What a Rich Woman Wants (18 page)

Her worse fear was that involvement with her would somehow make a mockery of everything Niko was trying to achieve with the Challenge Project. The press could be brutal if the story spun the wrong way—the gold-digging fund-raiser, the slumming business mogul or something equally unkind. Niko might never find his way out of a storm of bad press. Her reputation and that of her company could easily weather such a storm. It'd be nothing more than a brief shower in the scope of their broad umbrella. But Niko was more or less out there on his own with no such protection. He could drown.

Still, all of the power she wielded in the business world was nothing compared to her feelings for Niko Morales.

Her phone vibrated, signaling an incoming text.

You still up?

Niko.

Lesley smiled.
Yes.

Me too.

Lesley laughed at his statement of the obvious, as he knew she would. It might be the first time she had laughed all day. Why would she deprive herself of that? Why should she? That was something she couldn't answer. Unless the answer was she shouldn't and wouldn't.

While she'd been thinking and Niko had been waiting for her next response, he'd texted,
???

I'm coming over,
she typed back.

His reply was a smiling emoticon.

Niko was waiting for her, and she was in his arms the moment the door closed behind her. She didn't know how Niko knew, except he seemed to be attuned to her in a way no one else was, but he held her tight against him for a long time. Exactly what she wanted. She breathed in his scent, her arms around his neck. Eventually, they broke apart and she gave a little laugh. “Thanks. I needed that.”

“Me too.” He led her down the hall. “Want something to drink?”

“Not really. Unless you do.”

“No. Where are we going?”

“Bedroom? But I've got something to tell you.”

“I've got something to tell you too.”

They lay close together, facing each other. Niko must have installed the lowest wattage bulb he could find in the bedside lamp because it gave off just enough light to allow them to see each other and nothing more. Niko was more in shadows because the light was on his side.

“You first.”

“I found Maria. Talked to her.”

“Already? When?”

“Tonight. When she got off work.”

“What'd she say? Tell me everything.”

Niko did, concluding with, “I didn't get much out of her. Probably just pissed her off even more. But at least I know where she lives and works now. It'll be easier to keep an eye on her.”

Lesley watched Niko carefully. “Maria told Ricky she knows who his father is.”

“That's low even for her. Why would she do something like that?”

“I don't know.”

“He asked about it, I assume.”

Lesley nodded.

“What'd you tell him?”

“The truth.”

“Oh, babe.” His eyes were full of sympathy. He ran his fingers through her hair. “That must have been tough.”

“I couldn't lie to him. But he's so young. I hope this doesn't scar him.”

“He's tougher than he lets on. He beat the odds when he was born, didn't he? He'll probably keep on doing that. Plus he's your son.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means you'll always have his back. That means a lot to a kid.”

“Speaking as someone who never had it?” She stroked his arm.

“Exactly.”

“Want to hear something funny? Not funny, really. Touching.” His expression said yes, so she went on. “Ricky was hoping you were his father. He thought that was why you started coming around, spending time with him.”

Lesley could see the emotion in Niko's eyes, felt herself falling over a precipice, praying he'd never stop being the safe place for her to land. “Want to know something else? I kept thinking how lucky he'd have been if you were.”

They moved together then, tenderly. No one was in a hurry tonight.

Chapter Twenty-One

“Thank you for meeting me,” Lesley said as she slid into the booth across from Steven. “I wasn't exactly gracious the last time.”

“You had your reasons,” Steven replied.

“I assume you're still in contact with Maria.”

“Not if I can help it. But I haven't been able to get rid of her either.”

A server approached and Lesley ordered sparkling water with lime again. While she waited for her drink, she took a good look at her ex-husband. “Are you all right, Steven?”

“Yes. Why?”

“I don't know. You look a bit pale.”

“I'm fine.”

Lesley's drink appeared, and when the server determined nothing else was required, she left. Lesley took the photocopy of the picture Mitzi had found out of her purse and slid it across to Steven. He stared at it for a moment before looking at Lesley. “What's this?”

“It's a copy of the original picture. The one Maria had was torn before it was copied. As you can see, there's another man in the picture.”

“With his arm around Maria's mother,” Steven commented.

“It's my father's younger brother. His name was Bradley.”

“Why do I think there's more you want to tell me?”

“Bradley was involved with Maria's mother. She was a foreman at the textile plant the Robinson Group operated in El Salvador. Uncle Brad admitted to my father that Maria's mother was pregnant by him. They fought about it. Brad died shortly afterward.”

“But Maria was certain your father was sending money to her mother.”

