“Love you.”
Ava nearly dropped the phone. Her chest felt tight. Love me? He wants to love me? No. This was a game. It had to be. This was about getting Joseph’s money.
“So after spending less than two days with me, all of a sudden you’ve had this epiphany that I’m the one? That you want to pursue me? No. I’m not buying it.”
“Ava, I told you when we left the ship the way I felt. Don’t act like this is some surprise to you. I already told you I’ve watched you for some time, but seeing you face-to-face that night was like getting hit by a bolt of lightning. And the time we spent together was the closest I’ll ever get to heaven.”
“If you’re not running a scam, you’re just infatuated. Nothing more that a schoolboy crush.”
“We both know that I am not a boy.”
She suppressed a grin. He was definitely all man. But no, it didn’t matter…
“Believe it, Ava. I want you. Don’t tell me you don’t feel the same about me.”
A denial sprang to her lips, but the words wouldn’t come out. Instead she sighed.
“You do feel something for me,” Dominic said softly.
“It’s lust. That’s all.”
“It’s more than that. The sooner you admit it to yourself, the happier you’ll be. I miss you, Ava. Don’t you miss me?”
Ava raked a hand through her hair. She bit her lip, but that didn’t stop the words from coming out. “Yes. Damn it. I miss you. You happy now?”
“I’d be even happier if you’d let me see you now.”
“I can’t. My daughter’s here.”
“Why is that a problem? She’s going to have to meet me sometime,” Dominic said with impatience.
“And why is that?”
“Because I’m going to be in both your lives. I’m not going to be just some booty call you see at night. I want more than that, Ava.”
“I haven’t agreed to anything.”
“You’re right. So let’s start with me coming over later tonight. I want to see you. To hold you in my arms. To hear your cries as I make love to you. Don’t you want that?”
She wanted that. To spend the night with him. To have her thighs locked around him as they made love all night.
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“We’ll be meeting in court.”
“That doesn’t change anything.”
“Yes it does. What kind of whore would have a relationship with a man who might be her daughter’s half brother and is suing her in court?”
“You’re not a whore, Ava. Don’t feel guilty about what you feel for me. It’s not wrong.”
“Yes it is.”
“No it’s not. Look, the truth is, I started out hating you, wanting to take you down a peg. I blamed you for my mother’s unhappiness, I blamed you for the half-assed family I grew up with, and I even blamed you when he was killed.
“But when I started watching you, trying to figure out how I could take everything from you… as sick as it sounds, I began falling in love with you.”
“You’re right, it does sound sick.”
“I watched you dropping your daughter off at school, going to work, taking business lunches, going to the gym… I was sure if I watched you long enough, I’d find proof that you were a whore, a horrible mother, a gold digger who didn’t deserve her business…
“But I found the exact opposite. You’re a devoted mother, I’ve never seen you with another man and you’re at your office from sunup to sundown. I found nothing but reasons to fall in love with you. And I have. I’ve fallen in love with my dead father’s wife, and I’m not afraid to say it.”
“Goodbye, Dominic.”
“Ava, wait—”
She hung up the phone. This was too much. His pursuit of her, the way he was trying to pull out all the stops to convince her to give him a chance. She couldn’t. Things were too tangled between them. She didn’t trust his motives. But most of all, she couldn’t trust her own mind where Dominic was concerned.
Her phone buzzed. She picked it up without looking at it. “I told you I can’t. Leave me alone.”
“I can’t do that.”
That voice. The same voice that had called her before.
“Who is this? What do you want?”
A raspy laugh greeted her ear. “I want you to stay away from them.”
“Stay away from who?”
“Don’t be coy. You know exactly who I’m talking about. Stay away from them or there could be consequences.”
“I don’t know who you think you are, but I do what I want and when I find out who you are, you’re going to pay for this.”
A mocking laugh. “I look forward to it, my sweet.”
And then the line went dead in her ear. Ava checked her call log. Restricted. Just like last time. She didn’t like this. Not one bit. Some sick jerk was playing games with her and she had no idea who it could be. Games like this weren’t Angelo’s style. He preferred a direct approach. So did Dominic, therefore she could rule both of them out. And that brought her firmly back to square one. No suspects. She had to do something. Ava needed a bodyguard now more than ever. Too bad it seemed nobody was willing to step up and protect Joseph Martelli’s widow. Ava was on her own. Some things never changed.
Chapter Eighteen
“What are you looking at?” Ava snapped at the man in the lobby staring at her.
“I…I…”
Ava stomped through the lobby and out of the building. She’d decided to come to work, finally. She’d hoped to get some things done after hiding out in her house. It had been a mistake to come in. Just as it had been a mistake to take Maia to school. Parents had stared at her there. But she’d thought things would be different once she came to work. After all, she owned the company. But people were the same everywhere. Nosy. Judgmental. And rude.
To make matters worse, Melissa had contacted her early that morning and informed her they had a closed-door hearing with Judge Masters at one-thirty. She’d been a fool for believing Dominic. He didn’t want her. The bastard was still going ahead with the ridiculous lawsuit. A part of her couldn’t believe it. There was all the things he’d said to her. The way he’d made her feel. The part of her that wanted to believe him. To give him a chance. But she was just being a fool. Dominic was a man. And past experience had proven that you couldn’t trust a man…at all.
Inside the garage, she walked to her car. Ever since it had been towed home, she’d felt funny about driving it. She didn’t know what had her so ill at ease about it. Mentally shaking away her worries, she unlocked her Benz and climbed inside. Locking the door, she put the key in the ignition and sped out of the garage. The city was busy, much busier than it should have been at this time of day on a Monday.
Ava cursed as traffic slowed to a crawl. It was a good thing the courthouse was only about fifteen minutes away. Otherwise she’d never make it on time and the last thing she needed was to be late to this hearing. Lateness could cost you in both life and business. She knew that firsthand.
“You were the hottest broad in there tonight. Did you see all the guys checking you out?”
Ava laughed. “You must’ve seen something I didn’t.”
Joseph kissed her forehead. “Of course I did. A man like me notices everything, but particularly when someone is looking at my woman. My hot and sexy woman.”
“I’m a mother now. Does that still qualify me as hot and sexy?”
“You’re damned right it does. If I wasn’t there when you had her, I wouldn’t have believed you had a baby.”
“You know exactly how to flatter my ego.”
“Why shouldn’t I? Having you on my arm does more than flatter my ego. It boosts my street cred.”
Ava could only smile at her husband’s logic. “I didn’t know how hot your wife was had anything to do with how you ran your business.”