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“I’m telling the truth. She’s not in a good place right now. After Giorgio Renaldi disinherited her because he wasn’t her father and the odd way her mother has treated her since, her life’s a mess.” A terrible mess he’d witnessed firsthand. He still couldn’t believe Claudia Renaldi’s selfish neglect of Stasia. “She’s looking for an anchor. Looking for her place in a family and she wants to meet her new brothers.”
“My father never mentioned Claudia Renaldi to us. Ever. Not even in passing. He didn’t like Giorgio Renaldi, but that was healthy competition, nothing more.”
“According to Stasia’s mother, the affair happened. Claudia told Stasia the entire story.”
“Did you hear it?”
“No.” He wished he had. Everything he learned in regards to the circumstance was secondhand information via Stasia. She might’ve forgotten details, misinterpreted what her mother said. And he couldn’t admit to Alex why he never heard the story. Claudia didn’t know Gavin was Stasia’s lawyer. She believed them a couple in love.
Not the usual way he conducted business.
“Strange, but I’m not one to criticize the way you handle yourself.”
“I appreciate that,” Gavin said wryly.
“I’m sure you do. I don’t think we should bother meeting until a DNA test is completed and we know for sure.”
“That could take up to two weeks,” Gavin pointed out. He could get whiplash, what with the way Alex changed subjects. And if he had to tell Stasia she’d have to wait upwards of two weeks before meeting the Worths, she’d most likely flip.
Something he really didn’t want to deal with.
“Not much time, don’t you think? She’s waited this long,” Alex said. “What’s another two weeks?”
“She’s tired of waiting. Can you imagine what it’s like? To lose your birthright, your foundation, your career? She’s been a part of Renaldi Accessories her entire life, just like you’ve been a part of Worth Luxury your whole life. What would you do if it was taken away from you out of nowhere?”
“I’d fight to keep it all.” The conviction in Alex’s voice was strong, inarguable.
“What if legally you couldn’t? What if everything was so tied up in legalities, it would take years to untangle?” A team of lawyers that handled estate and corporate laws had been hired by her oldest brother, Matteo, over the last few days. They planned to evaluate the entire will, looking for any weak spot where they could possibly break free of the clause that Stasia could no longer work for Renaldi, that legally banned her from participating even an iota in the family business.
Alex sighed. “I get your point. Let me call Hunter and Rhett and try to coordinate a meeting. It’ll have to be here, though. No longer than thirty minutes and…I can’t guarantee the other two will participate.”
“Understood.” Excitement fizzed in Gavin’s veins. Now they were getting somewhere.
“I’ll have my assistant call you as soon as we can schedule it.”
“Mid this week would be ideal,” Gavin suggested.
“I’m sure it would.” The amusement in Alex’s voice was clear. At least he was being amendable. “I’ll speak to you soon.”
Gavin hung up, a smile curving his lips. It wasn’t a complete victory, but he’d jumped a major hurdle and it wasn’t even noon. He’d been secretly afraid he couldn’t convince Alex and his brothers to see Stasia. Alexander Worth could be a stubborn son of bitch when he wanted, a man few crossed.
But he’d also been a thoughtful friend when they were in college. Alex had taken Gavin in with no questions when they were incoming freshmen, introduced him to his friends and treated him like he wasn’t different than anyone else. Coming into such a prestigious college, he’d been nervous, afraid he wouldn’t fit in. Alex had eased his worries. Had turned into a lifelong friend, even though they’d drifted apart over the last few years.
Alex was, above all, a man who always put family first, who’d taken the Worth name and grew it into a global brand that only the elite few could compete with. Gavin didn’t blame him for being protective, for wanting to keep his family out of the muck and mire that had consumed Stasia since the death of Giorgio Renaldi.
The entire situation was a complete mess and would most likely take years to straighten out. He’d tried to break that to Stasia as gently as he could on the plane ride home. She’d nodded as if she understood, watching him with those pretty dark blue yes, tempting him with her sweet, sad beauty. After a few minutes of talking business, he’d broken down, leaning in for a quick kiss.
Which had turned into a minor make out session on the red eye back to New York. Thank God the majority of people on the flight had been sleeping, with the exception of the flight attendant, who’d smirked every time she passed by them.
Gavin swiped a hand over his face. He wasn’t handling this correctly. One minute the strict, by-the-book attorney, the next the lust-addled man who thought with his dick and nothing else. It was crazy. And so far, he wasn’t fighting it.
He was probably making the biggest professional mistake of his life, but he couldn’t resist her. It was both simple and the most complicated feeling he’d ever experienced.
Exhaling loudly, he grabbed the phone, punched in Stasia’s cell number. She answered on the third ring, sounding breathless, which fueled every phone-type fantasy he’d had over the last few years.
Now she was the starring feature in all his fantasies.
“Couldn’t stand going a few hours without speaking to me?” she teased as an answer.
