Susan Mallery - Under Her Skin

She let the words wash over her, then smiled. “You’re going to see her more?”

“We’re having dinner next week. It’s a start”

“That’s great. She’s a good kid. I think you’ll really like her if you just give her a chance.”

“I know.”

“What changed your mind?”

“You.”

Lexi’s already shaky stomach flipped over. “Oh, Cruz.”

“I have a choice with my daughter. My dad had a choice, too. Every time he hit my mother, he had a choice. He did what was selfish-what made himself feel good and damn the consequences. I don’t want to be that guy.”

“You’re not.”

He cupped the back of her neck and kissed her. His mouth was warm and tender against hers. He didn’t have to draw her in, she went willingly. As he deepened the kiss and she got lost in being with him, she remembered him asking why she’d wanted him to be her first time.

It was because she hadn’t had a choice, either. When it came to Cruz, she’d never been able to stop herself. She was the moth to his flame, despite the fact that she already knew that when it was all over, it never ended well for the moth.

WITH ENOUGH CASH, connections and a willingness to cross the line and do the wrong thing, a person could find out an amazing amount of information.

“You sure about this?” Cruz asked.

Lexi stared at the apartment building he’d parked next to, and nodded. “I want to talk to her.”

“Her lawyer could use this against you.”

“There won’t be any lawyers.”

Lexi was sure about that. Garth had picked the wrong Titan to screw with this time. She was done being taken by him. He’d caught her off guard with the loan and he’d won that round, but she was through letting him outmaneuver her.

They went into the apartment building and took the elevator to the third floor. Lexi had called before they’d left the house, pretending to have the wrong number. Ann Paul had answered and Lexi was betting she was still home.

Lexi rang the bell. A few seconds later, the front door opened.

“Yes?” the woman said.

She was in her late thirties, small and plain. Lexi didn’t remember seeing her at the spa, but she looked exactly like the picture Lexi had of her.

“Hi,” Lexi said with a smile, pushing into the apartment. “I’m Lexi Titan. The woman you’re suing. I thought I’d stop by so we could talk. This is my fiancé, Cruz Rodriquez. He’s here to keep me from doing anything stupid.”

Ann had short brown hair and small brown eyes. She looked terrified as she backed into the kitchen.

“I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” she said, sounding as if she were asking a question more than making a statement.

“I will. But first I have a couple of things I’d like to share with you. I’ve done some checking. I know you used to work for Garth. You were the assistant to his assistant.” Lexi smiled. “Sort of like being the dog’s pet. The people in the office all knew you had a thing for Garth, that he never noticed you and that you would have done anything to get him to like you. Apparently even lie.”

Ann blushed. “I d-don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Then I’ll keep explaining. Garth is using you, Ann. He has a personal vendetta against my family and you’re simply one expendable soldier in his army. Filing a lawsuit is easy. I’m guessing Garth’s lawyers did it for you. All you had to do was sign. But it’s going to get a lot more tricky. There will be depositions and hearings. You’re going to have to face my lawyers and I can assure you, they’re not nice people. After that will be a judge, then a jury.”

Ann looked equally confused and scared. “There’s not going to be a trial. You’re going to settle.”

Lexi could almost feel sorry for her. “Is that what Garth told you? That I wouldn’t want to be bothered?”

“There will be a lot of negative publicity. All the things that happened to me after my treatments.” She swallowed. “I have pictures.”

“I’ll just bet you do. I have an investigation team that’s going to find out exactly where you got those pictures taken and who did the makeup.”

Lexi was bluffing. Still, Ann didn’t know that, and Lexi was pleased when her eyes widened.

“I was seriously hurt at your spa. You should have more competent people working for you.”

“What confuses me is, if your claim is correct, why you never came and talked to me.”

“I called,” Ann said, sounding more confident. “I was told you would call me back, but you never did.”

“Interesting. You know we have caller ID on our phones, right? We have a special system that tracks all calls and stores them. Not just the last forty or so, but all calls. So we’ll be able to verify how many times you actually tried to get me on the phone.”

Ann clutched her hands together in front of her. “You should go now.”

“I will, but first let me share a couple of things with you that I’m sure Garth forgot to mention. What you’re doing is illegal. It’s fraud and extortion. There’s enough money in this lawsuit for you to be facing felony charges. Do you think Garth’s going to stand behind you on this? Do you think he’s interested in going to prison to protect you? Do you have anything in writing that proves this wasn’t all your idea?”

All the color left Ann’s face.

Lexi squared her shoulders. “You’re involved in something that’s going to ruin your entire life, Ann. I understand that you care about Garth, but you need to protect yourself first. If you’re telling the truth, if you really were hurt at my spa, then I apologize and I want to make it right. But if this is all another of Garth’s plans to screw with me, then you’re going to be sacrificed. Because I will not let him destroy me. I will do anything and everything to protect what is mine. I’m a Titan, Ann. I’m sure you’ve heard the name before. I have resources you can’t begin to imagine.”

“I…I…” Ann pressed her lips together. “You should go. I’ll call the police if I have to.”

“I’m leaving,” Lexi told her. “Just think about what I said. I don’t want to hurt you, but if you screw with me, I will take you down.” She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a business card.

“If he threatens you or you get scared, call me. Like I said, this isn’t something you started. You should get out while you can. I’m willing to help you do that. You’re probably thinking you can’t trust me, but you’re wrong. Unlike Garth, I do care if someone innocent gets hurt.”