“He was. He felt responsible. Since Bradley wasn't alive to do the right thing, my father stepped in and made sure Maria's mother had enough money to support herself and her daughter. He helped bring Maria here to work, but he had an agreement with her mother. Maria was not to know that she was related to us. Apparently her mother kept her promise.”

Steven glanced at the picture again. “Until she died anyway. Maria found this picture and assumed your father was her father.”

“I believe so, yes. My father had funded an account several years ago. I only learned of it a few days ago when the bank called because the money ran out.”

“Maria figured there was more where that came from.”

“I'm sure she did.” Lesley sipped her drink. Her sense of relief was overwhelming. She'd hated thinking Maria had been wronged by her family, by her own father. But she'd also been given advantages by Richard, and she'd made some bad decisions. Including her involvement with Steven.

She chose her words carefully. “If you see Maria, I'd like you to relay what I've just shared. You can take the copy of the picture and give it to her. I'd like you to also relay that we do not feel she's owed anything more from us. Not the Robinson family or the company. If she continues to make threats and allegations, if she goes to the press with her accusations, I will bring the full brunt of our legal department down on her, and it won't be pretty.”

“She already went to the press.”

“She did? When?”

“I'm not sure exactly. Last week a
Tribune
reporter cornered me. Told me he'd had an email conversation with someone claiming to have a story involving me and you. Asked if he'd be interested. He kept it vague, hoping I'd give something away, no doubt.”

“And?”

“That was it. I played it off like there'd always be detractors trying to ruin my chance at a Senate run. And for someone in your position, it comes with the territory. Good news is I don't think he had enough to make a story with yet.”

“But if he follows up, if he meets with Maria and she tells him everything—”

“We're screwed.”

“I won't let her get away with it. She's already caused enough trouble for me.”

A smile played at the corners of Steven's mouth. “No, I'm sure you won't.” After a moment he said, “There's something different about you, Les. Something that wasn't there when we were together.”

“Oh, really?”

“There's a spark, a passion, a light in your eyes. Something.”

“Hmm. Yes. Well, be that as it may, could you also tell Maria that I'm open to allowing her to visit Ricky if she'd like. Under supervision, of course.”

“Why?”

“Why? Because she forced my hand when she told Ricky she knew who his biological father is.”

“What?”

“Yes. She showed up at Ricky's school for a guided tour. She spoke to him when he was waiting in the pickup line.”

“Ah, hell.”

“I told him the truth.”

Steven squirmed.

Lesley went on. “If she's interested, I'll see what I can do. Ricky may not want to have anything to do with her, of course, and I'd abide by his wishes.”

“What about me?”

“What about you?”

“Are you going to make the same offer to me?”

“I didn't think you had any interest in meeting him.”

“I don't. I just wondered, if I did, whether you'd allow it.”

Lesley leaned across the table. “Look, Steven, I won't lie to him. He'd never asked about his biological parents before, but now he knows you're his biological father and that you wanted nothing to do with him. Thank Maria for that.”

“That's great. Someday he'll be able to ruin me too.”

“Ruin you? What are you talking about?”

“Nothing. Just that that one indiscretion is going to be following me around for the rest of my life.”

Lesley stared at him dumbfounded. Just when she'd thought maybe there was shred of decency in her former husband, that maybe he wasn't the completely self-centered ass that he'd shown himself to be time and again, he proved her wrong. She fumbled for her wallet.

“Yes, Steven,” she spat as she threw several dollars on the table to pay for her drink, “it's all about you. It's always been about you. You never think that your one indiscretion affected more lives than just yours.” She stood and stared at him. “I'm just so glad that you are out of my life.”

She strode out the door, vibrating with fury. Her heart bled for Ricky, that he'd been born to two such overwhelmingly selfish and self-serving individuals as Maria and Steven. They hadn't wanted him and didn't deserve him. She hadn't wanted him either, at first, but that had changed. She vowed to give him everything they couldn't and wouldn't. She sincerely hoped that, given the opportunity, Ricky would turn his back on meeting either one of them, the same way they'd turned their backs on him.

She was feeling wild and reckless. When she got to her car, she punched in Niko's number. She glanced at her watch. He should be home by now. He answered on the third ring. She got right to it. “I'd like you to come for dinner if you're free tonight.”

“Where?”

“At my house.”

Niko hesitated. “Are you sure? I mean, do you think that's a good idea?”

“I think it's a splendid idea. I'm going to see if my mother can be there. And Mitch. Ricky, of course.”

Again Niko hesitated. “Are you feeling all right? What's going on?”

