“Mr. Caraldi! Mr. Caraldi! Are you prepared to make statement about the case against your father?” a voice calls out as I step out of the front doors of my office block.
Fuck it! When are they going to leave me alone?
“No comment,” I reply, pulling my collar up and making my way to where the car is waiting. There’s jostling around me as reporters try to get into my face with cameras and microphones. It’s a fucking shitshow.
“Sir, I’ll get the door,” a voice cuts through the clamor. Otto is at my side, his looming presence deterring the vultures from getting too close. He spreads his arms to clear a path and I head down to the awaiting limo.
“Mr. Caraldi, can you confirm reports that your hotel chain will be expanding?” someone asks. Finally! A question I’m comfortable answering. I turn to face the reporters, standing near the open door of the vehicle.
“I’m happy to confirm that Diamond Elite has finalized a merger with a European partner,” I say. “And that we’ll be developing holdings into a Caribbean franchise.”
There are several more questions pressing for details of the merger. I answer happily – this is something I’ve worked hard for. And the thought fills me with satisfaction. My little empire is growing. All above-board, everything legal. And I’ve done it on my own.
There are more questions, more shouts, but I ignore them now. As I think of the Caribbean chain we’re working on, I’m suddenly remembering the brief trip we’d taken to Saint Barts – Nikki, Dani, and I. It feels like a lifetime ago. But it had been good…so good. Until it wasn’t. She’d turned away from me then. Who could blame her? I’d shaken her foundations with what I’d told her of my past. Nikki is pure goodness. And I am not. But that’s changed now. She’s changed me. Kept me on my path. My moral compass.
As I settle into the back seat of the limo, Otto shuts the door firmly then moves to the driver’s seat. I run a thumb idly over the place on my chest that’s throbbing slightly. No longer the scarring from the bullet wound. This is something new. A surprise for my woman. I grin in anticipation of revealing my new ink to her.
“Do you need to make any stops en route, Sir?” Otto asks as he pulls the vehicle into the afternoon traffic. It’s earlier than we normally leave, and traffic is light. But I need to get back. I’m drawn today, for some reason.
“Straight home,” I reply, scrolling through the messages on my phone. There’s one from Mateo, telling me of the latest updates in my father’s trial. It’s going to be a long time before the fucker sees daylight without staring through bars. Another from Raoul lets me know his plans are on track too. As my empire builds, my father’s is crumbling. And there’s not a fucking thing he can do about it. I chuckle drily, then settle back against the leather and revel in the warm swirl of anticipation of getting home to my woman.
A trip. That’s what she needs. She’s been subdued these past days. I know it’s mainly my fault. I’ve been so distracted by this fuckery with my father that I haven’t paid enough attention to her. That’s about to change.
I’m brimming with excitement when I jog up the stairs to my front door as we arrive.
“Dani?” I call out as I head indoors. Manuel appears silently, taking my jacket as I shuck it off.
“Mr. Dani has gone to the golf course with his coach, Senor Caraldi,” he says. I give a nod. The kid’s decided he needs to learn to play the damn sport. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. We live in a golfing estate, after all.
“And Nikki?” I ask. I still get a kick out of using that name.
“She is resting, Senor,” Manuel says, turning to hang up my things. “She has not been feeling herself, I think.”
I give a frown. He’s right though. It was something I’d been dwelling on in the ride home. She definitely needs some time away from here. Perhaps St. Barts again. Or maybe a couple of weeks at one of the new holdings. Time for us to get to know each other better. Time for me to prepare her for what I have in mind…
“Shall I bring up a tray, Senor?” Manuel asks. “Perhaps a light dinner?”
I shake my head. “Leave us,” I reply. “I’ll ring when we’re ready to eat.” He nods and then vanishes as silently as he’d appeared. I head up the stairs, striding down the hallway to our bedroom. My shirt is already off as I walk through the door, my eyes moving hotly down the shape of the sweet woman curled on my bed.
She’s fast asleep as I step up beside her, her face relaxed, golden curls splayed across the pillow. She’s in the white sundress I love on her – her skin golden against the crisp cotton. An angel. So beautiful. I feel my heart clench as I reach down to stroke a fingertip down the curve of her cheek. She murmurs softly, moving a little. And I see that she’s clutching a slip of paper in her hand as she sleeps.
Odd…
I extract it gently, letting my eyes move over the strange shapes in the little dark rectangle. Grainy black and gray forms. Wording printed beneath it. I sway slightly.
And then she’s awake. I realize it when I hear her suck in a sharp breath. I snap my eyes to her wide ones. She looks as startled as a deer in the headlights. I feel very much the same as understanding begins to sink in. I look down at the piece of paper again. Shaking my head.
“What the fuck is this?!”
Chapter 13
Nikki Love
Ican’t figure out the expression on his face as he stares at the ultrasound scan in his hand. He’s standing, shirtless at the bedside. God, he’s so fucking gorgeous it makes my girlparts clench. But right now, I’m more concerned about what’s going through his mind.
“Tell me what this is, Nikki!” he says. His tone has changed, but I’m still reeling with shock. I hadn’t expected him home so soon. If I’d known he’d be here, I’d have hidden the slip of paper back in my purse. I’ve stared at it every day for a week since my visit to Andy at the hospital. Not sure how to tell him. Not sure what he’ll do when he learns of it.
Maybe it’s better this way. It’s as if Fate has taken the decision from my hands.