She turned and walked out. Cruz followed. When they reached the elevator, she had to put her hand against the wall to keep from stumbling.

“I think I’m going to throw up,” she whispered.

“Try to hold off until we’re on the main floor,” he told her. “You don’t want to ruin a perfectly good exit.”

His comment made her laugh, which eased a little of the nausea.

The elevator arrived. They got inside and by the time they reached the car, her stomach had calmed down.

“That was horrible,” she said. “He’s using her. What a total bastard.” She looked at Cruz. “I mean that in both senses of the word.”

“He’s playing to win.”

“Fine. He should sacrifice himself. Not some innocent party who doesn’t have the experience or resources to protect herself.”

“Did you mean what you said? Will you really take her down.”

Lexi looked up at the building. Ann’s apartment was on the other side, so she couldn’t see in the windows, but she imagined the other woman curled up and terrified.

“If I have to,” she said, not proud of herself, but knowing she didn’t have a choice. If Garth was going to play to win, she would have to meet him blow for blow.

Cruz opened the passenger door of his Bugatti. “You were impressive.”

“You say that to all the girls.”

He didn’t smile. “I mean it, Lexi. You were tough and reasonable. You told her the truth and you gave her an out. You think she’s going to call you?”

“No. She doesn’t know me and she’s had a thing for him for years. I’m the enemy. I just hope she’ll think about what I said.”

“He won’t want her to pull out of the lawsuit.”

“He won’t like it, but I’m not sure how much he’ll care. His war is being fought on multiple fronts. Losing one battle won’t matter that much.”

“He’s already lost to you. The loan. You found a way out.”

“Thanks to you.”

If Cruz hadn’t come through with the money, she would have been screwed. Going to her father or even Skye hadn’t been an option. She would have walked away from her business first.

“Why did you do it?” she asked. “Why did you loan me the money.”

“You know why. We have a deal.”

In theory, yes. But in practice? “You haven’t asked to meet any other women.”

One corner of his mouth turned up. “You’ve been keeping me busy. Besides, I’ve made a lot of other connections. Don’t worry, I’ll get around to the other women. After you’ve worn me out.”

He meant his words lightly, she was sure. Teasing her with the promise. Because they had a deal. Except she didn’t want to think about him with other women. She didn’t want to introduce him to the society he coveted. She didn’t want to think about him kissing someone else, touching her, taking her to bed. She wanted him…for herself.

“Lexi? Are you all right?”

“Fine,” she whispered. “I didn’t eat this morning. I’m feeling a little light-headed.”

“Then let’s get you some lunch.”

She managed to get into the car. He closed the door and walked around to the driver’s side. She leaned back in the soft leather and told herself it couldn’t be true. She wasn’t that stupid. She hadn’t allowed herself to mess up that badly.

Except she had. Somewhere in the past few weeks, when she hadn’t been paying attention, she’d managed to fall in love with Cruz.

Or maybe she’d always been in love with him and she’d just this minute noticed. Did it matter? Either way, she was in trouble. He wasn’t interested in her as a person. He was interested in what she represented. Like Jed, he would marry the right bloodline and family name. Love didn’t matter to him. He’d told her that in very clear terms. Love was for suckers. Which made her the biggest fool of all.

CRUZ STOOD AT THE front door to Glory’s Gate. “You should do this without me,” he said.

“But you have information,” Lexi told him.

“You can tell them.”

She smiled, the slightly amused, indulgent smile that always made him want to take her to bed. “You’re not scared, are you? Is the big, bad car guy afraid of my sisters?”

“No.” He wasn’t scared. He was an intelligent man and as such, he knew his limitations. Leaving her to deal with her sisters herself was a good business plan.

She grabbed him by the arm. “I’ll protect you,” she said as she opened the front door and walked inside. “We’re here,” she yelled.

Izzy appeared at the top of the stairs, her black curly hair as wild as ever. “My joy is complete,” she yelled down, then sat on the banister and rode it to the bottom. “They’re here, Skye. Life begins.”

Skye strolled into the foyer. She was elegantly dressed, her red hair carefully controlled. She and Izzy might have the same gene pool, but they came from opposite ends.

“Ignore her,” Skye told him. “She’s in one of her moods.”

“I have very cool information,” Izzy announced. “But you’re going to have to wait for me to tell it. You’re not being the least bit respectful.”

Lexi and Skye exchanged a knowing look. “It’s because she’s the baby,” Lexi said, not bothering to lower her voice. “She has to compensate. It can be annoying but we’re used to it.”

They walked into the library and Skye motioned for them to sit on the leather sofas.

The room was large by normal standards. Books lined the walls, while tall windows let in light. It was a man’s room, yet the Titan women looked at ease. After all, they’d grown up here.

Cruz remembered being a poor kid who had always been on the outside, looking in. Back then he wouldn’t have believed houses like this existed outside of the movies. He still couldn’t imagine what it would have been like to live in a place like this, to have servants and horses and a yard the size of Delaware to call his own.

Things were different now. He was successful. He had money, position, power. But sometimes, he couldn’t escape being the poor kid from the barrio.

“My news is good,” Skye said. “The money laundering investigation has totally fizzled. The D.A. couldn’t find even a hint of scandal at the foundation. Everything is done correctly and we keep great records. The bad news is the high-powered attorney I had to hire to take care of this cost a quarter of a million dollars and I really resent having to waste that kind of money on something so stupid. Do you know how many kids I could have fed with that?”