Lesley sighed. “Niko, I—” Now it was her turn to hesitate. She couldn't put what she was feeling into words, except that she'd set herself on a road to change her life the moment she'd met Niko Morales. She was afraid of it, but she wanted to embrace it at the same time. She was sick of hiding and pretending and not getting what she wanted and not being who she was. “I can't really explain it,” she told him. “Except Ricky adores you. We all do,” she rushed on. “I'd like to have something like a family dinner with all the people I care about together.”

There was a long pause. Lesley could almost hear Niko absorbing her words, trying to analyze them. But he didn't question her further. He simply said, “What time?”

Next she called Lita and told her the plan. They agreed on a menu and Lesley stopped at the market on her way home. It took her much longer to shop since she was unfamiliar with the store layout, but she found what she needed and headed home.

Lita helped her unload everything. Her mother and Mitch were both available to join them. “I'll change and come and help you,” Lesley told Lita.

The other woman smiled at that. “Miss Lesley, no offense, but you not be much help. You go play with Ricky or maybe I let you set the table or something. I cook.”

Lesley hugged Lita's shoulders. “You know me too well. All right then, I'll be back in a little while.”

In her room she shed her suit, her jewelry and her high heels. She donned a linen sundress and sandals. In the bathroom, she touched up her makeup, unclipped her hair and ran a brush through it. She reached for the clip but didn't pick it up. She'd leave her hair down tonight.

She found Ricky in his room, playing an educational computer game. She came and sat on the bed beside him. He stared at her.

“What?” she asked.

“You look pretty.”

“Thank you. I invited Niko to dinner,” she told him. “Mitch and Grandma will be there too. Lita's making pasta.”

“The kind I like?”

“Angel hair with shrimp, yes.”

“Why's Niko coming?”

“Because I like him. And you like him.”

“And he likes us.”

“Yes.”

“You never invited him before.”

“No. But I invited him now, and he said he'd come. There's a first time for everything.”

“Want to play?” Ricky indicated the computer game.

“Sure. But you'll have to show me how.” She sidled up next to Ricky and put her arm around him.

They were an odd group, Lesley decided. She looked at them all gathered around the table. Her mother and Mitch. Her and Niko. Lita and Ricky. Lita had initially demurred when Lesley insisted she join them. “You're part of the family. Come and join us.”

They'd laughed and talked and chatted. Mitch and Mitzi had no problem keeping the conversation rolling. Mitzi was at her animated best, clearly enjoying being in the company of two handsome men. Ricky beamed at everyone. Lesley allowed him to slurp strands of angel hair, although she made it clear it was a one-time-only allowance and that doing so was considered very bad manners.

When they'd eaten their fill, Mitzi invited Mitch to watch a movie with her in the media room and he accepted. Lita took Ricky off to give him a bath. “Want to walk down the beach?” Lesley asked Niko.

“Okay.”

They started walking. The sun had just set and the light was fading fast. “You were kind of quiet at dinner,” Lesley ventured. “Is everything okay?”

“Sure.”

There was a distance between them that hadn't been there before. Just when Lesley decided she wanted to get close to Niko for real, he retreated. Inviting him to dinner was taking their relationship to the next level, acknowledging it, at least to her inner circle, bringing it out of hiding. She thought that was what Niko wanted. But maybe she'd been wrong. They strolled farther in a silence she didn't know how to break. They arrived at the pass and had no choice but to turn back. “What are you thinking?” she asked. That seemed as safe a question as any.

“I'm thinking I don't fit into your life.”

Lesley stopped walking.

“What do you want from me, Lesley? Do you even know? You keep me under wraps for months, but you dress me up and take me out when you need an escort to one your fancy balls. You can show up at my place in the middle of the night and sleep with me, but God forbid anyone should find out about that. You tell me your troubles and you act like you want my help, but at the same time…ah hell.” Niko shoved a hand through his hair and started back to the house.

“But at the same time, what?” Lesley caught up with him. She wrapped her fingers around his bicep in an effort to slow him down. Her grip was no match for the solid muscle it met, but Niko stopped anyway.

He stared at her in the murky light before he finally said, “But at the same time, this.” He kissed her hard. She thought she could feel every muscle and sinew in his body as he wrapped her tightly against him. Abruptly he pulled away. “I am so fucking in love with you, but as you've pointed out numerous times, we are worlds apart. So how are we going to make this work, huh? You can't tell me because you don't know. Because you don't think it can work. You know where that leaves me? Out in the fucking cold. Without you.”

He let her go and took long, determined strides to get back to the house and away from her. She didn't follow him or call after him. She didn't know what to say. Niko rarely swore in her presence, but he'd done it twice just now. He was frustrated and angry and she couldn't blame him. She wanted to feel warmed all over because he'd said he was in love with her, but the way he said it gave her chills. He wanted a place in her life, but he didn't think there was one. Not unless she created it.