with Emily was one thing, but somehow, this was different. I glanced down at my useless legs and sighed. Maybe it was because Ange was the bridge connecting my past and my present. "Maybe Thompson would let me tag along when he comes to pick you two up from the airport."

A shadow passed over Angela’s face then. "What’s wrong?" I asked her.

"Oh nothing," she said waving it away, though she knew me well enough by now to know I wasn’t going to buy that.

"Angela," I said, turning on the stern-big-sister tone.

She rolled her eyes and smiled. "I was just wondering about Thompson. Antonio said he’s been employed for three years, but he won’t say much else about him."

"Because there’s not much else to say," I shrugged. "He loves working for Antonio and really respects him. And when he’s not working, he’s spending as much time as he can with his daughter."

"Her mother’s out of the picture?" Angela asked.

"He said they split up a while ago. I don’t have any reason not to believe him, if that’s what you’re worried about. I trust him. A lot. He treats me really well and he never makes me feel like I'm less-than-able."

"All right," Angela smiled, "I’m just glad he makes you happy and I love that Emily has been such an inspiration. Listen, I’ve got to get ready for dinner. Can you do me a favor though?"

"Sure, what’s up?"